We begin this exploration in the book of the prophet Isaiah. In his message from God to God’s people Isaiah describes what life should look like in the city of God. It should be a place of festivals, of peace, of broad rivers with no warships, a settled place which cannot be shaken. Isaiah knows that it isn’t like that at the moment, but sees a time when it will be like that, when the city of God, of which the earthly Jerusalem is but a foretaste, will be exactly like that. The one who will make this happen is God, and it will be seen when all the people who dwell in the city of God acknowledge God as judge, as lawgiver, as King.
There is a lot of overlap between these three roles, but they are distinct. Many modern secular states are based on the separation of powers. In this country the judiciary are independent of Parliament – the judges and lawgivers are different. We also have a constitutional monarch, a King, who has a different role again.
In human societies it is widely agreed that these powers are separated so that they can act as checks and balances against each other. There are plenty of examples around the world and through history of what happens when they are not separated – we end up with autocracy and tyranny.
However, God does not share these human failings. God is holy and perfect, so there is no need for a separation of powers in God’s kingdom. He is judge, lawgiver, and King. It is only when God’s right and authority to exercise these roles is acknowledged and submitted to by humanity that we can truly flourish.
This morning we are focussing particularly on the fact that God is judge. We’ll unpack what that means a little bit later, but before we do, I want us to move on to think about our New Testament reading. In this reading from John’s eye witness account of the good news of Jesus’ life we hear Jesus’ cousin, John the baptist, talking to his followers about Jesus.
He points out that Jesus has come from heaven and therefore is above all. He is divine, and therefore everything about him is above those who are only of earth. His authority, his judgement, his power, his love, his glory, his mercy, his … everything is above all earthly things.
John goes on to describe the relationship between Jesus and the Father.
Jesus is the one the Father has sent.
Jesus speaks the words of God.
The Father loves the Son.
The Father has placed everything in the hands of the Son.
All the way through this series we have been emphasising the continuity, the consistency between God the Father and God the Son. What is true of God the Father is true of God the Son because they are both God. There is no division or distinction in their divine nature. This consistency is what is being highlight by John the Baptist in this passage.
“The Father has placed *everything* in the hands of the Son”
And this includes judgment.
A little later on in John’s gospel, in chapter 5, we hear Jesus talking about judgement and he says this:
“For as the Father has life in himself, so 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.”
and a couple of verses later Jesus says this,
“By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me.”
You see how these things work together. The Father has put everything into the hands of Son, including judgement and the Son judges in a way that he knows will please the Father.
So that’s the Father and the Son, but what about the Holy Spirit? What part does the Holy Spirit play in all this?
Later in John’s gospel, in chapter 16, we find Jesus talking to his friends and followers on the night before he was crucified.
One of the major themes of this teaching, of his last words to his disciples, is the Holy Spirit, and what the Holy Spirit will do when he is sent at Pentecost.
Jesus says this,
“When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment.”
He goes on to say,
“When he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.”
Well, that sounds familiar doesn’t it! Jesus speaks the words of the Father, and the Spirit speaks the words of Jesus. God – Father, Son, Holy Spirit, each one speaks the same words. They are one God. As such, the Holy Spirit is also judge. He proves the world wrong. He guides God’s people into truth – he shows them the right way.
So, we have found that the Bible clearly teaches that God – Father, Son, Spirit – is the true and rightful judge of all things – and that their judgements are consistent with each other, and with what they say.
Earlier on, with the young people, we started thinking about the role of the judges on talent shows of various kinds. I really don’t want to trivialise the judgment of God, but I do think that there a few helpful insights that we might find helpful.
The first is about attitude to judgement. I don’t know if you’ve noticed this, but sometimes there are contestants on these shows that think that they know better than the judges. They argue back or, even if they don’t do that, when they’re doing a piece to camera after the judging they say that they still think they were right. The Apprentice is a classic for this. They’ve been sacked, they get in the that taxi for the ride away and tell everybody how Lord Sugar is going to regret this decision when they’ve founded their business empire. Those contestants don’t often get very far in the competitions.
In contrast, those who take on the judge’s feedback, who change what they do to take account of it, who respond positively to the critiques – those are the ones who tend to fly.
So, my question would be, what is our attitude to God’s judgement? Do we fear it, resent it, refuse to submit to it? Or do we welcome it, seek it out, desire it?
It seems to me that if we want to flourish, if we want to be the best us that we can be, to live our best lives, then surely we should be desperate for the judgement of the one who made us, who knows how we can truly be better, do better, in things much more important than baking the perfect sponge.
The second insight is related to this, and it’s about the criteria for judgement. In most of these shows the judges tell the contestants what they are looking for. One of my favourite shows of this genre is Pottery Throwdown. A few seasons ago there was one potter who was consistently among the best every week. Until one week the judges asked the contestants to make a specific type of jar.
This contestant decided to make something else, a jar, but a different form. It was beautiful. But it didn’t fulfil the criteria of the build, and she was sent home.
So, how do we know that the criteria that God uses to judge us? We find them throughout the Bible. The two most basic ones are the two commands that Jesus says are the most important, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and mind. Love your neighbour as yourself.” That is what God is looking for when looking at and judging our lives. Of course, there are specific applications of these, and those are found throughout the Bible. This is one of the reasons that we read and study God’s word, because it is here that we find out what God is looking for us to do and to be.
The third insight is about two aspects of judgement. We’ve touched on both already. The first is judgement along the way – the judgement that corrects, rebukes, inspires. The second is the one that happens at the end. In the end the judges on these shows decides who stays and who goes, and at the very end – who wins.
In our reading from John we read this.
“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.”
At the end of our earthly lives all human beings face judgement. None of us ever perfectly fulfil the criteria that God has for our lives, we’re too fond of doing things our own way. Those who refuse to follow Jesus, who reject God’s right to judge us will find that it is no way to escape it, and will face the eternal consequences of our rejection of God’s authority, separation from the source of our life, and eternal death.
But, because of Jesus death and resurrection, those of us who follow him, who accept his right to judge us, and who by the power of the Holy Spirit choose to live in the light of the judgement. will have eternal life, with God, living in love and joy for ever.
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