8 Judgment or Mercy; the Choice is Yours
Book of James Series
By Pastor Jim May
The Law of our Land says that a man is innocent until proven guilty. But it is not so with the Judge of the Universe; for God says that all men are guilty until they are made innocent through the blood of the Jesus Christ.
Do you think that’s fair? Is it fair that God holds every man accountable for the sin of Adam? The fact is that it isn’t Adam’s personal sin that we are guilty of, for every one of us must answer for our own life and our own sin. What we are guilty of is the same sin that caused the fall of man in the beginning, and in this respect it is the sin of Adam, but we have committed that sin ourselves. No human being has ever lived, nor shall any one ever live in this world, who has not committed the same sin as Adam. What is that sin? It is the sin of rebellion against God and disobedience of His Law.
Not one person, except the Lord Jesus Christ, has been able keep the whole law without failing. When we realize this, then it is impossible to call anyone good. There is none good but One, the Lord Jesus Christ. The heart of man is inherently evil, ever seeking for ways to disobey God and never ceasing to break His perfect Law.
I have seen people who got in trouble with the police who enforce the laws of our nation and our state. They can begin with one crime, be it theft, breaking the peace, assault, drugs, robbery or whatever. It’s not long before they are standing before a judge and made into a marked individual. From that day on, anything they do comes under closer scrutiny of the law. And it doesn’t take long for their lawlessness to escalate. Have you noticed how easy it is to break the law and how hard it is to be perfect?
If you don’t come to a complete stop at a Stop Sign, you’ve broken the law. If you drive under 45 on the interstate highways, you’ve broken the law. If you fail to pay your bills on time, you’ve broken the law. If you forget to renew your license plate or driver’s license, you’re a criminal. If you fail to turn on your turn signal, or a single bulb on your car isn’t working, you’re a criminal. So many laws, that it’s hard to obey them all. Thank the Lord that we aren’t hounded by the police every time we step out of the house or we would owe everything to the state.
Of course the laws of man can get very outdated. One law that I truly hate is the speed limit law inside the city limits of Gonzales. It really gets to me when you have to go 25 MPH all the way through town, even when there is no traffic. But that’s the law. You either obey it or you break it and suffer the consequences.
Just about every state in the Union has its own set of dumb laws, yet they are laws and still on the books. If you violate them, you are guilty and become a criminal. Here are a few examples:
In Alabama it is illegal for a driver to be blindfolded while operating a vehicle.
In California it is illegal for anyone to try and stop a child from playfully jumping over puddles of water.
In Connecticut you can be stopped by the police for biking over 65 miles per hour. Also, it is illegal to walk across the street on your hands.
In Florida there are a number of strange laws such as: Women can be fined for falling asleep under a hair dryer, along with the beauty shop owner; a law that prohibits unmarried women from parachuting on Sunday; a law that says you have to pay the parking meter fee if you park your elephant at the curbside; a law that says you can’t sing in public while wearing a swimsuit; and thank goodness they have a law that says that men may not be seen publicly in any kind of strapless gown.
In Illinois it is illegal for anyone to teach their pets to smoke cigars.
Indiana isn’t a good place to live in the winter because it’s against their law to take a bath in the winter. Also, if you eat garlic, you can’t go to a movie or ride on public transportation for at least 4 hours.
In Iowa, a single kiss is not allowed to last over 5 minutes.
In Kentucky you are not considered drunk until you can’t hold on to the ground anymore. Also, you can’t keep ice cream in your pocket.
In Louisiana it’s illegal to rob a bank and then shoot at the bank teller with a water pistol. Also, Biting someone with your natural teeth is "simple assault," while
biting someone with your false teeth is "aggravated assault."
In Massachusetts: Snoring is prohibited unless all bedroom windows are closed and securely locked and goatees are illegal unless you first pay a special license fee for the privilege of wearing one in public.
In Nebraska parents can be arrested if their child burps in church.
In New Mexico women are forbidden to have beards in public.
In Oklahoma you can be fined, arrested or jailed for making ugly faces at a dog. Women are forbidden from doing their own hair without being licensed by the state.
In Texas a city ordinance states that a person cannot go barefoot without
first obtaining a special five-dollar permit.
In Vermont, by law, everybody has to take at least one bath each week and it must be on a Saturday night
In the State of Washington it’s illegal to eat lollipops. And in an outstanding effort to reduce crime, "It is mandatory for a motorist with criminal intentions to stop at the city limits and telephone the chief of police as he is entering the town.”
Man’s laws are sometimes really dumb and almost beg to be violated. But God’s Law is perfect and eternal.
David wrote these words in Psalms 19:7-8, "The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes."
Since God’s Law is so great, it stands to reason that all men would try to obey them. Obeying the Law of God would ensure that we stay in right relationship with Him and would surely bring God’s blessings upon us. But do we obey those laws? NO!
Psalms 14:2-3, "The LORD looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God. They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one."
Breaking man’s law results in what man has decided is fit punishment for the crime. We do not look at crime as God sees it. To us, stealing a penny is far less of a crime than robbing bank, and a broken signal light is not nearly as offensive as a reckless driver. But to God, it’s all the same. God says that breaking His Law is Sin, and every Sin, regardless of whether we think it’s small and insignificant or really bad, is still Sin, and every infraction carries with it the same punishment – Eternal Separation from God and death in Hell forever.
James 2:10, "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all."
There are many “religious” people in the church who do their utmost to fulfill all of the law, and yet they cannot do so. No matter how hard we try, or how much we want to obey God, there comes a time when we fail. Sometimes we fail knowingly and willfully, and at other times we fail without even knowing it until the Holy Spirit or the Word of God reveals it to us. The fact is that no matter what Law of God we disobey, the guilt and the punishment is still the same. That’s why James says that we are guilty of all.
Of course that doesn’t mean that all sins are equal. The punishments are equal but the sins may vary.
Jesus told us this during his trial with Pilate in John 19:11, "… Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin." Even though the wages of all sin is death, yet there are differences in the sin itself, and differences in the punishment that will be meted out for each sin.
Jesus said that Judas and the Sanhedrin Council, including Caiaphas, the High Priest who sent him to Pilate were guilty of a much greater sin than Pontius Pilate. Pilate was still guilty, but those who delivered Jesus to Pilate would bear a greater punishment.
Jesus also spoke of the degrees of punishment for those who committed the greater sins in Matthew 11:21-24, "Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you. And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee."
In the eyes of God there is no such thing as partial obedience or partial righteousness. God’s Law requires perfect obedience and nothing less will do. Failure in only one small point still brings death. Partial obedience is complete disobedience and partial righteousness is complete unrighteousness. With God, it is all or nothing! Nothing less than perfection is acceptable or justifiable by our Holy God and His justice demands punishment for all sin.
James 2:11, "For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law."
It is the same Perfect, Holy God that gives all of the commandments and puts forth every Law of God. It doesn’t matter which law was stated first, or which was stated last, they are all equally important in God’s sight.
What are the 10 Commandments, the whole law of God summarized into 10 easy to remember laws that mankind constantly forgets and disobeys?
1 - ’You shall have no other gods before Me.’
2 - ’You shall not make for yourself a carved image--any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.’
3 - ’You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.’
4 - ’Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.’
5 - ’Honor your father and your mother.’
6 - ’You shall not murder.’
7 - ’You shall not commit adultery.’
8 - ’You shall not steal.’
9 - ’You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.’
10 - ’You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.’
Man cannot live by those 10 simple laws. In fact, he doesn’t even want to see them so that he won’t be reminded of how far from God he has gone. Out of sight, out of mind, is their mentality and they think that by knowing them, they won’t be accountable for them. But the laws are still there, and God hasn’t rescinded them. Regardless of whether we read them or not, when we break them we are a transgressor and we will face the penalty for what we have done. The Law is broken! Which law doesn’t matter! It’s all the same Law!
James 2:12, "So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty."
Both words and actions should be taken seriously. It is important that we watch every word we speak and everything we do for God sees it all. Both sinful words and works are transgressions of the law, and will be brought to judgment. Men must give an account of every idle word, as well as every evil work, both open and secret, in the day of judgment.
Romans 2:11-12, "For there is no respect of persons with God. For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law;"
Heathens will be judged by the law of nature, because even nature teaches that there is a God who is Holy and who commands us to live morally and right. The creation itself, and as we have said before, according to Psalms, all of nature, even the stars in the sky, testify of the Law of God. Therefore, Heathens, though they may never hear the gospel, will be judged for sin because they willfully ignored or rebelled against God Law that is revealed in nature.
The Jews lived by the law of Moses, yet they could not obey that Law completely. How many times did they fall into idolatry and disobey the Law that God gave to Moses? Because they failed in that Law, they will be judged by that Law and found guilty of rebellion even as the Heathen who never knew the Law of Moses.
Those who live now under the Gospel dispensation where the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ is preached and who are given the Law of Grace will not be judged as the Heathen who only knew God through what they saw in nature. We will not be judged according to the Law of Moses, because Jesus fulfilled that law for us.
We will be judged according to what we do with the gospel that Jesus has given to us. We will be judged according to whether we believe in Jesus Christ, accept his sacrifice and have His blood applied to our sin. Our only hope is through the blood of Jesus and his death on the cross. If we reject Jesus, then we face the full brunt of God’s judgment for sin.
James 2:13, "For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment."
At the judgment, that Great White Throne Judgment, when every rebellious sinner shall stand before God, there will be no mercy from the Judge. On that day strict justice will be the only thing shown.
Those who showed no mercy to the people of God; such who have seen any of the brethren of Christ hungry, thirsty, naked, sick, and in prison, and have showed no regard for them, will hear, "Go, ye cursed, into everlasting fire".
Only those who have been merciful, and who have shown love for God and for His people, will gain mercy in that day. Indeed, none of them will be at this judgment for they will already have been judged at the Judgment Seat of Christ.
Those who receive God’s mercy and are cleansed from sin and given eternal reward and eternal life will rejoice that day for judgment will be fulfilled. All sin will be judged and then cast into the Lake of Fire and there will be sin no more. That will truly be a day of great rejoicing.
The scene, including both judgments, is described for us in Matthew 25:31-46, "When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal."
