Conversations At The Judgment[1]

 

Subject: The Judgment Day

Scripture Reading: Matthew 25:31-46

Theme or Proposition: The Lord is coming. Be ready!

General Objective: To motivate

Specific Purpose: To move any who are not ready for the judgment to make preparations before it is too late.

Introduction:

1.      The Bible teaches that when the world comes to an end we will all be judged[2]

2.      The Bible teaches that the end of the world shall come suddenly – as quickly as the twinkling of an eye.[3]

3.      Yet, the Bible also teaches that there will be conversations at the judgment.

  1. By this we understand that the Bible teaches us lessons we need to know in order that we might be ready to meet our Lord in the day of judgment.
  2. We do not presume that these conversations will consume time, but they do teach us the necessity of being prepared, the folly of unrighteousness, and the feelings of humanity at the judgment.

4.      As we notice conversations at the judgment as described in the Bible, think about what the Lord may say to you when that time comes.

I.        Conversations in Jesus’ Parables of Judgment -

A.     Parable of the Ten Virgins (Matthew 25:1-13)

  1. Comments of the foolish virgins

a.       To the wise virgins, Matthew 25:8, Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.

b.      Answered by the wise virgins, Matthew 25:9, No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.

c.       To the Lord, Matthew 25:11, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open to us!'

d.      Answered by the Lord, Matthew 25:12, But he answered and said, 'Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.'

  1. Lesson to be learned: Matthew 25:13, WATCH therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.

B.     Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30)

  1. Comments of the Faithful Servants

a.       The Five Talent man

1)      Comment to his master: Matthew 25:20, Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.'

2)      Reply given by his Lord: Matthew 25:21, Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.

b.      The Two Talent man

1)      Comment to his master: Matthew 25:22, Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.

2)      Reply given by his Lord: Matthew 25:23, Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.

c.       The One Talent man

1)      Comment to his master: Matthew 25:24-25, Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.

2)      Reply given by his Lord: Matthew 25:26-30, 'You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. 27So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. 28Therefore take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents. 29For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. 30And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

  1. Lesson to be learned: WE MUST BEAR FRUIT

a.       Matthew 25:28-30, Therefore take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents. 29For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. 30And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

b.      John 15:5-6, 8, I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. 6If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. . . . 8By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.

C.     Parable of the Pounds (Luke 19:11-26) while not the same as the parable of the talents, has the same basic conversational messages and lessons to be learned. Therefore, it need not be discussed here in detail.

D.     Parable of Sheep & Goats (Matthew 25:31-46)

  1. Jesus statement to the Righteous, Matthew 25:34-36, “Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.”
  2. Reason: Matthew 25:40, Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.
  3. Jesus’ statement to the Unrighteous, Matthew 25:41-43, “Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: 42for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; 43I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.”
  4. Lesson to be learned: We must share what we have as we minister to our brethren.

E.      Parable of Laborers in the Vineyard (Matthew 20:1-16)

  1. Setting of the parable[4]
  2. Complaint from some laborers, Matthew 20:12, These last men have worked only one hour, and you made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the heat of the day.
  3. Land owner’s Response, Matthew 20:13-15, Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? 14Take what is yours and go your way. I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. 15Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Or is your eye evil because I am good?'
  4. Lesson to be learned: We should not challenge the graciousness of the Lord.

F.      Parable of the Tares (Matthew 13:24-30; 37-43)

  1. As tares are allowed to grow along with wheat, lest wheat be uprooted before the harvest, so also are the allowed to continue in their existence until the end of the age, lest the righteous also be uprooted (vs. 24-30).
  2. Explanation: Sower is the Son of man; Field is the world; Good seed is the sons of the kingdom; Tares are the sons of the wicked one; Enemy who sowed tares is the devil; Harvest is the end of the age.
  3. Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear”
    (vs. 40-43).

G.     Parable of the Dragnet (Matthew 13:47-50)

  1. As fishermen separate good from the bad fish, putting the good into vessels but throwing the bad away, so also angels will come forth at the “end of the age” and “separate the wicked from among the just, and cast them into the furnace of fire” (vs. 48-49)
  2. “There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth” (v. 50).
  3. Lessons to be learned from parables of the tares and of the dragnet:

a.       There will be a division of the righteous from the wicked

b.      The righteous “will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father”

c.       The wicked “will be wailing and gnashing teeth”

H.     Parable of the Wise & Faithful Servant (Matthew 24:43-51)[5]

  1. Just as a wise & faithful servant is one who is ready for his master’s return, so also are the Lord’s disciples who are ready for his coming. They are ready by being righteous.
  2. Lessons to be learned

a.       “Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect” (v. 24:44).

b.      “But if that evil servant says in his heart, 'My master is delaying his coming,' 49and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, 50the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of, 51and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (vs. 48-51).

I.        Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31) Actually, After the Judgment!

  1. Dialogue with “Father Abraham” by Rich Man

a.       1st series

1)      Rich man’s request, Luke 16:24, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.

2)      Response to request, Luke 16:25-26, Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. 26And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.


b.      2nd series

1)      Rich man’s request, Luke 16:27-28, I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father's house, 28for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.'

2)      Response to request, Luke 16:29, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.

c.       3rd series

1)      Rich man’s argument, Luke 16:30, No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.

2)      Rebuttal to argument, Luke 16:31, If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.

  1. Lessons to be Learned

a.       Judgment is based upon conduct in this earthly life.

b.      Judgment, once determined, cannot be revoked

c.       Principles of judgment are given in Scripture

J.       Other parables also describe the judgment day, but do not indicate any conversation or expression by those judged, e.g., Parable of the Faithful & Wise Stewart (Luke 12:42-48).

II.     Other Conversations at the Judgment indicated by the Lord -

A.     Accountability at the judgment -

  1. For what is said, Matthew 12:36-37, But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. 37For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned. Luke 12:2-3, "For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known. 3Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops.
  2. For lawlessness, Matthew 7:21-23, Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' 23And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'

B.     Human condemnation against the wicked, Matthew 12:42; Luke 11:31, The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here. Matthew 12:41; Luke 11:32, The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.

C.     Jesus’ declaration of degrees of punishment upon the wicked -

  1. Declaration: “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. 48But 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 12:47-48.
  2. Illustrated: “Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent: 21Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. 23And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. 24But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you” Matthew 11:20-24.

D.     Jesus’ recognition of our standing with Him, Matthew 10:32-33, Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. 33But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven. Revelation 3:5, He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.

III.   Conversations indicated by Apostolic Teaching -

A.     Romans 14:10-12,For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. 11For it is written: "As I live, says the LORD, Every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall confess to God." 12So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.

B.     1 Corinthians 6:2, Do you not know that the saints will judge the world?

C.     2 Timothy 2:11-13, This is a faithful saying: For if we died with Him, We shall also live with Him. 12If we endure, We shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. 13If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.

D.     Revelation 1:7, Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.

IV.  Conversations Protesting Judgment -

A.     In this life:

  1. Cain, Genesis 4:13-14, "My punishment is greater than I can bear! 14Surely You have driven me out this day from the face of the ground; I shall be hidden from Your face; I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond on the earth, and it will happen that anyone who finds me will kill me.
  2. Israelites, Hosea 10:8, . . . the high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, Shall be destroyed. The thorn and thistle shall grow on their altars; They shall say to the mountains, "Cover us!" And to the hills, "Fall on us!"
  3. Jerusalem, Luke 23:28-30, But Jesus, turning to them, said, "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. 29For indeed the days are coming in which they will say, 'Blessed are the barren, wombs that never bore, and breasts which never nursed!' 30Then they will begin 'to say to the mountains, "Fall on us!" and to the hills, "Cover us!"'
  4. Rome, Revelation 6:15-17, And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, 16and said to the mountains and rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! 17For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?"

B.     At the final judgment:

  1. The rich man in Hades, Luke 16:22-24, The rich man also died and was buried. 23And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24Then he cried and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.'
  2. Those on the Lord’s left hand, Matthew 25:41-46, Then He will also say to those on the left hand, 'Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: 42for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; 43I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.' 44Then they also will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?' 45Then He will answer them, saying, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.' 46And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."

V.     Conclusion: On that Judgment Day, What Will He Say To You? -

A.     Summary of lessons learned

  1. Like the ten virgins, we know not when the Lord is coming. Therefore, be ready!
  2. Like those with the talents and the pounds, we will be judged on how we have used what the Lord has given us. Therefore, bear fruit!
  3. Like the rich man and Lazarus, we have no other chances when this life is over
  4. Like the rich man, we have the scriptures to guide us in preparing for eternity
  5. Like the laborers in the vineyard, we ought not challenge the graciousness of the Lord
  6. Like the sheep and the goats, we will be judged by whether we share our resources and minister to others
  7. We will be judged by our words and by our obedience
  8. We will ourselves share in the judgment of others
  9. We will either be confessed or denied by Jesus
  10. We will then bow before the Lord, whether or not we’ve done so now

B.     Visualize what the Lord may say to you

  1. Negative visualization – Our lamps are darkened because our oil is gone; we’ve buried our talents (or pounds) which the Lord has placed in our charge; we’ve not given food, drink, shelter, etc. to those in need; we’ve not searched the scriptures for guidance in life; we think that the Lord is a hard and austere person; we’ve spoken idol words; we’ve acted evil and hurtful toward others; we’ve failed to acknowledge and serve the Lord.
  2. Positive visualization – Our lamps are trimmed, our oil is plentiful; we’ve multiplied the talents (or pounds) which the Lord has placed in our charge; we’ve shared our resources with others; we’ve searched the scriptures for guidance in life; we have not challenged the graciousness of the Lord, but have rather been grateful for it; we’ve not spoken idle words, and have attempted always to obey the Lord; we acknowledge that Jesus is our Lord, and bow before him.

C.     If you’re not ready to meet the Lord, make preparations now for that Judgment day before it is too late!



[1]Copyright © by author, Robert L. Waggoner, 2001; slightly revised, 2003. Permission is granted to duplicate and distribute this manuscript, if unchanged, for non-commercial educational purposes. All other rights reserved.

[2]Ecclesiastes 12:14, For God will bring every work into judgment, Including every secret thing, Whether good or evil. 2 Corinthians 5:10, For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Matthew 16:27, "For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.

[3]2 Peter 3:10, But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. 1 Corinthians 15:51-52, Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed; 52in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

[4]“a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2Now when he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, 4and said to them, 'You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.' So they went. 5Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did likewise. 6And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing idle, and said to them, 'Why have you been standing here idle all day?' 7They said to him, 'Because no one hired us.' He said to them, 'You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right you will receive.' 8So when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, 'Call the laborers and give them their wages, beginning with the last to the first.' 9And when those came who were hired about the eleventh hour, they each received a denarius”. Matthew 20:1-8

[5]But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. 44Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. 45Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season? 46Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing. 47Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods. 48But if that evil servant says in his heart, 'My master is delaying his coming,' 49and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, 50the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of, 51and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 24:43-51.