Tag Archives: judgment

The 3 Day Quote Challenge – 3

12 Saturday Nov 2016

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Thank you fitnessgrad for nominating me for this quote challenge. This is day three of a three day challenge. For previous posts: Day 1 and Day 2.

Rules to be followed:

  • 3 quotes each day
  • Up to 3 nominees to be nominated (no repetition!)
  • Thank the person who nominated you
  • Inform the nominees

My quotes for today are:

“I define connection as the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgment; and when they derive sustenance and strength from the relationship.” Brené Brown

“Judging others makes us blind, whereas love is illuminating. By judging others we blind ourselves to our own evil and to the grace which others are just as entitled to as we are…If when we judged others, our real motive was to destroy evil, we should look for evil where it is certain to be found, and that is in our own hearts.” Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship

“It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to, than I have ever known.” The Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens.

I nominate the following people (check out their blogs – they’re amazing!):

BeautyBeyondBones

 

 

Claimed

26 Tuesday May 2015

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This is my last post in my short series on God’s sanctuary. It all began here.

I wanted to share with you that God directed the making of the sanctuary so that he could dwell with his people. That is his eternal desire. The message of the sanctuary was that God was demonstrating his love to us in that while we were sinners, Jesus Christ died to save us. Why did he do such a thing? So that we would dwell with him as he wants to dwell with us.

But then I shifted focus to the judgment. I’ve heard the judgment described in various ways, many of which make God look terrible and run contrary to the purpose and message of the sanctuary. Usually, the Son of God is having to convince God the Father to forgive, accept, and receive us.

In contrast, I suggested that the scenario I see in scripture reveals a God who stands between you and the Accuser, the hater of love and life, and not only defending you but claiming you as his child. Does that sound crazy?  Well, I got it from the Bible. Does it have anything to do with the sanctuary? Yes!

Let me set the mood with Psalm 109: 26-31
Help me, O Lord my God! Oh, save me according to Your mercy, That they may know that this is Your hand—That You, Lord, have done it! Let them curse, but You bless; When they arise, let them be ashamed, But let Your servant rejoice. Let my accusers be clothed with shame, And let them cover themselves with their own disgrace as with a mantle. I will greatly praise the Lord with my mouth; Yes, I will praise Him among the multitude. For He shall stand at the right hand of the poor, To save him from those who condemn him.

And now consider Zechariah 3. Here we find a high priest, standing before God, and he is being accused by Satan. God will have none of it and he shuts Satan down. Verse 2 says, “The Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?””

Pretty cool, right? Here’s the thing, this short passage is talking about the high priest in the most holy place of the sanctuary on the day of atonement – judgment day! What’s really amazing is the high priest is wearing filthy garments (actually covered in excrement). This is despite all the cleansing and care he would have taken to stand in rightness before the LORD. And yet, it’s clear that it’s nothing the high priest did or said that commended him but it’s because of Christ Jesus who is promised in verse 9. The changing of his garments indicate he has been made right, he is accepted, God wants to dwell with him. And, in the end, we can see that this is our story, too

Behold what manner of love is this?!?

Your Advocate Part 2

12 Tuesday May 2015

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I’ve been sharing a short series on God’s sanctuary, his beautifully complex theatre of grace. Last week, I wanted to get you thinking about our need for an advocate. How does our need for an advocate connect to the sanctuary?

In the sanctuary, there is an aspect of judgment that becomes most evident during the time of Yom Kippur or Day of Atonement. I don’t have time to do into detail right now but the Bible is clear we are currently in the time of judgment on the eve of Jesus Second Coming; it’s even at the door!  The Bible says his return is certain and when he returns he will have his reward with him. These promises indicated that a judgment will take place on who will be coming home with Jesus and who will not. 

The problem is when we talk about God’s judgment I’ve heard a couple scenarios. Some of these pictures of God that we pick up are dangerous. As CS Lewis once wrote: “Not that I am in much danger of ceasing to believe in God. The real danger is of coming to believe such dreadful things about Him. The conclusion I dread is not ‘So there’s no God after all,’ but ‘So this is what God’s really like.” A Grief Observed

Most of the time, judgment is talked about in courtroom language. Let me attempt to diagram with words the judgment scenarios I have heard people talk about:

Scenario #1

Heavenly beings (Jury)

You (guilty party)  –>   Jesus (your advocate) —>   Father (judge)

Like a good advocate, Jesus is pleading with your Father for you. His role is to convince God and the heavenly beings to accept you.  The problem with this scenario is it puts the son against your Father when they are both in the saving business. God (all three members of the trinity) delights in you; he wants you to be in his home. Jesus did not die to change your Father’s mind about you.

Scenario #2 – slight variation of Scenario #1

Heavenly beings (Jury)

You (guilty party)  –>   Jesus (your advocate) —>   Father (judge)

                           Satan (prosecuting attorney)

This is a slight variation on Scenario #1.  Satan is in the mix and he is arguing the case against you. Jesus is still pleading for you as your advocate. Unfortunately, the goal is still to get your heavenly farther to accept you.  

Scenario #3

Heavenly beings (Jury)

You (guilty party)  <—  God  —>    <—— Satan (accuser)

This is the scenario I see in scripture. You are saved by grace. God has done for you what you could not and cannot do for yourself. God desires you in his home; he even has a celebration banquet planned for your arrival. Satan is furious that God would let you into heaven so he goes on the attack. Satan accuses you, points out all your sins and wrongdoings; he says you shouldn’t go to heaven, don’t deserve to go, wouldn’t be safe if you were there. What does God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – do?

Jesus your Advocate, Your Father in heaven, your comforter the Holy Spirit stand up for you; they stand between you and Satan, rebuke him, and claim you as their child!

Can you have faith in a God like that?

Badvocate

05 Tuesday May 2015

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When I was in elementary school, a new kid moved into our neighbourhood and we became friends. During the school year, our class went on a camp out. That night, as we were in our bunks and supposed to be going to sleep, some of the kids started picking on the new kid. You see, his skin was darker than ours and he had an accent – he was different.

I was so angry at this bullying, that in the loudest voice I could muster, I shouted at them to leave him alone and to stop picking at him. (Insert applause and pats on the back here.) But wait, there’s a little more to the story. it’s the part that haunts me and I wish I could take back. If I ever remember that new kid’s name I will track him down and apologize.

I shouted at them to leave him alone and then I said, “He can’t help it that he was born that way.”

I still feel the sting of shame when I think about it. Sure, it was grade 5 or 6 and kids in grade 5 and 6 say dumb things. Add in the tension and the potential for an actual fist fight and it’s easy for a person’s mouth to get ahead of their brain.

And yet, the truth of the matter is, I wasn’t a very good advocate for my friend.

Have you ever been picked on or accused of something you didn’t do and you wished you had an advocate; someone who would rise to your defence, stand up for you?
I”ve been sharing some thoughts with you regarding God’s sanctuary. The ultimate purpose of the sanctuary is so that God coud dwell with us; he wants to be the centre of our lives. The ultimate message of the sanctuary is that even while we were far away from God, rebellious, angry, and separated, God was demonstrating his love for us through his self-sacrifice.

Next I want to tell you that the good news of the sanctuary is that you have an advocate who is on your side. I’ll show you how beautiful this truth is about God in my next post.

Disarmed

13 Tuesday Jan 2015

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A good friend has encouraged me to read Derek Flood’s book, “Disarming Scripture.”* I haven’t even started it yet but it has already wrinkled my brain with this one paragraph my friend sent me. May it also wrinkle your brain.

“Jesus, while embracing the prophets’ priority of compassion over ritual, rejects their common tactic of blaming the victim, and instead acts to heal those who are sick, effectively undoing God’s supposed “judgment” on them. Jesus, in fact, does not associate sickness with God’s judgment at all, but with the kingdom of Satan, and thus acts to liberate people from its bondage, rather than upholding it as right and calling for repentance as the prophets do. Jesus therefore rejects the prophets’ claim that such judgment (sickness, suffering, etc.) is God’s work, and instead frames his healing ministry in terms of the kingdom of God advancing against Satan’s kingdom (cf. Luke 11:17–20).” ~Derek Flood, Disarming Scripture.

*This isn’t a wholesale endorsement of this book, rather it’s just a note about why I would bother to check it out.

The Three – Worship… Him Who Made

26 Thursday Dec 2013

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I’ve been sharing some thoughts concerning the last message of warning given to a dying planet – Revelation 14:6-12. Although this message is for “those who dwell on the earth,” people who are not in a relationship with God and don’t give God glory, the last part of the first angel’s message speaks to all of us: “Worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water.”

Everyone needs to hear the call to worship him who made because human hearts are idol factories. With no effort at all we often look to people and things for what only God can give. We regularly turn good things into ultimate things.

Our idols are not easy to spot because they are entrenched in our lives; it’s to the point we like to pretend they’re not there. Sure we can pick on what we idolize culturally – sports teams, musicians, and TV stars. Sometimes we will rail against the big three idols of the world – Power, Money, and Sex. But the deeper we go, the less we like to talk about our idols and the harder they become to see. Family, traditions, nationalism like Jonah, our careers, certainty, and prosperity can all be idols to us. We can even make idols in our faith experiences such as the idol of successful ministry, the idol of correct doctrine, and the idol of moral performance.

How can we discover where are idols are so they can be rooted out? Try out these questions:

Is there anything in my life where I am saying: “If only I could _____________ then I’ll be happy” or “If only I had more ______ then I would be good to go; able to handle anything”?
Is there something I am pursuing at all costs; is there something I have been sacrificing the really important things to?
What do I daydream about? I don’t mean you dream about being on a beach somewhere warm when it gets cold. I’m talking about habitually daydreaming about having something that will certainly complete your joy.
How am I spending my money? Where your treasure is, that’s where your heart is. “Your money will also flow effortlessly towards your greatest love.”
When I pray for something and I don’t get it, how do I react? Do I experience anger or deep despair?

Anything coming to mind? If so, take it to God right now and ask if it’s an idol to you. If it is, it needs to be uprooted and smashed; it’s sucking the life out of you. However, that’s not enough. You must plant something else in it’s place: The love of God. Meditate on it, daily receive it, give it out to others; let it saturate your being.

(I would like to give a nod to Timothy Keller whose perspectives on idols have been life changing for me.)

The Three – Worship

18 Wednesday Dec 2013

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I’ve been sharing some thoughts concerning the last message of warning given to a dying planet – Revelation 14:6-12. Although this message is for “those who dwell on the earth,” people who are not in a relationship with God and don’t give God glory, it raises questions for all people.

The last part of the first angel’s message is: “Worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water.”

A central theme in the Revelation of Jesus Christ is worship. In Revelation 13, we see a counterfeit trinity – the dragon and the two beasts – and it seeks to be worshipped. To get what it wants this satanic triple threat resorts to deception and manipulation, even to the point of murder. Look at Revelation 13:11-12, 15: Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon. And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed… He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.

God’s solution to this attack against humanity is to call people to worship him who made. Not to worship things. Not to worship people. Certainly not to worship the dragon who never made anything except trouble.

Now if we didn’t take in any context, it might seem like God is demanding worship. Those who believe the devil’s lies about God say he just a needy dictator who goes around saying, “Worship me, worship me.” Let’s be clear: God doesn’t need to be worshipped by us or anybody else. No, we need to worship him for our own good. The call to worship God is an act of love because everything else we worship is about to collapse; it’s about to a powerful vortex of destruction and God doesn’t want anyone to get sucked into it.

There’s actually a process in the passage that reveals God’s love. It begins with the everlasting Good News – God’s acceptance of us – God always takes the initiative because we are disabled, broken and lost. What happens when we accept God’s acceptance of us; when we trust in him and his desire to save us and bring us home? We begin a close, intimate, repentant relationship with our Lord and Saviour. We begin to know God and be known by God; often referred to as ‘fearing God.’ With faith in the Good News, really the truth about who God is, living in an ever-deepening relationship, we will begin to give God glory: loving God, others and even ourselves just like God loves us. When our lives are moving to the rhythm of God’s grace, we can’t help but have a life of gratitude – worshipping him who made.

The amazing thing is, if we don’t resist God’s love, this will happen automatically, moment by moment, day by day.

The Three – Judgment Seat

09 Monday Dec 2013

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I’ve been sharing some thoughts concerning the last message of warning given to a dying planet – Revelation 14:6-12. Although this message is for “those who dwell on the earth,” people who are not in a relationship with God and don’t give God glory, it raises questions for all people. One of those questions is how does God’s judgment apply to those who know God and are known by God?

In my last post, I pointed out that if you know God and are known by God, he doesn’t judge you; you are accepted and he is a safe place to place to put all your belief or trust. What I have noticed is that when I share this Good News, many people have a big but: But what about when the Bibles says we are judged for our works and we have to appear before the judgment seat?

The Bible speaks of two judgments: the Great White Throne and the Judgment Seat of Christ.

The Great White Throne is a judgment for those whose names are NOT written in the Book of Life (Revelation 20:11-15). In a nutshell, everyone’s names start out written in the book of life. As we resist God’s love and grace and reject his invitation to be in a covenant with him, slowly but surely our names are blotted out. Technically, the Great White Throne Judgment does not determine salvation; it is the end result of refusing to trust in God’s love and grace; in his acceptance of us. Those who know God and are known by God have no worry about the Great White Throne judgment.

However, those who know God and are known by God do come before the Judgment Seat of Christ (Romans 14:10; 2 Corinthians 5:10). This phrase comes from the Greek word that sounds like “Bay-ma.” What’s that?

Think of the Olympics. After a race, the athletes receive their reward according to how they placed in the contest – some are participants, some receive medals. The panel of judges that gives out the awards is the “Bay-ma.”

The judgment seat of Christ is NOT a judgment concerning our sins; it’s not about being saved or lost. Our sins are forgiven and we are saved because of Christ’s cross. When we are with Christ, no record of our sin remains (Hebrews 8:12; Micah 7:19). He took our sin upon Himself and defeated it with His sacrificial death and glorious resurrection: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.” John 5:24

The Judgment Seat of Christ is to determine our heavenly rewards. In other words, it’s where we receive our reward for the things we have done as a RESULT of our saving relationship with Christ. This old song captures the picture quiet well.

Thank You by Ray Boltz

(Many thanks to my friend Michael C. who helped me have greater clarity on this complex topic.)

The Three – No Judgment

05 Thursday Dec 2013

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I want to apologize in advance for the long post. I tried to condense as much as possible.

I’ve been sharing some thoughts concerning the last message of warning given to a dying planet – Revelation 14:6-12. Although this message is for “those who dwell on the earth,” people who are not in a relationship with God and don’t give God glory, it raises questions for all people. One of those questions is how does God’s judgment apply to those who know God and are known by God. Last time, I wanted to make it clear that we have been set free, rescued, delivered, saved, by God’s grace and there is not one thing we can add to that. And yet, many who look to God as friend and Saviour, are afraid of judgment or at least concerned they won’t measure up.

If we’re going to talk about God’s judgment and we’ll start with a familiar and bedrock foundational text: John 3:16-18 (NLT).

The statement I want you to see today is, verse 18: “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him.” How much judgment is no judgment? Zero.

Have you ever felt judged? Maybe from your boss at work, a teacher at school, another church member, or even a parent? What’s it feel like? Words that come to my mind are anxiety, crushing weight, feeling small or insignificant, wounded. If you know what it’s like to feel judged then read that promise again. Does it bring peace to your restless heart? If you need additional assurance, also read John 5:24.

Both John 3:18 and 5:24 talk about believing. What does that mean?

When we believe, trust or have faith in Jesus Christ, it’s much more than simply knowing about God or having an understanding of God’s characteristics. You can get a really good grasp that God is Creator, Rescuer and Restorer and still perish. You can know that Jesus is wholly God as well as wholly man – God among us – and still die forever. Believing in Jesus and the one who sent him means that we believe or trust in God characteristics AND his character; what he is AND who he is.

Let’s say, there is something in your life you want to see healed – could be mental, spiritual, or physical. You say, “I believe you are Creator God and I ask in Jesus name for you to heal me.” Wait for it… wait for it…. Nothing seems to happen.

You start to figure you must be doing something wrong:
You need to get your life in order, 
You’re not being spiritual enough,
You just aren’t being obedient enough.

Then in creeps in this thought that maybe God doesn’t hear your prayers or he does but he doesn’t care enough to answer them. Maybe he just doesn’t care about you. Disappointment, bitterness and cynicism start to find a place in your heart… Sure,you still believe there’s a God but now you starting to believe the worst about him. Without even realizing it, you make the first judgment – the one made by Adam and Eve: God is not really who he says he is and he can’t be trusted.

Believing in Jesus means that when you are caught between a rock and a hard place you hang on to your trust in his character, in his ability to fulfill his promises; to be the God you have read about. Believing in Christ Jesus means to keep abiding in him even when he says, “I heard your many requests but my grace is sufficient for you.”

Would you like to have that kind of belief today?

The Three – Foundations

02 Monday Dec 2013

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If you just had a few moments to call out a warning to people you love, what would you say and how would you say it? What would you be willing to risk? If you knew that the warning would be scoffed at and ignored, would you still give it? I ask you to consider these questions and more in a series called, “The Three.”

In the last letter of the Bible, there’s a lot of symbolism; a story being told with vivid imagery. In that letter we find an urgent message in Revelation 14:6-11.

The loud cry of the angels is for “those who dwell on the earth” and announcement that the hour of judgment has come is a wake up call for them. Rebellious, angry, self-centred, they will come under the judgment that the way of self is a dead end and as it collapses they will be caught in it.

What about those who know God and are known by God? How do we understand God’s judgment and those who have set their hearts upon the heavenly kingdom? What I can tell you is Good News but I need to lay down a foundation first.

One of my favourite authors was inspired to write:There is not a point that needs to be dwelt upon more earnestly, repeated more frequently, or established more firmly in the minds of all than the impossibility of fallen man meriting anything by his own best good works. Salvation is through faith in Jesus Christ alone. {FW 18.3}

Why is that so important? What I have observed is that we tend to slip easily into making obedience our focus. It’s rooted in our desire to be our own gods. Why is it that something that’s good – obedience – can go so wrong? Emphasizing and focusing on obedience does one or more of the following in our hearts (feel free to check the ones that apply to you):

Become self-absorbed and develop performance anxiety – never good enough.
Salvation goes from faith alone to faith + obedience.
Nurtures a “God owes me attitude” – salvation, victory, healing and so on.
Distorts our picture of God.
Lose sight of grace; lose grace towards others.
Leads to shame which leads to blame, judgment, and contempt towards self and others.
Become fruit inspectors and gnat strainers.
Jesus becomes a means to an end – we love the father’s things and not the father himself.

If you are struggling with a habit; if you have a character trait that hurts you and others, if you lack joy, peace, and patience – it is not that you are a failure, that your will power needs a kickstart, or that you need to try harder. The problem is likely found in your struggle to trust, abide, and cling to Jesus as your all-sufficient saviour.

Do you need to adjust your focus today?