SPIRITUAL
DIARY FOR 09-12-03
My
Worship Time Focus: The Judgment of God
Bible
Reading & Meditation Reference: James 2:12-13
Message
of the verse: “12 So speak and so do
as those who will be judged by the law of liberty. 13 For judgment is without mercy to the one
who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.” (NKJV)
“So whenever you speak, or whatever you do, remember that you will be
judged by the law of love, the law that set you free. For there will be no mercy for you if you have
not been merciful to others. But if you
have been merciful, then God’s mercy toward you will win out over his judgment
against you.” (NLT)
In this
section of James from verses 1-13 of chapter 2 we have been looking at four
Christian doctrines in relationship of how we are to treat other people. These include the doctrines of the deity of
Jesus Christ in verses 1-4; the grace of God in verses 5-7; the Word of God in
verses 8-11; and now today we look at the judgment of God in verses 12 and
13.This is not new to this study in James for in chapter one verses 13-16 Dr.
Wiersbe spoke of the Judgment of God while dealing with the subject of
temptation. In these two verses James speaks of our words being judged, our
actions deeds judged, and attitudes being judged.
1.
Our words judged:
Jesus speaks of this in Matthew 12:36, “36 But I say unto you, That
every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the
day of judgment.” There was also an
illustration given in James 2:3, where James wrote about two visitors.
2.
Our deeds judged:
Colossians 3:22-25 have this insight on this: “22 Bondservants [slaves], obey in all things
your masters
according to the flesh, not with eye service, as men-pleasers, but in sincerity
of heart, fearing God.
23
And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men,
24 knowing that from
the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord
Christ. 25 But he who does wrong will be
repaid for what he has done, and there is no partiality.” As believers we must take sin seriously for
when we sin and not think much about it we will not be able to serve the Lord
in a way that will be pleasing to Him.
To be sure the believers sins are forgiven, but our sins affect our
character and works for the Lord.
3.
Our attitudes judged:
James talks about showing mercy to others and not showing mercy to
others. (Verse 13) When we show mercy to
others God will show mercy to us, however don’t fall for the lie that as believers
we can earn mercy for then that would not be mercy. Mercy and judgments both come from God so
there are no competitions between them.
If a sinner repents of their sins then God will show mercy to them, if
not judgment. The parable in Matthew
18:21-35 illustrates this truth. The
parable is not illustrating salvation, but forgiveness between fellow servants.
Three points on why James called God’s law the law of liberty.
1.
Obedience to the Law frees us from sin and enables us to
walk in liberty. Psalm 119:45 speak of
this: “And I will walk at liberty, For I
seek Your precepts.”
2.
God’s Law prepares us for liberty. Paul talked about this
in Galatians where he said that the Law was our tutor that led us to
Christ. “Galatians 3:24 Therefore the
law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by
faith. Galatians 3:25 But after faith
has come, we are no longer under a tutor.”
Liberty does not mean license for license is confinement while liberty
is fulfillment.
3.
The liberty that
comes from the Law of God changes us from the inside out so that we will have a
desire to do what is pleasing to God.
This in truth is what liberty for the believer is all about, and that is
that we have the liberty to do what is pleasing to the Lord, we are not
controlled by sin, but by the new nature and this gives us the liberty to
worship God in a way that is pleasing to Him, otherwise we would only be doing
sinful things because we are sinners.
Jeremiah 31:33b says, “I will put My law in their minds, and write it on
their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.” The writer to the Hebrews repeats this in
8:10 of the letter to the Hebrews. “"For this is the covenant that I will
make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My
laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and
they shall be My people.
In conclusion it is good to be reminded that our beliefs
should control our behavior. When the believer
looks into the mirror of the Word of God and sees in it something that needs to
be changed and changes it then this shows that his beliefs do control his
behavior, and this is maturity in the believer’s life.
Spiritual
meaning for my life today: As a
believer when I think about the judgment of God there are many times when I do
not feel that it has anything to do with me because Jesus Christ took the
judgment for my sins on the cross. I am
now beginning to have a new, and I hope more mature, look into the judgment of
God, and this passage has been a help for me to see it better, and how the
judgment of God has to do with me personally.
The Word of God was enlighting to my heart, and it also
brought conviction to me.
My
Steps of Faith Today: To
trust the Lord to give me the right words to say at the Bible Study today, to
fill me and to empower me for His glory.
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