Transcript
Will you turn with me in your Bibles to the Gospel of Luke, chapter 12, and verse 41. Luke 12:41. And for the sake of connection, we would like to read verse 40:
Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
That was part of our study last time. Now we begin with verse 41:
Then Peter said to Him, ‘Lord, do You speak this parable only to us, or to all people?’ And the Lord said, “Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his master will make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when He comes. Truly, I say to you that He will make him ruler over all that He has. But if that servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying His coming,’ and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and be drunk, the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the unbelievers,” or as we might better translate it, “and appoint him his portion with the unfaithful. 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. But 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.”
Here is one for the books, and I do mean the books. In October of 1989, Margaret Moffett, a 58-year-old woman who lives here in Dallas, was sentenced to six months probation on two charges of forgery and one charge of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. Now Margaret had a long history of writing bad checks. And while she was still serving probation, she was booked again for handing a worthless check for $1,000 to Dallas lawyer Tom Berman.
I want you to know that Margaret Moffett is well known down at the Dallas County Courthouse, especially in District Judge Keith Dean’s courtroom. You see, Margaret is especially well known for the way she can make up excuses for not appearing in court. Most of the time she will phone in and just say that she’s too sick to come downtown. Often she has sent letters from her doctor indicating that she was suffering from scoliosis and vertigo. But nobody down in Judge Dean’s courtroom was quite prepared early in December of last year to find a paid obituary notice in the Dallas Times Herald which announced that Margaret Moffett had died in an East Texas hospital and the funeral arrangements were pending.
Now you need to understand that down in the court where they deal a lot with hardened criminals like murderers and rapists, Margaret Moffett was a refreshing change of pace. And everyone down at the court mourned her passing, and they figured they would probably miss her. So on December 6th of last year Judge Dean dismissed the two cases under which Margaret was serving probation. And he turned the paperwork for the still pending charge on the $1,000 bad check over to Virgil Melton who was his court coordinator to prepare the papers so the judge could dismiss that case as well.
Well, Mr. Melton didn’t hurry up with this job very much. I mean after all, what was the hurry? Margaret Moffett was dead. But finally in February of this year he pulled her file. And as he was going through it to arrange the papers for the judge to sign, he noticed something odd. What was odd was what was not found in the file. There was no death certificate. It had not been dropped off by the family down at the courthouse. This definitely aroused Virgil Melton’s suspicions. But he just couldn’t believe that this frail sickly old lady would fake her own death. And he said to himself, surely Margaret wouldn’t go that far just to get out of coming to court.
But after days of searching the county and state records they found no death certificate at all. And so on February 27th of this year Virgil Melton arranged for a warrant to be issued for the arrest of Margaret Moffett. The sheriff’s deputies didn’t have any problem finding her, folks. She was not hiding out in a neighboring state under an assumed name. She was simply relaxing in her modest home right here in the city of Dallas. So on March the 1st Judge Dean sentenced her on the pending charge to two years in prison. Even though she was expected to be released on April the 17th. And would you believe it, folks, while she was in prison on the 7th day of her imprisonment she called up Virgil Melton and urged him to persuade the judge to issue her a work release. Even though Margaret Moffett didn’t have any job.
And Virgil Melton sort of laughed and shook his head as he reported this case to the media. And then he said to the media, I asked her, Margaret, why did you do all this? And she told me that she just had to do something to get everybody off her back. And then Mr. Melton added, she’s just an old con. She’s really something else. But it’s kind of hard not to like her.
Well, I suspect, folks, that we all kind of smile at a story like this. But we can kind of empathize. We can kind of sympathize with Margaret Moffett, can’t we? I mean, which of us likes to go to court? And did you realize that if you are a born-again Christian this morning, you have a day in court which you will not be able to avoid? None of Margaret’s techniques will work for you. You can’t call in sick. You can’t put your obituary notice in the Dallas Times Herald because the Dallas Times Herald is dead too. And there’s no way to avoid this appearance in court.
And the Bible says we must all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. Notice how definite that is, my friends. We must all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. And again the Bible says,
As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall confess to God.
So that each of us will give an account of himself to God.
Now please don’t misunderstand me this morning. Even though as a born-again Christian, as one who has trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ for the free gift of everlasting life, even though you do have a day in court, that has nothing to do with the question of whether you go to heaven or to hell. When you believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as your own personal Savior, your destiny in heaven was guaranteed.
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.
So the judgment seat of Christ has nothing whatsoever to do with whether we go to heaven or to hell. But it does have a whole lot to do, it has everything to do, with how we have lived our Christian life here on earth.
And because there are some Christians who are not prepared for their day in court, and because all of us need a reminder about this, I think I have chosen to give to my sermon this morning the following title: Big Trouble in God’s Courtroom. That’s the title of my message to you this morning: Big Trouble in God’s Court.
Now strange as it may seem, would you believe that this very week as I was preparing this very message, I was suddenly and unexpectedly summoned to court in downtown Dallas? I’ve got to put your minds at rest, folks. I have committed no crime, and I was not even appearing for a traffic citation. I was appearing as a sworn witness in a child custody case presided over by a judge whose ruling would be final because there are no juries in such a case.
And when I took my place on the witness stand down at the Dallas County Courthouse, I was first questioned by the attorney of the party on whose behalf I was appearing. Then I was cross-examined by the attorney for the other party. After I had finished my testimony, a social worker took his seat on the witness stand. He was a man who had conducted some court-ordered social studies in this matter. And to our great horror we found out just before the court proceedings began that the social worker would testify that his recommendation was that the child should be given to the other party.
So I want you to know that when he was up there testifying, I was sitting nervously listening to his testimony and wondering whether the judge would go his way. Because after all, he was an expert witness. And if I had been the fingernail-biting type, I would have bitten all my fingernails off while I listened to the two lawyers make their closing statements and while I waited for the judge’s decision.
Finally the judge spoke. And without giving any reasons whatsoever for his decision, because his word was final, he granted custody to the party for whom I had had the privilege of appearing. And even though it all turned out okay, folks, I want to tell you something. I wasn’t ready to go to court. Now I knew that this court case was coming up, but I didn’t know when it was coming up. And I had planned to wear my best suit and to wear a nice clean white shirt and a very conservative but attractive tie. And I was going to make my best possible impression on the court and on the judge and on everybody concerned.
And wouldn’t you know, 45 minutes before I had to be there I get this call telling me to be downtown at 1:30. I’m up in the office dressed casually as always, dressed up there. So you see, folks, I had to go to court just as I was. I had to go to court just as I was.
Did you know that our summons to the judgment seat of Christ is a come-as-you-are affair? Our summons to the judgment seat of Christ is a come-as-you-are affair. And I’m wondering whether you noticed a very important phrase in the words of Jesus with which the passage that we read a few moments ago began. Remember that Jesus has just finished a parable about being ready to serve Him when He comes in His kingdom to reign with Him. And He’s ended that parable with a very solemn warning. He has said, “Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect.”
Not surprisingly the Apostle Peter pops up with a question. And Peter says to Jesus, “Lord, are you speaking this parable only to us or to all people?” And the very important answer that Jesus gives to him is this. He says, “Who is that faithful and wise servant whom his master will make ruler over his household, to give them their food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when He comes.” That’s the crucial phrase: blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when He comes. “Truly, I say to you he will make him ruler over all that He has.”
Lord, says Peter, is this a parable that you’ve just spoken? Is that for everybody or is it for us who have believed in You and are seeking to be Your disciples? And I think that the answer that Jesus gives to him amounts to something like this. Jesus is saying this parable is for that wise and faithful servant who is authorized by Me, who is operating under My authority to serve the members of My household. And that servant will be blessed if I find him doing his job when I come back. Because if I find him like that then I will make him ruler over all that I have. He will share in My power and authority in the kingdom of God.
So don’t you see, this is very clearly a come-as-you-are affair. The really crucial thing in the coming again of our Lord Jesus Christ is not what we have been like as Christians days ago or years ago. It is what we are like as Christians when He returns.
One of the popular records that Barbra Streisand has produced is a sad but beautiful song called “The Way We Were.” In this song the singer speaks or sings of a romantic relationship that has apparently ended once and for all. And she sings of all the things that tug at her heart and that ring in her memory. But she apparently has no hope for the renewal of that relationship. And so the song is called “The Way We Were.”
But you see, when the judge comes the question will not be “The Way We Were” but “the way we are.” You see there is a sense in which our relationship to Jesus Christ as Christians is a lot like a love relationship. Jesus said,
He that has My commandments and keeps them, he it is that loves Me.
And we must not allow the vital loving nature, the obedient nature of that relationship, to become a thing of the past. We must not allow it to lapse for a month or for a week or for a day. For the danger is that when I am out of touch with Jesus Christ, when I’m not performing His will, He may come as my judge. And I will be called before the judgment seat of Christ.
The ancient Roman city of Pompeii, as you may know from your history books, was wiped out by an enormous eruption of the volcano Mount Vesuvius. Apparently that eruption was so enormous and the cinders and ashes fell down on that city so precipitously and suddenly that the city was buried alive. And many of its inhabitants were virtually turned into statues, doing whatever they had been doing at the time that the end arrived.
And when they dug into the ruins of Pompeii they discovered people in various situations. They discovered people down in underground vaults who had apparently hidden there for safety. They discovered people in upper rooms. But the most remarkable discovery I think was the discovery of the Roman sentinel, the Roman guard who had been stationed at the gate of the city. And in the midst of the ruins he was still standing there. His hand was still holding his weapon. Apparently he had stood at his post while the ground trembled beneath his feet. He had not deserted the place his captain had assigned him even when the cinders and ash rained down upon him. There he stood. And a thousand years later when they excavated Pompeii, there he still stood.
What a challenging example of staying on duty right up to the very end. Now tell me something. If you are a Christian, if you’ve trusted the Lord Jesus Christ and you know that you’re saved, what is your assignment in the household of God? What is it that God wants you to be doing right here at Victor Street Chapel where you attend church? Are you on duty? Are you actively engaged in the mission that Jesus Christ has given to you? If you are, you’re ready for your day in court. And if you’re not, you’re dangerously unprepared.
Now I happen to wonder whether, as I’ve talked about all this with you for the last few minutes, I happen to wonder if there could possibly be anybody here who feels like saying this: Come on, Zane, don’t prod me on this one. I’ve been hearing about the coming of the Lord ever since I was a Sunday school boy or a Sunday school girl. And the Lord hasn’t come back yet. And if you ask me He’s probably not going to come back anytime soon. And so I figure that I’ve got some time to do my own thing. I figure that I can kind of pursue my own interests and do what I want to do. And then maybe down the line a few years from now I’ll get my act together. I’ll straighten up. I’ll get serious about the Lord. And then I’ll begin to serve Him.
Surely nobody at Victor Street would think like that, would they? But if you did think like that, the next words of Jesus would be aimed directly and squarely at you. You see Jesus goes on to say, “But if that servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying His coming,’ and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and be drunk, the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour when he is not expecting him.” Get this, folks. “And he will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the unfaithful.”
Let’s be honest with ourselves, shall we? There are times when we think in our heart, no matter what the preacher says, it’s going to be a long time before the Lord comes back. And when we take that point of view it’s like putting our foot on a spiritual banana peel. And it can lead to a fall and a tumble that goes down, down, down. And the next thing that we find ourselves doing is that we’re beating our fellow Christians, the male and female servants of our Master. Not beating with sticks, not throwing stones at them, but beating them with words, beating them with harsh and unkind and unloving criticism.
And when that begins to happen then our own personal lives become unraveled. And we begin to try to satisfy our fleshly appetites. And before you know it we are spiritually intoxicated. We are spiritually drunk. But the Lord can come. And then we’ll appear in court. And then He will cut us in two.
Now certainly we all know, don’t we, that when we stand before the judgment seat of Christ we will be in our immortal and glorified bodies. And nobody expects Jesus to take a giant sword and to hack unfaithful Christians into two parts. Clearly this is an illustration. Clearly this is a figure of speech. But we do know this: that the instrument that God will use at the judgment seat of Christ is His Word. And the Bible informs us that the Word of God is alive and powerful and it is sharper than any two-edged sword. And it pierces even to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow. And it is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature that is not manifest before God, but all things are naked and open before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
Yes, no physical pain at the judgment seat of Christ. But that doesn’t mean there will not be spiritual pain. For on that day the Word of God will dig into us as it has never dug into us before. We will be prepared to hear its judgment clearly. And if you will permit me to say it this way, at the judgment seat of Christ Jesus Christ will perform open-heart surgery on every unfaithful Christian.
And I just want to make it clear this morning that the judgment seat of Christ is not like an awards program such as we hold at the end of a vacation Bible school. The judgment seat of Christ is a serious and solemn and potentially painful day in court.
There was an old Scottish lawyer years ago who sort of lived up to the reputation of his race and was kind of stingy. And on one occasion he had rented a horse. But either through accident or mistreatment the animal had died. Now the owner of the horse wanted compensation not only for the value of the horse but for his loss in no longer being able to use the horse. And the lawyer readily admitted that he was liable, agreed that he was willing to pay. But he explained to the owner that he didn’t have any ready cash on him and that he was hard up. And would the owner of the animal please accept a promissory note?
Certainly, said the owner. Then the lawyer said, well I’m going to have to put the due date of this promissory note as far as possible in the future. Pick any date you want, said the owner of the horse. So the Scottish lawyer handed the owner of the horse a promissory note that would come due on the day of judgment.
Now that didn’t entirely satisfy the owner of the horse. So he brought the Scottish lawyer into court. And as he spoke in defense of himself the Scottish lawyer requested that the judge should read the promissory note. And the judge took the note and read it. And then the judge looked up and he said to the lawyer, your promissory note is perfectly fine. And since this is the day of judgment I decree that you pay tomorrow.
And isn’t it true sometimes that in our minds we kind of push off the day of judgment? We say that’s a long way down the hill. But do you realize that we could be in court tomorrow, next week, in the opening months of the year? Are you ready for your day in court? If you’re not, you could be in big trouble in God’s courtroom. And when I say big trouble, folks, I mean big, big trouble.
And I think the closing words of our passage are some of the sternest and sharpest words that are anywhere in the Bible and addressed to unfaithful Christians. For Jesus says 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. But he who did not know, yet committed things worthy 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.
I’m sure you’ve all seen in the movies or on television someone who is undergoing the punishment of flogging, have you not? It was used as a punishment in the early days of our country. And the criminal was tied or chained to a post that might have been in the public square. He was stripped to the waist. And then the punisher, either with a whip or with rods, would beat him. For serious crimes there were many strokes, many strikes, many stripes. For less serious crimes there were fewer strokes and fewer stripes. And that was the way they handled disobedient slaves in the days of the Bible as well.
Now hear me once again. There is no question at all that we will be in our glorified bodies and that we will not be suffering physical pain at the judgment seat of Christ. So once again we’re looking at an illustration. We’re looking at a figure of speech. But remember this: that when we stand before the judgment seat of Christ we will be for the first time completely holy. For the first time we will be completely sensitive to the will of Jesus Christ. For the first time we will sense to the depths of our being our gratitude and our worship to the one who loved us and gave Himself for us. And for the first time we will love Him the way we ought to love Him.
I want you to understand that’s how you will feel at the judgment seat of Christ. And then if He must rebuke you for your unfaithfulness, I suggest to you that that rebuke will fall upon your heart like the lash of a whip would fall upon your back. That it will be intensely, deeply, dreadfully but inwardly painful. And you see the greater rebukes belong to those who have had the greater opportunities and have passed them by.
If you have grown up in a church where the Word of God is preached faithfully, where your responsibility to God is proclaimed faithfully, then much has been given to you and to me. And God will hold us responsible according to the commitment that we have been given. And do you understand that the fact that we are talking about this this morning and thinking about it, you understand that that increases our responsibility before God?
So the question is this, my friends. What are you going to do about it when you walk out that door? What are you going to do about it? May I give you a sincere piece of advice? Get ready for your day in court.
Many years ago during the Civil War, during the final campaign of General Sherman through the South, certain changes were made in the commanders of certain units. General Howard was promoted to be commander of a very special unit. But very soon the war was over. And a grand review of the entire army was scheduled in the capital of our nation in Washington, D.C.
The night before this grand review General Sherman summoned General Howard to his quarters. And he said to him, the political friends of the man that you replaced as head of your corps of troops are determined to see that he rides at the head of his troops. And I would like you to help me.
Well, General Howard’s first response was the natural, selfish, instinctive reaction that we would probably all have. And he said to General Sherman, it’s my command and I am entitled to ride at the head of my troops. General Sherman replied, yes you certainly are. You led those men through Georgia, through the Carolinas. But you are a Christian and you can take the disappointment.
General Howard replied, well if you put it on that basis, sir, there can be only one answer. Let him ride at the head of the troops. And General Sherman replied, yes, let him have that honor. But you will report to me at 9:00 in the morning and you will ride by my side at the head of the entire army. And that’s what happened. General Howard rode side by side with his commander at the head of the grand review.
And if you will permit me to use the image and illustration of a parade, at the judgment seat of Christ, at the great review, unfaithful Christians will be down toward the end of the line. And faithful Christians will be walking with Jesus Christ at the head of the parade.
Jesus said one time of people who had been faithful to Him,
They shall walk with Me in white, for they are worthy.
Alma J. Pierce took those words and she composed that haunting and beautiful song that we so often sing at the Lord’s table:
“When I shall stand within the court of heaven
Where white-robed pilgrims pass before my sight,
Earth’s blood-bought saints and martyred overcomers,
These then are they who walk with Him in white.
When He shall call from earth’s remotest corners
All who in Him stood triumphant in His might,
O to be worthy then to stand beside them
And in that morn to walk with Him in white.”
Shall we pray? Father, help us to be ready for the return of our Savior, our Lord, and our Judge. We ask it in Christ’s name, amen.