The Great Judgment Day

George Burnside

WHO PASSES THE TEST OF THE GREAT JUDGMENT DAY?

1 Corinthians 15:51-53 "Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on Incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality."

The Second Advent is the "execution" of the Judgment. Then rewards are given according to "their works."

The Overcomers are made immortal by the resurrection. The nature of their resurrection reveals their standing before God.

1 Corinthians 15:22,23 "Afterward they that are Christ's at His coming." 1 Corinthians 3:13 "The day shall declare It."

Philippians 3:1 "If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection."

Revelation 20:6 "The First Resurrection" is only of the Blessed and holy.” On them "the second death has no power.”

Luke 20:35 "They which shall be accounted worthy." The only time of accounting is made In the Judgment involving "books" where "the books were opened." This judgment of investigation is correctly called the Investigative Judgment." (Daniel 7:10)

Luke 20:36 Those who are "accounted worthy are the children of God" - they "die" no more they have become children of the resurrection. This accounting must be finished before Christ's return so He can gather them home to heaven.

Luke 21:36 "Watch you therefore, and pray always, that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man."

Those "Accounted worthy" escape "the time of trouble" as their names are retained in "the Lamb's book of life" and they will, "stand before the Son of man." They will be the "Overcomers". They are the ones who Christ the executing judge - declares "Keep the commandments of God."

Psalm 50:3-5 "Our God shall come and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him. He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people. Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice."

Revelation 14:6,7 "And I saw another angel fly In the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his Judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters."

This investigating judgment is ushered in by announcement.
It is when humanity is still on probation. "If any man worship."
This Judgment is while men are still on earth. "To every nation etc."
It is not a local judgment. The warning goes "to every nation etc."
This Judgment takes place before the Second Advent. It decides who are accounted worthy" to have part in the resurrection of immortality.

Revelation 14:14 It precedes the coming of our Lord to reap the harvest of the earth. The blotting out of sins precedes our Lord's Return.

Acts 3:19,20 "Repent you therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you.”

"Repent" and "be converted." Sins cannot be removed before repentance and conversion. "Repent", involves "sin no more." Converted means to turn from sin.

"Repentance must precede forgiveness." 1 Selected Messages, page 390. "There is no salvation without repentance." 1 Selected Messages, page 365.

Acts 3:19,20 This Scripture plainly shows that the time of the blotting out of sin is just before our Lord's return. This is the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary.

The forgiveness of sin and the blotting out of sin are not the same. While sins are forgiven at conversion, they are not blotted out until the judgment. When sins are blotted out they cannot be brought to judgment.

The Scripture reads: "Repent you therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing may come," -

Other translations read “That the times of refreshing may come."

Dr. Albert Barnes in his “Notes on the Acts" on these two translations says "The grammatical construction will admit of either."

Notice carefully neither translation gives:

The idea that this blotting out of sins-is when the sinner turns to God.
Both place the blotting out of sins in the future.
Both show that it just precedes our Lord's Return.
As the redeemed cannot be called to an account of their sins after they have been blotted out, it is apparent that the blotting out of their sins must be before the Lord's return and not after that event.

Seeing those sins are recorded the blotting - out of sins must Involve "the books" and an examination of them.

It is also clear that sins were not blotted out at the cross, as is popularly taught.

Jeremiah 2:22 "Your iniquity is marked before me."

Deuteronomy 32:34 "Is not this laid up in store with me." Thus the Lord speaks of the sin of Israel. Every sin is marked before Him for every sin will be dealt with.

Hebrews 2:2 "Every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward." David prayed that God would blot out his transgressions.

Psalm 51:1,9 "Have mercy upon me, O God and blot out my iniquities."

Some people's sins will not be blotted out.

Nehemiah 4:5 "Let not their sin be blotted out from before You."

Psalm 109:13 "Let their name be blotted out."

Psalm 109:14 "Let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.”

Jeremiah 18:23 "Forgive not their iniquity, neither blot out their sin from their sight."

The prophecies of our God are so sure, they are as sure as done. 'The Scriptures cannot be broken." An in - Isaiah 53:5 "He was wounded for out transgression." Although future when written, It is written In the past tense. So –

Isaiah 44:22 “I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions." The next verse speaks of the new earth and the final redemption.

Some have thought that the blotting out of our sins is past because this verse is in the past tense, but so is Isaiah 53:5. They ignore the many clear Scriptures and so arrive at a wrong conclusion. These glorious truths will soon all he fulfilled. We are facing the climax.