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Merlin Shorb
Rappahannock Methodist Charge
Willis Chapel, Sperryville, Flint Hill
GOD'S JUDGEMENT
Most of us react with fear to the prospect of judgement Sometimes we observe the law out of fear. Such a fear can help to maintain order. But too often we visualize God's judgements as larger versions of our own, which assumes we write the rules instead of God. The forces of nature that threaten our existence are labeled "acts of God." Even we modems who no longer equate God with the created order find ourselves interpreting natural disaster as God's "whip." We claim to see God in the spectacular and tragic, but fail to recognize God's handiwork in the routine.
I feel we need to be aware of a biblical view of judgement. When confronted with an obviously guilty person, Jesus refused to judge. (John 8:11) His whips were not for people, but for livestock. (John 2:15) His rebukes were directed at a threatening storm (MatL 8:26) or an illness (Luke 4:35) or an oppressive spirit. (Mark 9:25) Even when judgment is passed on an individual we read that the intention is remedial. (Gal. 6:1) We also find that the "prince" of the world's system (John 14:30), not God, is the one responsible for the unruly elements. He is appropriately named "the price of the power of the air." (Eph. 2:2) And it is against this rebellious prince that God's judgement is directed. (John 16:11) In the end it was Jesus, not us, who became the "condemned" of the Gospel story. (Luke 24:20) And it was his jealous accusers, not God, who did the judging.
All this is not to say that God will not judge us. Our Scriptures faithfully affirm that God is Judge. What we do say is that Christ and his church are in the posture of refusing to judge before the time. The Day of Judgment is not yet here. We must reserve judgment in the meantime. Also, God alone has the right to judge, along with those in whom he has vested that authority. (John 5:27) Frankly, we don't have the right to pass judgment. We only see things as they appear to be. (John 7:24) Our assumptions are not valid. Only God is aware of all the factors. Only God knows human hearts. (Jer. 17:9-10)
As sinful humans we are already under the wrath of God. (John 3:36) But because none of us are innocent, then none of us are disqualified from God's mercy. (Rom. 11:32) God's anger is directed against sin, not the sinner; against the offense, not the offender. By contrast, human anger does not serve the purposes of God. (Jas. 1:20) At the Judgment the wrath of God will be felt by the disobedient, but only because they preferred to nurse their anger. We are finally "rescued" from the wrath of God by the sacrifice of Jesus. (1 Thess. 1:10) God himself prefers that we be saved from wrath. (1 Thess. 5:9) But God will not compromise our right to choose. Our destiny lies squarely in our own hands. Tragically, we can choose to live without God and suffer eternal loss. Heaven and hell are necessary options in a moral universe.
The comforting feature of God's judging is that God is completely fair. Life in this world is not fair, but God is. The Lord can be depended on to bring justice at last to the human family. As in Creation, God promises eventually to bring order out of chaos. Meanwhile, God can bring order to our lives through faith in Christ
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