Beyond the Weekend

October 8 | Jesus as Judge

October 8, 2018

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. Matthew 25:31-32

Read: Matthew 25:31-46

Listen: Matthew 25

TODAY’S MESSAGE

We’ve seen Jesus as Teacher, Healer, Israel and Christ so far in our fall series. As we revisit his teachings, we remember that he will one day remove pain and death, he is the Israel that Israel never could be and he is the true Messiah instead of the Messiah we might want him to be. We’ve seen his wisdom, felt his comfort and looked at his authority. This week we see Jesus as Judge.

Understanding Jesus as Judge can make us bristle considering tolerance is often believed to be the most important public virtue. “How dare you say there is only one way to God!” “Your way may be right for you, but not for me.” “We should accept everyone equally.”

The truth is that deep down we want and need a Judge. Even if it’s only to bring justice for what we see going wrong—scamming of the elderly, sex trafficking, bullying and abuse. We see these horrible things and think, “Someone needs to be held accountable.” We want and need God to be angry at these things too.

But God is also angry at the stuff inside— the bad things we do and the good things we neglect to do. It’s tough to think about judgment this way. But we can’t avoid it. Nearly a dozen times in the Gospels, Jesus affirms his role as Savior, but also as Judge. Jesus calls us to pay attention to both.

IN YOUR CHAIR TIME TODAY

Read Chapter Seven of the book A Doubter’s Guide to Jesus today with a pen or pencil in hand. Underline/highlight things that are significant to you. Then download the lock screen below to remind you that one day you will stand before Jesus as Judge and that what you do in this life really matters.


Download a printable PDF of the BTW week here.

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