Key Verse: Verse 1 – “I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;"
Key Words: who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing
Mark the words in our key verse. First, the word quick means “to be alive spiritually.” Second, mark the word dead. It of course means dead spiritually. So everyone will be judged. Those who are alive spiritually will be judged at the Judgment Seat of Christ (II Corinthians 5:10), and those who are dead spiritually will be judged at the Great White Throne Judgment (Revelation 20:11-12; also see Hebrews 2:3).
In 1988, an awesome event happened. Ben Johnson of Canada broke out of the starting gates like no other man in history. I remember sitting and listening to the commentator say, “Did you see that start? Ladies and gentlemen, it’s Ben Johnson! It’s Ben Johnson! It’s Ben Johnson!”
As we watched, the time lines on the TV said that the man had broken the Olympic record. Ben Johnson had turned that sprint for the fastest human alive upside down as it had never been demonstrated before! The crowd went wild! The other runners congratulated him. What a run by Ben Johnson! Until it all hit the fan. When it went before the judges, they tested his blood and found steroids. When they found steroids, they sent word back for Ben Johnson to give up his gold medal and they awarded it to another.
The gold medal that Ben Johnson had won was snatched and turned over to another. He went back to Canada a disgrace. The crowd didn’t know it when he was running it. The crowd didn’t know it when he was sprinting it. When he was darting out of the blocks, the people went wild. When he did his victory lap, he looked like he was a winner. The only problem was the judges went inside of his body and extracted what was on the inside and brought it to the light.
On that day, many of us who think we have won will find out that we have to turn in our medal because we didn’t run according to the rules. The question is—will He call your name or will He strip you of your crown? Carnality will receive its just reward.
What to do:
✞ What to do for the saved: Live your life in light of God’s judgment.
✞What to do for the lost: There is a judgment coming. Get ready!
Salvation Verses: Romans 10:9-10; John 3:16, 36; Acts 16:31; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5-7
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