Judgment Day Reveals The Righteousness Of God Series

It just didn’t seem right or fair. The evidence of guilt was overwhelming. The witnesses had poured in one after another recounting firsthand of destructive and damaging conversations and actions. Fingerprints were found everywhere that clearly connected the person standing before the judge to what he was being accused of. There was no denying it! The judge picked up his gavel and everyone anticipated what seemed to be sure to come, the verdict of “Guilty!” But as the gavel fell, the judge declared the accused, “Not guilty!” It seemed outrageous! How could this be? It just didn’t’ seem fair or right. Yet, that is the scene that will repeatedly take place on Judgment Day, that final day of time, when all people will appear before Jesus as their judge, and Jesus will determine whether a person spends life eternal with him or separated from him. How can Jesus declare guilty sinners not guilty? That just doesn’t seem right or fair. But it is actually because of God’s righteousness that guilty sinners are declared not guilty on Judgment Day. How can that be? The words of Romans 2 are going to help us answer that question this morning as we consider Judgement Day and what will take place for us and all others as we stand before Jesus for judgment.

There are some people that might look at Judgment Day and attempt to find confidence by looking at themselves and then looking at other people. Human nature certainly wants to think that we’re not really that bad, and certainly not bad enough to deserve to be punished by God with an eternity in hell. To convince themselves that they’re not really so bad, where do people look? People usually look to others and compare themselves. That’s actually what Paul was anticipating as he began writing Romans 2. You see in Romans chapter one he had just gotten done describing those who openly reject God and live lives that thumb nose at God. They do things that even those who are not Christians wouldn’t do, things that they know are contrary to God’s will and still do them. Now, it might be easy for people to look at such evil and wicked people and think, “Well at least I’m not like that. I try to do the right things. I try to be an honest, hardworking, helpful and nice person. I take care of my kids, love my spouse, and treat people well. That’s got to count for something in God’s sight, right?” While all of that may be good for this life, they’re using the wrong standard to determine if they’re good enough for eternal life in heaven. They’re comparing themselves to others. And let’s face it, you can always find someone that is worse than you. But that’s not the standard that God uses for heaven.

In Romans 2 Paul says, “Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth” (Romans 2:2). And a couple of verses later he will write, “For God does not show favoritism” (Romans 2:11). And then at the end of this section he says about Judgment Day, “When God judges people’s secrets” (Romans 2:16). The standard for entrance into heaven is God’s truth, not ours. It is an unwavering truth that does not allow for partiality or favoritism. Jesus made it clear what God requires for heaven when he said, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). There’s the true standard. God requires not just being better than others, or trying to do your best. No. God requires perfect obedience of his will as outlined in the Bible. Obedience not just when people are looking, but also when they’re not, when only God can see and know the motives behind what you did.

But what about the person who is unaware of that standard? What about a person who has never read the Bible? First, that does not change the standard. It’s like getting pulled over by a police officer for speeding. When I explain to him that I was not aware that the speed limit was 35 mph that is not going to stop him from giving me a ticket for having gone 55 mph. Whether or not I’m aware of the speed limit, I’m going to be held accountable for having broken the law. While people may not be fully aware of how often or how much they are sinning, that does not mean that God will not hold them accountable for their sin. Second, Paul reminds us in verses 14 and 15 that all people have a natural sense that they have done things that God does not want them to do. Whether they’ve read the Bible or not, God has put his law, a line, into every human heart that they are not to cross. Their conscience reminds them when they have crossed that line, that they will be held accountable before God for having sinned against him.