Justice: a Day of Reckoning. Revelation 20:11-15

Do you like justice? Test days? Report cards? A day of reckoning?

Do you ever hear the crazy people on TV or social media and wish they could get a glimpse of the truth—that Jesus is Lord? Sometimes I just want to tell them that “every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord” Philippians 2:10-11 (there are similar verses in Isaiah and Romans). Everyone you know will bow. Everyone you don’t know will bow. Everyone who is good. Everyone who is bad. Every child, old person, man, woman, rich, poor, educated or uneducated.

And then God will set up the scariest, most impressive, overwhelming courtroom in history: THE GREAT WHITE THRONE JUDGMENT.

“Then I saw a great white throne and Him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire” Revelation 20:11-15.

Imagine God’s throne, so awe inspiring and fearsome that “Earth and heaven flee” from it. (The earth itself runs away?)

But those who have refused to bow the knee in this life will not be allowed to run away, but will desperately bow before God’s throne in heaven. But it will be too late.

And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was thrown into the Lake of Fire (v.15).

There will come a day of reckoning. The lost will face the Great White Throne Judgment, also called “the Great and Terrible Day of the Lord” in Malachi 4:5. But we will also be judged. Believers will face a different judgment–the Judgment Seat of Christ according to 2 Corinthians 5:10. Our lives will be evaluated based on our deeds done as believers. Are we serving God? Are we sharing His truth? Are we growing in Christ? Are we using our spiritual gifts? God will reward us for our deeds done as members of the Body of Christ. There will be a day of reckoning for us too. May He find us faithful.

Dear God, fill us with urgency about the truth: You are “coming again to judge the quick and the dead” 2 Timothy 4:1. Show us how to share that message with the lost. Help us remember the simple truth—this world and all its debates is temporary; it’s all going to burn, and the lost will bow their knees, confess Jesus as Lord, then be cast into the lake of fire. And our souls may be saved, but our works will be judged. Inspire us to do more and better works for you. Help us to love your word and to love and serve your people. Find us faithful. Make us faithful. Make us faithful, hardworking servants of Christ, doing your will with joy every day. May we be inspired by the truth—you are coming quickly, with rewards in your hand, Revelation 22:12. We love you. Help us love you more every day. We are yours. You died for us, you rescued us from the lake of fire. So help us remember that and serve you well every day. Find us faithful. Find us faithful. May all who come behind us find us faithful. Thank you.

ΑΩ

DEATH. 2 Kings 34:27-28.

We dread the death of friends and family. And most fear their own death. Those who don’t fear death hope nevertheless to postpone it as long as possible. It is rare to find one who welcomes death (though Paul wrote, “to die is gain” Philippians 1:21.)  We SHOULD want to live. We should have plans and dreams.

God expects us to be FULLY ENGAGED IN THIS LIFE, and that is difficult for anyone anticipating Heaven.

Our view of death is zoomed-in. Have you ever edited a picture on a computer screen? If you use the zoom-in feature to bring your vision 400-times closer, you can edit the picture one pixel at a time. But after a few minutes working at the 400X level, you lose sight of the big picture and have to stop and zoom-out to verify your work looks natural. Life on earth is like that: we spend our entire life zoomed-in. It is only at death that we zoom-out and see the big picture.

God told King Josiah that God would punish Judah, but because Josiah wept for the nation’s sins, “I will gather you to your fathers in peace. Your eyes will not see the disaster” 2 Kings 34:27-28. In other words, God would take Josiah’s life EARLIER than He might have if Josiah had not sought God earnestly.

For Josiah, an early death was a REWARD!

Similarly, Isaiah writes that when “the righteous perish … faithful men are swept away from evil, to enter into peace” Isaiah 57:1-2. Death can be a mercy.

Josiah died at 39—a young age by any reckoning. But Heaven is better than earth, right? And Josiah beat everyone else there! We are all hoping to get there—we should remember that those who get there before us are being spared some of the suffering of this life.

What about modern America’s greatest horror, the too-common shootings of schoolchildren? Compassion requires silence in the presence of grieving families. There are no words.

But writing to my own family I can say: I believe those children are in heaven today, and would not choose to return.

God hates murder and evil and the pain of death MORE than we do—and He will execute justice. But He loves those children.

God, bless the grieving families and communities that have witnessed the shooting deaths of innocent children. May Your Holy Spirit bless the hurting and draw them to You.

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BASIC INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE LEAVING EARTH. Philippians 1:27.

Some say the word BIBLE stands for “Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth.” The Bible has lots of instructions for those ready to hear them–“for those who have ears to hear.” And although some Old Testament rules (such as dietary restrictions) may not apply to our daily lives, that is not true for the instructions in the New Testament. We live under the New Covenant—and the New Testament was written specifically for us.

But who needs instructions?

Can’t we just focus on adventure stories and a few good worship songs? Maybe enjoy some poetry?

Why would anyone want instructions?

Another word for instructions is “advice.” We want advice when we realize we have a need. If you want to get better at something, or sharpen a skill of some sort, then you welcome instructions.

In spiritual matters, WHEN YOU WAKE UP AND SEE YOUR NEED, then you will be happy to discover that the answers are in the Bible—particularly in the epistles (letters) from Paul to various churches. Examples:

“Live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ” Philippians 1:27. (Wow.)

“Do nothing out of rivalry or vanity, but with humility consider one another more important than yourselves. Everyone should look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others” Philippians 2:3-4.

“Do all things without grumbling or disputing, so that you may be blameless… shining like stars in the world” Philippians 2:14-15.

“Let your graciousness be known to everyone…. Do not worry about anything but pray with thankfulness” Philippians 4:5-6.

“Let your mind dwell on things that are true and excellent and pure” Philippians4:8.

“Set your mind on things above, not on things of earth” Colossians 3:2.

“Put away the following: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and filthy language from your mouth. Do not lie to one another” Colossians 3:8-9.

“Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as unto God rather than men” Colossians 3:23.

Dear God, help us wake up and see our need for your amazing word! Wake us up! And give us a hunger for good instructions.

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Comfort for Parents Who Have Regrets. Philippians 1 and 2.

I worry a bit about failing to do all we could as parents. I have regrets. Today I read a verse that brings me comfort. Paul writes to his spiritual children:

“I am confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” Philippians 1:6.

These verses remind me that my children are in His hands. I can trust Him with them. I pray for both of them so much, and I pray for God to make me and my wife the best, godliest parents that we can be.

But after prayer, I’m reminded to rest confidently in Christ. Because He who began a good work in my children will continue to perfect it. He will keep working on them, even as they grow up and my parenting role changes.

Paul writes a second line a bit later that is applicable. He says that God can give my children the desire and the ability to serve Him.

“For it is God who is at work in you, causing you to both desire and to fulfill His good purpose” Philippians 2:13.

God gives us the desire to serve Him, and then He gives us the ability, the tools, and the opportunity. Nothing in our lives will ever be more fulfilling than serving God. Pray for that desire for yourself and your children and for opportunities to fulfill it.

Dear God, thank you that YOU began your good work in us and you will complete it. Help us yield to you daily, to give you free reign to do your will in our lives. Give us a deep desire to please you, and then bring us opportunities. Do your work in us so that we can do your work in the world. Our lives belong to you. Use them as you will. We surrender to your loving, perfect will.

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Thoughts on Well-Publicized Celebrity Conversions. Philippians 1:15-18

This post drafted November 22, 2019, following Kanye West’s announcement that he had recently converted to Christianity.

What do you think about Kanye West? Some of us have been debating the subject for days. I think he is green and needs to grow and study and continue to be mentored. At this point, he could use a dose of humility. (A lack of humility always indicates a lack of wisdom.)

But he is drawing a lot of attention to the gospel.

And speaking out against pornography which he says ruled his life.

The recent events remind me of two other well-publicized celebrity conversions, that of Jane Fonda and Anne Rice. Jane Fonda rather famously gave her life to Christ some 15 years ago. Having recently looked up the subject again, I do not doubt that she continues to take that faith seriously. But her conversion did not play out the way most in the church initially hoped it would.

The novelist (the vampire chronicler) Anne Rice, famously “returned to the faith of her childhood,” a few years ago and wrote a handful of amazing books about Jesus, my favorite being Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt (which I loved). Rice then officially “left the faith” in 2010. Ms. Rice claims still to cling to Christ, but no longer wants to identify herself as a Christian or as a member of the Christian faith, being disappointed that the Catholic church remains opposed to same-sex marriage.

A third celebrity who claimed to be born again is Charlie Sheen. He says he found Christ in 1997—and that may be completely true—but twenty years later he appears to continue to struggle with the demons of his past: drugs and women.

Even Matthew Perry reported desperately crying out to God while trying to detox from his drug addiction. “God, please help me, show me that you are here.” Soon he was overwhelmed by the presence of God and found himself weeping. “I wasn’t weeping because I was sad–I was crying because for the first time in my life, I felt Okay. I felt safe. Taken care of … He saved me that day, and for all days, no matter what.”

When it comes to celebrity conversions, I err on the side of skepticism.

This is what my friends and I were debating on Facebook when Bob Young offered the best comment, saying, in effect, that as long as these famous people–no matter how spotted their personal lives–are proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ, then God’s word is going forth.

Bob quoted Philippians 1:15-18.

Honestly, if this passage were not in the Bible, I would argue against its conclusions. But I’m not going to argue with the Apostle Paul, the genius legal expert and author of more books of scripture than anyone else. Here’s what Paul has to say about preaching that some find questionable:

“Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ even from envy and strife, but some also from good will; the latter do it out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel; the former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition rather than from pure motives, thinking to cause me distress in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and in this I rejoice” Philippians 1:15-18.

The above is from my favorite translation, the New American Standard. But I also like the way The Message puts it:

“So how am I to respond? I’ve decided that I really don’t care about their motives, whether mixed, bad, or indifferent. Every time one of them opens his mouth, Christ is proclaimed, so I just cheer them on!” Philippians 1:18.

We are to rejoice that Kanye and his family are preaching Christ, even if they preach imperfectly. Pray for them and for Adam Tyson, Kanye’s well-trained pastor and mentor. Pray for Kanye’s rich celebrity friends and family. Maybe God is sending a revival to the broken, hurting people of Hollywood. The Bible says to be shrewd and to test the words and examine the fruit. I have a wait-and-see attitude about Kanye. But God is at work. We need to pray for him.

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ARE YOU WILLING TO BE INTERRUPTED BY GOD? Acts 27.

When their ship left Israel to sail to Rome, the captain and crew surely believed no one on board knew more about sailing than they did. This was a huge ship for the first century, carrying some 276 people (more than a Boeing 737). They would travel a thousand miles across the Mediterranean Sea in the winter. Things would not go well.

Early in the voyage one of the 200-plus passengers offered some unsolicited advice to the captain of the ship. Who was this untrained landlubber? He was a criminal, a prisoner appealing his case to Caesar. If you were the captain of the ship, would you take advice from a prisoner?

“By now, much time had passed and the voyage was already dangerous … Paul gave his advice and told them, ‘Men, I see that this voyage is headed toward damage and heavy loss, not only of the cargo and the ship, but also of our lives.’ But the centurion paid attention to the captain and the owner of the ship rather than what Paul said” Acts 27:9-11.

They ignored Paul’s advice and soon found themselves in a storm lasting fourteen days. They dropped anchors but continued to drift. They pulled in the sails. They jettisoned cargo. Everyone thought they were going to die. Again, Paul spoke up.

“You should have followed my advice not to sail from Crete and sustain this damage and loss. Now I urge you to take courage, for there will be no loss of any of your lives, but only of the ship. For this night an angel of the God I belong to and serve stood by me and said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul, you must stand before Caesar. And behold! God has graciously given you all those who are sailing with you.’ Therefore, take courage, men, because I believe God that it will be just the way it was told to me. However, we must run aground on a certain island” Acts 27:21-26.

The men onboard were encouraged by Paul’s words, though they must have wondered what to make of this talkative prisoner. The storm continued and one night some sailors tried to sneak away by lowering the lifeboat into the water. But Paul spoke up a third time:

“Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, ‘Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.’ Then the soldiers cut the ropes holding the skiff and let it drop away” Acts 27:31-32.

As daylight approached, Paul spoke up a fourth time, encouraging everyone to eat. Paul knew they would need their strength because they would be swimming or treading water in a few hours.

“Today is the fourteenth day that you have been going without food, having eaten nothing. Therefore, I urge you to take some food. For this has to do with your survival’ … They all became encouraged and took food themselves” Acts 27:33-36.

Soon land was spotted, but the ship struck a sandbar. The bow was held fast, but the stern was beaten and destroyed by the waves. The centurion ordered those who could to swim to shore. The rest would drift on floating debris. In this way, everyone was saved as the angel had promised Paul.

Remember the way this story began?

Paul interrupted the leaders to warn them of bad times ahead and to tell them that they should not sail from Crete but remain there and wait out the winter. The captain, the owner of the ship, and the centurion chose to ignore Paul. What followed was a terrible storm interrupted by a series of messages God gave through Paul.

Are you prepared to have your plans interrupted by God?

Each time Paul spoke, the decision-makers listened to him more closely. By listening to God, no lives were lost. But they lost the ship, surely a tremendous investment. If they had listened to Paul in the first place, they could have saved the ship too.

Do you seek God? Do you ask Him to lead you—and do you expect to hear from Him?

“My sheep hear My voice and they follow Me” John 10:27.

God, interrupt us! Teach us to listen.

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“CALLOUSED” IS AN ADJECTIVE. Acts 28:26-27.

Have you ever had a callous? Most of us have had one on our hands or feet. Anywhere that the skin must resist rough treatment, an area of thickened skin called a “callous” forms. And the additional strength is welcome—it’s better than a blister. But a callous is vulnerable too. If it is pierced, cut, or punctured, it does not heal well. I have mixed emotions about callouses for just that reason. They seem “manly” somehow, but if you slice into one, the difficult healing makes having a callous regrettable.

Imagine a callous on your heart. The Bible speaks often about “hearts grown calloused.” Is your heart calloused—have you grown a thick spot from resisting God’s Word? The Bible says people can develop calloused hearts, blind eyes, and deaf ears. God said it about His chosen people, the Jews, through both Isaiah and Paul:

“Go to these people and say: You will listen and listen, yet never understand; you will look and look, yet never perceive. For the hearts of these people have grown CALLOUS, their ears hard of hearing, and they have SHUT THEIR EYES; otherwise, they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears, understand with their heart, and be converted, and I would heal them” Acts 28:26-27.

People say God’s word will step on your toes. Maybe not literally. But His word will touch you. Will you let it sink in and change you, or will you resist His touch and grow calloused?

God says the Jews were actively shutting their eyes. They ignored what they did not want to see and hear, and became BLIND, DEAF, and CALLOUSED. If you are calloused to God’s touch in one area, that callous will make you unable to feel His touch in all areas. If you resist God’s word in ONE area, you will CEASE TO HEAR HIS VOICE in ALL areas.

When I read passages like this, I pray about my heart. Go back over Acts 28:26-27 (above) and ask God to make your heart open and tender, your ears listening, and your eyes seeing. Beg Him to give you a listening, worshipful heart that responds to Him quickly and obediently.

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A Lawyer Looks at the Trials of the Apostle Paul. Acts 24-26.

Laws are built on beliefs about the nature of man, of justice and fairness, and how best to operate a society. No source played a larger role in the development of Anglo-American (“English-American”) law than the Bible. Not only did the Archbishop of Canterbury write the first draft of the Magna Carta, but the book most often cited by America’s founding fathers in their speeches and writings is the Bible, accounting for 34 percent of all citations.[1]

Many of the legal principles we use today are based on the laws God gave to Moses. This is true not only of criminal law, but also civil law, family law, wills and estates, contracts, and torts, credit, banking, property law, and more.

Consider the trials in the Bible. Jesus—the only innocent man in history—was found guilty in a kangaroo court.  Many of the most widely accepted rules of court procedure were broken by leaders desperate to put Jesus to death. The trials before the High Priest, Herod, and Pontius Pilate were a mockery, even by the standards of the time. The trials of Jesus were so ridiculous they can be written off as a fraud.

More interesting are the trials of the Apostle Paul, including as they did a mixture of good procedure and bad.

By today’s standards, those who put Paul on trial did some things right and some things wrong.

In Acts 24:5, the prosecutor, a lawyer named Tertullus, begins his charge against Paul with name-calling. “We have found this man to be a plague, an agitator among all the Jews throughout the Roman world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes” Acts 24:5. Name-calling by a prosecutor is not unusual, but where most follow that up with evidence of an actual crime, this prosecutor had no evidence.

In Acts 24:10 and again in 25:6, two Roman governors sit as judges. That was normal at the time, but today we would consider this a Separation of Powers problem. If you are an executive (a president, governor, mayor, or king), you should not also be the judge. When executives sit as judges, they will be influenced by political pressures from which judges are insulated—because executives must be re-elected. Even in ancient Rome, executives such as the procurator Pontius Pilate were rewarded based on their ability to maintain order. This would have motivated Pilate to calm crowds and prevent riots. Such a motivation made him a biased judge. That is, Pilate was willing to have an innocent man crucified because he knew it would calm the crowd that was shouting “Crucify him!” Mark 15:13.

Separation of Powers problems were the norm throughout history until John Locke, Montesquieu, and America’s founders perfected the doctrine separating the executive from the judiciary.

Governor Felix then ordered Paul be locked up until Lysias—the equivalent of a police officer—could come testify for the prosecution. Unfortunately, Paul was then held under house arrest for TWO YEARS!

Today we have the right to a speedy trial. Clearly ancient Rome had no such concerns. (Plus, Felix kept hoping Paul would come up with some bribe money! Acts 24:26.)

In Acts 25:7, Paul’s accusers come up with more charges, but again no evidence. “The Jews brought many serious charges that they were not able to prove.” Finally, Paul appealed to Caesar. Paul knew his rights as a Roman citizen.

“You have appealed to Caesar, to Caesar you will go” Acts 25:12.

Soon King Agrippa and Bernice arrived, Jewish royalty from the line of Herod. Festus, the new governor, explained he could not render a verdict against Paul until Paul faced his accusers.

“It’s not the Romans’ custom to give any man up before the accused confronts the accusers face-to-face” Acts 25:16. This is an early mention of a right the Bill of Rights enshrines today: the right to face one’s accusers.

Governor Festus added that he could not figure out what Paul was accused of.  Today we would call this a habeus corpus problem. Anyone who is arrested must be brought before the judge and formally charged.

In practical terms, this ALWAYS produces a writing. No one is charged with a crime or held overnight in jail without some sort of paper detailing the exact crimes with which that person is charged. Yet Paul had been in jail for two years and still Governor Festus said, “I have nothing definite to write to my lord about him … It seems unreasonable to me to send a prisoner and not to indicate the charges against him” Acts 25:26-27. (Unreasonable? Ya’ think?)

Before King Agrippa and Bernice, Paul is invited to testify on his own behalf. But wait. Doesn’t Paul have the right to an attorney? As we say in America’s Miranda warnings, “If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you.”

The scripture mentions the lawyer Tertullus and others working for the prosecution. But who is defending Paul? No one, it seems. (Of course, if anyone in the Bible might be capable of mounting his own defense, it would be Paul.) But ancient Rome did not provide free lawyers to criminal defendants.

For a missionary and evangelist, speaking on his own behalf is a great opportunity. Paul wants nothing more than to testify about the risen Savior, and he will share his testimony with everyone from peasants to Caesar, both “the small and the great” Acts 26:22.

However, as a defendant in a criminal case—who has yet to be officially charged with a crime—it makes no sense for Paul to offer a defense at this stage. Why? Because it is impossible to provide a quality defense against charges of which you are not certain. If Paul does not know what law he is alleged to have broken, how can he defend himself against the charge?

Modern trials always begin with the party bearing the burden of proof. Who has something to prove? In a criminal case, it is always the prosecutor–the party that wants to take away a man’s freedom. Should the prosecutor fail to prove its case, there is no reason to go on. The accused can go free without saying a word.

But Paul will not turn down an opportunity to speak. He is on a mission to testify about Jesus and all that the Risen Messiah has done for him and for the world. Thus, he offers his defense. Which of course is a brilliant sermon. 

He begins with a classic defense still taught in law schools today. He re-frames the debate—as he always does—describing the case against him as a case against the reality of the resurrection:

“I stand on trial for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers, the promise our 12 tribes hope to attain as they earnestly serve Him night and day. King Agrippa, I am being accused by the Jews because of this hope. Why is it considered incredible by any of you that God raises the dead?” Acts 26:6-8.

One of the things that makes the Bible such a relevant, credible book is stories like this one. While Paul’s experience in the tribunals of ancient Rome was different from ours, the details Luke includes make the narrative more realistic and frankly, more believable than many other religious works. The Bible reports the detailed stories of real people, living real lives, and facing real struggles.

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P.S. A FEW WORDS ABOUT “DOCTOR LUKE.”

Readers appreciate Luke’s careful reporting so much that we sometimes speak of “Doctor Luke” as though he were a neurosurgeon, some highly trained practitioner of modern medical science. However, Luke practiced medicine centuries before the advent of science. His simpler work would have included proven, practical treatments, such as splints for broken bones and poultices for wounds, yet would be primitive by today’s standards.

Modern medicine is built on the scientific method. And the Bible played a role in that. The scientific method was created by Francis Bacon and Rene Descartes who were convinced God is not a god of chaos but of order, 1 Corinthians 14:33, and if God is a God of order, then His creation is also ordered. And if the natural world is ordered, then it follows rules (such as the law of gravity) and if nature follows rules, then we can learn those rules through experimentation. Modern medicine still rests on that foundation.

Although I have often speculated that Luke may have employed “heroic medicine” based on the theory of the humors, I have learned that is false. The practice of heroic medicine began with the Greek philosopher and physician Claudius Galen who was born in 129 AD, long after Luke’s death. (Heroic medicine used purging, starving, vomiting, and bloodletting to relieve the body of various fluids believed to be out of balance. Think leeches.) Nevertheless, heroic medicine is a reminder just how primitive medical science was in the first century A.D. Luke was a careful writer, but whether his occupation as a ‘physician’ has anything to do with his meticulous record keeping is unclear.

[1] Christianity and the Constitution: The Faith of Our Founding Fathers, by John Eidsmoe, p.12 (1987).