Preaching Judgment

This, and the last post, were both first published in Grace magazine.

Have you heard any old-fashioned hell-fire preaching recently? It is said that Aimee Macpherson, the Canadian Pentecostalist evangelist once rode into her Angelus Temple on a motor-bike dressed as a traffic policeman – down the aisle, up on to the platform, where she jumped off, held up her hand and cried out, ‘Stop, you’re heading to hell!’ It is doubtful whether any of us have ever seen or heard anything quite as dramatic as that, but nevertheless the message is an essential element in preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. We have to warn of the wrath to come, yet sometimes preaching about hell gets divorced from judgment and that is unfortunate. It is judgment that links sin and hell; it is on the basis of judgment that condemnation takes place. It is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment (Hebrews 9:27). Preaching judgment involves at least these seven features.

Preaching judgment brings people face to face with the living God. Everyone has to appear before the judgment seat of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:10); everyone will have to give an account to him before whom all things are naked and open (Hebrew 4:13). To preach this makes people aware that they will have to stand before a holy and righteous Judge. ‘But isn’t God a God of love?’ someone may ask. Yes, he is, but that is not a comforting thought for any who have spurned his love and rejected the Son whom the Father gave in his love. Rather it is calculated to make people cry out with those on the day of Pentecost, Men and brethren, what shall we do?

Preaching judgment makes people examine themselves. Those who are going to have an interview prepare beforehand. They think about the questions they are likely to be asked, and how they can make the best impression on those who will interview them; a great deal can hang on an interview. If someone becomes convinced that after death they are destined for an interview with God, it will concentrate the mind; how much more will hang on that? Most people do not want to have to examine their lives very closely; most people excuse themselves and feel that they are at least as good as most others. It is easy, also, to take in other people, but God knows the sober truth about everyone, and that is a sobering thought.

Preaching judgment exposes sin. God, we are told, will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ (Romans 2:16). The hidden things, the forgotten things, will all be brought out into the open, For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known. Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops (Luke 12:2). Everyone has his guilty secrets, but God knows them all. The judgment will take account of every act, of every word – even idle words (Matthew 12:36) – and the thoughts and intents of the heart (Hebrews 4:12).

Preaching judgment activates the conscience. There is little conviction of sin in these days; consciences seem to be hardened and resistant to penetration. But the law has been written in the hearts of all (Romans 2:15), and conscience is still there though it is overlaid by the carelessness of the modern age and the encrustations which the media have deposited in the mind. To be confronted by the judgment of God who sees and knows everything is certainly calculated to make people consider their ways. We must remember, too, that in all this the work of the Holy Spirit must not be overlooked and it is his ministry to convince the world of sin, righteousness and judgment (John16:8).

Preaching judgment shows the inadequacy of trying to justify oneself. If God is going to judge and if everything is taken into account then it is perfectly evident that everyone will fall short (see Romans 3:23). It is obvious that no one is good enough for him. We may feel that our lives are good enough to get along all right in this life, but quite clearly we are utterly unsuited to living in a realm of perfect righteousness and there is nothing we can do to alter the situation. Our best efforts at self reformation only lead to frustration and despair. As we are, we are simply not good enough for God or for heaven.

Preaching judgment demonstrates the inevitability of hell. This follows necessarily. If sinful people are judged with perfect justice then they have to be punished for their sins and they will go to a place of punishment rather than a place for the righteous and good. Judas, we are told, went to his own place (Acts 1:25), that is to say, to the place which fitted with his actions, the place to which he deserved to go. Judgment determines our destiny for eternity. It is fair, impartial, takes all the facts into consideration, but for those who are condemned the only possibility is hell.

Preaching judgment leads inevitably to preaching about Jesus Christ. How can anyone who stands at the judgment seat of a holy God be justified? In the words of Jesus to the scribes and Pharisees, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell? There is only one way, but there is one way! This is what the gospel is all about: free justification through Jesus Christ. Because he lived a life of perfect obedience and died bearing the punishment due to sin everyone who believes in him is justified by [God’s] grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. God is both just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus (Romans 3:24,26). There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1).

So preaching judgment is not a negative thing. It is part of true gospel preaching and leads to opening up the way of salvation through Jesus Christ. The grace and mercy of Jesus Christ shines out in the light of judgment. How amazing that through him and what he did sinners like us can stand unafraid and unashamed before God at the last day. In Jesus Christ, through faith in him, God has already justified us. Declared us free from all charges because Jesus paid for them in full. Declared us righteous and unblameable before him because the perfect righteousness of Jesus has become ours. Here is good news to proclaim.

Shipwrecks and lighthouses

Shipwrecks and Lighthouses

Have you ever heard a sermon on Hymenaeus? Perhaps you don’t even recall having heard of such a person at all. He only occurs in the Bible in the letters to Timothy (1 Timothy 1:20; 2 Timothy 2:17). What do we know of him?

He was someone who once appeared to have faith in Jesus Christ because he is described as having made shipwreck of it. He had also swerved from the truth, saying that the resurrection had already taken place, so at one time his beliefs were orthodox. It seems he had taken to speaking irreverent babble, which was nevertheless very damaging, spreading like gangrene. So was he a real Christian, or not? Was he eternally lost, or eventually restored? We simply do not know; but what Paul had to say about him and others like him is a great help to us.

Moreover, we can look at Hymenaeus objectively; none of us knew him. But we may know some who have acted in similar ways to him and that makes a big difference. They may be Christian friends or close relatives, perhaps even a pastor. That hurts us, it troubles us; it may even shake our own faith. So think of Hymenaeus first, and then we can apply what Paul says to our own situations later.

Don’t be surprised

In 2 Timothy 2:20 Paul reminds us that in a large house there will be a variety of vessels; cut glass in display cabinets and old jam jars out in the garden shed. Some that started off decorative and useful get broken and unsightly, and are not suitable for anything very much. And the church is a large house; we must not be surprised if we find sad and disappointing falls and backslidings. Not that we must ever take them for granted, or cease being deeply concerned for those of whom these things are true.

Don’t be stumbled

We must never think, however, that such events take God by surprise or deny the truths of election and final perseverance. Verse 19 reminds us that God’s firm foundation stands in spite of human weakness or rebelliousness. The two quotations in this verse both appear to come from Numbers 16 where the context is the rebellion of Korah and those with him. The Lord knows those that are his is firstly a statement of election. This is the firm foundation; God knows and has chosen those who are his own, and he will keep them. But this also reminds us that the Lord knows what we do not know. He knows who are really his; he knows who will be restored, he knows the pressures and temptations some may have been under, he knows the wilfully rebellious – but our knowledge is partial at best. In the end it his knowledge that matters, not ours.

There is a practical matter, however; the way to show that we belong to the Lord is by departing from iniquity. That must include avoiding harsh and condemnatory attitudes – becoming beacons of holiness and truth.

Don’t be quarrelsome

How are we to help those who begin to question basic truths of the faith? Some people can be full of questions that are trivial and unnecessary. Paul says: Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies. They lead to endless quarrels and take people’s minds off the things that are really important. Some are quarrelsome, but the Lord’s servants mustn’t be. However, there are events that can shake faith; there are questions which deeply trouble some; there are heresies which can seem well-founded and attractive. So we are to be kind and patient, especially if we have spiritual responsibility in the church. Very often our attitude is as important as our reasoning, if not more so. Where we can give answers we must be prepared to; taking time and trouble, if necessary, to find them. We must especially be prayerful, for it is God who grants repentance and delivers from the snare of the devil.

Apply discipline

Paul says he has handed Hymenaeus over to Satan that he may learn not to blaspheme. This means he had been put out of the fellowship of the church and back into the world which is under the power and authority of the Evil One. This should never be the first action, and great patience may need to be shown towards those who may have difficulties, but still attend the worship and do nothing to shake the faith of others. But where there is serious moral lapse (1 Corinthians 5:1-5) or the definite embracing of clear heresy, and no sign of repentance or willingness to be helped, it becomes the proper response.

The purpose of this is not retribution, but reformation, that they may learn not to blaspheme. Unfortunately such exclusion means very little nowadays; there’s always another church to go to not far away. This action is not a punishment, nor is it just for the health of the church or its reputation, though these are not unimportant. It is intended to bring home to the person the real seriousness of his or her condition. As they are, they are not fit for the people of God; they appear to belong to the realm of the devil. Let them consider where they really belong – and turn back to the Lord if they are his.

You and your ‘Hymenaeus’

None of this is easy or painless. Many Christians have been sorely troubled and affected by the falls of relatives and friends. Some see friends wandering off into godless lifestyles, not only making shipwreck of faith but also of marriage, even ending up publicly blaspheming the One they once professed to love. The Lord Jesus knows and understands how we feel; one of those closest to him betrayed him – even with a kiss!

There are no easy answers, but if early warning signs are seen that is the best time to intervene, though this will take great wisdom. Healthy Christian fellowship with others, which means that talking together about spiritual things is usual, creates the best atmosphere in which spiritual advice can be given and received. Sometimes direct speaking only makes the situation worse; but the person concerned needs to know that we are ready to speak when they are willing to listen.

When some tragic fall takes place we need to avoid bitterness and recriminations, but we cannot act as if nothing has happened nor can relationships be just the same as they always were. If we feel we may be blameworthy ourselves for what has happened – and Satan loves to get parents, friends or pastors to feel like that – then we must seek forgiveness, accept it, learn any lesson we need to, but in the name of the Lord refuse to allow pardoned guilt to cripple us in the future. We see some wonderfully restored; others may be, of whom we hear nothing. Our attitude must be one of trust in God and persevering love: Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.

If there is a danger of shipwreck, we need those who will be lighthouses.