Judge. | Basic Devotional. God the Father.

Hello and welcome, Mercy Church family, to our Pray 365 devotion number 28, Judge.

Let the heavens be glad and let the earth rejoice.

Let the sea roar and all that fills it.

Let the field exult and everything in it.

Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord.

For he comes, for he comes to judge the earth.

He will judge the world in righteousness and the people in his faithfulness.

Psalm 96, 11 through 13.

If you were granted one wish for anything in the universe, what would it be?

In Gibeon, the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream at night and said, Then Solomon said, You have shown your servant David, my father, great loving kindness because he walked before you in faithfulness and righteousness with uprightness of heart toward you.

And you have kept for him this great loving kindness in that you have given him a son to sit on his throne as it is today.

So now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father.

And as for me, I am but a little boy in wisdom and experience.

I do not know how to go or come in, that is, how to conduct business as a king.

Your servant is among your people whom you have chosen.

So give your servant an understanding mind and a hearing heart with which to judge your people, so that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to judge and rule this great people of yours?

Solomon's request when broken down from the original Hebrew translates like this.

Please give your servant an intelligently hearing heart and intellect to judge and govern your people.

Solomon only had one wish, and out of all the wonders of the world, this was his one wish.

Now it pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this thing, and God said to him, Because you have asked this and not have asked for yourself a long life or wealth, nor for the lives of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to recognize judgment, behold, I have done as you ask, and I have given you a wise and discerning mind.

So that no one before you was your equal, nor shall anyone equal to you arise after you.

I have also given you what you have not asked, both wealth and honor, so that there will not be anyone equal to you among the kings for all your days.

If you walk in my ways and keep my statutes and commandments as your father David did, then I will lengthen your days.

Then Solomon awoke and he realized that it was a dream.

He came back to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord.

He offered burnt offerings and peace offerings And he prepared a feast for all his servants.

And laid him on her bosom and laid her dead son on my bosom.

Then the other woman said, no, for my son is the one who is living and your son is the dead one.

But the first woman said, no, for your son is the dead one and my son is the living one.

This is how they were speaking before the king.

Then the king said, this woman says, this is my son, the one who is alive and your son is the dead one.

And the other woman says, no, for your son is the dead one and my son is the one who is alive.

Then the king said, So they brought a sword before the king.

When all the people of Israel heard about the judgment which the king had made, they were in awe and reverently feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was within him to administer justice.

1 Kings 3 This is perhaps the most famous story of judgment by a human throughout history.

The heavens declare His righteousness, for God Himself is judge.

Psalm 50, verse 6.

Psalms 50:6

Before we can determine the characteristics that define a qualified judge, we must first get an understanding of the position.

A judge is a public official vested with the authority to hear, determine, and preside over legal matters brought in court.

The American Bar Association, the organization responsible for the education and licensing of attorneys practicing law in the United States of America, defines a judge as umpires in baseball, or referees in football or basketball.

Their role is to see that the rules of court procedures are followed by both sides.

Like the ump, they call him as they see him, according to the facts and law, without regard to which side is popular, no home field advantage, without regard to who is favored, without regard for what the spectators want, and without regard to whether the judge agrees with the law.

In Hebrew, the word wafat or lispo means judge.

Govern, argue our case, decide, deliver, act as lawgiver, determine controversies, and execute law.

Basically, a judge decides whether a person follows or breaks the law.

For the Lord is our judge.

The Lord is our lawgiver.

The Lord is our king.

He will save us.

Isaiah 33, 22 In the beginning, God created the universe.

He established facts and reality.

Through faith, we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

Hebrews 11.3 He placed man in that universe and gave him the rules.

The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.

And the Lord God commanded the man, You are free to eat from any tree in the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it, you will certainly die.

Genesis 2.1 Somewhere around 1500 years later, God gave man a more intricate form of the law found in the Ten Commandments.

Exodus 24.12 For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers that they should teach them to their children.

Psalm 78 5.

Rules have rewards and consequences.

God gave Adam one rule, do not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

This rule has a reward, if followed, and a consequence, if disobeyed.

God tells Adam the consequence immediately.

If he disobeys, he will die.

The reward is implied.

If Adam obeys, he will live and not die.

See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction.

For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him and to keep his commands, decrees and laws.

Then you will live in an increase and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.

But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed.

You will not live long in the land you are crossing to the Jordan to enter and possess.

This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curses.

Now choose life so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God.

Listen to his voice and hold fast to him for the Lord is your life and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Deuteronomy 30, 15 through 20.

God also gave the Israelites rewards and consequences.

If they choose to follow His commandments, they will live, increase, multiply, and be blessed.

If they choose to disobey, they will be destroyed and die.

When all has been heard, the end of the matter is, fear God, worship Him with awe-filled reverence, knowing that He is Almighty God, and keep His commandments, for this applies to every person.

For God will bring every act to judgment, every hidden and secret thing, whether it is good or evil.

Ecclesiastes 12, 13, and 14 One day we will all face judgment for our actions on this earth.

Why do you pass judgment on your brother or sister?

Or you, why do you despise your brother or sister?

For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God.

Romans 4, 10 The trial will determine whether we followed God's commands or not.

So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.

Romans 14, 12 We give thanks to you, O God.

We give thanks for your name is near.

Do not lift up your horn on high or speak with a haughty neck, for not from the east or from the west and not from the wilderness comes lifting up.

But it is God who executes judgment, putting down one and lifting up another.

For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup with foaming wine well mixed, and he pours out from it, and all the wicked of the earth shall drain it down to the dregs, but I will declare it forever.

I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.

All the horns of the wicked I will cut off, but the horns of the righteous shall be Exodus 37.

If you don't, He says, Psalm 7.

God is not just a judge.

He is the judge, the judge over all the earth.

Psalm 9, 19 and 20.

Have you not known?

Have you not heard?

Has it not been told to you from the beginning?

Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?

It is he who sits above the circle of the earth and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers who stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.

He brings the princess to nothing.

He makes the judges of the earth useless.

Scarcely shall they be planted.

Scarcely shall they be sown.

Scarcely shall their stock take root in the earth when he will Isaiah 40, 21-26 He is the judge over every creature in existence, including those found in the spiritual world.

God presides over heaven's court.

He pronounces judgment on the heavenly beings.

How long will you hand down unjust decisions by favoring the wicked?

Give justice to the poor and the orphans.

Uphold the rights of the oppressed and the destitute.

Rescue the poor and the helpless.

Deliver them from the grasp of evil people.

But these oppressors know nothing.

They are so ignorant.

They wander about in darkness while the whole world is shaken to the core.

I say, you are gods.

You are children of the most high, but you will die like mere mortals and fall like every other ruler.

Rise, O God, and judge the earth, for all the nations belong to you.

Psalm 82, 1-7 Not only is he the supreme judge of the universe, he satisfies all the characteristics of the perfect judge and exceeds them.

God is wise.

Romans 11, 33-36 God is always present.

Proverbs 15, 3.

Acts 15, 18.

Proverbs 15, 18.

Am I a God at hand, declares the Lord, and not a God far away?

Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him, declares the Lord?

Do I not fill the heavens and the earth, declares the Lord?

Jeremiah 23, 23 and 24.

So this means God has a firsthand account of all our actions.

He says, It is high.

I cannot attain it.

But the night shines as the day.

The darkness and the light are both alike to you.

For you formed my inward parts.

You covered me in my mother's womb.

I will praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Marvelous are your works and that my soul knows very well.

My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in secret and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

God doesn't just see our actions without any context.

I, the Lord, search the heart and test the mind to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds, Jeremiah 17.10.

Proverbs 24, 12.

He knows every thought, hope, fear, and intention.

He understands our motives.

Let's look at the anointing of King David by Samuel to get some perspective.

So Samuel did as the Lord instructed.

When he arrived at Bethlehem, the elders of the town came trembling to meet him.

What's wrong, they asked.

Do you come in peace?

Yes, Samuel replied, I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.

Purify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.

Then Samuel...

performed the purification rite for Jesse and his sons and invited them to sacrifice too.

When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, surely this is the Lord's anointed.

But the Lord said to Samuel, don't judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him.

The Lord doesn't see things the way you see them.

People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.

Then Jesse...

He told his son Abinadab to step forward and walk in front of Samuel.

But Samuel said, This is not the one the Lord has chosen.

Next, Jesse summoned Shimea.

But Samuel said, Neither is this the one the Lord has chosen.

In the same way, all seven of Jesse's sons were presented to Samuel.

But Samuel said to Jesse, The Lord has not chosen any of these.

Then Samuel asked, Are these all the sons you have?

They are still the youngest, Jesse replied, but he is out in the fields watching the sheep and goats.

Send for him at once, Samuel said.

We will not sit down to eat until he arrives.

So Jesse sent for him.

He was dark and handsome with beautiful eyes.

And the Lord said, This is the one, anoint him.

So as David stood there among his brothers, Samuel took the flask of olive oil.

He had brought and anointed David with oil.

And the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David from that day on.

Then Samuel returned to Ramah.

1 Samuel 16, 4-13 Jesus explains it for us.

He says, 7.15-23 Psalm 90, 2.

God is holy and cannot act apart from his holiness.

Great and marvelous are your deeds, Lord God Almighty.

Just and true are your ways, King of the nations.

Who will not fear you, Lord, and bring glory to your name?

For you alone are holy.

All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.

He is sacred, revered, set apart from sin, which means so are his laws.

Then this is the message which we have heard of him and declare unto you that God is light and in him is no darkness at all.

John 17, 17.

James 1, 13.

God does not sin.

Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness.

Sin is lawlessness, 1 John 3, 4.

God made the law so he always follows it.

If we are faithless, he remains faithful, true to his word and his righteous character, for he cannot deny himself, 2 Timothy 2, 13.

Following the law means that God is just.

Deuteronomy 32.4 Deuteronomy 10.17 Even when no law exists, God takes it a step further and always does what is right.

God is righteous, so he makes righteous judgments.

The Lord is righteous.

He is in her midst.

He will do no unrighteousness.

Every morning he brings his justice to light.

He never fails, but the unjust know no shame.

Zephaniah 3.5 In addition to being holy and righteous, God is inherently good.

The Lord is good to all and his mercy is over all that he has made.

Psalm 145.9 God is the most qualified judge throughout existence.

He does what is right, just, just.

Good and wise.

One day all of us will face God's judgment.

None of us will be exempt.

For he is coming to judge the earth.

With righteousness he shall judge the world and the peoples with equity.

Psalm 98 9 Society often equates judgment with condemnation.

He repays everyone for what they have done.

He brings on them what their conduct deserves.

Job 34 11 This is because all of us have committed sin and the awareness of our status as sinners resides innate within us.

Indeed, there is not a righteous man on earth who always does good and who never sins.

Ecclesiastes 7 20 One day we will all face judgment for our actions.

And the man said, The woman...

Whom you gave me to be with me, she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate it.

Then the Lord God said to the woman, What is this that you have done?

And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me and deceived me, and I ate from the forbidden tree.

The Lord said to the serpent, Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all the cattle and more than any animal of the field.

On your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.

Verse 2.

Yet your desire and longing will be for your husband and he will rule with authority over you and be responsible for you.

Then to Adam, the Lord God said, because you have listened attentively to the voice of your wife and have eaten fruit from the tree about which I commanded you saying, you shall not eat of it.

The ground is now under curse because of you and sorrow and toil.

You shall eat the fruit of it all the days of your life.

Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you, and you shall eat the plants of the field.

By the sweat of your face you will eat bread until you return to the ground from it you were taken.

For you are dust, and to dust you shall return.

The man named his wife Eve, life-spring, life-giver, because she was the mother of all the living.

And the Lord made tunics of animal skins.

And the Lord God said, Which turned round and round in every direction to protect and guard the way the entrance access to the tree of life.

Genesis 3, 8 through 24.

Adam and Eve did not listen to God.

He told them if they ate from the tree, they would die.

So all the days that Adam lived were 930 years and he died.

Genesis 5, 5.

Not only did Adam and Eve die, but sin came into the world and cursed all mankind.

Therefore, just as through one man, sin entered the world and death through sin entered And thus, death spread to all men because all sinned.

For until the law, sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed where there is no law.

Nevertheless, death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who was a type of him who was to come.

Romans 5, 12-14.

Let's analyze this.

Adam's son's descent into sin to have a better understanding of the grip of sin on a person and its snowball effect.

Adam made love to his wife Eve and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain.

Genesis 4, 1 through 6.

The book of Hebrews explains it like this.

By faith, Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which it was testified of him that he was righteous, upright, and right standing with God.

And God testified by accepting his gifts.

And though he died, yet through this act of faith, he still speaks.

Hebrews 11.4 God told Samuel not to judge by appearances because God looks at things different than man.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.

As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Isaiah 55, 8 and 9.

God looks at our hearts.

Cain could have offered God a castle made of gold and Abel could have offered God a stick.

It is not the contents of the offering, but the contents of the offerer's heart that matter.

God tells Cain if he does what is right, then he will be accepted.

Now Cain said to his brother Abel, Let's go out to the field.

While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.

Then the Lord said to Cain, Where is your brother Abel?

I don't know, he replied.

Am I my brother's keeper?

The Lord said, What have you done?

Listen, your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground.

Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand.

When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you.

You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.

Cain said to the Lord, My punishment is more than I can bear.

Today you are driving me from the land and I will be hidden from your presence.

I will be a restless wanderer on the earth and whoever finds me will kill me.

But the Lord said to him, Not so.

Anyone who kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over.

Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him.

So Cain went out from the Lord's presence and lived in the land of Nod, east of Eden.

Genesis 4, 1-6 Jeremiah 17.10 God explains the root of Cain's dilemma as simply doing what is right and his sacrifice will be accepted.

He also warns Cain that he needs to get a handle on his thoughts because sin is knocking on the door to his heart, which in turn leads to more sin and more sin.

Cain got angry and in his anger opened the door to sin.

He became jealous of his brother Abel.

Cain deceived Abel into going out into the field where he murdered his brother.

Cain lied to God about his brother's whereabouts, then became upset at God's punishment, not out of guilt for the murder he had committed, but out of selfish preservation for his own safety.

He did not want to be kicked out of God's presence and the protection it provided.

Romans explains the descent of mankind into sin.

But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness.

They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them.

Forever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky.

Through everything God made, they can see his invisible qualities, his eternal power and divine nature.

So they have no excuse for not knowing God.

Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn't worship him as God or even give him thanks.

And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like.

As a result, their minds became dark and confused.

Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools.

And instead of worshiping the glorious ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.

That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires.

Even the women turned against the natural ways to have sex.

And instead indulged in sex with each other, and in the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other.

Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved.

Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, He abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that would...

Should never be done.

Romans 1.18-32 It says, Now Noah became the father of three sons, Shem, Genesis 6, 9-12 says, God flooded the entire earth.

Only Noah, who was instructed by the Lord to build a boat, survived along with his family.

For 40 days, the flood water grew deeper, covering the ground and lifting the boat high above the earth.

As the waters rose higher and higher above the ground, the boat floated to safety on the surface.

Finally, the water covered even the highest mountains on the earth.

Rising more than 22 feet above the highest peaks, all the living things on the earth died.

Birds, domestic animals, wild animals, small animals that scurry along the ground, and all the people.

Everything that breathed and lived on dry land died.

God wiped out every living thing on the earth.

People, livestock, small animals that scurry along the ground, and the birds of the sky.

All were destroyed.

The only people who survived were Noah and those with him in the boat.

And the floodwaters covered the earth for 150 days.

Genesis 7, 17-24 God is judge over the entire earth, and upon our deaths we will face judgment, and just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.

Hebrews 9.27 Sometimes the sin becomes so great that God will intervene with judgment early before their natural deaths.

But the Lord said, What have you done?

Listen, your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground.

Genesis 4.10 Genesis 18, 20.

God sent his angels to investigate.

Verse 2.

Verse 3.

Unleavened bread, and they ate.

Now before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both old and young, all the people from every quarter, surrounded the house.

And they called to Lot and said to him, Where are these men that came to you tonight?

Bring them out to us so that we may know them carnally.

So Lot went out to them through the doorway, shut the door behind them, and said, Please, my brethren, do not do so wickedly.

See, now I have two daughters who have not known a man.

Please, let me bring them out to you, and you may deal with them as you wish.

Only do nothing to these men.

Genesis 19, 1 through 9.

So God, in judgment, destroyed the two cities, saving only Lot and his family.

The sun had risen upon the earth when Lot entered Zor.

Then the Lord rained brimstone and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah from the Lord out of the heavens.

So he overthrew those cities, all the plains, all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground.

And Abraham went early in the morning to the place where he stood before the Lord.

Then he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah and toward all the land of the plain, and he saw...

And behold, the smoke of a furnace.

And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in which Lot had dwelt.

Genesis 19, 23-25, 27-29 Man is made of three parts, body, spirit, and soul.

Our physical bodies are fashioned out of the dirt from the ground by God's own hands.

These corporal vessels house our spirit.

The breath God breathed into us to bring us to life.

Our souls are the part of us that contain our identity and personality.

The punishment of sin is death for all parts of our being.

One day our physical bodies will die and our spirits along with our souls will return to God, their originator.

Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.

Ecclesiastes 12.7 In the case of the people living in the time of Noah and the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, their sins were so extreme that the atrocities they committed cried out to God.

He intervened and gave them their physical punishment, death, early.

One day they will stand before judgment for their spirits and souls.

Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city.

Matthew 10.15 Upon our physical death, our spirits return to God and our souls along with them to await judgment.

Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.

Rather, be afraid of the one who could destroy both soul and body in hell.

Matthew 10.28 All men have sinned and fallen short.

We all deserve death as punishment for all parts of our being.

As it is written, none is righteous, no, not one.

No one understands.

No one seeks for God.

All have turned aside.

Together they have become worthless.

No one does good, not even one.

Their throat is an open grave.

They use their tongues to deceive.

The venom of asps is under their lips.

Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.

Their feet are swift to shed blood.

In their paths are ruin and misery.

And the way of peace they have not known.

There is no fear of God before their eyes.

Romans 3, 10-20 And God will provide rest for you who are being persecuted and also for us when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven.

He will come with his mighty angels and flaming fire, bringing judgment on those who don't know God and on those who refuse to obey the good news of our Lord Jesus.

They will be punished with eternal destruction, forever separated from the Lord and from his glorious power.

2 Thessalonians 1, 7-9 One day, after our physical deaths, we will face God's judgment in our spirit for our souls.

So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.

Therefore, let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother.

God never intended death for mankind.

He created mankind for relationship to live and walk with him eternally.

For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.

Ephesians 1.5 He wants to have a relationship with each of us.

But now, O Jacob, listen to the Lord who created you, O Israel.

The one who formed you says, Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you.

I have called you by name, and you are mine.

Isaiah 43.1 God never intended to live apart from mankind.

He walked in the garden with Adam.

Isaiah 43, 7.

Galatians 5, 13.

Isaiah 59.3 Eventually, our separation from God will become permanent upon judgment.

These people will pay the penalty and endure the punishment of everlasting destruction, banished from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power.

2 Thessalonians 1.9 God loves us.

The Lord appeared to him from far away.

I have loved you with an everlasting love.

Therefore, I have continued my faithfulness to you.

Jeremiah 31.3 God does not wish to be parted from any of us.

The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness.

Instead, He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

2 Peter 3.9 God loves us and wants to have a relationship with us.

Romans 8.38-39 But still be everything that it is in his nature to be.

Good, holy, just, righteous, eternal, unchanging, faithful, and perfect.

God created the law and must seek its justice.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

John 3.16 He sent His Son Jesus Christ, a member of the Trinity, God born in human flesh, to take on the punishment of sin for us.

2 Corinthians 5.21 Jesus traded himself for us.

He bore our sin and his death satisfied our penalty of sin and freed us forever from the shackles of sin that bind us.

When Adam sinned, sin entered the world.

Adam's sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.

Yes, people sinned even before the law was given, but it was not counted as sin because there was not yet any law to break.

So everyone died from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even those who did not disobey an explicit command of God as Adam did.

Now Adam is a symbol of a representation of Christ who is yet to come.

But there is a great difference between Adam's sin and God's gracious gift.

For the sin of this one man, Adam, brought death to many.

But even greater is God's wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ.

And the result of God's gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man's sin.

For Adam's sin led to condemnation, but God's free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins.

For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many.

But even greater is God's wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.

Yes, Adam's one sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ's one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone.

But because one other person obeyed God, many will be made righteous.

God's law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were.

But as people sinned more and more, God's wonderful grace became more abundant.

So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God's wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 5, 12-20 Jesus Christ paid our debt.

Therefore, there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus, the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.

For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering.

And so He condemned sin in the flesh in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

Romans 8, 1-4 There is nothing we can do to earn our salvation, but God shows His love for us.

While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5, 8 Our efforts have nothing to do with it, for the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 6, 23 God gives us the gift of salvation if we choose him.

If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved for it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God and it is openly declaring your faith that you are saved.

Romans 10, 9 and 10.

We must note that there can be no salvation without repentance.

No, I tell you, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.

Luke 13, 3.

Through repentance, we confess our sins and admit our status as sinners.

For godly sorrow that is in accord with the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation.

But worldly sorrow, the hopeless sorrow of those who do not believe, produces death.

2 Corinthians 7.10 Repentance leads us to seek God's forgiveness for our sins.

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us.

1 John 1.9 We become cleansed of our sins and are born again as new creations.

For freedom Christ has set us free.

Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

Ephesians 5.1.

Repentance doesn't mean to just renounce our sins, but to completely turn from our sin-filled lives.

Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.

Ignoring God's law by action or neglect or by tolerating wrongdoing, being unrestrained by His commands and His will, you know that He appeared in visible form as a man in order to take away sins and end There is absolutely no sin.

Nature, nor has he committed sin or acts worthy of blame.

No one who abides in him remains united in fellowship with him, deliberately knowingly and habitually practices sin.

No one who habitually sins has seen him or known him.

Little children, believers, dear ones, do not let anyone lead you astray.

The one who practices righteousness, the one who strives to live a consistently honorable life in private as well as in public and to conform to God's precepts is righteous.

Just as he is righteous, the one who practices sin separating himself from God and offending him by acts of disobedience, indifference, or rebellion.

It says, And he who is born again cannot habitually live a life characterized by sin because he is born of God and longs to please him.

By this, the children of God and the children of the devil are clearly identified.

Anyone who does not practice righteousness, who does not seek God's will in thought, action, and purpose is not of God, nor is the one who does not unselfishly love his believing brother.

For this is the message which you believers have heard from the beginning of your relationship with Christ.

That we should unselfishly love and seek the best for one another and not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother Abel.

And why did he murder him?

Because Cain's deeds were evil and his brothers were righteous.

1 John 3, 4-12 We have to make sure that we do not return to our sinful ways, but strive to model ourselves after the Lord of our lives.

Be imitators of me as I am of Christ.

1 Corinthians 11, 1 A change must take place inside of us when we become saved.

Therefore, God overlooked and disregarded the former ages of ignorance.

But now he commands all people everywhere to repent.

That is to change their old way of thinking, to regret their past sins and to seek God's purpose for their lives.

Because he has set a day when he will judge the inhabited world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed and destined for that task.

And he has provided credible proof to everyone by raising him from the dead.

Acts 17, 30-31.

We don't earn salvation through our works.

Salvation is a free gift from God, but we prove our salvation through the fruit of our works.

In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

But someone will say, you have faith, I have deeds.

He says, And the scripture was fulfilled that says Abraham believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness and he was called God's friend.

You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone.

In the same way was not Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction?

As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

James 2, 17-26 When Jesus died on the cross for our sins and ascended to heaven to sit at the right hand of the Father, the Father gave the Son the job of judgment.

The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son.

John 5, 22 Jesus will tell his Father about us.

Therefore, whoever confesses me before men...

In reality, how we or the world defines truth does not matter.

The only truth that counts, the real truth, is God's truth.

And we know that the judgment of God falls justly and is in accordance with truth on those who practice such things.

Romans 2.2 Truth.

Our lives are short, yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring.

What is your life?

For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.

James 4.14 Truth.

Most of us will face physical death.

Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt.

Daniel 12.2 For the nonbeliever, they will first die a physical death.

And he said to them, You are from beneath, and I am from above.

You are of this world.

I am not of this world.

Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins.

For if you do not believe that I am he, you will die in your sins.

John 8.23-24 They will face judgment, for God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.

Ecclesiastes 12, 14.

Judgment precedes a second death of their entire being.

But the fearful and unbelieving and the abominable and murderers and whoremongers and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.

Revelation 21.8 As believers, we have no reason to fear death.

Jesus told the thief next to him on the cross, and Jesus said to him, Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.

Luke 23.43 Upon our deaths, our spirits go to be with Jesus.

The Jewish leaders were infuriated by Stephen's accusation, and they shook their fists at him in rage.

But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, exclaimed, And he said, As they stoned him, Stephen prayed, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.

He fell to his knees shouting, Lord, don't charge them with this sin.

And with that, he died.

Acts 7.54-60 Revelation 1 verse 7.

Revelation 1:7

Amen.

Very truly, I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged, but is crossed over from death to life.

Very truly, I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live.

For as the Father has life in itself, so as he has granted the Son also to have life in himself, and he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.

Do not be amazed at this, for a time has come When all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out.

He will rapture the believers who are still walking upon this earth.

Now, we do not want you to be uninformed believers about those who are asleep in death so that you will not grieve for them as the others do who have no hope beyond this present life.

For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, as in fact he did.

Then we who are alive 1 Thessalonians 4, 13-18 But someone may ask, how will the dead be raised?

What kind of bodies will they have?

What a foolish question.

When you put a seed into the ground, it doesn't grow into a plant unless it dies first.

And what you put in the ground is not the plant that will grow, but only a bare seed of wheat or whatever you are planting.

Then God gives it the new body he wants it to have.

A different plant grows from each kind of seed.

Similarly, there are different kinds of flesh, one kind for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish.

There are also bodies in the heaven and bodies on the earth.

The glory of the heavenly bodies is different from the glory of the earthly bodies.

The sun has one kind of glory, while the moons and stars each have another kind, and even the stars differ from one another in their glory.

It is the same way with the resurrection of the dead.

Our earthly bodies are planted in the ground when we die, but they will be raised to live forever.

Our bodies are buried in brokenness, but they will be raised up in glory.

They are buried in weakness, but they will be raised up in strength.

They are buried as natural human bodies, but they will be raised as spiritual bodies.

For just as there are natural bodies, there are also spiritual bodies.

The scripture tells us, That is Christ, is a life-giving spirit.

What comes first is the natural body, then the spiritual body comes later.

Adam, the first man, was made from the dust of the earth, while Christ, the second man, came from heaven.

Earthly people are like the earthly man, and heavenly people are like the heavenly man.

Just as we are now like the earthly man, we will someday be like that heavenly man.

What I'm saying, dear brothers and sisters, is that our physical bodies cannot inherit the kingdom of God.

These dying bodies cannot inherit what will last forever but let me reveal to you a wonderful secret we will not all die but we will all be transformed it will happen in a moment in the blink of an eye When the last trumpet is blown, for when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever.

And we who are living will also be transformed, for our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die.

Our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies.

Then when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this scripture will be fulfilled.

Death is swallowed up in victory.

Oh, death, where is your victory?

Oh, death, where is your sting?

For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power.

But thank God, He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 15, 35-57 At the final resurrection, those of us who have passed on from this life will get our rewards and resurrection bodies.

Verse 2.

Verse 3.

Like new clothing for we will put on heavenly bodies.

We will not be spirits without bodies while we live in these earthly bodies.

We groan and sigh, but it's not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us.

Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life.

God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee, he has given us his Holy Spirit.

So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies, we are not at home with the Lord, for we live by believing and not by seeing.

Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord.

So whether we are here in this body...

2 Corinthians 5, 1-10 Believers will stand before the judgment seat of Christ.

2 Corinthians 5.10 We will stand before Jesus and be judged by how we followed His truth.

No other opinions will matter.

For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that he...

Even gave His one and only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him as Savior shall not perish but have eternal life.

For God did not send the Son into the world to judge and condemn the world, that is, to initiate the final judgment of the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.

Whoever believes and trusts in Him as Savior shall not perish but have eternal life.

For God did not send the Son into the world to judge and condemn the world, that is, to initiate the final judgment of the But the world might be saved through him.

Verse 2.

that his sinful, worthless activities will be exposed and condemned.

But whoever practices truth and does what is right morally, ethically, spiritually, and comes to the light so that his works may be plainly shown to be what they are, accomplished in God, divinely prompted, done with God's help and dependence on him.

John 3, 16 through 21.

Each of us will be held accountable for all the actions we made throughout our lifetimes.

You may think you can condemn such people, but you are just as bad and you have no excuse.

When you say they are wicked and should be punished, you are condemning yourself.

For you who judge others do these very same things.

And we know that God and his justice will punish anyone who does such things.

Since you judge others for doing these things, why do you think you can avoid God's judgment when you do the same things?

Don't you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant and patient God is with you?

Does this mean nothing to you?

Can't you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?

But because you are stubborn and refuse to turn from your sin, you are storing up terrible punishments for yourself for a day of anger is coming.

When God's righteous judgment will be revealed, For the Jew first and also for the Gentile, for God does not show favoritism.

When the Gentiles sin, they will be destroyed even though they never had God's written law.

And the Jews who do have God's law will be judged by that law when they fail to obey it.

For merely listening to the law does not make us right with God.

It is obeying that law that makes us right in his sight.

Even Gentiles who do not have God's written law show that they know His law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it.

They demonstrate that God's law is written in their hearts for their own conscience, and thoughts either accuse them or tell them that they are doing right.

And this is the message I proclaim, that the day is coming when God, through Christ Jesus, will judge everyone's secret life.

Romans 2, 1-16 Judgment comes for us all.

Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it.

Earth and sky fled from his presence and there was no place for them.

And I saw the dead great and small standing before the throne and books were opened.

Another book was open, which is the book of life.

The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.

The sea gave up the dead that were in it and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them.

And each person was judged according to what he had done.

Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire.

The lake of fire is the second death.

If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

Revelations 20, 11-15 Revelations 3, 5.

Revelation 13.8 Jesus tells us in John, The church will be judged on whether we are truly his disciples or not.

Then Jesus said to his disciples, if anyone wishes to follow me as my disciple, he must deny himself, set aside selfish interests and take up his cross, expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come and follow me, believing in me, conforming to my example in living and if need be suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in me.

For whoever wishes to save his life in this world will eventually lose it through death.

But whoever loses his life in this world for my sake will find it that is life with me for all eternity.

For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, wealth, fame, success, but forfeits his soul?

Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

For the son of man is going to come in the glory and majesty of his father with his angels, and then he will repay each one in accordance with what he Matthew 16, 24 through 27.

I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot.

I wish you were either one or the other.

So because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I'm about to spit you out of my mouth.

Revelations 3, 15 through 16.

No choice is still a choice.

Joshua 24, 5.

We choose to make Jesus the Lord of our lives by becoming his disciples.

And this is how we know daily by experience that we have come to know him, to understand him and be more deeply acquainted with him.

If we habitually keep focused on his precepts and obey his commandments, teachings, Whoever says, I have come to know him, but does not habitually keep focused on his precepts and obey his commandments, teachings, is a liar, and the truth of the divine word is not in him.

But whoever habitually keeps his word and obeys his precepts and treasures his message in its entirety, in him the love of God has truly been perfected.

It is completed and has reached maturity.

By this we know...

For certain that we are in him, whoever says he lives in Christ, that is whoever says he has accepted him as God and Savior, ought as a moral obligation to walk and conduct himself just as he walked and conducted himself.

1 John 2, 2-6 If we have truly made Jesus the Lord of our lives through repentance and the fruit of our lives, we will be saved from death and have eternal life.

As true disciples, our names are written in the book of life, and upon death we will receive our ultimate sanctification, the final absolution, the washing clean of our sins forevermore.

For his unfailing love towards those who fear him, and as great as the height of the heavens above the earth, he has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.

Psalm 103, 11 and 12.

As his children, when we pass out of this life, we will be freed from all sin, sickness, disease, pain, and struggles.

He will again have compassion on us and will subdue our iniquities.

You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.

Micah 7, 19.

We will step into eternal life that He has been preparing for us.

My Father's house has many rooms.

If that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you may also be where I am.

You know the way to the place where I am going.

John 14, 2-4 As believers, when we step before the judgment seat of Christ, we will not be judged for our sins.

Very truly, I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged, but has crossed over from death to life.

John 5, 24.

As believers, when we step before the judgment seat of Christ, we will not be judged for our sins.

Our sins upon repentance were forgiven, forgotten, and cast into the sea.

I, even I...

And he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.

Isaiah 34, 25.

Judgment for believers does not decide our fate.

Our fate was decided upon salvation.

Instead, it is designed to reward believers for their efforts.

Because of God's grace, I have laid the foundation like an expert builder.

Now others are building on it, but whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful, for no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have, Jesus Christ.

Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials, gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, straw.

But on judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done.

The fire will show if a person's work has any value.

If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward.

But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss.

The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through the wall of flames.

Don't think of judgment for Christians as a courtroom.

We have already been saved from death and rewarded with eternal life.

Instead, imagine the judgment seat like a tribunal at an Olympic arena.

The Christian life is a race.

Jesus does not sit on a court bench, but at the place of honor, watching over our race.

Hebrews 12, 1 and 2.

Jesus will be there at the end of our race, waiting to present us with our rewards.

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run but only one gets the prize?

Run in such a way to get the prize.

Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training.

They do it to get a crown that will not last but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.

Therefore, I do not run like someone running aimlessly.

I do not fight like a boxer beating the air.

No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

So while we are on this earth and running our race, we have to make sure that we hold fast to our faith.

I am coming quickly.

Hold tight.

So that no one will take your crown by leading you to renounce your faith.

and he made a profit and gained five more.

Likewise, the one who had made two made a profit and gained two more, but the one who had received the one He said, And gathering where you did not scatter seed.

So I was afraid to lose the talent.

And I went and hid your talent in the ground.

See, you have what is your own.

But his master answered him, you wicked, lazy servant.

You knew that I reaped the harvest where I did not sow and gather where I did not scatter seed.

Then you ought to put my money with the bankers.

And at my return, I would have received my money back with interest.

So take the talents away from him and give it to the one who has 10 talents.

For to everyone who has and values his blessing and And has used them wisely, more will be given and he will be richly supplied so that he will have an abundance.

But from the one who does not have because he's ignored or disregarded his blessings and gifts from God, even what he does have will be taken away and throw out the worthless servant into the outer darkness.

In that place of grief and torment, there will be weeping over sorrow and pain and grinding of teeth over distress and anger.

One day we will stand before his throne, having run our race and finished our course.

We don't want to barely make it across the finish line, to make it out of hell by the skin of our teeth.

We want to sprint to the best of our ability.

Our judge loves us so much that he sacrificed himself for the punishment of our crimes.

What judge in history has ever done that?

He took our sin and shame and wore it to His death.

The reality is that we do have a choice to make.

The choice is not simply yes or no.

It's more than that.

We must become His disciples, taking up our cross and following Him, letting go of everything that we were and living a life worthy of Him.

The end will come for us either through death or Jesus' return, and we will have to account for the things we did in this life.

Judgment arrives for us all.

No one is exempt.

Jesus Christ will be our judge.

Will we step into eternal life or will our choice be made too late?

Will we stand before him and he proclaim, well done, good and faithful servant, or will he say, I never knew you?

Not everyone who calls out to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven.

Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter.

On judgment day, many will say to me, Lord, Lord, we prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.

But I will reply, I never knew you.

Get away from me, you who break God's law.

Matthew 7, 21 through 23.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

and have established Him as Lord of our lives, we should be living our lives to His glory, not our own.

Fruit should come as a natural, easy response to obeying His commands.

Discipleship, like a race, requires discipline and does not come easy.

Let's pray.

Dear Lord, I praise you.

I praise you, Lord, for all that you are.

I worship you creator and judge.

I thank you for finding a way to save me from my sin filled fate.

I admit that I am a sinner and repent of my sins.

Please forgive me of my sins.

Help me to turn from my old ways and follow you.

I confess Jesus as the Lord of my life.

Help me to live a life worthy of Amen.

Thank you for listening to our Pray 365 devotion.

If you're interested in reading this or downloading past devotions, you can go to our website, www.wearemercy.church, backslash pray365, where you can subscribe to our devotion.

We love you, Mercy Church family, and we hope that you have a wonderful week.