The Standards of God’s Coming Judgment

God never acts maliciously. He is not vindictive, neither does He act to get even or to pay back those that disobey His commands. His actions of judgment are rooted in His holy character and are redemptive towards His world and His kingdom. He judges to cleanse and protect instead of judging to vindicate. Often ungodly men have accused our God of vengeance and maliciousness, but He is not guilty. His world, which is also our world, would disintegrate into a filthy quagmire were it not for His actions of judgment. He judges sin to return civility to His and our world.

His action is determined by the “cup of sin” when it is filled to an unbearable level. He always allows sin to fill its own cup and when the cup is full, He searches among the guilty to be certain that the righteous is not unduly judged with the wicked. His acts are always that of a loving father who acts perfectly just. Let’s visit Abraham and listen to his and God’s conversation. First, listen as God talks to Abraham. “And the LORD said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous. I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come unto me; and if not, I will know. And the men turned their faces from thence, and went toward Sodom: but Abraham stood yet before the LORD.” (Genesis 18:20-22).

Then, Abraham responded to God. “And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked? Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein? That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Genesis 18:23-25). As the conversation continued, Abraham pursues God to reconsider by reducing the number of righteous persons needed to save Sodom and Gomorrah from swift destruction. What a picture of the Father’s compassion and willingness to prevent judgment if possible. Yet, when it was clear that the cup of filth had prevailed, nothing could stay the hand of God.

When the cup is full, when His indignation is without mixture or when the righteous and those in authority become so wimpy and compromised that they will not take a stand, this is when His judgment is manifest. When God uses the term, “without mixture,” he means, “when wickedness is coddled by those in authority or by the religious.” America is perilously close to this sad state of mind. Look at what Jesus gave John to write in the last book of Holy Scripture. “The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb.” (Revelation 14:10).

“Judgment to the line” is another standard of this coming judgment. Slowly the church of America has been reduced in its Biblical concepts to believe the Bible is relative and debatable. Our nation’s conscience used to be strong in Judeo-Christian absolutes. If the Bible said it, we believed that settled it. This truth is one of the casualties of this apostate time. Everything about God is so fluid and changing that no real conviction guides most of our ministries and preaching or our living. This will change when judgment begins.

The Bible is infallible and pure. Every commandment and truth will play a part in the Day of Judgment. Look at this breathtaking statement by the Holy Ghost of God. “Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place. And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.” (Isaiah 28:17-18).

Our God is not pernicious. Judgment will not vary by one’s position in this life or his/her standing in political or religious circles. It will be exact and pure by the Word of God and the field will be level before the Judgment Seat of Christ and the White Throne Judgment.

There will be no place to hide. Most sins are undiscovered to us in our present world. Many people hide their carelessness for years and go unnoticed by those outside their intimate circles. That is soon to end. The Bible is full of warnings about hiding one’s sins. Solomon taught us, “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” (Proverbs 28:13). Jesus warned us, “For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known. Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops.” (Luke 12:2-3).

Joseph Chambers