End Times: The Spirit of Our Age

 Editor's Note:  This post may be somewhat controversial.  It has been written as a warning of judgments that face our world as we approach the day of judgment.  

A church that I pioneered in Riverside, California recently celebrated twenty years of service to that community.  Looking back, it seems like a simpler time.  There was no real threat of terrorism in the US at that time.  The economy was working fairly well.  Race relations seemed less tense.

The church opened on August 5, 2001 and a few short weeks later was the attack on the World Trade center.  I remember thinking that this would cause people to come to church and hear from God.  It did to a certain extent.  People came to church, but not many stayed for the long term.  After they began to feel better, they went back to their old habits with regard to God.

I believe that through that attack, something changed in America.  Something was released into, not just the US, but the entire world – A spirit – the spirit of our age.  That’s what I want to post on today:

2 Thessalonians 2:1-8 (NKJV)
^2:1 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, ² not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. ³ Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, ⁴ who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. ⁵ Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? ⁶ And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. ⁷ For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. ⁸ And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.

The Spirit of Our Age – Lawlessness

I don’t want you to think that this is political.  I am not going to preach politics:

Romans 13:1 (NKJV)
^13:1 Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God.

I believe this – God is in control and God can use governments for His purposes; for His own reasons.  He used the Assyrians, who were terrorists; pagan, godless enemies of Israel.  He sent His people to Babylon to serve under Nebuchadnezzar, another godless enemy. For seventy years they were subject to the whims of a corrupt government and king.

God used those nations and those authorities as His instrument of judgment.  His purpose was to draw the people back to Him.  That was His purpose for those leaders, so:

Joe Biden is the President of the United States; God has ordained him for this time, in the same way that Donald Trump was ordained by God.  This is not about politics or who’s the president, but in these times:

“In our age there is no such thing as ‘keeping out of politics’.  All issues are political issues, and politics itself is a mass of lies, evasions, folly, hatred and schizophrenia. – George Orwell 1984

I believe that Governments are being used by God, at this time, to prepare for the return of Jesus.  Th main thrust of what I’m writing about is this: On September 11, 2001 a spirit was released into the earth.  It has changed the course and direction of the entire world!

Look at these changes that have taken place in the United States.

1.      The “Patriot Act.”  Formally titled: The Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001, is intended to give the government the ability to monitor terrorists’ phone calls and be able to react accordingly to protect the nation from further attacks.

As a result, certain rights regarding search and seizure have been disregarded.  Your phone and computer are being monitored twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.  Whereas in the past this was only possible through the use of a warrant, it is now routine.

It’s important to understand that the rights outlined in the constitution are God-given rights.  The Bill of Rights doesn’t list what rights the government has granted us, it lists the rights that the government can’t take away from us.

2.       We are seeing great government overreach, that’s when the governments steps beyond the rights we’re guaranteed.  An example would be the “Vaccine Mandate and Passport”.  You can’t work without the vaccine.  You can’t go into stores or restaurants without a vaccine.  You aren’t able to have customers in your stores unless your staff is vaccinated.

Revelation 13:17 (NKJV)
^13:17 and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

 I’m not saying that the vaccine is good or bad.  I’m not saying whether or not you should be vaccinated. I’m not even saying that this is the mark, but it sure looks like practice for the mark.  It’s conditioning to get people to accept it.

3.       There’s a lack of accountability on the part of our leaders.  A drone strike in Afghanistan is reported to have killed two leaders of ISIS-K, when, in fact, it killed a relief worker and seven innocent children.  The president of the United States refuses to even speak about it!

4.       Look at the massive lies in our media. You don’t know what’s true anymore.  You don’t really know what happened.  You can’t tell if it's news or propaganda.

Another quote from George Orwell in his book 1984: 

The very concept of truth is fading out in our world.  Lies will pass into history.

5.       Finally, there’s the censorship of ideas and words that don’t fit into the political narrative.  The Hunter Biden laptop story comes to mind.  On social media the reporting about it was censored.  It was called misinformation; "Russian Disinformation".  They said it was to protect us from being misled, but recently, it was proven to be true.

I’m not being political.  This is not a political issue it is a spiritual issue, that’s pulling us into the time of judgment.  This spirit has a name.  It’s name is lawlessness.

2 Thessalonians 2:7-9 (NKJV)
^2:7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. ⁸ And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. ⁹ The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders,

The spirit of lawlessness already exists in our world.  So, we can say the spirit of antichrist already exists…and it is growing in power every day.  These are indeed perilous times.

2 Timothy 3:1-5 (NKJV)
^3:1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: ² For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, ³ unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, ⁴ traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, ⁵ having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!

Look at this description of people in the last days.  Does it seem to you that more and more people are acting exactly like that?

For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud…

Billionaires, politicians, Hollywood actors – The Elite!

disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, ³ unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, ⁴ traitors…

Antifa, BLM, CRT, anarchists, Marxists – The Self Righteous!

headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God…

Pedophiles, hedonists, homosexuals, transgenders – The Deviants!

What do these people have in common? A spirit of lawlessness.  They have turned their backs on God.  Look at this:

Romans 1:28-31 (NKJV)
^1:28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; ²⁹ being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, ³⁰ backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, ³¹ undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful;

This is the spirit we’re witnessing in these last days.  It’s the spirit of lawlessness – the spirit of antichrist.

Our society is often defined as a “post-Christian society.”

Before Covid – It was estimated that eight thousand churches closed every year.  It is estimated that in 2021, that number could climb to sixteen thousand.  That equates to roughly forty churches every day. – church answers.com

People are leaving the church, both in-person and on-line; but this is prophesied in verse three of our text.

2 Thessalonians 2:3a (NKJV)
^2:3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first…

The falling away is happening right before our eyes.  It is a product of the release of the spirit of lawlessness.  The next thing will be rapture, followed by the revealing of the “man of sin” – the lawless one; the antichrist.  We are very close to these events.  My thought is that the antichrist is alive and waiting to be revealed.

Do Not Be Fooled

The stakes are very high in our times.  Time is winding up.  We are rapidly approaching the end of the church age.  I believe we will see the rapture of the church:

1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 (NKJV)
^4:16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷ Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.

“He who restrains will be taken out of the way.” This is from our text in verse 7:

2 Thessalonians 2:7 (NKJV)
^2:7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way.

I want you to think a moment how the Holy Spirit restrains.  It’s through Christians, through our lifestyles, through our words, and through our testimonies – the pressure that's placed on society by our beliefs.  This is why it is important for Christians to vote their consciences.

When we are removed what will be left to influence sinners?  The answer to that is their own morality, but their morality leads to abortion;

According to the CDC there are 186 abortions per 1,000 live births.  That equals 2,326 abortions every day, about 98 per hour, or one abortion every 37 seconds. – Guttmacher Institute

Their morality allows them to fight for the rights of pedophiles.  The theme for the 2015 Gay Pride Parade in Taipei was “Act Your Love, Not Your Age”. The meaning was that the age of consent should be repealed. 

Their morality allows them to fill school libraries with transgender and pornographic material.  The following is from a news article appearing on WND.com:

Stacy Langton opened by explaining that she watched what had happened at a Texas school board meeting after parents discovered two books accessible to their children, "Lawn Boy" by Jonathan Evison and "Gender Queer" by Maia Kobabe. Langton looked for and found the books at her own child’s school, Fairfax High School, as well as other places in the county, including Robinson Secondary School where students as young as 12 could access the books.

Langton discovered that the books depicted pedophilia and sex between men and boys, including one book that showed a fourth-grade boy performing oral sex on an adult male. – This is from Sept. 2021

https://www.wnd.com/2021/09/mom-reveals-books-school-libraries-depicting-child-porn-pedophilia/

As this woman testified before the school board, they shut off her microphone.  Those are just three examples.  I haven’t even mentioned human trafficking, slavery, sexual abuse of children and women, racism, political corruption or the thousands of other perversions and defilements, their morality allows them to be a part of.  If the restraint of the Holy Spirit is removed, anything goes.  Lawlessness will abound and the “lawless One” will arise.

Let me also just say they will be happy when you are gone.  They’ll be happy when you aren’t preaching your morals to them.  They’ll be happy – until the fruits of their sin begin to be felt.  They’ll rejoice in the antichrist until the judgments begin:

Revelation 6:2 (NKJV)
^6:2 And I looked, and behold, a white horse. He who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer.

I believe this is the rise of the antichrist, a counterfeit of Jesus, and a political leader.  He comes first as a man of peace, but eventually:

Revelation 6:4 (NKJV)
^6:4 Another horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword.

This is war.  Peace will be taken from the earth, by the same political leader.  He will make war against the tribulation saints.

Revelation 6:5-6 (NKJV)
^6:5 When He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, "Come and see." So I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. ⁶ And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, "A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine."

 The black horse represents famine; food shortages.  The rider, again the antichrist, will determine who gets food and who doesn’t.  This is the time that the mark of the beast will be implemented.  No one can buy and sell without the mark. Finally:

Revelation 6:8 (NKJV)
^6:8 So I looked, and behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him. And power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth.

Violence, pestilences, wild animals, a quarter of the world’s population will be destroyed.  There will be other judgments as well, martyrs, earthquakes, asteroids and many people will die.  Hell will follow with him.

This is to what the spirit of lawlessness leads.  At the end of all of this Jesus will come back.  The power of the antichrist will be destroyed.  That will be followed by the Day of Judgment.

Why is All This Necessary

What is the purpose of God’s judgment?  It’s always to draw people back to Him.  He uses governments for judgments.  This post is a wake-up call, that was my intention.  I believe that we are posed on the edge of the rapture and subsequent judgments. 

World evangelism is like igniting a fire that consumes the earth.  I’m using this post to emphasize the urgency of the fire.  We stand at the crossroads of eternity and judgment.  The Door Church in Tucson, Arizona has always been an ignition point.  We have lit a blaze that is burning right now in countless cities and nations.  The fire has been lit by the releasing of men and their wives into the nations to enlarge the kingdom of God.  Pray that it becomes a conflagration befoe the church age winds up.

John 9:4 (NKJV)
^9:4 I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.

The Night is coming.  The spirit of lawlessness is like twilight.  The Darkness draws near!

Prophecy and Judgment

Editor’s Note:  I have been on sort of hiatus for the last several months.  I have continued to pastor and write sermons but haven’t really had time to transcribe sermons into posts.  I have tried to fill the void by bringing excellent sermons from some other pastors.  I will occasionally do this throughout the year.  So if you submitted a post and I haven’t posted it.  I will get to it.  Some of them I have to build from notes and of course this will take some time.  Thanks for your patience and I hope you enjoyed the guest posts. – Chris

I have just finished reading the book, The Harbinger by Jonathan Cahn.  This is a powerful book that compares judgment in Israel with the 9/11 events in America.  The book uses the prophecy of Isaiah in Isaiah: Chapters 9 and 10.  But I began to think of this prophecy and relating it individuals.  The question that formed in reading this was this:  If God judges a nation for turning away from God, does He also judge individuals for their apostasy?  That’s the question I want to explore in this post:  Prophecy and Judgment.

In twenty years as a Christian I’ve seen many people walk away from the will of God.  They’ve turned their backs on God and walked away from His provision and protection.  I’ve also seen in many instances a judgment fall on their lives.

Let’s look for a moment at the Prodigal Son.  He’s left his father’s house and taken his inheritance with him.  The Bible tells us that he begins to live riotously, (that’s what prodigal means), squanders his inheritance, and ends up with nothing.  He is reduced to eating what the pigs eat.  If you ask any pig farmer they’ll tell you that pigs eat garbage. 

So look at what has happened in this young man’s life.  He was raised in a wealthy family.  He had the best of everything.  But after he has left, he’s lost it all; his wealth, in his mind, he’s lost his family, and he has been reduced to living in squalor, eating garbage.  Is that judgment?  I would say that it is!

I have known men who have experienced much of what the prodigal has experienced.  They have turned away from God only to lose those things that were most important to them.  They’ve lost their families to divorce; they’ve lost their jobs and their finances and in some cases even their health has been ruined.  Does that sound like judgment?  I would say that it does.

Judgment always follows departure from God.  Its not that God is angry and wants to get back it us.  He’s not like some jilted romantic.  God has a purpose for judgment.  This post is about that judgment and God’s purpose.

Isaiah 9:8-13 (NKJV)
^9:8 The Lord sent a word against Jacob, And it has fallen on Israel. ⁹ All the people will know-- Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria-- Who say in pride and arrogance of heart: ¹⁰ "The bricks have fallen down, But we will rebuild with hewn stones; The sycamores are cut down, But we will replace them with cedars." ¹¹ Therefore the Lord shall set up The adversaries of Rezin against him, And spur his enemies on, ¹² The Syrians before and the Philistines behind; And they shall devour Israel with an open mouth. For all this His anger is not turned away, but His hand is stretched out still. ¹³ For the people do not turn to Him who strikes them, nor do they seek the Lord of hosts.

The Prophecy Against Israel

This is a prophetic word given by Isaiah to Israel.  As a prophecy it speaks of coming judgment.

At this time in Israel’s history, Israel is divided into Israel in the north and Judah in the south.  The capitol of Israel is Samaria.  The Assyrians have attacked it and they’ve caused much damage.  “The bricks have fallen and the Sycamores are uprooted.”  But Israel has vowed to rise again, “We will rebuild.”  The have vowed to comeback stronger and better, “We will rebuild with hewn stone.” They will replace the clay bricks with quarried stone.  Stone is much stronger than the clay.  They will replace the Sycamores with Cedars.  Sycamore is a common tree with soft, spongy wood.  Cedar is more suitable to building because of its grain and fragrance. So they vow that THEY will rebuild and be stronger.

But God tells them in verse 9 that they’re speaking with pride and arrogance, because they have removed God from their thinking.  They’re thinking that this is only a security problem.  They’re not thinking of it as a warning or a judgment.  They’re only thinking that they need to protect themselves better:  That they can become safer if they rebuild with better materials.  Hewn stone is stronger than clay, “Let’s build with that.”  Cedars are better than Sycamores, “Let’s plant those.” 

They’re thinking that they will make themselves stronger.  They’re thinking that they can do what they’ve always depended on God to do before. 

It’s really defiance, they’re telling the Assyrians, “You can’t destroy us, WE will rebuild.”  WE will do it.  In some ways it’s the same kind of thinking that the people who build the Tower of Babel had.  We will do what only God has done.  “WE can build a tower to the heavens.”

Israel’s thinking is:  We can do this; we can fortify and protect.  We don’t need God for that WE can do it ourselves. We can do what God has always done.  God has always said that He will protect His people.  That He will provide for Hid people.  But Israel has forgotten that.  In fact, they’ve already turned away to idols.  They’ve already turned away from the God who delivered them.  It’s this attitude that has brought about this warning.  Look at what it says: 

Because you have arrogantly said, “We will rebuild,” leaving God completely out of the equation, God is warning them, through Isaiah that the enemies of Rezin, (Israel’s ally), will rise up against him and them.  God has sent this as a warning to them that another judgment will come upon them.

The action of the Assyrians in knocking down the walls and uprooting the Sycamores was already a judgment.  This prophecy is a warning of more to come.  If the Assyrian attack didn’t open their eyes there is a more terrible judgment to come.  God gave that to Isaiah to speak to them.  First there is the action and then there are the words.  Following that Israel must make a decision, to turn back or to be judged.

Here’s a question, do you think God does that in individual lives as well?  Do you think we can leave God’s will and God’s protection and go out on our own and forget about God, or do you think God deals with us as individuals in the same way he dealt with Israel?

This is a prophecy.  This is a warning to Israel, “It’s going to get really ugly if you don’t turn back to me.”  It would be really frightening to me to walk away from God, because I’ve seen the devastating affect of walking away from God. I’ve seen men lose their families.  I’ve seen them begin to live riotously.  I’ve seen them living on the streets and eating from garbage cans, because this has taken place in their lives.  The really frightening part is that often they think they can’t turn back to God because they have given themselves over to exactly this kind of pride.

I don’t know why people are homeless here in Taiwan, but in Colton and Riverside, because of my position in the church I knew a lot of homeless men.  I saw their arrogance in their hatred of authority.  I saw their pride in their refusal to be accountable to a boss. “No one is going to tell me what to do!”  I saw their defiance in their unwillingness to be a part of the society at large, it was as if they screamed, “You won’t reach me, you can’t touch me I don’t need you.”  That’s exactly what Israel was saying when they declared, “WE will rebuild.”

This prophecy is telling Israel that their enemies will devour them; they will destroy them.  We also face an enemy that wants to destroy us.  The Bible tells us that our enemy, “is like a roaring lion seeking whom he will devour.”

The Purpose of Judgment

So, is God just an angry God?  Is God just a judgmental God, “You better tow the line boy, or I’m gonna tear you up!”?  Is that who God is?

Why would God turn his people over to their enemies?  He does that because He wants them back.  God isn’t doing this to be bitter and vengeful.  God isn’t motivated by hatred or revenge; in short, God isn’t like you and I.  God is doing this to bring them back to Him.

“What about the flood?  “ you may ask.  Why’d God destroy everybody in the flood?  He didn’t send a prophet to them to tell them about the coming judgment.  He did send a warning, He sent Noah, to preach righteousness.

2 Peter 2:5 (NKJV)
^2:5 and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly;

He was trying to call those who were facing judgment to Him.  What do you think would have happened if someone heard Noah and repented?  He would have been allowed on the ark.  Remember in the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrrah, the city would have been spared for the sake of ten righteous men.

In the New Testament Paul speaks of the purpose of judgment:

1 Corinthians 5:3-5 (NKJV)
^5:3 For I indeed, as absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged (as though I were present) him who has so done this deed. ⁴ In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, ⁵ deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

The judgment was for the destruction of the flesh that the spirit might be saved.  Judgment was a call back to Him.  God is using the action of the Assyrians to call His people back to Him.  Look at what He tells them through Isaiah:

Isaiah 10:24-25 (NKJV)
^10:24 Therefore thus says the Lord God of hosts: "O My people, who dwell in Zion, do not be afraid of the Assyrian. He shall strike you with a rod and lift up his staff against you, in the manner of Egypt. ²⁵ For yet a very little while and the indignation will cease, as will My anger in their destruction."

He’s telling Israel, they’re going to damage you, they’re going to hurt you, but it’s only for a little while, until you turn back to Me.”  This is God’s primary purpose in judgment.  There is punishment for their rejection of God.  He’s warned them of that throughout history, “I’m a jealous God.”  He’s said it over and over through the law, through the prophets, through Moses and David, through Sodom and Gomorrah.  The sin and idolatry must be punished, but the primary purpose of judgment is to bring about repentance.

Sin and idolatry must be punished.  God’s anger is kindled.

Isaiah 9:16-17 (NKJV)
^9:16 For the leaders of this people cause them to err, And those who are led by them are destroyed. ¹⁷ Therefore the Lord will have no joy in their young men, Nor have mercy on their fatherless and widows; For everyone is a hypocrite and an evildoer, And every mouth speaks folly. For all this His anger is not turned away, But His hand is stretched out still.

God punishes the leaders for their leading of the people to turn away from God.  But He also holds them who are led astray personally accountable for their own idolatry.  “Those who are led by them are destroyed."  Judgment is personal.  You are responsible for your own response to God.  God isn’t going to give you a pass, you will be judged for turning away and his judgment will punish.  The plan is that the judgment will turn you back to Him. 

When do we cry out to God?  When all is going well?  Is that when we feel a need for God or do we cry put when we have come to the end of ourselves?  When we are humbled and miserable is when we cry out for God:  That’s the place where judgment will bring us.

When did the prodigal son, come to himself?  He came to himself when he had lost everything and was miserably competing with pigs for garbage to eat.  That’s when he decided to return:  After the judgment had driven him to his knees.  That’s the purpose of judgment.

Isaiah 10:21-22 (NKJV)
^10:21 The remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, To the Mighty God. ²² For though your people, O Israel, be as the sand of the sea, A remnant of them will return; The destruction decreed shall overflow with righteousness.

When they come home, the judgment will stop.  The Assyrians had come in and piled up destruction.  God was waiting for them to turn back, He even sent Isaiah to warn them that a worse calamity was coming.  He was calling them back to repentance.  He was looking for them to turn around.

The Bible tells us that the father of the prodigal son saw him afar off.  He saw him far down the road and ran to him and kissed him.  Have you ever thought about why he saw him so far off?  It’s because he was standing at the fence and looking for him.  He waiting and hoping for his return.  It’s the same with God.  We go through judgment so we will come to ourselves and return to a waiting God.

God’s Response to Those Who Come Back

When the prodigal returned the Bible tells us his father slaughtered the fatted calf and the whole household rejoiced.  The prodigal himself was forgiven and restored.

Look at what happens in the prophecy of Isaiah:

Isaiah 10:26-27 (NKJV)
^10:26 And the Lord of hosts will stir up a scourge for him like the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb; as His rod was on the sea, so will He lift it up in the manner of Egypt. ²⁷ It shall come to pass in that day That his burden will be taken away from your shoulder, And his yoke from your neck, And the yoke will be destroyed because of the anointing oil.

God uses those who desire to destroy us to execute judgment.  When the judgment is finished, though, then the evil is punished.  Their judgment and oppression will cease and they will be judged for their evil.

Immediately following this prophecy of judgment, Isaiah begins another prophecy.  It begins like this:

Isaiah 11:1 (NKJV)
^11:1 There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, And a Branch shall grow out of his roots.

This is a prophecy of blessing and renewal.  This is God’s promise of a redeemer.  He is a descendant of Jesse through David.  He is called a “Son of David,” in response to this prophecy.  The word Christ literally means “the Anointed One.”  He is there to lift the bnurden of sin, the yoke of oppression and to judge the evil one. 

This prophecy is a warning to Israel that judgment will come on them for turning away from God.  It tells us also of personal judgment if we turn away from God.  We must guard our hearts because it is easy t turn away from God in the busyness and turmoil of life and embrace other things making them a god.  Idolatry requires judgment because God doesn’t give up on us but looks for ways to call us back to Him.  God is a good and gracious God.

Judgment and Mercy

Anyone who has spent any time witnessing to people has been told, “You’re judging me, who are you to judge me?” But I think the problem is that we call them on their sin and then tell them God is going to send you to hell for that. What we leave out is the good news. If you repent, you’ll be accepted. So today I want to bring a balance to judging. We are called to judgment tempered with mercy.

Recently, I read in the news of a young woman who was on trial for the murder of her two-year old daughter. This woman, Casey Anthony, and her family, repeatedly lied to the police, sent them on wild goose chases, kept them from finding the body. Finally, three years after the murder and her arrest, the trial concludes with the woman being found not guilty of murder, manslaughter, child abuse and other charges. She is only convicted lying to the police. A jury of twelve people heard the evidence and the arguments and judged her to be not guilty of the crime.

The press, on the other hand doggedly, throughout the trial and before, made the judgment that she was guilty. They made this judgment without the presentation of evidence and arguments and witnesses. They made their judgment on hearsay and their own opinions.

The jury made a judgment in a correct way, the media didn’t. Is the woman guilty? I have no way to know that. The evidence was pretty sketchy, no cause of death, no witnesses, no DNA: All of the evidence was circumstantial.

I’m not judging the rightness or wrongness of the jury’s decision. I’m not making any statements about her guilt or innocence. I’m only making a statement about human nature. We have a tendency to make a judgment based on our own assumptions about what happened. Jesus tells us we need to be careful about how we judge.

Luke 6:37-42 (NKJV)
6:37 "Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you." 39 And He spoke a parable to them: "Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into the ditch? 40 A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher. 41 And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not perceive the plank in your own eye? 42 Or how can you say to your brother, 'Brother, let me remove the speck that is in your eye,' when you yourself do not see the plank that is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck that is in your brother's eye.

Making Judgments

In our text Jesus is talking about Christians making judgments of other people. Making judgments is what people do, isn’t it. Most of our lives are spent making decisions and judgments. Those are the things that get us through life. They can be simple decisions about what to wear to a meeting or school, or they can be more complex decisions about finances or direction for our family or our lives. But Jesus warns us about judgments we make involving other people.

People have an interesting capacity to look at other people’s sin while at the same time overlooking their own. We have a “perfectly good reason” for the sin we’re committing. “I know I drink too much, but the pressure at my job is awful.” “Well yeah, I ripped off the company, but they’re not paying me what I’m worth.” “I know I shot up my university, but I had a bad childhood.” These are the justifications we use that are intended to make it okay for us to act improperly. But the problem is that while justifying our own misbehavior we have a “no excuses policy” for everyone else. We can harshly judge someone else with no thought of mercy, and this is Jesus’ point.

Look at the context of this statement, “Judge not and you shall not be judged!” You can find the context in the verses preceding the text. Look at the statements found in those verses:

1. Love your enemies
2. Bless those that curse you
3. Pray for those that use you
4. Turn the other cheek
5. Give to those that ask
6. Treat others, as you want to be treated

Look at verse 36 the last verse before the text:

Luke 6:36 (NKJV)
6:36 Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.

So, mercy is the context of Jesus’ words about judgment. Mercy is found in all of God’s judgments. Let’s go back to the Garden of Eden for a moment. God created the Garden and He gave Adam and Eve only one command. He told them they could eat of any tree in the Garden but one. What did Adam and Eve do? They ate the fruit of the tree God told them not to eat and God judged their actions.

When God did that He laid down some pretty heavy curses on them, didn’t He? He told Adam that all of the provision God had made in his life to this point was over. Adam would have to sweat to receive what God had freely given before. Eve was created to be the mother of all, and a partner with Adam. But now God told her she would have pain in childbirth. So this is a judgment of God.

But at the same moment of this judgment God tells Satan that the offspring of Eve, whom Satan had deceived, would eventually destroy him. In other words, He would send someone who would make it possible for human beings to return to God’s favor. That’s mercy. Adam and Eve did nothing to deserve for God to make it possible for them to return to a relationship with God, but God made a way for them anyway. That is the dictionary definition of mercy, by the way: Undeserved compassion shown to an offender.

How do we make judgments of things people do wrong? We condemn without mercy. “I’ll never speak to him again.” We assassinate people’s character through Gossip and innuendo. We destroy opportunities.

I just read in the news the other day about a hacker who is going to prison for 18 years. He got angry with his neighbor because the neighbor was dismayed that this guy kissed his neighbor’s son on the lips. So look what he did. He bought a program that allowed him to steal his neighbor’s IP address, and then he hacked his email and sent threats to the Vice President of the United States. He sent child pornography to the guy’s colleagues; all of this was done to destroy the neighbor. They called it Internet terrorism. People do things like this all the time. Maybe not on a lesser scale, but we act without compassion or mercy all the time.

But God tempered His judgment with mercy. That same mercy is seen in these context statements that I’ve presented:

1. Love your enemies: Jesus died for the very people who were crucifying Him.
2. Bless them that curse you, pray for those that use you: Pray for their salvation, Jesus did that on the cross, “Father forgive them…”
3. Give to those that ask, treat others as you would want to be treated.

Sometimes people are in need because of their own bad decisions or bad habits. Sometimes they realize that they have caused themselves to be in that situation. Other times they are defiant about it. But when it comes to real need, regardless of the situation, Jesus is telling us we need to give. It doesn’t have to be money…it can be clothing or blankets or food. Treat them, as you want to be treated.

There is an interesting moment in scripture when a rich, young ruler comes to Jesus and asks Him, “What thing must I do to inherit Eternal Life?” Look at Jesus’ answer:

Mark 10:19 (NKJV)
You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery,' 'Do not murder,' 'Do not steal,' 'Do not bear false witness,' 'Do not defraud,' 'Honor your father and your mother.' "

Don’t you think it’s interesting that all of these have to do with how people treat each other? Not one of them mentions our relationship with God; they are all about our relationships with other people. You want Eternal Life? If so, relationships with people are important. Our text speaks of an important component of relationships; mercy and forgiveness.

Does This Mean We Shouldn’t Judge Sin?

Unfortunately, we all sin; sin is a part of our nature. Let me ask you a couple of questions: Is there anyone reading this who has never told a lie? How about stealing, can you say you’ve never stolen anything, this can even mean work time from your boss?

Romans 3:23 (NKJV)
3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Romans 3:10 (NKJV)
3:10 As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one;

So we can’t do it. Our works can’t justify us. We can’t earn heaven by living out the law, because we can’t live the law completely. But does that mean we can’t judge sin? Look at what the Apostle Paul says:

1 Corinthians 5:11-12 (NKJV)
5:11 But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner--not even to eat with such a person. 12 For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside?

We must be able to judge sin. We have to be able to recognize sin in order to judge it in our own lives. Sometimes that means judging it in the church. We have to judge it in the church, and what Paul is saying here might seem harsh, “Do not keep company with…not even to eat with such a person.” That seems like a pretty harsh judgment, doesn’t it? But Paul tempers it with mercy. Look at this statement:

1 Corinthians 5:4-5 (NKJV)
5:4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, 5 deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

The goal of judging is to bring the person back to the will of God; to see that person saved, once again. It isn’t about punishing the person it’s about bringing that person back to the place of salvation. Why should the people of God judge? Paul answers that question, as well.

1 Corinthians 5:6-8 (NKJV)
5:6 Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? 7 Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. 8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

The people of Corinth were not only not judging, they were kind of proud of it. Paul is warning them that a little leaven leavens the whole lump. In other words one person’s sin can spread to the rest of the congregation.

I’ve seen this happen a number of times. If sin in a congregation isn’t judged, that sin will spread. Fornication, rebellion and adultery especially will spread quickly through a congregation. I know a church where these things took place a number of years ago and they haven’t recovered still. The church is still struggling with some of these same issues today.

So judgment must be made for the sake of the person involved in the sin and the well being of the congregation. It must be made in order to give the offender opportunity to repent and so that the church will remain pure; to keep sin from spreading throughout the congregation.

There is one other thing; judgment must be made so that the blessing of God will remain on the church. There is an illustration of this in the Old Testament. It’s found in the story of Achan.

God has given Joshua a plan for the defeat of Jericho. This was the first city that Israel had to defeat in battle, as they began to take possession of the land of Canaan. He tells Joshua to walk around the city for seven days and then blow their trumpets and the walls will collapse. Bus as he gave him those instructions He warned him that all of the spoil will belong to God. The people are not to take any of the spoil of the battle. That spoil is a tithe to God; it is the first fruits of the Promised Land.

But Achan sees some wonderful things; gold, silver, garments, treasure and he takes it. He violates the command of God. When we violate God’s commands that’s called sin. So Achan sins and what happens? In the very next battle the people of Ai rout Israel.

Joshua 7:4-5 (NKJV)
7:4 So about three thousand men went up there from the people, but they fled before the men of Ai. 5 And the men of Ai struck down about thirty-six men, for they chased them from before the gate as far as Shebarim, and struck them down on the descent; therefore the hearts of the people melted and became like water.

Joshua is upset, he demands from God to know what happened. Look at God’s response:

Joshua 7:10-12 (NKJV)
7:10 So the Lord said to Joshua: "Get up! Why do you lie thus on your face? 11 Israel has sinned, and they have also transgressed My covenant which I commanded them. For they have even taken some of the accursed things, and have both stolen and deceived; and they have also put it among their own stuff. 12 Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they have become doomed to destruction. Neither will I be with you anymore, unless you destroy the accursed from among you.

Israel sinned? I thought it was only Achan who sinned, but all of Israel is held accountable. What does that mean for a congregation? We as a church will be held accountable for the sin of individuals if that sin isn’t judged. A congregation will be unable to stand against its enemies. Who are our enemies: The forces of hell and Satan himself? We won’t be able to stand against him. We won’t be able to stand against sin. We will always be defeated by the devil if we don’t judge sin in our midst. I don’t know about you, but I need victory.

Judgment is Tempered with Love

So what does all this mean? Do we need to kick everyone who sins out of the church? I think most churches would have a pretty small congregation if we did that. Judgment doesn’t always include banning people, but it does mean that we have to confront sin in each other’s lives. Prayerfully, Biblically, lovingly confront the sin. Tell them what the sin is. Show them in the Bible that it is sin. Then show the mercy of God to forgive when we repent.

In revelations Chapter Two, Jesus is speaking to the church in Thyatira. There is a woman there named Jezebel. She’s teaching false doctrine, seducing the saints to fornication and sin. But she isn’t immediately judged; God doesn’t immediately strike her dead with a lightning bolt. Instead, God looks patiently for repentance.

Revelation 2:20-22 (NKJV)
2:20 Nevertheless I have a few things against you, because you allow that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce My servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols. 21 And I gave her time to repent of her sexual immorality, and she did not repent. 22 Indeed I will cast her into a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of their deeds.

God gives her time to repent but she doesn’t repent, so He will judge her. This is mercy, because the Word of God says this:

1 John 1:8-9 (NKJV)
1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

This is our example. We need to allow opportunity to repent. We’re not allowed to judge and condemn those who are outside the church. God is their judge and that scripture tells me He will give them time and opportunity to repent. God will send a watchman to them to bring a warning, that’s our role. People involved in sin will tell you that you’re judging when you bring the warning, but actually you are acting as the instrument of God to give them opportunity to repent. As I close this, I want to show you the difference:

On one side, there is a website called http://www.raptureready.com/index.php On this website they preach about the coming of Jesus and his calling of the saints in the rapture. They preach on sin and salvation. But they also have an extensive collection of documents that tells what to do if the rapture happens and you are left behind. Their focus is the salvation of mankind. They are trying to help people to prepare for judgment and give them time to repent.

On the other side, there is a church that protests at the funerals of killed American Soldiers and hold up banners and signs that say, “God hates fags.” This is untrue. God loves people and hates sin. In God’s eyes there is no difference between the sin of lying and the sin of homosexuality. There is no real call to repentance, only a call to judgment.

If the things you’re saying while witnessing only demonstrate the wrath and judgment of God then you’re not only bringing condemnation, you’re not judging Biblically. Biblical judgment is confrontation of sin and opportunity for repentance and a demonstration of the mercy and love of God. It is God’s place to judge and condemn it is our place to confront and show mercy. Be an instrument of repentance rather than an executioner of judgment.