As stated in part 1 of this series, there will come a time when the Almighty will make a judgment concerning every human being who has ever lived on earth.  Having all of the evidence we have provided throughout our lives before Him, He will reach a verdict that will determine how each of us will spend eternity–either in His kingdom or as ashes beneath the feet of those who will dwell in His kingdom (Mal. 4:3).  Those who do not obey God will have the same end as their god–Satan (Eze. 28:18), with one important difference: Satan and his angels, being spirits which cannot die, will live in hell forever.  Contrary to church theology, sinners will not writhe in burning agony for eternity along with their former spiritual leaders.  As the Lord tells us, they will be burned to ash following His final judgment based on their previous lives.  God is merciful, even to those who reject Him.  A quick death is more humane than burning forever, even for those who, like Satan and his fallen angels, rejected God’s way.

“Eternal judgment” refers to the outcome of God’s final judgment of each person who will have ever lived.  His final judgment will dictate how one spends eternity–either in His kingdom or as ashes.  However, His final judgment will not be the only judgment He will have rendered relative to our “walk” (conduct) during this life.  For God’s people, LIFE IS A JUDGMENT PERIOD.  AS WE “WALK” (OUR WORDS, THOUGHTS AND ACTS) WE ARE BEING JUDGED.  This is brought out by the Apostle Peter in his first letter to God’s people: “For the time is come that judgment must begin in the House of God, and if it first begin with us, what will be the end result for those who do not obey the gospel of God?” (4:17).  Note it: today only those who have been truly converted are being judged.  And they are being judged according to how completely they obey “the gospel of God.”  Jesus said in Matthew 7:13,14 that true saints would be few in number, that though many are called to obey His Words, few will be chosen for having answered His call (Mat. 22:14).  “For the Son of man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels.”  At that time He will call up to Himself (in the clouds) those few holy ones (both dead and alive–1 Thes. 4:14-17) and will reward each according to his/her WORKS (Mat. 16:27).  This “call” refers to the first resurrection in which only the Very Elect (saints–“holy ones”) will be affected.  These will be those, beginning with Abel, who went to their graves in a state of holiness and those who are walking in holiness at the time of His return.  “Holy and blessed are those who take part in the first resurrection … they will be priests of God and of Christ (in Their kingdom) and will reign with Him (Christ) for a thousand years–the Millennium” (Rev. 20:6).  At that time He will reward those true converts according to their thoughts, words and deeds–their WORKS, not their faith.  Faith without works (obedience) is dead (Jam. 2).  Faith is believing God’s Word (Rom. 10:19).  Works reflects what one is doing relative to God’s Word.  Faith is the starting point; works is the proof (end result) of faith.  As James tells us, faith minus works=dead faith.  Dead faith, like a dead horse, will take us nowhere.

One of the most rejected Truths found in the Holy Scriptures is the fact that not everyone on earth is being judged in this life.  God is not trying to save all of mankind today.  If He is He is failing miserably.  Satan’s followers outnumber the Lord’s saints hundreds of millions to one.  Unconverted man is simply going about the business of his god, which consists of doing what he (man) wants to do with Satan’s blessing.  This was brought out by Jesus in Matthew 16:23 where Peter has rebuked Him for stating a Truth the disciple did not want to hear.  Speaking to Satan who was at that moment controlling Peter, Jesus said: “Get behind Me, Satan, for you care not for the things of God, BUT FOR THE THINGS OF MAN.”  Satan wants man to do what man wants to do.  Those who rule themselves–99.99% of the world’s population–are not interested in obeying God.  Satan has convinced those in his church system, as he did Adam and Eve, that obedience to God is unnecessary (actually impossible due to Adam’s miraculous sin transfusion), and that eternal life is guaranteed simply for believing in Christ and recognizing Him as one’s Savior.  Until the moment of Truth when reality set in, Adam and Eve–God’s first church–believed that God was still their God and they were still His people.  Too late they realized that upon sinning, Satan had automatically become their god.  The rest is church history.  The problem is that the modern churchite is not as spiritually aware as were Adam and Eve.  Sinners saved by grace believe that the Biblical God is their God and they are His people regardless of their sinning ways.  As Revelation 12:9 says, Satan has deceived the whole world, including the church world.

The fact that God is not judging all of mankind today creates a dilemma for church people, which causes them to reject that Biblical Truth.  The dilemma is as follows: in that there is only one name by which one can be saved–Jesus Christ–(Acts 4:12)–what about the billions of people who will face judgment having never heard the name of Jesus Christ?  More people have lived and died never having heard that name than have heard it.  What about them?  What about children who have died never having the opportunity to know that name?  Are these people to be denied the opportunity for eternal life?  These are legitimate questions asked by those within professing Christendom who have no answer.  When shown the Lord’s answer it is automatically and vehemently rejected by the whole of professing Christendom.  More on this later.

Among the masses of people who are not being judged in this life are those within Satan’s Catholic/Protestant Church System.  Though they have heard the name of Jesus Christ, they have not heard, nor have they read, believed and obeyed what He said in His Holy Word.  THE INSTITUTIONAL CHURCH HAS NEVER HEARD GOD’S TRUTH.  As the Apostle Paul lamented in his letter to the church at Galatia (1:6-9), what they have heard was the perverted version of God’s Words which Satan originally offered to Adam and Eve.  That version can be summed up in one sentence: “You can rebel against God and “… not surely die” (Gen. 3:4).  Satan’s version of God’s Words enables religious people to determine right and wrong according to their particular brand of religion.  Having joined with others of the same mind-set, they proclaim themselves to be a “church.”  And not merely “a” church, but “THE” church.  At present there are hundreds of them.  Adam and Eve embraced Satan’s gospel, and in doing so unknowingly changed gods.  Their descendants have been following in their spiritual footsteps ever since.  Paul noted this Truth in his letter to the church at Corinth where he wrote that if someone presented them with another Jesus, they would embrace him (2 Cor. 11:4).  History has proven him right.  THE INSTITUTIONAL CHURCH WORSHIPS ANOTHER JESUS BY EMBRACING HIS (SATAN’S) “TRUTHS” AND REJECTING THE WORDS OF THE TRUE JESUS.  SATAN IS THE CHURCH’S VERSION OF JESUS CHRIST.  The counterfeit church clams to worship the Biblical Jesus while rejecting His Words.  This is impossible.  He commands obedience to His Words in Matthew 15:9.  Here He says that all worship of Him without obedience is in vain–self-serving and Satan-serving.  His commands, if obeyed, produce holiness which, if maintained, produces salvation as He proclaims in Matthew 10:22 and as Paul declares in Romans 5:21 and 6:22.  The Lord’s Words comprise the Standard by which we will all be judged (Jn. 12:44-50).  True converts are being judged now relative to their obedience to those Words–their “works.”

From the time of his conversion until his death or the return of Jesus Christ, the thoughts, words and deeds (works/walk) of the Very Elect are being judged against the Standard He has laid out in His Holy Bible.  As we are told in Romans 2:6, each will be judged and rewarded according to his “deeds”–works of obedience.  As will be explained in the next posting, all people are not judged at the same time.  Nor are all resurrected at the same time.  God’s true saints alone are being judged now and will be the first to be resurrected.  There will be two resurrections to follow.  Each will involve different categories of people.  Read The Resurrections.  Key word–Resurrections.  L.J.