Confronting the Inevitable II

Sermon for the second Sunday in Advent 

We know how

to respond when

someone tells us,

"Jesus says 

we mustn't judge others."

We know that

this is not what He says.

He does say,

"Judge not lest ye be judged,"

and then goes on

to say that 

we shall be judged

using the same method

that we use to judge others.

It means that those who judge

based on hatred 

will receive the same judgement 

and they receive that judgement 

because

they have rejected 

God's justice.

But we are not exempt!

We will be judged

by the same means

as we judge others.

And our judgement 

is as inevitable 

as our death.

We shall stand before God

as The Judge

and we shall be judged.

But judged for what?

What is this judgement?

[PAUSE]

We tend to have 

a very legal point of view

of judgement 

but,

at the heart of it,

there is a decision

about right and wrong,

what should be 

and how things 

are not how they should be.

At the back of our minds,

however,

when we say, "judgement"

we think,

"crime and punishment."

Always in our mind

if someone does something wrong

they must be punished,

fined,

imprisoned,

even executed!

Is sin really like that?

We are born in sin, true.

We are born 

separated from God

unable to perceive 

His presence,

His love,

His grace,

even though we always

have them near us.

Baptism is our 

first point of justification,

an opening of our eyes

to the brilliance of God.

And then we grow

in our justification 

through Faith

working in Love.

We are guilty of sin

when we perform an act

that separates us from God

and dulls our senses to Him.

A sin causes us

to deviate from our life's goal

- God!

And this is where 

judgement comes in.

[PAUSE]

After death comes judgement.

The light of God 

shines on us

and shows us who we are.

And it also shows us

who we are supposed to be.

We are supposed to be 

like Christ.

And our judgement 

centres 

on how much

we are like Him.

He is the standard 

against which we are judged

but not to our punishment,

but rather 

to our reconciliation.

And here

we see why 

we cannot earn our way

into Heaven

for how can we become like

someone we do not know?

How can we become like God 

without God's active presence 

growing in us?

And we call God's active presence 

in us

Grace.

[PAUSE]

In living lives

receiving God's grace

and co-operating with that grace,

we grow more like Him.

When we die

and appear before God

who we are

will be apparent to all.

Everyone will be able to see

how much we are like Christ

how much we bear

a family resemblance to Him

and to each other.

We shall see those on the right

who look like Christ,

and those on the left

who thought that 

doing things that they deemed

good 

but we're not good

would get them into Heaven.

These on the left

justify themselves 

and live up 

to a false image of Christ.

They are idolaters

and proud of their idolatry.

And when we see them,

and we see that they bear

no resemblance to Christ

then will we hear the Lord say,

"I never knew you."

[PAUSE]

It is here that 

we find ourselves 

in a process of perfection 

where the image of Christ that we bear

is cleansed and made whole

so that we reflect Him perfectly.

And those who have rejected Him,

rejected His rule,

His judgement,

His love 

His life

His grace

will depart on the left

into the outer darkness.

[PAUSE]

Perfect justice 

is no law court:

it is Christ Himself.

And as we journey 

to Bethlehem to meet Him,

to watch His birth,

to watch Him grow,

to watch Him live,

so do we ourselves

find ourselves born from above,

grow in His image

and live His life in us

so that when we die

we shall be like Him

for we shall see Him 

as He is.