Do
you believe that Jesus is the true and final judge? Can you find scripture that
indicates Jesus is a judge?
 |
| What treasures do you find in God's Word? |
When the Gentiles sin, they will be
destroyed, even though they never had God's written law. And the Jews, who do
have God's law, will be judged by that law when they fail to obey it. For
merely listening to the law doesn't make us right with God. It is obeying
the law that makes us right in his sight. Even Gentiles, who do not have God's
written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even
without having heard it. They demonstrate that God's law is written in their
hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them
they are doing right. And this is the message I proclaim—that the day is
coming when God, through Christ Jesus, will judge everyone's secret life. Romans 2:12-16 (Underlined for
emphasis.)
The importance
of listening and obeying God’s laws is stressed in both the Old and New
Testaments. God has made commands so that people know how to please Him…and
basically just how to live.
If you follow my decrees and are
careful to obey my commands, I will send you the seasonal rains. The land will
then yield its crops, and the trees of the field will produce their fruit. Your
threshing season will overlap with the grape harvest, and your grape harvest
will overlap with the season of planting grain. You will eat your fill and live
securely in your own land. "I will give you peace in the land, and you
will be able to sleep with no cause for fear. I will rid the land of wild
animals and keep your enemies out of your land. Leviticus 26:3-6
God
contrasts this obeying with what will happen if we don’t obey.
However, if you do not listen to me
or obey all these commands, and if you break my covenant by rejecting my
decrees, treating my regulations with contempt, and refusing to obey my
commands, I will punish you. I will bring sudden terrors upon you—wasting diseases
and burning fevers that will cause your eyes to fail and your life to ebb away.
You will plant your crops in vain because your enemies will eat them. I will
turn against you, and you will be defeated by your enemies. Those who hate you
will rule over you, and you will run even when no one is chasing you! And if, in
spite of all this, you still disobey me, I will punish you seven times over for
your sins. Leviticus
26:14-18
In the
passage below from Judges we see how Jephthah, an obedient Hebrew soldier, stood
up for Israel against their enemies, especially Ammon. Ultimately, Jephthah
became a Judge over Israel for six years (Judges 12:7).
Then
Jephthah sent messengers to the king of Ammon, asking, "Why have you come
out to fight against my land?" The king of Ammon answered Jephthah's
messengers, "When the Israelites came out of Egypt, they stole my land
from the Arnon River to the Jabbok River and all the way to the Jordan. Now
then, give back the land peaceably." Jephthah sent this message back to
the Ammonite king: "This is what Jephthah says: Israel did not steal any
land from Moab or Ammon. ... they sent messengers to the king of Edom asking
for permission to pass through his land. But their request was denied. Then
they asked the king of Moab for similar permission, but he wouldn't let them
pass through either. So the people of Israel stayed in Kadesh." ... So you
see, it was the LORD, the God of Israel, who took away the land from the
Amorites and gave it to Israel. Why, then, should we give it back to you? You
keep whatever your god Chemosh gives you, and we will keep whatever the LORD
our God gives us. ... "Israel has been living here for 300 years,
inhabiting Heshbon and its surrounding settlements, all the way to Aroer and
its settlements, and in all the towns along the Arnon River. Why have you made
no effort to recover it before now? Therefore, I have not sinned against you.
Rather, you have wronged me by attacking me. Let the LORD, who is judge,
decide today which of us is right—Israel or Ammon." ... So Jephthah
led his army against the Ammonites, and the LORD gave him victory. Judges 11:12-15, 17, 23-24, 26-27,
32 (Emphasis is mine.)
Prayer
– Lord, You’ve given us examples of Judges who ruled over Israel and shown Your
power and might. You gave Israel victory over Ammon—and other enemies as well.
Thank you for your plan and Your power. I want to listen and obey You forever. You are the Honorable Judge.
Meditate.
Read God’s word and listen to what He is saying.
Verse
of Salvation ~ But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles,
Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. This foolish plan of God is
wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God's weakness is stronger than the
greatest of human strength. 1
Corinthians 1:24-25
© 2025 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All
rights reserved.
All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless
otherwise noted.
New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale
House Foundation.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream,
Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm.
Books by Mickey M.
Hunacek
Available as e-books or paperbacks at Amazon.com
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