Ok. So, we are studying the book of 1 John and we were talking about chapter 2 verses 18-29. In verse 28 John wrote,

“ Now, little children, abide in Him, so that when He appears, we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame at His coming.”

An obvious question concerning this verse is what did John mean by “…we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame at His coming.”? This is a great question and I believe it means that if we live a life that glorifies God, we will have no reason to be ashamed when the time comes for us to be judged at the judgement seat of Christ.

However, this question begs another question, “Should we be afraid to stand before a Holy God and give an account of our lives?”

What an important question. The Bible clearly says we will give an account of our lives before the judgement seat of Christ. The judgement I am referring to is the judgement Paul mentions in Romans chapter 14. In the process of explaining that it is not right for one Christian to cause another Christian to violate his or her conscience, Paul mentions that every one (Christian and non Christian alike) will stand for judgement before God.

Now, Paul  says in Romans chapter 8, verse 1,

“ Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

The Greek word translated “condemnation” in this verse literally means punishment or penalty. Paul just said there is no punishment for anyone who has placed their trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for Salvation. Paul is reiterating what Jesus plainly said in the gospel of John, chapter 3 verse 18,

“ He who believes in Him is not judged ; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

The “Him” in verse 18 is the Son of God, Jesus Christ. The Greek word translated “judged” has the sense of divine condemnation or punishment. Jesus is saying in no uncertain terms that no believer will be punished. Praise God!

In fact, Psalm 103, says

            10  He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.

            11   For as high as the heavens are above the earth, So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him.

            12  As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

David wrote this psalm in reflection of the great mercy God had toward him. The “He” that David refers to is God. The “fear” David speaks of is not what we may typically think of when we here the English word. The Hebrew word translated “fear” means to have a reverential awe toward something. David was confident that, even though he was a sinful human being, God would not hold his sins against him because he revered God and trusted in God’s lovingkindness towards him because of it.

These are just a few of the many passages that make it clear that believers will not suffer divine punishment for the sins they have, are, and will commit. (There are consequences, however,  but that is topic for another time).

The point here is that God does not and will not deal with His children according to their sin. He will deal with the sin that is committed by His children, but not as the Holy and Righteous Judge of the universe that must punish sin. No, he deals with His children as a loving father deals with his children-out of love and wanting the best for them.

(However, this does not in any way imply that Christians can or should go about sinning with no thought to what happened on the cross of Calvary. We should not take God’s grace for granted. We are told quite clearly by Paul in Romans,

“5:20  The Law came in so that the transgression would increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more , 21 so that, as sin reigned in death, even so grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

6: 1 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? 2 May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?”

In this passage, Paul is explaining that God’s grace in Jesus Christ was shown to be even greater than the sin that the Mosaic Law brought to light (sin is abomination in the sight of God). However, we are not to take the grace for granted because it goes against who we are in Christ. We are dead to sin and should act like it.)

Now, it is clear that no believer will be punished. So, what will happen to Christians at the judgement that Paul is talking about in Romans? Well, it certainly will not be a finger pointing session with the Lord scolding us for things we did wrong.  As was pointed out above, He has not dealt with us according to our sins. Paul says a similar thing in 1 Timothy In fact, God separates our sins from us “as far as the east is from the west”. Thank God!

Jesus said in John 15:11,

“These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you , and that your joy may be made full .”

In John chapter 15, Jesus is talking to His disciples about abiding in His love and glorifying The Father. What is Jesus’ joy? Well part of it, and its a BIG part, is that He could come and give us a way to be reconciled to God! So, when He says that our joy may be made full He is saying that we can rejoice in the fact that we are reconciled to God through our Savior Jesus Christ!

In fact, in Philippians chapter 4, verse 4 we are commanded to rejoice,

“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!”

So, if you’re a believer, you have no reason to be afraid of our great and mighty God and Savior! Rejoice that we have been saved and will not be punished nor our sins brought to bear against us!

What a wonderful Savior we have!

1  Christ has for sin atonement made—What a wonderful Savior!

    We are redeemed, the price is paid—What a wonderful Savior!

2  I praise Him for the cleansing blood—What a wonderful Savior!

    That reconciled my soul to God—What a wonderful Savior!

3  He cleansed my heart from all its sin—What a wonderful Savior!

    And now He reigns and rules therein—What a wonderful Savior!

4  He gives me overcoming pow’r—What a wonderful Savior!

    And triumph in each trying hour—What a wonderful Savior!

Chorus:  What a wonderful Savior is Jesus, my Jesus!

                 What a wonderful Savior is Jesus, my Lord! ^[1]

So, do you know Jesus as Lord and Savior? If you do not know Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, the judgement Paul speaks of will be very different. The Bible says that you are an enemy of God and as an enemy deserve to be punished by the only righteous judge.  In order for you to be at peace with God, and not have your sins held against you any longer, the first thing you must understand is that Jesus died for you because you have fallen short of God’s standards. You must understand and accept this. Second, you must believe that Jesus died for you because there was no other way to pay the debt you owe to God for falling short of His standards. And third, come to Jesus in faith, believing that He paid your sin debt when He died on the cross, but when He rose again three days later He made it just as if you had never sinned in the eyes of God. You will not be condemned any longer!

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”- John 3:16

All glory and honor and praise to the only blessed God and Savior, Jesus Christ!

^[1] Logos Hymnal. (1995). (1st edition.). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

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