How Do You Plead?
How Do You Plead?
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.”
Acts 17:31
“Because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.”
One day every person who has lived and shall live will stand before the judgement seat of Christ and we will give an account of ourselves before God (Romans 14:12). How will we plead? Will we plead not guilty? How will you be justified?
Fill in the blank:
I will be found not guilty by reason of _______________.
A.) Insufficient Evidence
B.) Privilege
C.) Moral/Religious Superiority
D.) Doctrinal Superiority
E.) Ignorance
F.) None of the above
It might surprise you to find out the scriptures teach that the correct answer is none of the above. There is plenty of evidence to convict (Romans 3.23), God does not show favoritism (Romans 2:11-16), when the Pharisee thanked God for being better than other people, Jesus taught that he did not go home justified (Luke 18:9-14). God is merciful to those who do not and cannot know the law, but that is not the case for many. God reveals himself through the things He has made. If someone rejects God based on what they can see, they would also reject Jesus. (Romans 1:19-20).
If we cannot be found guiltless by these things, how can we escape death? The truth is, we are guilty, but the blood of Jesus can pardon us if we believe in Him. Belief is much more than an acknowledgment of His existence. To truly believe and exhibit faithfulness that pleases God, we must have knowledge of the person and work of Jesus, act upon that knowledge in repentance, and call upon the name of the Lord, fully surrendering our lives to Him in obeying the gospel and a continuous, life-long pursuit of becoming like Him in worship, in life, and in thought.
We are justified by pardon. The blood of Jesus Christ is the only way!
Eric Bullock, Evangelist
