Judgement is The Lord’s!

Things are pretty uncertain right now in the world. Wars and rumors of wars, shortage of necessities and fear surrounds us. Some of us are excited as it fulfills scripture, but many of us are terrified about how to survive. These are tumultuous times, in which we are called to rely on the Lord, for through Him we find peace and provision. Through all of this, we also are reminded to be prepared for His second coming.

Jesus spoke about His second coming a couple of times in the Gospels, giving an understanding of how things will be leading up to that day. His emphasis, apart from judgement against the wicked, was on the preparedness of the elect. All that He mentions around this subject is to keep us aware and warn us about negligence. This serves as a compass, leading us in the right direction, as the world leads up to Judgement day.

As a compass only serves its purpose if we use it to direct ourselves, so the scriptures, only if acted on, serves its purpose to ready us for these times. We need to question ourselves if we are actually preparing ourselves for the day, or just waiting for it so that those who hurt us or the world will pay. Yes, there is justice for those who were wronged, redemption for those in bonds, but we do not wait with a heart full of unforgiveness, for our Lord, who commanded us to live in love and forgiveness.

Our Lord has said to come in a wrathful form as mentioned in Revelations, while that is true, it doesn’t justify our change in focus from preparation. We are told to spread the Gospel, which is His Love, not the impending doom awaiting those who haven’t received Him as Lord and Saviour, which is His wrath. We have not personally experienced His wrath and we can only rely on scripture to explain it, however we have definitely experienced His love, mercy and grace to share it with others. If we are more focused on how Gods wrath will be upon others, giving us justice, we are at risk of becoming a revanchist.

A Revanchist is a person, who after losing a territory to an opposing nation, will in retaliation seek to obtain it back from them as a form of revenge. We as disciples are not called to take revenge from the wrong doers on this world even if they do it unto us or others. We come to understand the injustice done to Gods Kingdom by looking at Matthew 11:12 which says “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence, and violent people have been raiding it”. There are two opposing ways this verse is interpreted, one interpretation is us disciples needing to take it by force (to advance by passionate forcefulness), another is where there is actual violence in the Kingdom of heaven and there is forceful takeover. The latter sounds more accurate, owing primarily to the fact that Jesus could’ve meant only one thing with that statement in this scenario, secondly, the beheading of John the Baptist, the crucifixion of our Lord, the persecution of His disciples to this very day, are but few of the important examples of violence done against the Kingdom of Heaven.

There is another verse which complements this line of interpretation, which is in John 10:1 where Jesus says “Very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber”. This is another way the kingdom suffers violence, which is forceful takeover of positions of power and leadership in many Churches today. There is also the warning against false prophets in Matthew 24:24 where He says “For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.”‬‬ which is forceful takeover of spiritual authority, possibly making His own disciples to fall into it. The point being, the Kingdom of heaven has faced violence and will continue to face it until the day of Judgement.

This takes me back to when Jesus was approached by the temple guards to be arrested, where He willingly gave himself up to them. When His companion drew the sword as a protective, but violent act against them, He said in Matthew 26:52 that “Put your sword back in its place, for all who draw the sword will die by the sword”. This direct instruction to the disciples resounds to us even today, as our instruction is to obey Him. If we are to abide in Him, His actions and His words make it very clear, between turn the other cheek and walk with them two miles (Matthew 5:38-41), it is clear that we do not take by force, but receive in Love. Even if it means receive pain, loss, force or hurt, we are asked to not retaliate, but to be Merciful and extend Grace.

Mercy and Grace are the main characteristics of our Lord and is an indicator of a fruit bearing disciple. And we are recognised by our fruit, not by our power or position. Being fruitful is important in our preparation toward His second coming. The fruits of the spirit are listed in Galatian’s 5:22-23, which are Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Gentleness, Goodness, Long-suffering, Self-Control, and these are the main focus of our discipleship journey. Our eager anticipation for wrath against the unrighteous does not emulate any fruit listed above, but we understand that we must suffer the unrighteousness for as long as it takes, knowing that our Lord will judge according to His power and wisdom on Judgment day.

There are many instructions and directions which our Lord gave for us to be prepared for His return. The parable of the Ten Virgins is one of the most beautiful and scary reminder of how prepared we must be until the last minute. One of the representations of the Holy Spirit is oil. As we go through this parable, we understand that our preparedness is in growing with the Holy Spirit. This directly ties to abiding in Him, by which we bear fruit, and the process of pruning helps us bear more fruit. Bearing fruit is the proof of abiding in the Holy Spirit.

This parable also signifies that we need to keep walking in Him and not even for a moment fall asleep. As we do not know the day or the hour, we got to do our best to remain vigilant and active in our Faith. Falling asleep here could represent lukewarmness. When Jesus went to pray in the Garden of Gethsemane and asked His disciples to keep watch, they fell asleep twice, the second time of which His betrayers had arrived. The takeaway for us to prepare here is in Matthew chapter 26:41 where He asks Peter to “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak”. Just as the Ten Virgins knew the bridegroom was coming that night, yet got drowsy and fell asleep, it is a reminder for us that knowing Jesus is coming, would we fall asleep to our walk in Him?

Not taking the oil is a of lack of preparedness in the foolish virgins, which indicates backsliding and disobedience. Some may want to do what ever is their will leading up to His return, but when the time comes, their hands go up pointing to God, saying where are you now. Any devotion at that moment will go unheard, because it is coming out of desperation, not out of obedience, as the Lord says to such people “I do not Know you”. The ultimate question we need to ask ourselves is ‘Do we know him?’, not a knowing by teaching, but by bonding, like how you know your kin.

As the wise virgins took oil with them to await the bridegroom, so shall we be prepared in the Holy Spirit for the day and hour not known to us. We need to be wise, patient, diligent and vigilant in order to be welcomed into the banquet. The Holy Spirit gives you along with these, the strength to walk in Mercy, Grace and Love, which are His defining characteristics, allowing you to not fall into revenge, hatred and unforgiveness. As you await His return, may you bear fruit to His kingdom and Glory, allowing His Majesty to instil justice among all, for it is written in Romans 12:19 that “Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord”.