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Living Hope SDA Church

Christian Martin

Facing the Final Judgment: Acquitted or Convicted?

Let's be still and know that he is God as we bow our heads together as we begin.

Father in heaven, Your word is living and powerful.

So Lord, in this very moment, we ask that you would fill us with the Holy Spirit, that we would have the ability and opportunity to tune our hearts and minds to listen to your voice.

More than ever before, we need a word from you.

And so we thank you, because we know that this is a prayer that you love to answer.

My message tonight, or this morning, is entitled, Facing the Final Judgment.

1 particular day at Southern Adventist University in Collegedale, Tennessee, I was cited for a traffic violation.

The options were, of course, to either pay the indicated fine or appear in court at a certain date.

For whatever reason, at that time, I chose to make a trip to the courthouse.

I wish that was all there was to confess, but there's more.

About 3 weeks later, I was in my dorm room, absorbed by the busyness of college life, when suddenly there was a firm knock on my door.

Although the knock itself, believe me, it caught me off guard.

It didn't come close to the unexpected surprise that I would receive when opening the door.

For there standing in my doorway on the third floor of the men's dorm was a College Dale police officer in full uniform.

Well, the next 7 words that the officer spoke were words that I had not heard before that time, nor have I heard since.

He said, we have a warrant for your arrest.

Remember the traffic violation that I mentioned?

Well, tragically, I had forgotten all about it.

And along with that, the fact that I had to appear in court.

And so now I stood before the police officer with no 1 to blame but myself.

You know it's 1 of those things that bad dreams are made of.

I had been so preoccupied with the best time of life as a college student that my name had come up in court before a judge and I didn't even know it.

In order to avoid any embarrassment for this poor theology student, The police officer was kind enough to not handcuff me.

But nevertheless, I was escorted out of the dorm, into his police car, and taken to the local station for an investigation.

You know, As I quietly sat down in that backseat of that police car, I had a feeling that judgment would not be in my favor.

And I kept silently asking myself, how, How could I have missed my date in court?

Little did I realize that missed court dates are actually very common.

No, I'm just kidding, I'm not gonna ask, I'm not gonna ask.

You know, some parts of the civil court system have an absentee rate as high as 95%.

But there is an impending court date that cannot be avoided, will not be evaded nor missed.

This court scene doesn't take place in a district court or a circuit court or even the Supreme Court of the universe, but before a majestic throne set ablaze high and lifted up.

An immortal man, yet a prophet named Daniel.

He witnessed this scene in a night vision in the 6th century before Christ and immediately put it into words for our reading today.

I watched till thrones were put in place, and the Ancient of Days was seated.

His garment was white as snow, and his hair of his head was like pure wool.

His throne was a fiery flame, its wheels a fiery fire, a fiery stream issued and came forth from before him.

The court was seated and the books were opened.

Enter a colossal courtroom in heaven, otherwise known as the final judgment, where a verdict will take place of either conviction or acquittal, and it will be made for every single human being that has ever lived on earth, Because there is an appointed time for each 1 of us to appear in court.

What emotions does that evoke in you as you think about it?

Do you ever wonder why it's even necessary?

And is it true that it takes place in various phases, now being the so-called investigative phase?

If it's something that we haven't given much thought or attention to, the question is, should we now?

Within the last 2 months, many citizens of the United States of America and viewers from around the world have given plenty of undivided attention to more than 1 impeachment proceeding.

For hours and hours and hours, voices were heard.

At the end, senators voted to either acquit or convict the 45th President of the United States.

It's amazing to me the attention this received.

Did you know that TV coverage averaged 11 million viewers across 6 networks every day of the impeachment proceedings?

And when it was all over, Millions lamented the outcome while millions of others erupted with glee.

It was a case that was given great attention.

So, my point is this, have we given just as much careful attention to proceedings of much of much greater importance that will examine your name, mine, and declare a verdict of eternal implications?

You know it was the Apostle Paul who unequivocally wrote that all must appear before the judgment seat of Christ.

Here Paul writes his epistle to the believers in Corinth.

9, Therefore, we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well-pleasing to Him.

You know, in Hebrews 11, verse 6, it is Paul, the same author of Corinthians, who writes, without faith, it is impossible to please Him.

Without faith, It is impossible to please Him.

And here he writes that it must be our aim to be well-pleasing to Him.

Why would I want to make it my aim to live by faith in Christ, in Him?

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each 1 may receive the things done in the body according to that which he has done, whether good or bad.

And so the question is, why is it that the good or bad is even recognized beforehand?

Why give any attention to what is good or bad?

Evidently beforehand when judgment takes place before Christ returns to give to each 1 according to that which has been known or recognized.

Facing the Final Judgment: Acquitted or Convicted?

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