The Judgement Day

Introduction

Good morning. It is good to see you this morning. It is a blessing for us to be together on this Lord’s Day to worship God and study from His Word. I want to encourage you to go ahead and get out the Word of God, which is the Bible. There will be a lot of Bible in this particular lesson. So please go ahead and get you a Bible, whether paper form or digital form, so you can see these things for yourself. But we will be studying from the Bible and having a lot of Bible in this part of our worship. Before we dive into the Bible, I want to just remind the South Bumbi Church family of a couple very important things. First, I want to remind you of our vacation Bible school.

Our vacation Bible school is less than two weeks away. It will be July 9th, 10th, and 11th. And we’re going to have classes for all of the young people. And we’re going to have classes here in the auditorium for adults. So on Thursday and Friday night, we will start at 6 30. And on Saturday morning, we will start at 10. And parents, we really need you to get your kids here. We need your help. Please make sure your children are here for these vacation Bible school classes and hang around for the adult classes as well in the auditorium. There’s a lot of work going on behind the scenes to make this possible.

So please get ready for that. That is going to be here very soon. Also want to remind you of today. Today is the fourth Sunday. And at 2 30, not 3, and our bulletin may say 3, but the elders actually moved this to 2 30 a couple of months ago. At 2 30, we’re going to be studying another parable of Jesus and the Annex. And so please join join us for that. We’ve had good attendance at these. And today we are going to be studying the parable of the ten virgins. That is a very, very interesting parable. A lot going on in that parable. A lot of layers to that onion. So please, if you’re able to join us today after lunch, we’re going to be meeting at 2 30 to study another parable of Jesus.

In fact, in connection to that particular parable that we’re going to be studying today, I want to ask you to take out your Bible and go to Acts chapter 17. Because in Acts chapter 17 and in verse number 30, here we find the Apostle Paul preaching the gospel in the city of Athens at the Auropagus. And he has some things to say to these people about God, the one true God. He wants them to know that God is living and he is active. And he’s responsible for giving life to every person, and he is near us, and he can be found, and he must be responded to in a very specific way. And so in Acts chapter 17 in verse number 30, Paul says, Therefore, having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because he has fixed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness through a man whom he has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising him from the dead.

Anticipation. Anticipation. One of the things that our lives are filled with are days of anticipation, right? For example, as kids, for many of us, that day was our birthday. And when we became students, it was graduation day. And if you’ve ever been engaged before, it was the wedding day. And when we start when we start working a job, well, it’s then payday. And the day we’re hopefully able to retire. And if we’re able to buy a house, well, it’s then the payoff day, or the day when we no longer have a mortgage. Throughout the course of life, many people live with anticipation for these kinds of big days, but I want you to notice how here in Acts chapter 17, the apostle Paul speaks of a day that is yet to come that is bigger than all those previous days I mentioned combined.

He actually speaks of a day when something unthinkable in the minds of many people is going to become a reality.

And life as we know it changes, and everything we’ve been studying for the past three months comes to pass. The Lord literally and personally returns.

The day that the Apostle Paul is talking about here in this sermon is the judgment day. The judgment day, the judgment day is the greatest day yet to come. It is the day when things will occur that have never occurred before. It is the day when the sky is going to be rolled back like a scroll and the Lord will descend from heaven in the glory of God in a place where the people were immersed and saturated in human philosophy and all kinds of idolatry. The Apostle Paul chose to talk about this day. He chose to talk with the people about the judgment day. And if you don’t mind in our study this morning from God’s word, I also want to talk with you about the same thing.

1. The Judgment Day Is Going to Occur

I want to wrap up this monthly series of lessons about the return of Jesus by not only showing you how the judgment day connects to that grand event, but it also guarantees it. And let’s just begin by first pointing this out. Let’s begin by first pointing out how one of the things that the Apostle Paul wanted these people and by extension us to understand about the judgment day is number one, he wants us to understand that it’s going to occur. It’s going to happen, it’s going to take place. That’s what he means in verse number 31 when he talks about how God has fixed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness. Do you see that language? God has fixed the day. Some translations render that God has appointed a day.

Or God has set a day. That language indicates that the judgment day is going to happen. It’s going to occur, it’s going to take place. God has selected and set aside and marked this day down in his mind. In fact, Jesus says that no person is able to predict when it’s going to occur. He says that back in Matthew 24. Go back in your Bible, please to Matthew 24, to the verses that Shawn Michael read to us from in Matthew 24. Go back to that section of Scripture. As you turn back to Matthew 24, let me remind you of what we talked about a couple of months ago. If you remember a couple of months ago in this series, we studied from Luke chapter 21. Remember when we studied from Luke 21, remember we pointed out how in the context of that chapter, the Lord is giving not signs that would precede his second personal and literal return, but instead throughout that entire chapter, he gives signs that will precede the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the Jewish nation.

That chapter, Luke 21, is actually parallel to Mark chapter 13 and much of what you find in Matthew 24. You see, like in Luke 21, here in Matthew 24, Jesus also talks about signs. He also talks about wars and rumors of wars. And he talks about earthquakes and famines in various places. And he talks about false Christ and false prophets popping up all over the place. And he talks about the persecution of Christians and the spread of the gospel throughout the world and the abomination of desolation, which Luke tells us, in Luke 21, is a reference to the Romans surrounding the city of Jerusalem. Jesus also talks about signs. Here in Matthew 24, and these signs that Jesus speaks of have nothing to do with the stuff going on in the world today.

They have nothing to do with the recent earthquakes that took place in Venezuela. Or with the conflicts going on in the Middle East right now, or even with all the false prophets and false teachers that are throughout the world today. Instead, these signs Jesus is speaking of here refer to the signs that would precede the destruction of Jerusalem. They refer to the signs that would precede the destruction of a rebellious Jewish nation. Much of what you find in Matthew 24 is parallel to what you find in Luke 21 and in Mark chapter 13, but beginning in verse number 36 of this chapter, it is also my belief and my conviction that the Lord transitions from talking about his coming in judgment on the Jewish nation to talking about his second personal and literal coming.

Someone says for Brother Sean, why do you say that? Well, I say that. Because if you notice in the reading Show Michael gave for us this morning, instead of continuing to talk about what was going to happen before those days, as he does in verse 19, and in verse number 22, and in verse number 29, when talking about the destruction of Jerusalem, beginning in verse number 36, Jesus starts talking about that day. He starts talking about one particular day and one particular hour. He talks about a day and an hour that only the Father knows. And the Lord comes. In other words, it’s not going to be preceded by signs. Like when he came in judgment upon the nation of Israel. Instead, it’s going to be like the days of Noah.

A lot of people are going to be unprepared. A lot of people are going to be caught off guard. A lot of people are going to be separated. Righteous and wicked people are going to be separated. And it’s going to occur like a thief and like a master who returns home when his slave is not expected him to.

2. God Is Going to Judge the World in Righteousness

Do you see that there in the verse? A fixed day in which God is going to judge the world. Who is that? Who is the world? Well, you and I both know that the world includes everyone. The world doesn’t just include the Jews. No, it includes me. It includes you. It includes every person on planet earth and every person to have ever lived. This is something that is echoed throughout the New Testament. For example, in Romans chapter 14 and verse number 12. In Romans chapter 14 and verse number 12, the apostle Paul says, So then each one of us, each one of us, will give an account of himself to God. And then in 2 Corinthians chapter 5, verse 10. Paul says, For we must all, A L L, we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ.

Notice the emphasis on everybody. The entire world, not just one particular nation. Each one of us. We must all, God is going to judge the world on this day. And Paul repeats this when writing to Timothy. And 2 Timothy chapter 4 in verse number 1. And 2 Timothy 4 and verse 1, Paul says, I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead. That’s everybody. All the living. All the dead are going to be judged on this day. And when is this day going to take place? Where Paul says that God is going to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing, notice. And his kingdom. That’s when it’s going to take place.

When the Lord appears, when he comes again. That’s when the Lord is going to judge the living and the dead. And Jesus Himself says this when you go to Matthew 25. Go in your Bible, please, to Matthew chapter 25, Matthew 25. I want to start reading with verse number 131. Here’s another strong piece of evidence, I believe, that a transition takes place in verse number 36 of the previous chapter. The Lord transitions from talking about judgment upon the Jewish nation in the city of Jerusalem, to talking about him coming again to judge the world. We find more evidence for that right here in Matthew 25, beginning in verse 31. Listen carefully to the language when he says in verse 31, and when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne, all nations.

All the nations will be gathered before him. And he will separate them one from another as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep on his right and the goats on the left. Here we have a judgment day scene. We have the Lord coming.

All nations are going to be gathered before him on this day in this scene, and that is completely consistent with what the Apostle Paul taught in the city of Athens. Notice how, according to what the gospel tells us, it doesn’t matter who a person is.

Or if you’re the president of the United States like Donald Trump, or if you’re some big Hollywood star or musician or a famous athlete, or just a regular Joe. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you are or what your status may be, you, we, I, we have an appointment before the throne of God. We have an appointment before the throne of God when the Lord comes back. That’s what the Bible tells us over and over again. God is going to judge the world on the judgment day, and He’s going to judge the world in righteousness. Do you see that? There’s a fixed day in which God’s going to judge the world in righteousness. What does that mean? Well, that means that on the judgment day, there are not going to be any mistakes made.

There are not going to be any mistakes made because, unlike with people on this earth, there’s nothing we can hide from God. We can’t hide anything from God. We can’t hide our words from God. We can’t hide our actions from God. We can’t even hide our thoughts and our feelings from God.

In other words, there’s not going to be any people who are truly guilty getting away with their crimes. There are not going to be any lawyers with high bar exams who are going to be able to stand before God and convince him to change his mind if we’re found guilty. There’s not going to be any bribing God or trying to pay God off or try to appeal the verdict so we can get an opportunity for a retrial later on. There’s not going to be any standing before God on the judgment, wondering is God going to get this right? No, unlike what goes on in our American legal system. You’re not going to have any of these things taking place on the judgment day. On the judgment day, God’s going to judge the world in righteousness.

3. Through a Man He Has Appointed

Through one particular person. Again, he is fixed today. And when she’s going to judge the world in righteousness through a man that he has appointed, who is that man? Who is that man that God has appointed to judge the world? Well, there’s no other, no person other than Jesus. It’s Jesus the Son of God, Jesus the Christ, the Savior, Jesus the person that God is going to use to judge the world. And Jesus Himself tells us that back in Matthew 25, right? We don’t have time to read those verses this morning due to time. I recommend you get a copy of the outline before you leave. There are outlines for this sermon available to you. They’re going to be on that table right by the exit, right by the front door when you leave today.

So get you a copy of that outline, read these verses, think about these things. That resource is available to you. But in Matthew chapter 25, beginning in verse number 34, Jesus says that when we stand before him on the judgment day, we’re going to be judged. We’re going to be judged by him. We’re going to be judged by his will and his standard. We’re either going to hear him say the best words we ever heard in our lives or the worst words. We’re either going to hear him say, Come. You who are blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world, or we’re going to hear him say, Depart from me, accursed ones, and to the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

Jesus is the one who’s going to judge us on this day. And whatever judgment he renders, it’s going to be right.

Instead, it’s going to be because we died in our sins, and Jesus, the righteous judge, gave us exactly what he promised to give every person who died without being forgiven. We’re going to get the exact penalty that’s promised throughout the scriptures. On this day, the world’s going to be judged in righteousness by Jesus. And in case you’re wondering how we can be so certain of this, let me suggest that Paul answers this question as well. When you go back to Acts 17 and verse 31, notice again how Paul says that God has fixed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness through a man whom he has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising him from the dead. Notice how when it comes to this day, the judgment day.

God has given us evidence to believe this. God has given us evidence to believe that his son is going to personally return and judge the world. That evidence is found in the resurrection. It is found in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Paul says that the resurrection of Jesus is proof given from heaven that the judgment day is going to occur. It is yet another reason why it was so vital that Jesus has come out of that tomb on that faithful Sunday morning, 2,000 years ago, in addition to confirming his identity as a Son of God, and in addition to demonstrating his power over death, and in addition to demonstrating that God was pleased with his sacrifice on the cross, it was critical. It was also critical that Jesus come out of that tomb because it guarantees God’s promise of a judgment day.

It guarantees the return of Jesus and the fact that all people will have to give an account of themselves to him. Paul deals with this also in Romans chapter one. Go on your Bible, please, to Romans chapter 1. Because in Romans chapter 1 and in verse number 4, Paul talks about Jesus and his resurrection. And he says in Romans chapter 1 and verse number 4 that Jesus was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead according to the Spirit of Holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord. Notice how through the resurrection, by being raised from the dead, Jesus was not just declared to be the Son of God, but he was declared to be the Son of God with power. The Son of God with power.

Power to do what? Power to do everything he says he can do. Power to forgive us. Power to save us, power to comfort us, power to be with us, power to strengthen us, power to raise us up and resurrect us one day, power even to judge us. The world is going to be judged by Jesus and righteousness when he comes again, and the resurrection guarantees it. It guarantees the coming of Jesus personally and literally and the judgment day. The question, though, now is so what? So what? What relevance does this have to my life today? In other words, how should we, as Christians living in 2026, respond to what Paul is saying here about the judgment day and its connection to the second personal return of Jesus?

4. We Need to Get Ourselves Ready

Well, let me give you three practical ways in which we need to respond to this information. And the first one is obvious. The first thing we need to do in response to this is we need to get ourselves ready. We need to get ready. We need to be prepared. We need to be prepared for the judgment day to occur even today. And Jesus tells us that. Don’t just believe that because I say so. Believe it because Jesus said so. Look in your Bible at Matthew 26 or Matthew 24 in verse 46. And Matthew 24 and in verse number 46. Listen to what Jesus said. Matthew 24 and verse 46. Jesus says, Blessed is the slave. That’s us. Blessed is that slave whom when his master finds soul doing when he comes.

Jesus is saying there, get ready. Be prepared. Don’t be a slave. It’s called unprepared when the master comes back. And that’s the whole point of the parables in the next chapter. The parable of the ten verges that we’re going to study today. The parable of the talents. Both of those parables are designed to emphasize the same message. Get ready. Be prepared. Be prepared to receive the bridegroom when he comes. Be prepared to receive the master when he comes. Don’t be a slave. Found useless and lazy, not being a good steward of your talents or your blessings. Get ready. Jesus emphasized that over and over again in Matthew 24 and in Matthew 25. And then look at what Paul said again in Acts 17. Go back to Acts 17.

Because in Acts 17, we read verse 31. We emphasized verse 31, but look at verse 30. Because Paul says in Acts 17 and verse 30, therefore, having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now, and that would even include today. God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent because he has fixed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness through a man whom he has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising him from the dead. Paul says that since God is going to judge the world through his son Jesus in righteousness, we need to respond a certain way. We need to repent. We need to repent today. We need to get ready today. What does that involve?

What does repentance involve? Well, repentance involves turning away from sin. It involves turning away from sin and turning to the Lord. It involves having a change of mind towards sin that leads to a change in your life. That’s what repentance is. You see, since Paul did not know when the judgment day was going to occur, he told his audience to repent and get ready for what it to occur that day, and we need to do the same thing. We need to do the same thing even today. We need to understand that since there is coming a day of judgment that is guaranteed by the resurrection of Jesus, it matters how we live.

5. We Gotta Be Focused

It matters if we’re willing to forgive others and if we’re willing to be kind and compassionate, and if we’re willing to do unto others as we would have them do unto us. That matters. It matters how we view sin. And if we’re willing to repent when we’re caught up in sin and live holy and godly lives that are acceptable before the Lord. All that matters. It matters because there’s a judgment day coming. The judgment day is coming, and we got to get ourselves ready. We must be ready, and something that will help us do that is by staying focused. We gotta be focused. We gotta be focused on what really matters in life. And Jesus tells us that over and over again, going back to Matthew 24 and Matthew 24, look at verse 42.

In Matthew 24 and verse number 42, Jesus says, Therefore, be on the alert, for you do not know which day, notice which day your Lord is coming. Look over at chapter 25 and verse number 13. As he wraps up the parable of the virgins in Matthew 25, verse 13, he says, Be on the alert, then, for you do not know the day nor the hour. Notice how Jesus says that when it comes to getting ready for Him to return and the judgment day to take place, we need to be alert. We need to be sober, we need to be focused. That’s challenging to do. Let’s just be honest. That’s challenging to do. And it’s challenging to do because life is full of distractions, right? It’s full of distractions.

It’s full of moments where we can easily find ourselves being consumed by our jobs and working extra hours to make more money. And spending several hours binge watching shows on Netflix and Hulu and Peacock and posting on social media 10,000 times a day. And being consumed in our kids playing sports and watching sports and being obsessed with politics and our personal hobbies. While there’s nothing inherently wrong and sinful about doing any of those things if we’re not careful, brothers and sisters. All these things can become tools that the devil uses to distract us. They can all become tools that the devil uses to deter us from focusing on the things we must do to prepare ourselves for the return of Jesus and the judgment day. Many of you know after a year, and believe it or not, but you put up with me for a year.

It is a year today, actually. It’s been a year. You haven’t kicked me out of here yet. So you put up with us that that for us, a special blessing coming to you because of that. But it’s been a year, and by now, many of you know that I’m a huge Washington Commanders fan. I still struggle with saying that, but that’s what their name is. I’m a commanders fan. I’ve been a commander’s fan since I was five years old, almost 40 years. So I know all the players, I know all the stats, I kept up with all the seasons. I bleed burgundy and gold.

On the judgment day, the Washington Commanders and what they’ve done, that’s not gonna matter. On the judgment day, how many games they won a couple of years ago and almost made it to the Super Bowl? That’s not gonna matter. How many games they’re gonna win this year or lose this year, that’s not gonna matter. Anything that has to do with football or basketball or baseball or golf, none of that stuff’s gonna matter on the judgment day. But you know what’s going to matter? Repentance is gonna matter. Football’s not gonna matter, but Paul says repentance will matter. Spiritual growth will matter. Holy living will matter. Whether I truly love God and love my neighbor as myself, that’s gonna matter. Whether or not I bore fruit, and if I was a good steward of the talents and abilities God has blessed me to serve in the kingdom with, whether I use my time and my resources to bless and help other people, all that stuff’s gonna matter on the judgment day.

6. We Gotta Be Honest With Ourselves

That’s gonna matter when I stand before Jesus. And I gotta challenge myself to not lose sight of that. I gotta constantly be focused on that, and maybe something that can help me do that is by being honest. If we’re gonna prepare for the judgment day, we gotta be honest with ourselves. We gotta be honest with ourselves right now. And so I want to go in my Bible to Matthew chapter 7. Look in your Bible, please, in Matthew chapter 7 and in verse number 21. In Matthew chapter 7 and in verse 21. Jesus says this as he wraps up the Sermon on the Mount. In Matthew 7 and verse 21, Jesus says, Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven. But he who does the will of my Father who’s in heaven will enter.

Many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord, they would not prophesy in your name, and your name cast out demons, and your name before many miracles, and then I will declare to them, I never knew you. Depart from me, you who practice lawlessness.

What do we have going on in those verses? Well, in those verses, I believe we have another judgment day scene. This is another judgment day scene given by Jesus, and notice that there are going to be a lot of shock people who stand before him on the judgment day. Do you see that? There are gonna be a lot of shocked people who stand before the Lord because even though they were religious and they called Jesus Lord and they prophesied in his name and cast demons out in his name, they’re still gonna be lost. They’re still gonna go to hell. They’re still gonna be told to depart from the presence of the Lord because Jesus said they worked works of lawlessness. Do you know what that means?

That means they did not obey God. That means they did not respect God’s authority, they did not submit fully to the will of God. That’s what Jesus says. And do you know what that tells me? That tells me that if we’re not careful, brothers and sisters, we can live our lives not only fooling people about our relationship with God, but we can also fool ourselves. We can fool ourselves. We can lie to ourselves about our own relationship with God. We can deceive ourselves into thinking that we’re right with God when we are not. We are not because we’re judging ourselves by the wrong standard. We’re judging ourselves by our standard. Or by the world’s standard, instead of judging ourselves by God’s standard, that’s revealed in his word.

Conclusion

You see, only when we live by God’s standard, that is revealed in his word, can we honestly say they were prepared for the Lord’s second coming and the judgment day. In fact, I want to close with one more verse very quickly, and it’s found right here in 1 John chapter 4. In 1 John chapter 4 and verse 17, John says, by this love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment. Because as he is, so also are we in the world. You see what John is saying there? That’s a powerful verse. John says there that instead of being afraid and dreading the judgment day, you know what God wants us to have as we anticipate this day? He wants us to have confidence.

That’s what the verse says. God wants us to have confidence, he wants us to have boldness, he wants us to live with eager anticipation for this day, and we can do that when we truly love God and obey his word. God wants us to have confidence, not fear. When it comes to the judgment day, and maybe that’s what you need this morning. Maybe there’s somebody here this morning, and you’re dreading the judgment day and the return of Jesus, because you know you haven’t obeyed the gospel. You don’t have to leave here feeling that way. You can obey the gospel today if you’re willing to believe in Jesus and confess him as Lord and repent, as Paul said, and Athens, repent of your sins, be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins.

You can leave here with the confidence that John talks about there in that verse. Or if you’re a Christian and you know you’re not living right, you’re not living for the Lord, if you need to repent and ask us to pray with you and pray for you, we’ll be more than happy to do that. But if there’s anyone here today who is not ready for the judgment day and you need to get yourself ready, we will help you, we will serve you, we’ll do whatever we have to do. Just come to the front right now as we stand and we sing together.