[printable PDF of part 1][audio MP3 of part 1]
[advance to: Judgment Day Surprises - part 2]

     Good morning and welcome to another Berean Break.  My name is George A. Sinkie and I am so glad that you have tuned in to today’s program.  Here on this program and in the Lord’s church we use no creed or catechism besides the Bible.
     One of the quickest ways to tell whether a group follows the truth or whether it follows error is to see what standard it appeals to for its teaching and doctrine.  If it appeals to some man-made creed or catechism then it follows the will of man, but if it appeals to the word of God and the word of God alone then it is seeking the truth.
     I encourage you to accept no standard other than the Bible and I want you to check out what I teach in the word of God.  As we begin let’s go to God in prayer:

Great God in heaven.  We thank You for the moisture we have received to water this land.  We thank You for this time to take a Berean Break and get away from man-made doctrines followed by denominations.  Lord it is my prayer that each and every listener to this program would have an open and true heart.  Thank You for Your word that provides all of the truth for us.  And we also thank You for Jesus.  For His life and His sacrifice and for the authority that He gives us to come to You now.  AMEN!!

     Imagine if you will a big surprise party is being planned.  Perhaps it is for a birthday or anniversary.  Maybe it is for a graduation or a soldier is returning home.  Gifts are bought and wrapped so they will be a surprise.  Travel plans are made to surprise family and friends with visits.  These are good surprises, but occasionally we hear of bad surprises as well.  A family returns home to find their house broken into and belongings broken and taken.  Or, worse yet, to find the fire department there hosing down the ashes.  Some surprises we like, others hurt us to the core.
     Today, we are going to begin to look at a lesson on Judgment Day Surprises.  Then Lord willing next week we will look at Part 2, of this lesson.  There is a lot of talk about the coming of Christ and the Judgment that follow it.  False teachings and false teachers abound on this topic.  The best way to check out any religious teaching is to go to the Bible and check it out.  If the teaching agrees with the whole of God’s will then it is true, if it doesn’t then it is false doctrine and should be avoided.  Let’s look at some truths from God’s word that refute most of the modern day false doctrines.

     God has appointed a day, on which He will judge the world.  Listen to what Paul said in Acts 17:30-31, “Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all 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.”
     The writer of Hebrews also informs us of the coming judgment in Hebrews 9:27, “And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment,… .”
     These verses clearly teach that there is a judgment and that all will be there.  YOU shall be there.  I shall be there.  We shall all be there.  We shall all stand before Jehovah God and be judged by Jesus.  I believe that there are going to be a number of things about the Judgment that will surprise many.

     First, the reality of the Judgment will surprise many.  The infidel, the atheist, the agnostic, those who deny the reality of hell will be surprised that it is real.  Jesus taught the great lesson of the judgment in Matthew 25.  Note what He says in verse 32, Matthew 25:32, “And all the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats;… .”
     You see that, “all the nations” will be there, but note also that it is the individuals who will be separated.  Jesus also points out the eternal destiny of both the righteous and the accursed ones.  Read with me Matthew 25:46, “And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
     There will be those who are surprised when there is a judgment day, but why?  There will be those who are surprised when the wicked are punished eternally, but why?

     Second, the time of the Judgment will be a surprise to many.  There have been many who have attempted to calculate and set the time of the end.  There were those who said Y2K.  Hal Lindsey said it would be 1985.  The Seventh Day Adventists, the Jehovah’s Witnesses, and many other groups have set dates, yet they have all been wrong.  Many continue to strive to figure out when it is going to be, but listen to the words of Jesus as recorded in Matthew 24:36, “But of that day and hour (referring to the judgment day, GAS) no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.”
     Truly the time of the judgment will surprise many, but why?

     Third, the purpose of the coming Judgment will be a surprise to many.  When the judgment day comes, it will not be a day of inquiry, nor will it be a day to determine guilt or innocence.  Man will not be there to plead his case before Jehovah God.  We shall not be there to be cleansed from some sin.  All people will be there to be sentenced for the deeds they have done.
     The unbeliever, the disobedient, those who have turned away from the Lord, the wicked, will be sent away from the Lord.  Listen again from the account in Matthew 25, Matthew 25:41, “Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels;… .”
     The purpose of God’s judgment will surprise many, but why?

     The final surprise for today, is that many will be surprised by the standard that is used in the Judgment.  This will truly be a great surprise to many.  Many shall be surprised to learn that the standard of judgment will not be Human creeds, articles of faith, disciplines, manuals, or Catechisms.  The standard of judgment will not be the religion of our parents; it will not be our own lofty human wisdom; nor our own goodness or morality.  It will not be our honesty, nor our sincerity, nor our feelings.  We will all be judged by the Word of God.
     Consider the words of Jesus in John 12:48, where He says, “He who rejects Me, and does not receive My sayings, has one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day.”
     Paul points out the same thing, but uses different terminology in Romans 2:16, “on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge the secrets of men through Christ Jesus.”
     Since we are going to be judged by the word of God, the gospel, how should we treat God’s word?  Are you ready to be judged by that Word?  Are you obedient to it?  Have you allowed the Bible alone to be your guide?  What a surprise it will be to many when the Bible is the only standard used in the judgment, but why?

     But why?  Why will these things surprise so many people?
     As we have seen it is not because they are unknown, because we have looked into the word of God and read about each one of them.  God has told us about the reality of the judgment, the purpose of the judgment, and the standard of the judgment.  And while He has not revealed the specific time of the judgment, He has shown the certainty of the judgment.
     Those who waste their time trying to figure out when the judgment is going to be, would better use their time preparing for the judgment on a daily basis.

     But why will these things surprise people?  One reason is that people simply refuse to believe God.
     Some just will not accept what God is telling us in His word.
     Others have their own ideas about what the judgment is going to be like and since the truth does not fit their own personal ideas they reject the word of God.
     Still others, because of family or friends commit themselves to denominational doctrines and thus cannot accept the will of God.
     Therefore all these people will be surprised on the day of judgment.  This will be one of those surprises that hurt to the very core.  No, wait… it will hurt to their very soul and the eternal destiny of that soul.

     Let’s look quickly at God’s Plan of Salvation for everyone under the New Testament, we do not have time to read all of these so please write them down.
     First people must Hear the Word, because faith comes from hearing according to Romans 10:17, that is Romans 10:17.  Part of what needs to be heard is the Gospel, which is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, according to the Scriptures, as Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, again that is 1 Corinthians 15:1-4.
     Next, hearing God’s word should produce Faith or Belief based on the Word, because it is essential.  When Jesus said to go preach, He showed belief was the desired result, Mark 16:15-16 (believe the Gospel).  The writer of Hebrews was inspired to write about how important faith is in Hebrews 11:6, pointed out two things important to believe, must believe that God “is” and that He is “a rewarder of those who seek Him”.
     Then based on faith a person needs to obey the Lord’s will and do certain things.  If a person truly believes humble obedience to these things will be easy.
     One thing that a person needs to do is Confess Jesus, Jesus spoke of this in Matthew 10:32-33 and Paul writes of it in Romans 10:9.
     Faith in Jesus will also cause a person to Repent of sins, a couple of the verses that support this are Luke 13:1-3 and Acts 2:38
     And then because a person not only believes in Jesus, but also believes what Jesus says they will be Immersed (baptized) in water for the forgiveness of, that is to wash away, their sins:  Acts 2:38, Acts 10:47-48, and Acts 22:16.
     It is at this point that a person is saved (1 Peter 3:21) and added to the Lord’s Church, by the Lord Himself (Acts 2:47).  A person who has truly committed their life to God will avoid all denominations.
     Once a person is saved then they need to Remain Faithful to the end of life:  Matthew 24:13 looks at it from the angle of being faithful until death.  John in the Revelation 2:10, considers the angle of being faithful to the point of dying for that faith.

     Men promise salvation by many different plans (faith only, saying the “sinner’s prayer,” earning by “good” works, etc.), but the thing we must remember is that:  men cannot deliver on their promises, only God can save and He will do it according to His plan.
     What about you?  Perhaps these biblical teachings surprised you today.  That’s OK, because being surprised now, you have time to accept and follow the truth.  And by following the truth you will be ready for the judgment day.
     But now the question is will you follow the truth.  Will you lay aside man-made creeds and catechism?  Will you leave the division and denominations that following man brings?  Will you humble yourself to the will of God?
     If you are ready to follow the Lord, then we at the church of Christ welcome you.  If you reject God’s will then you will be surprised on the judgment day, but you will also remember that you heard the truth this day on the Berean Break, but chose to reject it.

     This Berean Break is brought to you, in love, by the pre-denominational and non-denominational church of Christ that meets at 1600 East First Avenue in Mitchell SD.   You are welcome to meet with us at 10:00 Sunday Mornings for our assembly followed by a time of Bible Study, also on Wednesday evenings at 6:30 for an additional time to study God’s Word.   If you have a comment or a sincere Bible question, please phone us at 605-770-5555.   We want to remind you of the non-denominational TV program, “KNOW YOUR BIBLE” on KDLT-TV at 9:00 on Sunday mornings.   This is George A. Sinkie for the Lord’s church, here in Mitchell, good-bye for now.  Remember that we care about you and may God bless you as you do His will.
[advance to: Judgment Day Surprises - part 2]

[printable PDF of part 1][audio MP3 of part 1]