The only verdict
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Religious people, self-righteous people, and so-called good people all need a Savior. You may be someone who tries hard to be good, and you’re likely very nice. Or maybe you’re religious and follow a strict code of behavior and requirements. You can be kind and religious, but if you don’t know Jesus Christ, you‘re lost.
Wait! What about “God is love”?
That’s the God I follow. Yes, you’re right. God is love, but until you do something with the love He offers you in Jesus Christ, His position toward you is one of wrath toward your sin (see Romans 5:8).
If you reject God’s way through Jesus Christ, the only option you have is to pay for your salvation yourself. If you do that, God will apply these six principles when He judges you:
#1: God knows the real you (2:2). He will judge according to the facts.
#2: Our lives will be scrutinized (2:6). At the Great White Throne, God will judge people according to their actions.
#3: We’re all judged by the same standard (2:11).
#4: Our best will not be good enough (2:13).
#5: We all fall short; we miss the mark (2:15).
#6: There will be no secrets at the judgment (2:16). That part of your life you have kept hidden, God will bring it out—provided you do not come and accept His salvation now.
Wouldn’t you rather Jesus stand up for you in court, offer His nail-printed hands, and say, “These debts have been paid. I died in your place.”
If you’re not conscious of sin in your life, you are in a dangerous place. You’re like a man in an ice storm who thinks he’s comfortable but is freezing to death. He wants to lie down in the snow and sleep, but if he does, he will die. Many people today live like this—numb, unconscious that they are sinners in God’s sight.
Some may ask, “Well, doesn’t my church, creed, membership, baptism help toward my salvation?” The answer is no. You need to trust Jesus Christ alone for your salvation.
The Bible holds up a mirror to people who think they know God. Some realize they are sinners lost before God, turn to Him, and are rescued. Others turn away from God but still claim to be religious. But all of us, even if we shake our fists at God, believe some people ought to be judged.
Few sounds are more ominous than a judge striking his gavel, announcing the verdict of “guilty.” Mankind stands before the judge of all the earth, all guilty before Him.
Had enough of the bad news?
Between Romans 3:20 and Romans 3:21, there is a “Grand Canyon” division. When we have all the talk of sin that we can take, God will tell us what it means to be saved by faith.