Evil & the Justice of God

 Evil and the Justice of God

God’s Judging Process

 

December 24, 2022

Larry R Evans

 

Introduction

 

Perhaps one of the greatest revelations of God’s expectations of us and therefore a reflection of His own character is found in Micah 6:8,

He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.

And what does the LORD require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy

and to walk humbly with your God. (NIV)

To “act justly and to love mercy” in an evil world is not easy for us but is characterized by the three phases of God’s judgment which have been called (1) the pre-Advent judgment, (2) the millennial judgment, and (3) the executive judgment.

 

Before we get to these final phases of the judgment, we can see God’s justice revealed as He relates to three dimensions of the problem created by sin.  First, we see the call of Abraham (Gen 12) that addresses the problem of the rebellion in Eden and the expulsion of Adam and Eve. Secondly, and related to the call of Abraham, was the election of Israel who was to be the carrier of the promise of restoration. In the end, they became the problem. Finally, all of humanity was found to be sinful, idolatrous, and hard-hearted. Even with a quick reading of the Old Testament we see God working to redeem whomever He could.  In doing so He was often betrayed, and His character maligned. 

 

As we look around, we see global frustration building because those who are responsible to deal with injustices often end up being the problem themselves. The problem of evil is not only recycled; it is escalating. Is it any wonder that a just God dealing with the evil in the world does so with transparency, evil, and ultimately with justice. Yet, in the end the testimony of His judgments will be, 

And they sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and marvelous are Your works, O Lord God, the Almighty; Righteous and true are Your ways, King of the nations! – Revelation 15:3

A Final Judgment

 

Over and over God invites us to choose the way of everlasting life. Deuteronomy 30:19 says, “I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life that you may live.” In Joshua 24:15 the petition is, “choose for yourself today whom you will serve.”

 

“In the end, the judgment is not the time when God decides to accept or reject us, but the time when God finalizes our choice as to whether or not we have accepted Him—a choice made manifest by our works.” (SS quarterly, Sunday, Dec. 18,2022) Jesus raises one of the most serious questions in the Bible: “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” The coming of Jesus is certain, but will He find faith when He does come? That is the question. It is resolved by judgment.

 

The Pre-Advent Judgment

 

When we speak of the “pre-advent judgment”, sometimes called the investigative judgement, we are speaking of a judgment that occurs before the return of Christ. That there is a judgment before Christ comes is clear as seen in Revelation 14: 7 followed by verses 14-20.

 

He said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.” (v.7)

 

This judgment is followed by Christ’s coming,

I looked, and there before me was a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was one like a son of man with a crown of gold on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. (v.14)

We see a judgment taking place prior to Christ’s coming verified in John 5:25-29 where all the dead remain unconscious in their graves until the final resurrections.

 

Secondly, we read of a universal judgment of all human beings prior to the Second Coming.

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. – 2 Cor. 5:10 

Thirdly, the righteous will be rewarded at the time of one resurrection (John 5:28,29) and the wicked will meet justice in a separate resurrection (Rev. 20:4-6, 12-15).

 

What this means is that if all human beings will be judged, they should be judged prior to their respective resurrections. It is at those resurrections that they will receive their final rewards.

 

Edward Heppenstall summarizes it this way, 

The fundamental truth of Daniel’s vision and prophecies is that God is Lord of all. He has a purpose, an end to which all things move. That end of the Bible frequently designates by the term judgment or by “the day of the Lord. (Our High Priest, p.114)

The Millennial Judgment

 

Today we hear a lot about transparency or the lack of it. Justice and transparency are not contradictory in God’s kingdom. As we noted earlier, before every resurrection there is a time when the grounds for judgment are made transparent. This is the case of both those taken to heaven at the Second Coming and those who are refused entrance.

 

The Bible reveals that at the Second Coming,

1.     Both the living saints and the resurrected saints will “meet the Lord in the air” (1Thess 4:16)

2.    All saints will be taken to the place prepared for them by Jesus (John 14:1-3)

3.    At the end of 1,000 years the new Jerusalem will come down to this earth, (Rev. 21:1-3, 9-11)

 

During the 1,000 years the earth remains desolate, the saints will be with Christ in heaven (Jer. 4:23, Rev. 20:4). They will have an opportunity to review the judgment made of those who were not taken by Jesus to heaven. This is not a hidden judgment.  Note how transparent the judgment is,

Thousands upon thousands attended him;

ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him.

The court was seated,

and the books were opened. (Dan 7:10)

The ongoing fight between Satan along with his allies and Christ over God’s people comes to an end!

As I watched, this horn was waging war against the holy people and defeating them, until the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgment in favor of the holy people of the Most High, and the time came when they possessed the kingdom. (Dan. 7:21,22)

The Executive Judgment

 

If there is one lesson that is evident today, it is this: Love without justice is not a lasting love. Without justice what is called love today will turn into chaos and lawlessness.  At the same time, justice without love becomes oppression and relentless control. 

 

The must be a time when an executive judgment comes that will bring the conflict to an end. We began by showing how God sought to restore the world ripped from its purpose by deception and rebellion.  We saw it in the rebellion of Adam and Eve leading to them being forced out of the Garden of Eden but with a promise of hope. We’ve seen how the flood of Genesis 6-8 intervened to save a remnant from the contagion of sin.  the story of Sodom and Gomorrah is yet another example where God acted to save His people from the destructiveness of sin. Other examples can be cited but it becomes clear, that ultimately God must act to save his people from the merciless destructive encroachment upon the world that God created and people for whom He created with great promise.

 

N.T. Wright described the plague of evil this way,

The Old Testament oscillates among three things: evil seen as idolatry and consequent dehumanization, evil as what the wicked people do, not least what they do to the righteous; and evil as the work of “satan” (a Hebrew word meaning “accuser”). (Evil and the Justice of God, p.45)

Ellen White describes when mercy must come to an end,

The flames that consumed the cities of the plain shed their warning light down even to our time. We are taught the fearful and solemn lesson that while God's mercy bears long with the transgressor, there is a limit beyond which men may not go on in sin. When that limit is reached, then the offers of mercy are withdrawn, and the ministration of judgment begins. –Conflict and Courage, p.53

 

The Second Death

 

In a previous study, we looked at common views of hell. Some views presented a horrifying picture of God. Throughout Scripture we find God giving each person a choice – not once but many times. Joshua said it well when he saw his own people choosing gods, values, and practices of the world around them rather than the God who had been with them.

“Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” – Joshua 24:14,15

Choices do have consequences and such choices make it clear that some would rather die than live in the presence of God who is a “consuming fire” for sin (Heb.12:29).  The choice leaves God no choice and it consequence of their choice is described by Malachi 4:1,2.

Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire, ” says the LORD Almighty. “Not a root or a branch will be left to them. But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves.

 

In Conclusion

And In the Spirit Micah 6:8 and the  Love of                        1 Corinthians 13

 

If I decorate my house perfectly with plaid bows, strands of twinkling lights, and shiny balls; but do not have love, I’m just another decorator.

If I slave away in the kitchen, baking dozens of Christmas cookies, preparing gourmet meals, and arranging a beautifully adorned table at mealtime; but do not have love, I’m just another cook.

If I work at a soup kitchen, carol in the nursing home, and give all that I have to charity; but do not have love, it profits me nothing.

If I trim the spruce with shimmering angels, and crocheted snowflakes, attend a myriad of holiday parties, and sing in the choir’s cantata; but do not focus on Christ, I have missed the point.

Love stops the cooking to hug the child. Love sets aside the decorating to kiss the spouse. Love is kind, though harried and tired. Love does not envy another’s home that has coordinated Christmas china and table linens. 
Love does not yell at the kids to get out of the way, but is thankful they are there to be in the way.

Love does not give only to those who are able to give in return, but rejoices in giving to those who cannot. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and 
endures all things. Love never fails.

Toys will break, pearl necklaces will be lost, golf clubs will rust; but giving the gift of love will endure.