Shepherd of the Springs
Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod

"Passing Judgment"

From the Old Testament of the Day: I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven their came one like a son of man, and He came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him; His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom one that shall not be destroyed. [Daniel 7.13-14]

From the Epistle: But by the same Word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire; being kept until the Day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. [2 Peter 3.7]

From the Holy Gospel: And He will place the sheep on His right, but He will place the goats on the left. [Matthew 25.33]

We have reached the final two Sundays of the Church Year. Today, the theme of the lessons concerns Judgment Day with the return of our Lord Jesus to this world that He has redeemed by His sacrificial death for you , for me, and for all mankind.

This idea of Judgment Day is not a popular one with most people and even for many who would call themselves Christians. And, even when the Day of Judgment is acknowledged as a real event yet to come upon the world, the idea often is that Judgment Day is a better left unthought of until it actually happens. Judgment Day becomes a sort of spiritual flat-tire, a day when things sudden grind to a stop, and of course, then it becomes the day of a new, eternal tire. So, the day itself is not treated an essential part of the Christian Life, just the end of Act I and the introduction of Act II.

But such thinking is not only wrong – it perverts what the Christian life is about and how you as a Christian are to understand yourself and your role as a Christian. Today, your attention is invited to the real purpose of Judgment Day in your daily life, so that you might properly understand the nature of "Passing Judgment."

I.

Christians go astray from the nature and purpose of the Christian life and of the Church of our Lord when we get confused about what is primary and what is secondary in this life and in this Church. The Old Testament of the Day speaks to all who will listen about what Jesus intends to be central in your lives. The prophet Daniel records the event in heaven that we call the ascension of our Lord after His glorious resurrection. Daniel, by inspiration of the Holy Ghost, shows you what happens to Jesus upon His triumphant ascension – and what is important for Him and for this world and for the church and for you.

Daniel writes: "I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven their came one like a son of man, and He came up to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him; His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom one that shall not be destroyed." Here, the prophet shows Jesus upon His ascension going upward and presenting Himself, in His human body, before God the Father, the Ancient of Days. And at that time – the time of His ascension – He is given the throne of Judgment Day. His dominion is over all of mankind, in judgment. And we have been born into that kingdom and under that dominion, by Holy Baptism. In other words, all of your Christian life is – or at least ought to be – oriented around the reality of Judgment Day.

Now, this is quite different from what many, probably most, Christians understand about the Christian life. They understand that it is, centrally, about what you and I do from day to day as Christians, how we raise our children for THIS world and ITS demands and dangers. Oh, it is true that lip-service is given to the Day of Judgment, but primarily as the vestibule to the New Heavens and New Earth.

What is lost in such popular and pervasive thinking is the centrality of Judgment Day in daily life you, your children, your loved ones, and your church. It is not just the unexpected flat-tire on the vehicle of daily life. It is the very next event, according to the clock of heaven, following Jesus ascension. What is important about raising children, about serving Christ in and through the Church, and about the basis for making value judgments about daily life – all this is informed and shaped by the Day of Judgment.

II.

We just finished another election cycle. The election was on one day, but the planning for and living in and speaking about and even praying over the implications of the election went on for months. Likewise, the planning for, living in, speaking about, and even praying over the implications of the Day of Judgment is, by God’s design, the proper focus of Christian living, for you to do and to teach to your children, your loved ones, your friends and neighbors, and even strangers that God brings your way day-by-day.

In the Epistle of the Day, we read, "But by the same Word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire; being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly." The Word of God is given to you so that you can be both informed and equipped for the Day of Judgment and also so that you find your purpose between this day and that one.

God’s Word is not simply some sort of handbook for daily living. It is a creative and powerful Word that shapes your mind and your purposes toward that final Day. It identifies what is important about this day and the next and the next, until Christ returns. It shapes what is important about your daily life, your daily work, and your daily relationships. The Word of God that creates and sustains faith in you and your loved ones and your fellow church members, does so by and toward the goal of the Day of Judgment. The same Word that brings life points you to "the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly." The reason for there being a judgment is the same reason that their was an incarnation and a virgin birth of our Lord Jesus, the same reason that there was a life and mission of Christ, that there was a Passion and crucifixion, and that there was a resurrection. All of these happen because of the Day of Judgment and destruction of the ungodly – namely that you and everyone you know and meet might, by the power of the Word of God, be rescued from that destruction! Living by virtue of this truth is the point of successfully "Passing Judgment"

III.

In the Holy Gospel, you hear the familiar description of Judgment Day, of the separation of the sheep from the goats, and of the two verdicts on that day – one spoken to and over the sheep and the other spoken to and over the goats. And Passing Judgment is exposed by our Lord to both groups. You see, focused on the reality of a judgment, the sheep live by virtue of that truth – they pray, they witness, they teach the truth of the Judgment to children, loved ones, friends, and even neighbors. They follow up words with deeds also aimed at bringing others safely to and through the Day of Judgment – and they do all this by and for Christ, even though in daily life, they don’t see Him or a destiny in heaven. Meanwhile, the goats live on in rejection of Christ and in the destiny of hell. It is in daily living, Jesus points out, that Christians are "Passing Judgment," while the ungodly are "Failing Judgment." For that reason, a daily focus on Judgment Day is how Christian living is shaped.

To this life you have been called! In this life you have been given forgiveness, life, and salvation! For this life you are equipped by the Gospel. And by this life you pass through Judgment to life eternal!