#DailyDevotion When Jesus Comes To Judge The World Will You Be Living Or Dead?
Tuesday Easter 6
Acts 10:42 And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. 43 To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”
When Jesus returns to judge the earth, he is going raise up all people from the graves. We will all stand before him in resurrected bodies. In our every day parlance, everyone will be alive. So what does this mean, he will judge the living and the dead. I believe Peter here is speaking in spiritual terms.
You might remember God threatened Adam and Eve that the day they ate the fruit they would die. Well despite living another 900 years or so, they did both die that day. The life of God departed from them. They became the dead living. They created zombie land so to say. St. Paul tells us, Eph 2:1 “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins…” That was the state of mankind. We walk about thinking we are living but in reality, we were all dead.
Now Jesus says, Joh 6:47 “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life.” John has written, Joh 3:36 “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” We were once dead. Now through faith in Jesus we have eternal life, even right now as a present possession. We were dead but in baptism, we have been regenerated, born from above, born of God. We have received his life. Our bodies are dead because of sin but our spirits are now alive. We are now are the living dead.
At the last judgment, while we all stand before Jesus resurrected, some of us will still be dead spiritually. These are the dead Jesus judges. Because they do not have his life in them, they will be found guilty and cast into the lake of fire. There standing before Jesus will be those who did trust him or trusting in the promise of him, they have God’s life in them. They will pronounce not guilty by Jesus and given the world and God as their inheritance.
When Jesus comes to judge the living and dead, which will you be? Are you going to be found without faith and without the life of God or will you be found with faith and the life God? Eternal life is the free gift of God won and purchased for you by Christ Jesus. He offers it to you today as a free gift. Take the gift.
Heavenly Father, you sent your Son Jesus Christ to be the life of the world that whoever believes in him will have the gift of eternal life. Grant us faith to possess this life now and be judged not guilty, possessing this life as the living on the day of his revelation as our judge. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.