What I am about to say is based on my own thoughts and observations, but the more I see our world moving away from God, the more I believe it to be true. And truth be told, I am not sure I will be prepared myself. I think when the inevitable comes, even I- especially me- will be overwhelmed. What am I talking about?
The day we first see Jesus.
I just preached a lesson on the sovereignty of God. It’s a lesson many people don’t give much thought to. But one day, everyone will see Him return to judge the living and the dead. Broadly, there are three groups who will see Him for the first time that day, and no matter which group we fall into, I think the actual majesty of Jesus will totally overwhelm us.
Whether we are someone who serves Him with our heart, has no regard for the King of kings, or is waffling between the two, nothing can prepare us to be in the presence of the one who spoke everything into existence.
It might be easy to think that those who love Him and long to be with Him will feel nothing but peace and contentment in His presence. While I believe that will be the eternal state of those who put their faith in Him, I am not sure it will be that way when we first stand in His presence.
No matter what picture we paint in our minds about Jesus, our imagination is not capable of truly understanding His expansive glory and presence. There is simply nothing we have on earth to relate to what is unrelatable in human experience. Consider the apostle John.
John was likely the youngest of the apostles and the one who lived the longest of them all, probably dying in His 90s. When he first met the Savior, he was likely a teenager. He, his brother James, and Peter were in Jesus’ inner circle. But of them all, Jesus seemed to be especially close to John.
During the Passover meal, Jesus tells the twelve that one of them will betray Him. They all start asking among themselves who it is. Then Peter turns to one John refers to as the disciple whom Jesus loved:
“The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he spoke.
One of his disciples, whom Jesus loved, was reclining at table at Jesus' side,
so Simon Peter motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking.
So that disciple, leaning back against Jesus, said to him, “Lord, who is it?” (John 13:22-25 ESV).
Later, at the end of his Gospel, John writes about Jesus telling Peter how he would die a martyr’s death for Him.
“Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them, the one who also had leaned back against him during the supper and had said, “Lord, who is it that is going to betray you?”
When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, what about this man?” (John 21:20-21 ESV).
John gives us insights into his close relationship with Jesus. But when he finished writing his Gospel, three letters, and Revelation, John was an old man in his 90s, and he had outlived all the other apostles. It had been decades since he walked with the Savior during the three years of His ministry before being crucified. Undoubtedly, this close friend of Jesus longed for the day to be reunited with Him.
Then Jesus appears to him as He is today in His glory as the Creator, the sovereign God, and the mighty King of kings.
“Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands,
and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest.
The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire,
his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters.
In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.” (Revelation 1:12-16 ESV).
So, the disciple whom Jesus loved gets a glimpse of Jesus as He appears now, in all His glory and honor. How did this close friend of Jesus handle the experience of seeing Jesus the way He is now?
“When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last,” (Revelation 1:17 ESV).
John fell, frozen in fear, in the awesome presence of Jesus. So, dear brother and sister in Jesus, if the disciple whom Jesus loved was unprepared for the magnificent glory of Jesus as He is now, how much more will we who love Him also fall at His feet as though we were dead when we see Him for the first time?
Indeed, I believe those who love Him with all of their souls will still be unprepared for the overwhelming glory that is our God and King when they first lay eyes upon Him. But what about those who despise Him? Those who publicly and unashamedly denounce and reject Him? It is no secret that our society is emboldened in its repudiation of Jesus.
I saw one young lady proudly claiming she was an atheist on video, but she didn’t stop there. She went on to say that even if Jesus Himself came down and proved to her that He was God, she still wouldn’t worship Him.
Another atheist claimed that God did not exist but wished He did. The reason he gave would shock you. He said that if God existed, He’d be the most evil being in existence for allowing the suffering in the world to go on. He went on to say He would relish the opportunity to cuss God out to His face.
Now I know that these two examples by no means represent most of humanity’s attitude toward God, but the fact that they can speak so openly and be brazenly blasphemous with impunity shows how far in accepting evil our society has come.
If the disciple whom Jesus loved was unprepared to see Jesus as He is today, imagine what is in store for people like them. On that day, there will be no cussing, laughing, or ridiculing our Creator.
Perhaps the vast majority of people will fall in a spectrum between the blasphemous and those who live in allegiance to King Jesus. Some may not desire to live a godly life but still have enough respect for Him to keep their tongue in check. Others may know beyond certainty that Jesus is Lord and Creator, but in their stubborn willfulness, have yet to bend their knee to Him as their sovereign Lord.
The former will be in for a rude awakening when they first see Jesus and wonder why they ignored the yearning to seek Him out that God placed within all His image bearers. These are the ones who lived for themselves to the point where God gave them over to their desires and allowed them to believe the lie that our God was not worthy to pursue.
The latter will be eaten with regret, having known the truth, perhaps almost persuaded to become a Christian, but who bought into the lie that there would always be tomorrow to do what they knew to be true. They just never counted on the longsuffering of God ever coming to an end.
When they both see Jesus as He is now, neither will be prepared for the awesome presence of our mighty King and God. There will be no cursing, no bargaining, no explaining. We all, the redeemed and the lost, will fall at His feet as though we are dead. In my humble opinion, this will be the reaction we all have when we see Jesus for the first time as He is today.
Paul tells us one undeniable truth:
“so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:10-11 ESV).
When we get over that first overwhelming experience of being in His presence, the experience nothing can truly prepare us for, there will be only kneeling before the sovereign God and confessing Him as Lord.
We will either do this as a willing servant or a conquered foe. But in the end, His sovereignty will be exerted over all men and women.
I am in Psalm in my daily Bible reading. In the 94th Psalm, the Psalmist sings about those who act arrogantly against the God of heaven.
“They pour out their arrogant words; all the evildoers boast.
They crush your people, O LORD, and afflict your heritage.
They kill the widow and the sojourner, and murder the fatherless;” (Psalm 94:4-6 ESV).
How can they do these things against a supremely powerful and sovereign God? The same way we commit evil against Him today:
“and they say, “The LORD does not see; the God of Jacob does not perceive.” (Psalm 94:7 ESV).
We have deluded ourselves into thinking we can act against the Creator with impunity. We dismiss any thought of judgment. We divorce our actions from any possibility that we will be held accountable.
But this is a foolish and misguided attitude to engender. The Psalmist goes on to show the futility of this kind of thinking. What was true then is true for man today.
“Understand, O dullest of the people! Fools, when will you be wise?
He who planted the ear, does he not hear? He who formed the eye, does he not see?
He who disciplines the nations, does he not rebuke? He who teaches man knowledge--
the LORD--knows the thoughts of man, that they are but a breath.” (Psalm 94:8-11 ESV).
God knows.
God sees.
God hears.
He watches all of our actions, good and evil, and knows the thoughts of our hearts. Nothing is hidden from God, and He is able to bring judgment when His longsuffering is exhausted.
Let us not be deluded into thinking we act without the Lord knowing our actions. Nothing will be overlooked, and nothing will fall through the cracks.
While God is gracious and quick to forgive, He will not be mocked by men who have no regard for Him or by those who have no regard for his neighbor.
It's Wednesday.
We're one day closer.
Are you ready if the weekend never comes?
“For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.” (1 Thessalonians 5:2 ESV).
Are we doing all for the glory of God?
What about the things we do on our phone or computer?
What about the movies and television shows we watch?
What about the places we go or the places we do not go?
What about the help we render to others?
What about the recreational activities we engage in?
What about the jobs we have?
What about the worship we engage in?
What about the books we read or the podcasts we listen to?
What about the friends we have or the people we ignore?
What about the money we spend or the money we hoard?
What about the time we spend?
“So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31 ESV).
I am finishing Psalm in my daily Bible reading. What a wonderful book, full of emotion. It is the book where we see our hearts speaking directly to God.
In Pslam, we get raw emotion and heart language. We see joy, thankfulness, fear, and deep sorrow. No matter what we feel, we find an avenue to share it in Psalm with our God, Who truly cares for us.
Psalm 139 challenges me. Perhaps it may challenge you too:
“Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts!
And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!” (Psalm 139:23-24 ESV).
Can I say this? Can I invite God to search the deepest secrets of my heart? We know He can because He made us, but can we ask Him to do this, knowing our hearts are laid bare before Him?
A person who is not living a double life has nothing to fear from the Lord.
A person who harbors no secret sins lays bear their heart.
A person who quickly repents and refuses to stand in pride wants God to see the secret places in his heart.
A person who invites God to search his heart knows God will not find perfection, but He will find loyalty, repentance, and a heart that walks with Him.
But if there is no repentance, loyalty, or allegiance to Him, we try to hide our hearts from Him.
Today, let us all examine our hearts so that we may call upon God to know our hearts, to try us, and to know our thoughts.
I am in Titus in my daily Bible reading. Paul begins his letter to Titus by calling himself the servant and apostle of Jesus Christ. He came a long way from the days when he killed Christians, claiming they were blasphemers.
Listen to how he begins his letter:
“Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God's elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness,
in hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began
and at the proper time manifested in his word through the preaching with which I have been entrusted by the command of God our Savior;” (Titus 1:1-3 ESV).
He didn't just call himself a servant of Jesus; he also called Jesus God. This former persecutor of people he claimed were blasphemers was now making the same claim his victims made.
He doubles down on his confession in chapter 2 when he tells Titus:
“Bondservants are to be submissive to their own masters in everything; they are to be well-pleasing, not argumentative,
not pilfering, but showing all good faith, so that in everything they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior.” (Titus 2:9-10 ESV).
Again, Paul calls our Savior God. When we serve Jesus, we need to remember the foundational element of our faith: Jesus is God. He created all things, including us, and He visited us in the form of man to rescue us from the penalty due us.
We owe our God everything because of the great grace He gave to us and the sacrifice He made to make that grace possible.
We serve Jesus not simply because we agree with His message but because He is our sovereign Creator. Jesus is King, Lord, Mediator, High Priest...
And our God.
We must make this confession before men and God.
I am in the book of James in my daily Bible reading. James intertwines two truths as he writes to encourage people to live their faith.
These early Jews were dogged by persecution. James begins his letter by saying:
“Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.
Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.” (James 1:12-13 ESV).
It seemed that many of these people would lie low so as not to draw attention to themselves. Perhaps this caused them to claim to have faith in Jesus without doing much to show others their faith.
It's a tough choice for anyone to make, isn't it? Perhaps for most of us, this is a foreign concept. Most of us don't have to steel ourselves to live as Christians, knowing it can bring persecution upon us.
The temptation would make it easy to have a mental ascent to faith while not living in a way that draws attention and persecution to us. But James, while acknowledging our faith will bring persecution, tells us that we must still have a faith that will produce the very actions we will be persecuted for.
So, as our society starts to turn hostile to our faith, we will have a choice to make. Do we hide our works, the very works our faith will produce, or do we let our faith produce the works that draw unwelcomed attention to ourselves?
James' admonition to us is the same as his admonition to the Jewish Christians he wrote to:
“So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” (James 2:17-18 ESV).
I am in the book of Joshua, where the Israelites are conquering the land of Canaan and taking it as an inheritance. This happened because the sins of people were now full and the conquest was for the double purpose of giving Abraham's descendants its promised inheritance while handing out justice for these sinful people.
We don't know all about God's longsuffering, but these people had crossed the line in their sins where God no longer held His hand in check. Perhaps it was because they caused their innocent little children to pass through the fire as human sacrifices. Perhaps it was the way they treated others in sin and violence.
Whatever the reason, God chose to give Israel its inheritance while also bringing judgment to these sinful people. Many today charge God with genocide at the hands of the Israelites as though He was unjust and bloodthirsty. But for over 400 years, God kept His hand in check until He could no longer allow these people to continue.
As God brought His judgment upon these people, they did everything they could to stop Him. But we know that men cannot stop His hand when God decides to do anything. Yet, we still try, as futile as it is, don't we? Listen to what the people of Caanan did:
“When Jabin, king of Hazor, heard of this, he sent to Jobab king of Madon, and to the king of Shimron, and to the king of Achshaph,
and to the kings who were in the northern hill country, and in the Arabah south of Chinneroth, and in the lowland, and in Naphoth-dor on the west,
to the Canaanites in the east and the west, the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, and the Jebusites in the hill country, and the Hivites under Hermon in the land of Mizpah.
And they came out with all their troops, a great horde, in number like the sand that is on the seashore, with very many horses and chariots.” (Joshua 11:1-4 ESV).
When God's judgment comes, there is nothing man can do to prevent His hand. God tells Joshua not to worry about this gathering horde.
“And the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them, for tomorrow at this time I will give over all of them, slain, to Israel. You shall hamstring their horses and burn their chariots with fire.” (Joshua 11:6 ESV).
While this is an amazing story of strength and sovereignty, we must walk it off the page and understand the theological message to each of us. God's judgment is coming to all the unrighteous. Perhaps His longsuffering is holding off today because our iniquities are not yet full. But one day, just like this day in the book of Joshua, the judgment sword of God will be drawn against those who do not bend their knee to King Jesus.
When that day comes, fighting against God will be futile. Running to hide from His judgment will be impossible. Only those who have their sins washed away by the blood of Jesus will stand before God, safe from His judgment, having embraced His grace.
One day, the world will wake up to judgment just as the Canaanites did when they faced the Israelites. When that day comes, will we rest in the grace of God, or will we stand against Him as His enemy?