Listen to the podcast here.
For compassionate Christian help with eating disorder visit Finding Freedom Ranch.
StoryChanger Devotional: Luke: Stories of Mission and Mercy by David Murray
StoryChanger Book: The StoryChanger: How God Rewrites Our Story By Inviting Us Into His by David Murray
Visit thestorychanger.life for more resources on changing our story with God’s Story.
INTRODUCTION
“How can God judge the heathen?” How can God judge people who have never heard the Gospel? In recent times, many have answered, “He can’t and he won’t. It wouldn’t be fair” Even Christian leaders have gone down this dangerous path of denying God will judge the heathen who don’t know the Gospel.
Why is this a dangerous path? Well, first of all it’s dangerous for the heathen. What if those teaching this are wrong and God will indeed judge the heathen? Second, it’s dangerous for the church, because the logical conclusion to draw from this would be to stop sending missionaries and doing outreach. If the heathen are saved because they don’t know the Gospel, let’s just leave them alone because to send the Gospel to them is make them responsible and condemnable.
Although wrong answers have been given to this question, the question remains for many thoughtful Christians. “How can God judge the heathen?” How can God judge people who have never heard the Gospel? In Romans 2:1-16, the Apostle Paul gives us the right answer.
BACKGROUND
In chapter 1:18-32, the Apostle Paul exposed the guilt of the heathen Gentiles. In chapter 2:1-11, he exposed the guilt of the religious Jews. He then anticipates two objections to these truths.
These objections impugn God’s justice, and therefore the Apostle Paul goes all out to defend God’s justice and fairness. He does so by asking three questions. He’s saying, “You’ve got some questions about God, I’ve got some questions about you.”
What’s the first question?
I. WHAT DID YOU KNOW? (12)
For all who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law (12).
We will be judged according to what we knew not what we didn’t know. We will be judged according to the light we had not the light we didn’t have.
Some know little
Some sinned “without the law.” Those who are “without the law” are people who do not have God’s specially revealed law in Scripture. God will not judge people for what they did not know and could not know. He will not call them to the dock and bring out the Law of Moses or the Gospel of Christ as the standard of judgment because they never had either of them. God will not condemn them for not keeping a law they did not have.
And yet, they are still sinners and they still perish. They “sinned without the law” and “will also perish without the law.” How can they still be sinners and still be condemned if they didn’t have God’s special revelation? Because, as we have seen in the previous chapter, they had God’s general revelation through conscience and creation. They will be judged by what they knew, not by what they didn’t know. That may be very little knowledge, a line or two, or a page or two, but that’s the limited standard by which they will be judged.
Some know lots
Some sinned “under the law.” They knew God’s Law and lived under God’s Law. They had the special privilege of God’s special revelation. But that does not secure special treatment for them. Having the law does not spare them from condemnation, but rather aggravates their condemnation. When God calls them to the dock, he brings out the Old and New Testaments, the volumes of the Law and the Gospel to judge their lives. Having the law, then, does not stop people sinning or stop people being judged or condemned. Having the law does not mean no judgment but full judgment. It doesn’t mean decreased judgment but increased judgment.
CHANGING OUR STORIES WITH GOD’S STORY
God is fair. Little knowledge means little judgment. Big knowledge means big judgment. Who can complain about that? God judges by the standard of our knowledge. He doesn’t bring law books full of laws we never had or knew. He brings law books that have our names on them. He starts his judgment not with what he knows but what we know.
What do you know? Forget about the heathen for a minute and ask yourself, “What do I know?” If you could download everything you’ve ever been taught about God, what would that look like? One day you will know, when God brings out the book with your name on it and all you know about the law and the Gospel.
SOME KNOW LITTLE
SOME KNOW LOTS
ALL KNOW ENOUGH
“What did you know? is the first question at the judgment.
What’s the second question?
II. WHAT DID YOU DO? (13-14)
For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified. For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law (13-14)
Hearing is not enough
Having the law and hearing the law did not make anyone righteous before God. Having a head full of law was not salvation. Reading the law, understanding the law, teaching the law, judging with the law – none of these things were enough. “For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God.”
Doing is enough
“Doers of the law will be justified.” Knowing must lead to doing. Having established what we know, God will then ask, “What did you do with that knowledge?” Did you do what you knew? Did you obey my law? Externally? Internally? Partly? Fully? Imperfectly? Perfectly? Some laws or all laws? Cheerfully or reluctantly? How did you live with what you have? If you can do what you know, God will say “Righteous! Perfect!”
Even the heathen Gentiles have this opportunity. Even though they do not have God’s written law in their hands. God has written it to some degree in their hearts. In that way, “they are a law to themselves.” They don’t have an external law like the Jews, but they have an internal law. They know enough to do enough to be saved enough.
This explains why many pagans, many heathens look after their neighbors, don’t steal, are kind to their families, etc. Biblical examples of heathens doing the law despite not having the law include Cyrus (Ezra 1:1-4; 5:13-17)< Darius (6:1-12), Artarxerxes (7:11-27), the city clerk (Acts 19:35-41), and the barbarians (Acts 28:2).
CHANGING OUR STORIES WITH GOD’S STORY
God is fair. How can anyone have any complaints about this? The heathen bring their few lines of knowledge and God will judge them according to that. “You only knew this tiny amount. Did you do what you knew?” The religious person will bring the gigabytes of knowledge and God will judge them by this standard. “I gave you more than most. Did you do what you knew?” God is such a fair judge.
What did you do? God has brought your gigabytes of religious data into the courtroom. “Did you know all this?” “Yes,” we say with a measure of pride, “I knew all that?” “You knew it, but did you do it?” he probes. The air leaves the room and we swallow hard when we think of all we knew and did not do.
LIVE WHAT YOU KNOW
AND YOU KNOW YOU’LL LIVE
Any more questions I might have a hope of answering?|
Just one.
III. WHAT DID YOUR CONSCIENCE SAY? (15-16)
They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus (15-16).
Conscience spoke
The heathen Gentiles show by their lives that God has put his law in their hearts. It’s not as full or as clear as his written law, but it’s there to some extent and to some degree. It’s there enough for their conscience to work with. Their consciences compare what they know with what they do and speaks accusing or approving words to them.
Does this mean that heathen Gentiles can live a good enough life to get into heaven? Theoretically, yes, if they live up to what they know and do what they know. However, we know, that no one does what they know. No one lives up to what they know. No one has a perfectly approving conscience.
God speaks
On the judgment day, God will add his voice to our consciences. It may look like people no longer have a conscience, but God will uncover the secret workings of every conscience on that last great day. Our own conscience that wanted to serve us and save us, will stand up and say, “I told you this was wrong and you still did it. I told you this was right and you did not do it.” We will be judged according to our own conscience. Our friend will become our enemy.
CHANGING OUR STORIES WITH GOD’S STORY
God is fair. Dan Crawford, veteran missionary to Africa, came out of the jungles and said, “The heathen are sinning against a flood of light.” God sent an ally and friend into our hearts to be his voice to us, but it’s a voice that is often ignored. No one will be able to say, “I never knew it was wrong.”
What did your conscience say? We can quieten conscience, injure our conscience, sear our conscience, and weaken our conscience, but we can never totally silence it. No matter how long ago it spoke to us, God will reawaken its voice on the last day of judgment to remind us of its earlier judgments against us.
OUR CONSCIENCE IS
OUR CONDEMNATION
SUMMARY
A NEW CHAPTER
Gospel. Ask yourself these questions before God asks you the same questions. And when you cannot answer them without failing, remember Jesus answered them perfectly for believers.
Evangelism: If we go wrong on God judging the heathen, we will go wrong on getting the Gospel to the heathen. If we think that the heathen will go to heaven because they don’t have the law or Gospel, then mission, evangelism, and outreach will wither and die. Sending the Gospel will only send them to hell, so let’s stop sending them the Gospel. But if we get the right answer, God will judge the heathen, and we have the greatest motivation to get the Gospel to themPrayer. Fair God, your questions are fair, and your treatment of our bad answers is fair. Give us the right answers so we will believe in Christ and get the message of Christ to the Christless.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. How have you struggled with the question of how God will deal with the heathen?
2. What other answers have you come to. What was right or wrong about them?
3. How would you explain or defend God’s fairness to those who question it?
4. What examples can you give of unbelievers doing by nature what God’s Law requires?
5. How does this passage point you to Jesus and make you love him more?
5. How should this sermon change our evangelism and mission?
INTRODUCTION
How should I pray? Is it a time of loving relationship and communion with our Savior? Or is it a time of battle and seeking salvation for others? It’s both. In his book on prayer, Tim Keller distinguishes between two different kinds of prayer. We are focused this week on battlefield prayers. Next time, we’ll look at communion prayers.
BACKGROUND
We began this series by looking at the cross. The cross answered the question , “What does it mean to pray ‘in Jesus name’?” last week we visited the throne of grace. That answered the question, “What hope do we have that God can and will answer our prayers?” This week we’re on a battlefield, answering the question, “How should we pray?”
1. WE BATTLE AGAINST SPIRITUAL ENEMIES (10-12)
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places (10-12).
Spiritual Enemies
Although we often misidentify our enemies as politicians, tech titans, media manipulators, false teachers, false religions, trans activists, and so on, Paul points us behind these people to the spirits that animate them. That’s what our target should be, not flesh and blood people so much as the dark spiritual rulers, authorities, cosmic powers, and forces of evil at work in this world and in the world above. They are invisible, innumerable, and incredibly motivated to destroy us physically, emotionally, intellectually, relationally, and eternally. Our attitude towards them should not be shadow boxing, or even ordinary wrestling, but rather MMA. This is the ultimate fight and we are all called to fight it.
Spiritual Aims
We know the spiritual aims of our spiritual enemies by the words Paul uses in describing his spiritual aims for us. Paul says that we are fighting against “the schemes of the devil.” Our number one enemy is totally focused on our destruction. He plans and plots against us every day. If he’s thinking so much about us, Paul is implying we should aim to think a lot about him.
The next aim is to “Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.” That means our spiritual enemies are out to weaken our strength in the Lord and we are called to get strength from the Lord.
Paul also says four times that we are to “stand against the schemes of the devil” (11), “withstand in the evil day” (13), “stand firm” (13), and “stand therefore” (14). Our spiritual enemies therefore are out to knock us over, knock us to the floor, knock us back and we are called to stand firm without giving any ground.
CHANGING OUR STORIES WITH GOD’S STORY
Our enemies are powerful and evil. They are more evil and more powerful than all the evil people in this world put together. The same enemies that have motivated the most evil people in world history are targeting us. This not just training but real life combat with life or death stakes. They never call a truce, negotiate, exchange prisoners, take a vacation, fight fair, or retire. Don’t go into this under any illusions about what you are up against.
Our General is all-powerful and all-good. Being “strong in the Lord and the strength of his might” means having no confidence in our own strength but total confidence in his. It means the spirit of this seasoned General can be with us in the battle.
PRAYER IS A WAR
NOT A BAR.
This is a horrendous conflict.
Has our general provided any weapons or armor?
2. WE BATTLE WITH SPIRITUAL EQUIPMENT (13-17)
Put on the whole armor of God….take up the whole armor of God (11, 13).
Our General has fought the same enemies for many years and has designed a perfect suit of armor for the battle. Paul calls us to put it on (not just admire it) and put it all on (not just some of it). As someone who’d spent years chained to a Roman soldier, he knew what weapons and armor a soldier needed.
The belt of truth (14): This was the first part of the armor to put on, as it was essential to gather up loose clothing, support the armor, and carry the sword. The truth supplies actionable intelligence about the enemy, the battle, and the tactics that secure victory. Every truth in the Bible is part of this belt and we cannot remove one truth without weakening the belt. Don’t accept any weak substitutes such as the belt of tradition, error, superstition.
The breastplate of righteousness (14): The breastplate protected the vital organs between the head and the legs. Without it the soldier didn’t stand a chance. The thicker the metal the better and the braver the soldier. Paul is pointing to Christ’s perfect righteousness – bright, shiny, and impenetrable. Don’t try to make it an alloy.
The Gospel shoes of peace (15): A soldier can’t do anything without good shoes, ideally a combination of both strength and speed. This soldier has peace with God and a peaceful conscience through the Gospel of peace. This gives him strength to fight and speed in fight. He loves putting on these shoes of peace to fight this war.
The shield of faith (16): Our enemies fire inflammable darts at us all the time. They shoot at our mind, emotions, conscience, heart, morals, and faith with the darts of doubt, blasphemy, lust, lies, bitterness. atheism. Unlike the breastplate of righteousness which was tied to the body and immovable, the shield of faith was mobile and needed training to use it well. As experience grew, the size of shield could grow too.
The helmet of salvation (17): The helmet was both protective and decorative. It was a source of security and an opportunity to identify clearly with your division or General.
The sword of the Spirit (17): The Spirit inspired the Word and inspires us with the Word. Our most effective weapon to defeat our enemies is not politics but the Word of God.
CHANGING OUR STORIES WITH GOD’S STORY
We have many mortal enemies. False religions such as Catholicism, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Mormonism, Materialism, Intellectualism, Emotionalism, Narcissism, Traditionalism, Liberalism, Pragmatism, Optimism, Pluralism, Hedonism, and many other -isms.
We have much military equipment. Unlike the Russian army in Ukraine, we are not running out of defensive and offensive weapons. We are not stretched thin. Our supply lines are not under threat.
MILITANT CHRISTIANS
ARE MIGHTY CHRISTIANS
I’m grateful for the equipment.
But where do I get the skill and energy from to use it all?
3. WE BATTLE WITH SPIRITUAL ENERGY (18-20)
Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak (18-20).
This soldier is fully warned and fully armed, but he’s nowhere near ready to fight yet because he’s not full of prayer. Without prayer, no amount of military intelligence or military equipment will give him victory. He might as well be a rookie in his underpants going out to fight against the Nazis. He lacks prayer and therefore lacks everything. Somebody once said, “Before a church gets on its feet, it must get on its knees.”
Pray “at all times.” Pray in every season, occasion, situation, opportunity, and at every age and stage of life. Pray at home and work, in public and private, on your own and with others. It accompanies every piece of armor.
Pray “in the Spirit.” We have an evil spirit trying to prevent prayer, delay prayer, interrupt prayer, shorten prayer, discourage prayer. We therefore need a greater spirit, the Holy Spirit to overcome all these obstacles.
Pray “with all prayer and supplication.” All kinds of prayers: mental and vocal, formal and informal, habitually and spontaneously, big and small, personal and national.
Pray and “keep alert.” This is a caution against drowsy, sleepy, half-hearted prayers. Watch for opportunities to pray, answers to prayer, reasons to thank God in prayer. Keep alert before, in, and after prayer.
Pray with “all perseverance.” This is the longest battle you will ever fight.You will have victories and you will have setbacks. Each time, the devil will come and say, “Give up now.” “No,” says Paul, “Keep going now.”
Pray “for all the saints.” While we pray for the unconverted, the saints are our priority. No soldier entering battle prays only for himself or herself. Their success depends just as much on how the other soldiers do too.
Pray for preachers. Paul asks for special prayer for himself, not only that he wold speak the Gospel but do so boldly (19-20). As preachers are special targets of the devil, they should be special targets for our prayers.
CHANGING OUR STORIES WITH GOD’S STORY
Prayer is strength. Without prayer, we are weak, Without prayer we’ve lost. Without prayer we’re dead. With prayer, we have energy to use our military equipment and fight against our malicious enemies. It turns us into fierce warriors that can take on the greatest forces in the universe.
Prayer is strong. Prayer makes a difference. It defeats enemies, gives victory, and causes us to triumph. Maybe not until heaven will we realize how powerful prayer is.
PRAYER GIVES POWER
POWER GIVES PRAYER
SUMMARY
A NEW CHAPTER
Gospel. If you don’t pray, you have no hope of fighting or winning this battle. You are defenseless and defeated. You cannot win on your own. Come and join General Christ and his army of Christ-followers and there you’ll learn not only how to fight but how to win.
What is prayer? Prayer is a ferocious spiritual battle that requires fierce and focused fighters that pray to win. Take the military mindset into prayer this week and pray “Your kingdom come” prayers this week.
Prayer. Mighty General, thank you for enlisting me to fight this just and holy war. Give me all the intelligence, equipment, and energy I need to fight your and my enemies and defeat them every day.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. How would you characterize your prayers? How would you describe them?
2. How does viewing prayer as a battle change the way you pray?
3. Which -ism is the greatest threat to you, your family, or your church?
4. Which verses in the Old and New Testament reveal Christ as our General
5. Which piece of armor have you neglected most or treasured most?
6. Which saints and preachers do you pray for? What do you pray for them?
Listen here.
In today’s podcast, we hear six stories from six Christians about the way God is changing their stories with his Story.
1:34 I share my encounter with a Kodiak Bear during my recent trip to Alaska and how I learned the importance of being spiritually armed for spiritual confidence.
7:16 Jo’s first onion harvest encouraged her that nutritional value is more important that size.
12:06 Ty helps us hear God’s voice by helping us understand God’s different love languages.
17:02 Meribeth uses her time stuck behind a yellow school bus to remind herself and us that God knows our story.
21:21 Small pains can heal us from big pains, as Pastor Jean found out when his little son dislocated his elbow.
26:23 How much does God enjoy us falling into his arms? Seob found out the answer to that question when playing with his young daughter.
Meet our storytellers here.
StoryChanger Devotional: Luke: Stories of Mission and Mercy by David Murray
StoryChanger Book: The StoryChanger: How God Rewrites Our Story By Inviting Us Into His by David Murray
Visit thestorychanger.life for more resources on changing our story with God’s Story.
Today I interview Barb Walker a member of First Byron CRC. Barb begins with a five-minute summary of the story God’s been writing in her life in recent years. It’s a story about suffering a serious stroke followed by a cancer diagnosis. In other words, it’s not a story she would have written herself, but it’s a story God wrote and is writing.
Barb and I then discuss what God’s been teaching her through this story and then review some older chapters including her adoption, her meeting her birth mother later in life, her abusive first marriage, her happy and blessed second marriage to David, the role of singing in her Christian life, and her favorite Bible verses.
I hope you will be as blessed as I was in listening to Barb’s testimony as I was when we chatted together about how the StoryChanger is changing her story with His Story.
StoryChanger Devotional: Luke: Stories of Mission and Mercy by David Murray
StoryChanger Book: The StoryChanger: How God Rewrites Our Story By Inviting Us Into His by David Murray
Visit thestorychanger.life for more resources on changing our story with God’s Story.
INTRODUCTION
“But I didn’t know it was wrong!” I’m sure we’ve all heard our children use this excuse. In saying it, they’re saying, “I don’t deserve punishment because I lacked knowledge.” If that’s true, then yes, our punishment of them will usually be reduced or maybe altogether removed. We accept lack of knowledge as a reasonable excuse if our child is young and really didn’t know, for example, that a swear word was a bad word. But we wouldn’t accept that excuse from our teen, because they know better. Knowledge takes away excuses.
When I was vacationing in the USA in 1999, I remember being stopped by a police officer for traveling 70 mph in a 65mph highway zone. When I said, “I’m sorry, officer, I didn’t know that highway’s had different speed limits in the USA, he let me off with a warning because he could tell I was a tourist and that it was a reasonable excuse. When I was recently stopped for doing 75 mph in a 70mph zone, I realized I couldn’t use the “Scottish tourist” excuse any more, because I knew the law after fifteen years living in the USA. Knowledge took away my excuse.
Is the same true of our spiritual excuses? How does spiritual knowledge affect our spiritual excuses? Does spiritual knowledge excuse us or accuse us? We need to know this so that we can abandon any inexcusable excuses. In Romans 2:1-11, the Apostle Paul examines the connection between spiritual knowledge and spiritual excuses.
BACKGROUND
In Romans 1:18-32, the Apostle Paul indicted all pagans, convicting them of inexcusable guilt before God because they rejected the knowledge of God they received through general revelation. They didn’t have all possible spiritual knowledge, but they had enough and rejected what they did have.
At that point, Paul imagines a complacent Jew nodding his head and agreeing with God’s judgment upon the heathen for rejecting the knowledge of God through general revelation. Paul reads his mind as the Jew says to himself, “These awful pagans who rejected God’s voice in creation and conscience deserve all that’s coming to them.” Just when the Jew is about to turn away in confident tut-tutting self-righteousness, Paul startles him with an even more scathing denunciation: “Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God?” (1-3).
He had spiritual knowledge that affected his spiritual excuses.
How does spiritual knowledge affect our spiritual excuses?
1. THE HYPERCRITICAL ARE HYPOCRITICAL (1-2)
A Hypercritical Person
Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another… (1).
The Jews of Paul’s day were super-critical and super-condemning of the Gentiles. They considered themselves experts in morals and were well-practiced in issuing their judgments on the heathen. They knew the law, studied the law, taught the law, and judged those who broke the law. They certainly couldn’t use the excuse of “I didn’t know.” That would have been like a Supreme Court Justice saying, “Oh, I didn’t know the US constitution.” That’s a totally invalid excuse. They knew the law better than anybody and constantly judged others with their expertise.
A Hypocritical Person
For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things (1-2).
Although they were hypercritical, they were also hypocritical. They condemned the Gentiles and then did the exact things they criticized the Gentiles for. They were good at passing judgment but terrible at pleasing the Judge. They saw themselves as judges, but Paul warned them that they will be the judged. The Gentiles did these sins with little knowledge, but the Jews did them with full knowledge that they were sins and that God’s judgment would certainly fall on them.
CHANGING OUR STORIES WITH GOD’S STORY
Beware of being hyper-critical. The hyper-critical are usually hypocritical. Hyper-critics are often hypocrites.
Beware of God’s criticism. If we sin without knowledge, we will still be judged. If we sin with knowledge, we will be judged more than the ignorant, not less. If we sin with knowledge while condemning others for the same sin, we will be judged most.
HYPER-CRITICS ARE HYPOCRITES
What’s God’s message to the hypercritical hypocrites?
Hypocritical hypocrites will be hyper-criticized.
2. THE HYPERCRITICAL WILL BE HYPERCRITICIZED (3-11)
A Deluded Person
Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? (3)
Do you really think that being a good judge of sins will excuse you of committing these sins. If so, you are deceiving yourself. You may be an expert in judging sin, but that gives you no excuse for practicing sin.
A Presumptuous Person
Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? (4)
God does not judge everyone every time they sin. When we sin, God usually waits and waits. He does not act immediately to condemn, but rather gives opportunities and openings. However, when some people see God’s patience, kindness, and long-suffering they conclude, “God is soft and doesn’t know what to do.” Instead of saying, “I will use this time of God’s kind patience to ask for mercy,” they say, “I will use this time of delayed judgment to accelerate my sin.” The whole Old Testament is a story of God’s kindness, forbearance, and patience.
A Hard-hearted Person
But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed (5).
Delusion leads to presumption which leads to hardness. As the heart hardens, judgment heightens. The hardness goes deeper, the judgment rises higher.
A Hyper-Criticized Person
He will render to each one according to his works…for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek (6-9).
CHANGING OUR STORIES WITH GOD’S STORY
AS YOU JUDGE
YOU WILL BE JUDGED
A NEW CHAPTER
Gospel. Is there hope for the hypercritical and the hypocritical? Yes, our hope is God’s judgment executed on Jesus, the just for the unjust, that’s he may bring us to God (1 Pet. 3:18).
Beware. Hypercritics and hypocrites are in serious danger of God’s judgment (Luke 12:1; Matt. 7:1-3).
Excuses. We are excuseless. Spiritual knowledge removes excuses and increases judgment (Luke 12:48).
Prayer. Just Judge, I am unjust in my judgments and therefore deserving of your judgment. Let Jesus be judged in my place, the just for the unjust, that he may bring me to God.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Can you think of situations where lack of knowledge may be a good excuse?
2. Can you think of situations where increased knowledge removes excuses?
3. Identify some times when you have done what you have judged others for.
4. Why is hypocrisy so closely connected with criticism?
5. Why does God judge judges more severely?
6. How would you bring the Gospel to the hypocritical and the hyper-critical.