All coffee drinkers (sip-o-
joe) theologians (not that I'm a theologian or anything, but I enjoy theology, so does that make me a theologian?) will agree that it's almost impossible to study without a good cup-o-
joe! Well, tonight is no exception. The night kept getting later and later and I kept thinking about this blog that I wanted to write (and I've been preparing to write it for several weeks now). I didn't make coffee for the
caffeine (it is 9:30pm!) but for the purity of it's taste and to set the theological mood. Coffee doesn't make me
theological, but you know what I'm
sayin'.......
So, should I stop going on and on and get on with my point? OK!
May God bless the reading and studying of His word, for the sake of His name and for His glory!
(sip-o-
joe)
So, my
roommate came to me the other day. She is well aware of my interest in theological issues. She hears me talk about it all the time and who could miss the Luther, Piper,
Sproul, Edwards, and Biblical Greek (
haha, don't let that make you think that I KNOW any Greek...) books hanging around in my bedroom and bathroom? (sip-o-
joe) She said "I have a theological question for you." Oh, let me tell you, I got really excited! She said "My friend I were talking about this issue and it turned theological and I was wondering what you think. I told her I would ask you and see what your thoughts were." Well, friend, whatever your names is, here is what I think, here is what I have come up with. I don't claim to have all the answers but I have looked only at the Bible to find this answer.
I can't remember the exact way that she phrased it but I was something to the extent of :
If God forgives and forgets our sins then why does he bring them up at judgement day?
(refill of
joe)
So that is the question that stands. We sin, God forgives our sins, then why does he bring them up at judgement day? WOW,
that's a good question.
First, let's establish the facts:
If we are children of God, and we ask for forgiveness, He forgives us. (sip-o-
joe) Paul encourages us in
Colossians 3:13 "bearing with one another and, if one has a complain against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive." In the midst of instructing us on how to forgive others, Paul reminds us that "the Lord has forgiven you." So, our sins are forgiven. (sip-o-
coldjoe....
eeeik)
Not only will He forgive us, He will remember our sins no more, ever! The writer of Hebrews reminds us of what Jeremiah tell us (Hebrews 10:16 and Jeremiah 31:31-34) as it is summarized into one verse what Jeremiah takes three verses to say:
"This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord:
I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,"then he adds,"I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more."
Jeremiah's original text says this: (emphasis mine)
" 'Behold, days are coming,' declares the Lord, 'when I will
make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them, declares the Lord. But this is the
covenant which I will make with the house of
Israel after those days,' declares the Lord. 'I will
put My Law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, "Know the Lord," for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,' declares the Lord, 'for
I will forgive their iniquity, and their
sin I will remember no more.' "
(long awaited sip-o-
joe)
So, we see that it's obvious that our sins are not only forgiven but remembered no more, but only through the new covenant (Jesus Christ). So, why does God bring them up at judgement? This is one took me on a journey. I struggled to find exactly where we are told, in scripture, that our sins will be remembered or recounted at judgement day.
Here are some verses for reference for what I'm about to declare:
• 2 Corinthians 5:10 "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil."
• Romans 8:1 "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."
• 1 John 4:16-18 "So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.
By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world.
There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love."
•
Revelation 20 (read the entire chapter):
12-13 "And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.
And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done.
(refill: sip-o-
joe)
I think our (Christians, followers of Christ) judgement is made clear through the verses above. We can see from Romans 8:1 that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, none! We do not have to fear our worst sins to be revealed at judgement day because there is no condemnation, we are forgiven, our sins are forgotten.
I know that we will not be
condemned but we are told that we will receive reward, or have a loss of reward at judgement. (Remember, we do not work for our salvation or reward. As faithful believers, we desire to glorify God, proving to be His disciples, therefore, we bear fruit -
John 15:8. We are told that we will receive reward for our fruit that we bear, simply because we are faithful followers of Christ and have Him abiding in us (sip-o-
joe).
The
Hebrew writer says "...you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one. Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward." (10:35). What is the abiding one? See above 1 John 4:16-18.
With God abiding in us, we can have confidence on the day of judgement that we will not be
condemned, but on the contrary we will be rewarded according to if our deeds and works, through faith, withstand the fire at judgement. Look at
1 Corinthians 3:10-15:"For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw-- each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If
anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire."
If our works and deeds are laid up on the foundation of Jesus Christ, and we have Jesus Christ abiding in us and we do our works because of and for Jesus Christ, then our works will survive the fire and we will receive a reward.
Ok, my coffee is gone. I drank it all. My head hurts and my battery on the computer is about to die. Does that mean I am done? Probably. I really could go on and on. Each verse or individual thought seemed to spark something else in my mind, something else that I wanted to expound on, but I didn't. I'll save it for a rainy day.
May God bless the reading and studying of His word, for the sake of His name and for His glory!
*English Standard Version (
ESV) and New American Standard Version (
NASB) were used.
