I was thinking today, what would society be like if our law/judicial system behaved in the same way that most people I know of, think God is like?  Let me explain.

Most people see themselves as “good.” (Pro. 20:6)  They think that they contribute to society, they obey the “big” laws, they’ve never murdered, raped, or burglarized, so they are pretty good.  And they think that God will see them in the same light and grant them everlasting life.  They assume that they haven’t been “too evil,” and that the worst they’ve done are minor little “inconveniences,” not really “sins.”  They assume that when life is measured out, the good they’ve done and the evil they’ve avoided, will amount to more than the negative things they’ve done.  And because of that, God will be pleased with them and let them into Heaven.

Let’s pretend that our law/judicial system behaved that same way.  Let’s say that you are busted one day for a crime.  It doesn’t matter what kind of crime, but you broke some law.  So now you go to the judge and you say, “Judge that was just a minor little thing.  If you look back at my life, I’ve kept that law most of the time.  AND, I’ve kept other laws as well.”

How would you expect the judge to respond?  If your guilty of breaking a law, does obedience to other laws have any bearing?  Of course not!  You can’t rob a bank and then use the fact that you’ve never murdered anyone as evidence in your favor.  It has no bearing.  Neither does the fact that you had never robbed a bank up to that point.

You see, obedience to the law is expected.  You can’t use that obedience to counter act your violations.  Violations must be answered for.  That is what justice is.  If you break a law, regardless of how many laws you’ve kept in the past, you have to answer for breaking that law.  And so it is with God.

God is good. (Mark 10:18) He is righteous. (Ps. 145:17) That means that He is just. (Ps. 89:14) Far more just than our human judicial system.  He will not turn a blind eye to sin.  Each and every sin must be accounted for. (Rom. 14:12) And just like our judicial system, you can’t go to Him and say, “Yeah, but…”  And for those who think that they are “good” and haven’t broken His laws, they are not being honest with themselves. (Luke 18:9-14)

Take one of His laws.  Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength.  Jesus said this is the greatest of all the commandments. (Matt. 22:36-38) We have not kept that law, NO ONE has, for one single solitary second in our lives.  At NO point during our lives have we loved God as He ought to be loved.  So we are guilty of breaking this law (the GREATEST law) repeatedly all day, every day.  It is the equivalent of treason.  The fact that you don’t SEE it as grievous has no bearing.  A pedophile doesn’t see how he is doing anything wrong either.  God said this law is of the utmost importance.  So how can you face Him on judgment day?

Or take another one of His laws.  Lying, for instance. (Rev. 21:8) You say, “I’m not that bad,” but how often do you lie?  20 times a day?  10 times?  Even if it’s just once a day, over an average lifetime (let’s say ages 10-72), that’s about 22,645 violations in a lifetime!!  Each one must be accounted for.  Imagine going to court for 22,000 counts of perjury?  How can you escape?

What about pride?  God said it is a sin that He hates. (Pro. 6:16-19) You are probably steeped in pride every single moment of every day.  What about gossip? (Pro. 18:8) Greed? (1st Tim. 6:10) Lust? (Matt. 5:28) Hatred?! (1st John 3:15) You are not good.  You are WICKED!  A vile, repeat offender of every kind of law!  We all are.  WHAT WILL YOU DO?  Not to mention that each of these violations are done in plain sight of the Judge.  He watches you commit each of these crimes! (Pro. 15:3)

There is no hope for you within yourself.  You cannot claim to be good. (Ps. 14:2-3) Because you clearly are not.  You cannot ask for leniency because you haven’t violated certain parts of the law.  That has no bearing on justice.  The bottom line is, whether you believe it or not, you WILL face God, guilty and caught red-handed, of thousands upon thousands of violations of the law.  Realistically, it’s more like millions upon millions.  What will you do?  Nowhere to run, your day in court has come, and like everyone else, you are the worst and most vile offender in the history of mankind!

There is hope.  Because of God’s great love for you. (Rom. 5:8) That is the whole point of Jesus Christ coming to earth.  God does not want to leave us to our demise.  He made away to satisfy justice. (John 3:16) He took the punishment upon Himself. (1st Peter 2:24) He suffered and died upon the tree of calvary, bearing the full weight of our guilt. (Heb. 9:28) He took sin upon Himself and paid the penalty and rose again guaranteeing justification! (Is. 53:4-5; Rom. 4:25) That means that justice is served and pardon can be received.  REPENT! (Mark 1:15)

That’s like confess.  Admit your guilt.  Stop trying to pretend that your good.  That somehow you’ll make it.  YOU WON’T.  God wants you to AGREE with His righteousness. (Pro. 28:13; 1st John 1:9-10) To admit your condition.  To realize your guilt and to be HUMBLE before Him. (Matt. 23:12) In that condition, God will come to you and give you the gift of faith leading to salvation! (Eph. 2:8)

Through that faith, you believe upon the One who took your punishment. (Zech. 12:10) You will TRUST Him to ensure you a place in Heaven. (Pro. 3:5) You will rely solely on Him, not yourself, to get you to Heaven.  And you will discover a peace that passes all understanding! (Phil. 4:7)

That is the Gospel.  Christ became sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God! (2nd Cor. 5:21) Repent and believe! (Luke 15:10)

The Most Terrifying Truth in Scripture - Pastor Paul Washer

Getting The Gospel Right - Pastor Brian Borgman

Examine Yourself - Pastor John Piper, Pastor Charles Spurgeon, and Me! 






Not Our Effort, But God - Pastor Paul Washer 










Proverbs 20:6 "Most men will proclaim every one his own goodness: but a faithful man who can find?"

Mark 10:18 "And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God."

Psalms 89:14 "Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face."

   Psalms 145:17 "The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works."

 Romans 14:12 "So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God."

Luke 18:9-14 "And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:¹⁰ Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.¹¹ The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.¹² I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.¹³ And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.¹⁴ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted."

Matthew 22:36-38 "Master, which is the great commandment in the law?³⁷ Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.³⁸ This is the first and great commandment."

Revelation 21:8 "But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death."

Proverbs 6:16-19 "These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:¹⁷ A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,¹⁸ An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief,¹⁹ A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren."

 Proverbs 18:8 "The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly."

1st Timothy 6:10 "For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows."

Matthew 5:28 "But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart."

1st John 3:15 "Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him."

  Proverbs 15:3 "The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good."

Psalms 14:2-3 "The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God.³ They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one."
 
Romans 5:8 "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."

  John 3:16 "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."

 1st Peter 2:24 "Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed."

Hebrews 9:28 "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 53:4-5 "Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.⁵ But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed."

Romans 4:25 "Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification."

Mark 1:15 "And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel."

Proverbs 28:13 "He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy."

1st John 1:9-10 "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.¹⁰ If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us."

Matthew 23:12 "And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted."

Ephesians 2:8 "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:"

Zechariah 12:10 "And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn."

Proverbs 3:5 "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding." 

Philippians 4:7 "And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

   2nd Corinthians 5:21 "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him."

Luke 15:10 "Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth."