January 30, 2015

 

 

Finally, we come to the sixth of the foundation stones that must be laid in our lives before the Lord will allow us to go forward into the next dimensions He has prepared. It may become necessary for me to break our last discussion on the doctrine of eternal judgment into two separate Coffee Breaks because there is so much to cover, but we will play it by ear. Once again we will begin with the expanded and amplified translation from Hebrews 6.

 

Hebrews 6:1-3, RAC Translation & Amplification: Therefore, and as a consequence, it is critically important that we forsake [what Jesus has already eradicated from existence] the beginnings and commencement of the [initiating] Word of the Anointed One and His Anointing (Jesus Christ),

Let us move forward energetically to the place of completion and consummation; not laying down [or setting in front of you as a continual requirement] the legalistic requirement to repent, and re-do your thought processes concerning the old, dead works and requirements of the Law [as though it were necessary in order to attain redemption from past sins or iniquities], under the guise that this builds faith in and toward God, the line-upon-line, precept-upon-precept instruction in the purification processes in baptisms, the necessity of laying on of hands (for impartation or conveyance of power), [the foundational truth that Jesus provides] resurrection from the dead and cancelation of the curse of death, and — finally — the understanding and revelation of the judgment and decrees that exist throughout the eternity of the eternities.

And this is what we will be enabled to do conditional upon God’s transfer of authority, granting license and liberty to move past these foundations.

 

Now, let's take a look at some Scriptures that deal specifically with this judgment.

 

Hebrews 9:27-28, KJV: “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.”

 

Isaiah 4:3-4, KJV: “And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem: When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.”

 

In order for us to properly understand the concept of judgment and see what Paul was making reference to in his letter to the Jewish Christians, we need to first define the words that are translated “judgment.”

Taking the Old Testament Hebrew first, we find the word, mishpat and its root word, shaphat. The word, mishpat, refers specifically to a judicial verdict — a sentence or formal decree within divine law.

The root word — shaphat — adds more color to our definition, however and allows us to see the character of this sentence or formal decree within divine law. It has the picture of litigating or reasoning between right and wrong and either vindicating someone or judging and executing punishment. It also means to plead and/or defend.

 

Then we come to the Greek terms used in the New Testament.

 

Again we have a primary word, krima, and its root word, krino.

The two Greek words nearly parallel the Hebrew terms, but both also add to the overall picture of “eternal judgment.”

 

Krima is also defined as a judicial verdict — a sentence or formal decree within divine law, but to that we add the following: condemnation of wrong, a condemnatory sentence, the decision (whether severe or mild) which one passes on the faults of others.

 

Krino literally means: to separate, to choose, to determine between right and wrong, to set things right. It also means: to rule and to govern, to preside over (as the prerogative of kings and rulers) with the power of giving judicial decisions, to determine, to resolve and decree.

 

Let’s consider for a minute the Biblical picture of judgment from statements that Jesus made. In what is popularly referred to as “The Sermon on the Mount” Jesus draws some contrasts in judgment.

 

Matthew 7:1-6, NASB: “Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?

 

"Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.

“Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.”

 

The “Sermon on the Mount” is literally a picture of the character and nature of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is addressed to those who would follow the Lord and be transformed          into Him and His image and nature.

 

When Jesus, therefore, first addresses the concept of judgment as a divine attribute (and we know this from Isaiah’s prophecy where he refers to the Spirit of Judgment and Burning), He applies this to the believer, warning against the misuse of this attribute.

 

We are warned not to use the power and authority of judgment [we ARE kings and priests unto God] casually and flippantly. When we remember that the sum of the Seven Spirits of God is agape — love — it places a requirement on us to make our judgments in love and not from a reactionary place.

In His statement to not “give what is holy to dogs,” this remark is still made within the discussion on judgment, and he describes the rendering of judgment as “holy.” Judgment, therefore, as a holy rendering of God’s decrees and “setting things right” takes on an entirely new dimension.

 

Because judgment is holy, this takes it entirely out of the realm of personal feeling, or emotional, reactionary responses to events which occur to us as individuals. There is NOTHING about the rendering and/or speaking of judgment that is permissible as a byproduct of personal offenses

Within the framework of judgment and its judicial sentencing or decrees is the inherent ability to condemn. For the believer who is not in tune with the heart of the Lord Jesus Christ, and is operating even slightly in the realm of the flesh (let’s insert emotional responses and reactions here), the ability to speak judgment from the aspect of condemning is almost a certainty.

 

All of a sudden our judgment becomes cursing, and the consequences to us for speaking or activating that judgment begin to multiply.

 

As a holy attribute of the character and nature of the Lord Jesus Christ, judgment has eternal consequences. Consider some of the judgments we see throughout the New Testament:

 

Matthew 6:13: "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen."

 

Matthew 21:19: "And when he saw a fig tree in the way, he came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves only, and said unto it, Let no fruit grow on thee henceforward for ever. And presently the fig tree withered away."

 

John 6:51: "I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world."

 

John 6:58: "This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever."

 

II Corinthians 9:9: "(As it is written, He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever."

 

Each of the foregoing statements in the Word are judgments — eternal judgments. Each has its own unique nature. Jesus’ judgment against the fig tree caused the life to leave it such that it withered away.

 

The promises that Jesus makes concerning eating of His flesh are not just promises: they are judgments with an eternal character to them — and consequences that cause God’s people to sit up and take notice. Now take a look at a different kind of judgment:

 

II Peter 2:1-2, 12-17: "But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.

"But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption; And shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time.

 

"Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you; Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children: Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; But was rebuked for his iniquity: the dumb ass speaking with man’s voice forbad the madness of the prophet.

 

"These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever."

 

This is an eternal judgment which clearly states that the “mist of darkness” has been reserved “forever” for those who speak in the name of the Lord (but NOT His onoma!) whose mouths speak lies out of their own pride and ignorance. I might liken this to the example we read about in Acts 19 where the seven sons of the High Priest, Sceva, saw what Paul was doing and attempted to expel some evil spirits "by Jesus whom Paul preaches." They attempted to use the name of Jesus as a formula, but had no relationship with the Lord, and certainly were not operating in His onoma.

Peter's statements are both judgment and a prophetic picture when he describes them as {dried up] wells without water or [angry looking] clouds which promise a storm and move violently but produce no rain.

 

It foretells a judgment similar to that of which Jesus spoke when He referred on a couple of occasions to the invitation to the Great Wedding Feast, and again to those desiring to enter the realm of the Kingdom without being willing to meet the conditions necessary. (See Matthew 7:21-27, and Matthew 22:1-14)

 

In Matthew 25 we have the parable of the talents, and the unprofitable servant who takes the talent entrusted to him and buries it instead of putting it to use so that it would profit the master. Here, again, we have the judgment rendered in which the servant is cast into outer darkness.

 

J. H. Thayer tells us that this is a common Hebrew metaphor which depicts an individual “who is given over permanently to his willing and persistent ignorance of the things of God, and the accompanying ungodliness and immorality, together with their consequent misery in hell.”

 

Peter’s reference, therefore, to the “false teachers who bring in their damnable heresies” follows the same line of judgment that Jesus decrees when he writes “to whom the mist of darkness is reserved forever (aion) [throughout the eternity of the eternities].” These judgments, however, are not what we normally think of and refer to as “eternal judgment.”

 

Let’s shift now and talk about the first of several events recorded in Revelation 20 and 21.

 

Revelation 20:7-10: "And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.

"And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever."

 

In this prophecy we see the loosing of Satan from the pit where he has been imprisoned for a thousand years. Satan again goes forth to deceive the nations of the world — and from the description given, he is able to deceive a huge number who gather together against the city of Jerusalem.

 

Judgment is released against Satan as the Lord sends the hosts of Heaven to fight with the people of God. Guess I need to stop here for now. We need to talk about this judgment more in depth. We obviously have quite a ways to go and this is a good place to take a break in this discussion. We'll continue from here next week.

 

I remind those of you in need of healing of our Healing Prayer Call on Mondays at 7:00 PM Eastern. Once again, the number to call for healing is (805) 399-1000. Then enter the access code: 124763#. Also want to let you know that our Sunday worship gatherings are available by conference call – usually at about 10:45AM Pacific. That conference number is (559) 726-1300, and the access code is 308640#.

 

Blessings on you!