2 Thes. Lesson 2: God’s Final Judgment & Glory (2) :: By Sean Gooding

Published on: December 22, 2021 by RR7

Chapter 1: 1-10

“Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: ² Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

³We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other, ⁴ so that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure, ⁵ which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer; ⁶ since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, ⁷ and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, ⁸ in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁹These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, ¹⁰ when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe, because our testimony among you was believed.”

I pray that you are all well. As much as we can see that COVID is being used by the powers that be to control us, take away our God-given freedoms and re-shape our society, that does not change the fact that COVID is a real virus. I have lost dear friends, and I have a dear Brother who is very sick with COVID right now in Indiana. Take time to pray for the many that are suffering, not just with COVID, but with the fallout from COVID. The lost businesses, the delayed medical treatments, and the many who have died alone with no one to hold their hands or say ‘I love you” or say ‘goodbye.’ We just had a dear friend, a neighbor whose mom fell, broke her hip, and somehow ended up in a coma. But because of COVID restrictions, that woman could not be visited by her loved one and died alone.

I fear that these emotional scars, even among the saved, will not go away quickly. Wow, Pastor Sean, all the gloom! Man, it is Christmas; put a little joy into us for the season.

Over the past few weeks at our church, we have been doing a series called The Manger, The Mountain, and the Millennium. Sadly, many churches do not teach on the Millennium very much; it is tedious work, and there is a lot of Old Testament scriptures that need to be read and studied. But if you are a student of prophecy, you will know that the next big thing after the Rapture is the Millennium. There is no Millennium without the Manger where Jesus was born and no Millennium without the Mountain of Calvary where Jesus died. All too often, the Christmas story stops when the Wise men show up, in the minds of many people. But no one thinks that play out, that they came looking for the King of the Jews, not the Saviour of the World (read Matthew 2:2).

To carry this thought all the way through, Jesus was executed for being the King of the Jews (read Matthew 27:37); the plaque displayed the charge against Him. While we in the New Testament era are excited about the Manger and the birth of our Saviour, and we are just as thankful for the Mountain and the sacrificial death of our Saviour, and we celebrate the resurrection of our Saviour, the true Christmas story ends with Jesus ascending the throne of David, as the rightful, legal King of the Jews and the Ruler of the whole world. Paul spent a lot of time talking about this, and we should spend time on it as well. The birth of Jesus was not just about saving a few billion people; it was about transforming the whole creation that was surrendered when Adam sinned.

Trouble before triumph, verse 5

One of the hardest things to come to grips with is that we who trust in Jesus as Saviour, we who are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, are going to have to face some hardships before we see Jesus. Our faith and our beliefs will be tested. Some will be tested in small ways and others in big and maybe painful ways.

If you have been following the news, you will know that a statue was revealed outside the UN building in New York that resembles the end-time beasts described in both Daniel 7 and Revelation 13. If you have followed my writing over the years, I and many others have shown that the EU parliament buildings are deliberately designed to look like the unfinished Tower of Babel. Our enemies no longer hide in the shadows; they reveal their hands and run most of the world’s governments.

These people know who God is, they know the Bible, and yet they deny God to His face. One day they will turn with full malice on us, the Lord’s children; we can’t kill God; maybe we can hurt Him by killing His children. Satan cannot deny God. Without God, there is no Satan. But he will not bow to God except at the end. While we see a growth of atheism among the young people of our world, the true leaders are anything but atheists; their god is either themselves or Lucifer, but they have a god they worship. In John 8:44, Satan is called ‘the father of all lies.’ Those of us that have the truth in us via the Holy Spirit see the lies all around us. We can see the lies that are being told over and over again to the masses. It is sad to see how many saved people have fallen for the lies.

Our governments may be piling on higher interest rates. I just saw that the Bank of Canada is seriously considering raising interest rates. So, they have bankrupted a lot of companies, and our government has borrowed billions of dollars to pay people to stay home. And now, rather than get the economy going, they are about to raise interest rates to help put the final nails in the coffins for a lot of people. This COVID pandemic, a man-made pandemic, has been used to perpetuate the largest transfer of wealth in the history of man.

There will be no good to come from what is happening, no good whatsoever. Governments never relinquish the power that they have taken. As long as they can keep a state of emergency for whatever reason, they will; they simply will. It is the only way to circumvent the electorate. One day, these governments will turn full force on us, the redeemed. We are the last bastions of the truth, and their leader, Satan, knows it. We must be eradicated for the whole thing to fall into place. As such, we can see that the infrastructure for the Mark of the Beast is being set up.

I have heard some things about the 5G set-up from one of the Samsung engineers here in Ontario setting up the 5G system. It is about tracking and the vaccines; however, I still need to do some more research. But we know for sure that the governments of the world will be able to know who takes the Mark of the Beast and who does not, then they will track down the ones who don’t and kill them.

Long before we get to the Tribulation, the heat will be turned up on saved people. In a world of lies, the truth-tellers are the enemy. We should be the enemy of lies. Sadly, a lot of modern churches have bowed to the ‘woke’ ideas, and they are denying the basic fundamental truths of the Bible. These are not true churches, and if you are saved, you need to get out and run from these churches; their pastors are wolves in sheep’s clothing, and they are a part of the enemy. Read the book of Revelation; the Anti-Christ does not eliminate religion; he seeks to be the god of the world.

Trouble will be repaid, verses 6 and 7

God is a protective parent, and there are times when we must go through stuff for His glory and His plan, but God will deal with those that hurt His children. Babylon, Egypt and Assyria all had their day in court, so to speak, for hurting God’s people. The people we see on TV each day will have their day before God as well. The people who have schemed and plotted, those who have done evil in secret, will have their secrets revealed, and the Lord will repay them for their evil. They will not get away with it – maybe here, but not forever.

It is at times disheartening to see the crooks get promoted and become richer and richer right before our eyes. Not all the rich are crooks, but it seems that they never have to pay for crimes like the rest of us. But God is a righteous Judge, and He cannot be bought off or swayed by money or promises of power. No, their day will come, and all of their sins will be revealed; they will bow before Jesus and suffer for eternity.

You see, part of the Christmas story is not just about the Baby in a Manger; it is about the King of Kings making things right. But like every human king, our King of Kings begins as a baby, in a manger, in Bethlehem, born to a virgin, named Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins. We can have some solace that right and righteousness will prevail.

Paul and John promise us that one day Jesus will be revealed. Our faith will become sight. Our King, our Saviour, will return, and all the doubters will one day be believers, sadly, too late to change their eternity. One day we will live on earth in a world where righteousness is the prevailing law, and evil, though there, will not be the prevalent mindset. We know that evil will still be here in the hearts of men because Satan will be able to raise an army to attack Jesus at the end of the Millennium. This will be the final battle between man and God, between good and evil, between the dying and the living.

This is the hope that Jesus came to give us; this is the stuff that keeps us going when it seems that evil is prospering and the saved are the hunted. This is what keeps us going when the lies are shouted and believed and the truth is thwarted and has to be whispered.

The true Christmas story is not just about salvation; it is about victory. Good will triumph over evil; light will trump darkness; love will conquer hatred, and those of us on God’s side win. We win, now and forever. We win. Hold on; Jesus the King, not the Baby, is coming. Stay strong, hold on to the faith, and cherish the truth; Jesus is coming again.

Merry Christmas to you all. May the Lord bless you and keep you, may you feel His grace shine on you, and may you be blessed and be a blessing.

God bless you,

Dr. Sean Gooding
Pastor of Mississauga Missionary Baptist Church

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All Mankind Will Be Judged :: By Grant Phillips

Published on: December 22, 2021 by RR7

Standing before an earthly judge as a defendant must be a nerve-wracking experience, but one day we will all stand before God to give an account of our lives. That God is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ, the one and only true God … the same one that our society vilifies and works tirelessly to reject.

Yes, having an earthly judge pass judgment upon us can be anything from inconvenient to most troubling, but it is not permanent. At worse, the judgment can only last the remainder of our earthly lives. The judgment of the earthly judge could even be reversed. However, when God passes judgment, His decision is permanent, and it will never change. In other words, it is eternal. Jesus said, “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28).

Every person reading this needs to consider that the earthly court can make decisions penalizing or rewarding us while we are in these earthly bodies. However, even after our body has long been dead, our soul lives on for all eternity, either in Heaven or hell.

Many, probably most, in our society today don’t like to be reminded that they are a sinner and need to be born again, as Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3:3. They most always want to quote Matthew 7:1 (judge not) but ignore Matthew 7:20 or John 7:24.

Regardless of how loudly we protest, all, without exception, will be judged by God. There are three judgments I would like to mention.

THE CROSS

Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:37; Luke 23:46; John 19:30

I have already mentioned that everyone, both believers and unbelievers, will face a final judgment. All believers of the Church age will be judged by Jesus at the Judgment Seat of Christ, which is also called the Bema Seat. All unbelievers will be judged by Jesus at the Great White Throne Judgment. We will look at these two next.

First, and most importantly, however, is the judgment of God the Father upon Jesus, God the Son. Without this judgment, there would be no Judgment Seat of Christ. All of us would stand before God at the Great White Throne instead, waiting to be cast into hell, the lake of fire.

Thanks be to God, Jesus paid the sin debt we could never pay, and by doing so, He has provided the one way we can be rescued and spend eternity with Him in Heaven.

“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me'” (John 14:6).

“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit” (1 Peter 3:18).

“And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross” (Colossians 2:13-14).

Because Jesus gave Himself to be our propitiation (the offering provided to satisfy God’s wrath), anyone who will put their faith in Jesus can avoid facing the judgment of hell at the Great White Throne.

As Dr. J. Vernon McGee stated, “There is not a person on topside of this world that is being forced to be lost. They are lost because they have chosen to be lost.”

THE JUDGMENT SEAT OF CHRIST (Bema)

1 Corinthians 3:11-15

This judgment will occur in Heaven when all the earth is experiencing the seven-year Tribulation.

For those in the Church age who have been born again in Jesus (John 3:3), we will never be judged for our sins. Jesus took all our sins upon Himself and was judged in our place. We are eternally safe in the nail-scarred hands of Jesus Christ.

“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit” (Romans 8:1).

“For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more” (Hebrews 8:12).

So, what is the Judgment Seat of Christ all about? All true Christians will be judged for their works, not for salvation, but for rewards. All true Christians have finished the race, as Paul would say, and then will be rewarded for the works done in Christ. Paul explains this in the following verses.

“For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire” (1 Corinthians 3:11-15).

If the works we have done are like gold, silver and precious stones, we will receive a reward from Jesus. If our works are like wood, hay and straw, we will suffer loss because they will burn up, and there will be no reward for those.

Please notice that WE are not being judged; our WORKS are being judged to determine our rewards. Every work we do for and through Him will be rewarded, and I believe Jesus delights in our faithfulness. Notice the next verse.

“And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work” (Revelation 22:12).

Once more, our salvation is secure in Him. He paid our debt for sin. It is our WORKS that are being judged.

THE GREAT WHITE THRONE

Revelation 20:11-15

This judgment will occur immediately after the one-thousand-year Millennium.

This next judgment is for everyone who has rejected Him. This judgment includes every person who has ever lived upon this earth and has rejected His saving grace. Please notice what Jesus has to say in the following two passages.

“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matthew 7:13-14).

“Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:11-15).

Based on the next two passages, I am convinced that there will be different degrees of judgment in hell, just as there will be different degrees of reward in Heaven. This is not to make light of the fact that hell is still hell. It is not a place anyone would want to be.

“And that servant who knew his master’s will, and did not prepare himself or do according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more” (Luke 10:12-16).

“And that servant, which knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more” (Luke 12:47-48).

Of these last two judgments, the Judgment Seat of Christ and the Great White Throne, which would you rather attend? Thanks to the judgment Jesus took for us on the cross, many will be at the Judgment Seat of Christ where only their works are being judged to determine their rewards. Unfortunately, many, many more will be at the Great White Throne to determine their placement in hell.

If you are reading this, you can still decide to be where Jesus will reward you (Judgment Seat of Christ) instead of condemn you (Great White Throne).

THE GOOD NEWS

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

If you will accept the fact that you cannot save yourself, but Jesus can and will, and if you will just put your faith in Him, then He will save you by His grace. Just accept the judgment of the cross that He bore for you.

“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God” (John 3:18).

All who put their faith solely in Jesus to be saved will never be condemned, but those who refuse to believe “in the name of the only begotten Son of God” are already condemned and will spend eternity in hell.

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

Our sins send us to hell because God cannot allow sin in His presence. The gift of salvation is free, but it isn’t cheap. Jesus gave His life and took our judgment upon Himself for all those who will believe in Him. His grave is empty, and He is now in Heaven waiting for you to decide. Will you trust Him or reject Him? He promises in the next verse that if you call upon Him, you will be saved.

“For whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved” (Romans 10:13).

King David said:

“For as the heavens are high above the earth,
So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;
As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us” (Psalms 103:11-12).

Grant Phillips
Email: Phillip5769@twc.com
Pre-Rapture Commentary: http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com
Rapture Ready: https://www.raptureready.com/featured/phillips/phillips.html