God has given Jesus an appointed day to judge the world He had come into, the judgment of the nations; and God Himself has an appointed day in which He will judge the wicked dead, the Great White Throne Judgment. Acts 17:31, He hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead. The Father set an appointed time for judgment, and it won’t be changed for anyone. At the end of the Tribulation Period, Jesus will judge the living nations of the world. Then at the end of the thousand year Perfect Age, God will judge the wicked dead in that terrible day appointed to them, the Great White Throne Judgment.

Contrast the judgment of nations by Jesus with the judgment of the wicked dead by God:

1: No resurrection in the judgment of nations; but the White Throne Judgment will involve a resurrection, that of the wicked dead.

2: Living nations will be judged in the judgment of nations; resurrected dead will be judged in the Great White Throne Judgment.

3: The judgment of nations will take place on Earth; the Great White Throne Judgment somewhere outside the gates of Heaven.

4: For the judgment of nations, no books will be involved. The Great White Throne Judgment will see the opening of books.

5: Groups of people will be involved in the judgment of the nations: sheep nations, goat nations and their treatment of the brethren Jews. Only one group will be judged in the Great White Throne Judgment, the wicked dead.

6: The judgment of nations will take place just before the thousand-year reign of Christ; the Great White Throne Judgment just after the close of the thousand-year reign.

7: Christ will judge the living nations. God the Father will judge the wicked dead, for by that time Christ will have completed His mission. Then cometh the end, when he [Christ] shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him. And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all (I Corinthians 15:24-28).

God Always Warns of Coming Judgment

Let’s go back to Genesis today to start our travel. It doesn’t matter how many doubters, agnostics, infidels or unbelievers of any sort try to convince people that the creation of man in Genesis is a lie; the Bible is all truth, and it tells us where we came from. The wicked will never avoid God when it comes to judgment. Millions have tried it, but no one has been successful, not one. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die (Genesis 2:16,17). The soul that sinneth, it shall die is the message God gave Adam and Eve. As we travel through book after book in the Old Testament we find that cry: There is an appointed day of judgment!

God created man, but man turned from His God. By the time Noah was born, the earth was filled with violence and evil.

Our travels in Genesis lead us to Noah’s time. And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch (Genesis 6:12-14).

God had warned the people that judgment was coming. Did they believe? No, only eight souls believed, that was all. But what God said would take place happened. In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights. In the selfsame day entered Noah, and Shem, and Ham, and Japheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah’s wife, and the three wives of his sons with them, into the ark; They, and every beast after his kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind, and every fowl after his kind, every bird of every sort. And they went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh, wherein is the breath of life. And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in. And the flood was forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased, and bare up the ark, and it was lift up above the earth. And the waters prevailed, and were increased greatly upon the earth; and the ark went upon the face of the waters. And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth; and all the high hills, that were under the whole heaven, were covered. Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered. And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man: All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died. And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark (Genesis 7:11-23).

When God warns of coming judgment, He means it. In Noah’s day God had appointed a day of judgment, an appointed time. That judgment didn’t happen the next week, the next month, the next year. That ark was many years in the building—one hundred twenty—and the people outside didn’t believe judgment would come. But when that appointed day came, the ark door closed, sealed by the power of God and no human hand could open it. And so it is in all of God’s judgments: No human hand can alter them.

God Scattered the People

Journey with me next to the Tower of Babel where the Lord had an appointed day for judgment. He waited. Men kept building the tower, but judgment fell exactly at that appointed time. And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for mortar. And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech. So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth (Genesis 11:1-9).

Lot’s Wife Ignored God’s Warning

God appointed a day for Sodom and Gomorrah to be destroyed with fire and brimstone. Did the people believe it? No, they didn’t believe it. Did Lot’s sons-in-law believe it? No; they laughed, made fun, mocked; but the appointed day came. The angels had told Lot, We will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it. And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law (Genesis 19:13,14).

Did Lot’s wife believe? No. And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city. And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the LORD being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city. And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed. Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven; And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground. But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt (Genesis 19:15-17,24-26).

God let Lot’s wife know that if she looked back judgment would fall upon her. The appointed day of judgment included those who wouldn’t obey God, who wouldn’t believe Him, and who had failed Him. Did God destroy the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah with fire and brimstone? Yes He did. On the appointed day they were destroyed.

The Devil Knows His Destiny

Even though God tells us in the book of Revelation that there is a lake of fire into which the devil and his angels will be cast along with all those who sin against God, many don’t believe it. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever (Revelation 20:9,10).

The devil wants people to doubt hell. He knows his destiny, but he doesn’t want you to believe it. He knows there’s a lake of fire, for he’s seen it, felt it. He doesn’t want to go there, but there’s no hope of escape for him; he has to go. The day is appointed for the devil to be cast into the lake burning with fire and brimstone.

Preachers have tried to take the flame out of hell. Hell is only in the mind, to hear them tell it, but that isn’t what the Bible says. There is a hell of fire for the wicked. Jesus spoke of sinners being cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched (Mark 9:43).

Just as the fire and brimstone in Genesis came at the appointed time, the lake of fire will be uncovered and the wicked cast in at the appointed time as God has said. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:14,15). There is an appointed day; people need to face it, believe it.

The Soul That Sinneth Will Die

Continuing in our travel we’re passing over ancient Babylon. What a magnificent kingdom it was! But judgment was pronounced on it. And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees’ excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall the shepherds make their fold there. But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there. And the wild beasts of the islands shall cry in their desolate houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces: and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged (Isaiah 13:19-22). God said judgment would fall—did it fall? Yes it did. Judgment came; Babylon was eventually destroyed. God had set the appointed time, the appointed day. The soul that sinneth, it shall die (Ezekiel 18:20).

If you haven’t made an appointment with Calvary to have your soul made brand-new, do it today. Unless you keep that appointment with Calvary to get rid of all of your sins, the other appointment is automatically yours, the appointment of judgment. You’ll never get past God with sin. The Cross means that man has sinned; but if he will meet the conditions of the Cross, the obligations of the Cross, he can qualify for Heaven, qualify for God’s salvation. Man can be born new, brand-new. Isn’t that wonderful!

The Voice of God Terrified the Israelites

In our travels through the Bible, we pass over Mount Sinai. See it shaking and quaking as the smoke boils up, and hear the sounding of a trumpet. And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly. And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice (Exodus 19:18,19). Sinai was trembling all over; God had made a footstool out of it.

On hearing the voice of God, the people were terrified. But the voice of God that rang out wasn’t a voice of judgment; it was a voice of love; love was shaking the earth beneath their feet. And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die (Exodus 20:18,19). God wanted to make Himself real to the Israelites, but they were so terrified they didn’t want to hear the love voice of God ever again.

What will it be like when the appointed day of judgment comes? What must the judgment voice be like? My God and my Lord, we don’t want to hear that voice of judgment! Lord, just let us hear your love voice. Let us always hear the voice of Jesus, the voice of Calvary, the voice of your grace, the blood voice. We don’t want to be there when you sound out in that voice of judgment, when you say the appointed day has arrived. We don’t want to be there when there’s no love in your voice, when all love is gone, when there’s no hope in your voice, no tenderness, no goodness, no mercy. No, we don’t want to be there for that terrible appointed day.

God Can Hate As Much As He Can Love

We pass on now to the New Testament, to familiar ground—Bethlehem—and we see a babe born there called Jesus. And the angel said unto them [the shepherds], Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger (Luke 2:10-12).

Look into the manger quickly and see salvation, redemption, mercy, and forgiveness for all. In that crib is healing and help for everyone. Now no one has to go to hell—but those who don’t accept this Babe of Bethlehem will never see Heaven. They’ll go on to their appointed judgment day and hear God say, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41), and it will be so.

If you don’t have Jesus in your heart, hell is where you’re going; you’ll be in the same place as the devil. Do you realize that as much as the devil is hated by God, you, too, will be hated if you pass up Calvary and trample the blood of Jesus underfoot? God told me one time that He can hate as much as He can love. I’d never dreamed of such a thing, never dreamed I’d hear God say such a thing; but the Lord actually told me that. That’s a lot of hate, and He wants to use it all on the devil. He doesn’t want to use it on man; unfortunately, man is like the devil if he hasn’t been made new, born new.

Two Personalities of Jesus

Consider what it cost Heaven to make us a Calvary. It took all the love of God, the whole heart of God. The Son of God came to Earth and lived thirty-some years among men. What a trash pile Earth must have felt like, looked like, and smelled like to Jesus after having lived in Heaven a trillion years and more. Think what a price He paid for you and for me!

We see Jesus on the shores of Galilee ministering to the people with great love. We see Him walking the waters; we see Him in all His greatness, all His power. How wonderful and marvelous He is! Can you believe that He is going to be the judge of all the nations? Do you believe that Christ is going to turn into the lion personality? Read about it in the book of Revelation. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof (Revelation 5:5). When those seals are opened in the Tribulation Period, judgments will fall.

On that appointed day Jesus won’t have the lamb personality. John the Baptist had said, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world (John 1:29), but then it will be behold the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, the lion personality, the judging personality, that ferocious personality of hate, hate, hate.

Jesus loves the sinner, but He hates sin. God despises sin so much that there’ll never be another speck of sin get into Heaven. Lucifer and the angels who disobeyed God were all cast out of Heaven. God told them He would do it and He did it. All these many, many years they haven’t gotten back in and never will they get back into God’s main Heaven.

Consider the great love Jesus displayed in healing and delivering people: Who would think such a wonderful Christ could bring such catastrophic judgments! Jesus is the one who said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 19:14). Let the children come; I am the good shepherd (John 10:11); I am the door to life; I am life.

Look at the tender Jesus for the moment as we travel through the scriptures. Hear Him calling with such love: Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28). Bring your sick and afflicted and come to Jesus. How wonderful!

But on the appointed day, Jesus, I say again, will be the Lion of the Tribe of Judah. See Him at Armageddon as Judge of all the earth. The Bible tells us the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son (John 5:22). Many people don’t realize that Christ is going to be the judge. He’s going to put everything underfoot, all sin and wickedness. Then after all the earth is judged, Jesus will turn it over to the Father.

Just as no one has ever loved people the way Jesus loves them, no one has ever taken the judgment seat the way He will. When Jesus takes that judgment seat, He will have no mercy, no love. No longer does He wear that humble robe; now He has on the cloak of judgment. No smile softens His face; His voice doesn’t flow like milk and honey. Not one trace of love is there, no pity. Imagine Jesus, the Savior who died for us, with no pity! John the Revelator saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS (Revelation 19:11-16). No one will tell Jesus what to do, no jury, no attorneys; He knows everything.

God’s Judgments Are Just

The rich man in hell wanted to warn his brethren, but notice he did not say he was misjudged, that he didn’t get the right judgment; he knew he had. The rich man died and in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house: For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead (Luke 16:23-31). In hell the rich man lifted up his eyes, but he remembered his five brothers and didn’t want them to come to that place. That decision, however, was in their hands, not his.

No one will accuse our righteous God of giving an unjust verdict. Every verdict will be rightly served, rightly given. Jesus brought all the love of Heaven. He dealt with people night and day, but many said no, they didn’t want Him. Now He won’t want them. Wouldn’t it be awful to hear the Lord say, I don’t want you—depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41)! Depart into everlasting damnation.

Simon Peter said that Jesus commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead (Acts 10:42). Jesus is ordained of God to judge, and the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether (Psalm 19:9). You will be judged in truth and righteousness. If you fail God, you will receive a true judgment.

You Must Be Born Again

Some people think that church membership and water baptism will get them into Heaven, but salvation comes only through Jesus. Unless you have been born again, you still are in sin. The Bible says, remember, the soul that sinneth will die—eternal death. Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die (Ezekiel 18:4). The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God (Psalm 9:17). Water baptism, being confirmed when you were a baby are useless unless you have salvation. Jesus told Nicodemus, Ye must be born again (John 3:7); you have to be born new.

Jesus said, Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven (Matthew 10:32,33). If you’re ashamed of Jesus, He’ll be ashamed of you; but if you uphold Him now before men, He will uphold you on that day before the Father. And so it is: Your judgment is entirely up to you. Everyone’s judgment depends on self, how each one reacts to Jesus. The Lord taught when He was here that your future in eternity all depends on whether you accept Him or not, whether you confess Him to be the Son of God. If you haven’t confessed Him to be the Son of God and your soul hasn’t been washed in the blood of the Lamb, then He is not a Savior for you.

Today Jesus is Savior of all who will accept Him, but on the appointed day He will be the judge of the nations—your judge if you have rejected Him. Backslider, think how it will be in the Tribulation Period as He opens those seals of judgment to rain down horror and destruction—that Jesus who loved you so much, that Jesus you walked with until you turned your back to Him and let the devil rob you.

You who are in a lukewarm condition, you who are in doubt about your salvation: Don’t let the devil deceive you any longer. Today is the day of salvation. The appointed day, the Day of Judgment is on tomorrow. You may think that tomorrow is far away, but it may not be that far away after all.

The Books Will Be Opened

See the greatness of Jesus in the role of Savior, and then look on the terrible power of Him as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah when He makes His third appearance to end the battle of Armageddon. He will be a power no one can reckon with.

If you think Armageddon will be a horror beyond compare, wait until God sits on the throne of judgment. I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened (Daniel 7:9,10). Daniel saw thousands ministering unto God, so many thousands that Daniel couldn’t number them. The books will be open, and the sins of the wicked—the obvious sins and the hidden sins—will all be revealed. This Holy Book called the Bible that tells all about this Redeemer, they ignored. This love Christ, this Christ of hope, peace, tenderness and kindness, this pleading Christ who stood at the door of their heart and knocked, who pleaded and begged to get in, they wouldn’t let in. He’s gone away now, Sinner, and He won’t be back; He’ll never come back to you. He doesn’t care for you anymore; He doesn’t want you.

Pilate asked, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ (Matthew 27:22)? On that appointed day the question will be: What will Jesus do with Pilate? Pilate’s treatment of Jesus will bring God’s judgment on him, eternal damnation, and he’ll be cast into the lake of fire with the devil and his angels as the eternal ages roll. Pilate had his opportunity. He [Pilate] took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it (Matthew 27:24). He tried to wash the blood off his hands, but the blood didn’t wash off because it was divine blood. He’ll wish he had used the divine blood on that appointed day. He’ll pray, he’ll cry and humble himself; but it will be too late.

Will You Meet an Uncaring Christ?

Jesus, who had listened to the faintest cry of the sinner for so many hundreds of years, will be totally deaf to the sinner as He judges the nations. He won’t listen to anything he has to say. He’ll be totally blind to any tears the sinner sheds, to any expressions of remorse. He won’t care; He’ll be the uncaring Jesus, the uncaring Christ, the judge of the nations of the world, the judge of damnation—and how awful to be doomed! The Christ who had the loveliest voice ever heard on planet Earth, will speak with the cruelest voice ever heard. It will be a voice worse than anything you can imagine, the voice of damnation, the voice of judgment. Mothers and fathers will be there, boys and girls, husbands and wives. The rich, the poor, the educated and the uneducated will all be there.

The question now is: Will you accept Jesus? But the day is coming when the question will be: Will Jesus accept you?

Sinner, today I can tell you that He will accept you if you will humble yourself and come to Him. Today it doesn’t matter; your sins can be piled up like mountains, but through His shed blood, Jesus paid the price to wash them all away, to cast them into the sea of forgetfulness to never be remembered against you again.

In the past there have been terrible times, tragic times. It was horrifying in Noah’s day, remember, when the people realized they were going to be drowned. They climbed the highest trees, the highest mountains, but they weren’t high enough. No one can escape God’s hand of judgment when He decides He’s had enough; it’s the appointed time.

It was the appointed time for the people in Noah’s day; and there was no way for them to be saved. The only way anyone could be saved was to be in that ark, and it had sailed with just eight people on board.

Jesus said that there won’t be many who will go the narrow road. Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it (Matthew 7:13,14). The bulk of people on the earth will go the broad way; and those who go the broad way will face judgment.

If you bypass the Cross and face the appointed day, your rejection of Jesus will be a testimony against you. Jesus has paid the price for your salvation; He will stand between you and judgment if you’ll meet your judgment at the Cross and take Him into your heart. He took your place; He paid the price for you with His blood; nobody else could have set you free from sin.

God tried using the token of Jesus’ blood, the blood of animals, to redeem man. Millions of animals were killed, sacrificed for their blood; but it was repulsive in the eyes of God. The blood of animals could never take away sin. God didn’t like it; He was not pleased. The Bible says, In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure (Hebrews 10:6).

Only Divine Blood Brings Salvation

Jesus cried on the Cross, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me (Matthew 27:46)? The Lord God turned His back to that scene on Calvary so He wouldn’t come down then and destroy man with judgment. Man deserved judgment; had he gotten his deserved justice he would have been wiped off the face of the earth right then and there. God would have killed Pilate, Herod and the rest of them on the spot. He would have killed those who drove the spikes into the flesh of His Son; He would have killed them all. But Jesus wasn’t on the Cross for judgment; He was there to reconcile man back to his God. The one hanging on the Cross was there because of His great love and mercy.

And there were also two other, malefactors, led with him [Jesus] to be put to death. And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left. And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise (Luke 23:32,33,39-43). The thief on one side of Jesus rebuked Him; and the thief on the other side asked to be remembered in the Kingdom. That repentant thief recognized Jesus to be the Christ; and Jesus in His suffering, His torture, His torment, forgave him and took him to paradise with Him. Isn’t that a wonderful Christ, a beautiful Christ! Yet on that appointed day, His coming will be anything but beautiful; all the beauty will be gone.

God Will Laugh at Their Calamity

Evil men did their best to destroy Jesus’ beauty; they did their best to destroy those beautiful eyes. His eyes were swollen almost shut, His face beaten into a pulp. The prophet Isaiah said that there was nothing desirable about Him physically in His crucified state. He hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him (Isaiah 53:2).

Those who tortured Jesus hated Him; they had allowed the devil to put that hatred into their hearts. But on the appointed day of the Great White Throne Judgment they will see the hatred of God heaped upon them, and they will see Jesus upon the throne. Imagine how Pilate, how the Roman soldiers who helped crucify Jesus are going to feel. Think about all the people who said, Let him be crucified…His blood be on us, and on our children (Matthew 27:23,25). They will be filled with unimaginable horror to hear their judge saying, Depart from me into everlasting fire.

The appointed day: Will it mean eternal life or eternal death for you? The question today, I say again, is: Will you accept Christ? But on tomorrow, on the appointed day, the question will be: Will Christ accept you? Today is the acceptable time; today is your day, but you have no promise of tomorrow. God gave this message for a warning today.

Many laughed and made fun of Jesus, made fun of His people. He’s been gone two thousand years and people still laugh at Christ; but on that appointed day who will be laughing? No one. They may mock Him now, but on that day the mockery all will be gone. They may sneer at Him now as some may have sneered at you. Perhaps some of your own family members have made fun of you because you believe in that wonderful Christ and you strive to be as much like Him as you possibly can. Still you show them His great love. The devils in those family members despise and hate that; they are mocking you today, but they won’t be mocking on the appointed day. On the appointed day there will be no laughter from them. If there is any laughter it will come from the throne, for God said, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh (Proverbs 1:26). He will laugh and mock them in their calamity, in their fear. The laughing, mocking God—it’s going to happen.

Many of us were taught only that Jesus was humble and meek. I remember when I was a boy and heard a minister preach on the mocking, laughing Christ—I could hardly stand it. I thought his sermon was the most disgraceful one I had ever heard, that he needed to be thrown out of church for he was too despicable to be in the pulpit. How dare anyone claim to be a man of God and say that Jesus would laugh and mock us one day? But then the years passed by and one day I read it in the Bible for myself. I read in the Word of the living God that He would mock our fears and laugh at our calamities; He would be a laughing, mocking Christ.

I had always been told that Jesus loved me. Mama didn’t say He liked me; she said He loved me. There’s a difference in love and like. I couldn’t bear to think that a time would come when Jesus wouldn’t love me, when He wouldn’t have those nail-riven hands reaching out for me. I had been taught such great love of Him I thought He’d always want me, always have His arms wide open for me; but I learned one day that wasn’t true at all. I’m glad I woke up before it was too late. I’m glad I found Jesus while He was still the compassionate Christ, the Christ of love. I don’t want Him to ever be my judge.

Today He Is the Saving, Healing Christ

When you receive salvation you meet your judgment for sins at the Cross, and because you take Jesus into your heart as your Savior, you are acquitted of your sins. When God sits on the throne to judge the wicked dead, those who went to Calvary won’t be there. That appointed day is not for the righteous; for the righteous it will be the Day of Rewards because they met their judgment for sin at the Cross, and their sins were washed away. There’s no judgment for the righteous; what would there be to judge? You are either forgiven or you’re not forgiven. The Bible says, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (I John 1:9). There’s no judgment for you, Child of God, because Jesus took your place on Calvary. Jesus went to Calvary and you who are born again don’t have to be at the judgment, the appointed day. Your sins are forgiven; you can’t be judged for something that is forgiven.

Isn’t it marvelous to know that the children of God are not headed for the appointed day? As travelers we’re traveling toward that city whose builder and maker is God; we’re traveling to that wonderful place called Heaven. And we’ll hear Him say, Welcome home daughter! Welcome home son! Enter into the joys of the Lord.

Eternal life, eternal love, eternal goodness, eternal mercy will belong to the children of God as the years roll on for all eternity. Forever we’ll enjoy the wonderful salvation that we found on Mount Calvary. Thank God for the Savior Jesus!

I wouldn’t want to meet God as the judge of the wicked dead; I wouldn’t want to meet Him on those grounds. He hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world (Acts 17:31). The day is appointed and it’s getting closer and closer. You’ve had appointed days for special things. Some of those appointments you liked and some of them you disliked, but nobody is going to like this judgment day appointment, I assure you. This will be the cruelest appointment that man has ever met. It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment (Hebrews 9:27). Those who don’t meet the Cross judgment and are acquitted of their sins will meet an appointed day when they will be judged. Oh God help the sinner today! Please God, don’t let anyone who has read this message die and go to hell! Don’t let them be there at the appointed day of judgment! Oh Lord, help them to accept you!

If you’re unsaved, please say the sinners’ prayer with me: Oh, God, save my soul! I don’t want to be at the judgment; I don’t want to face that appointment. I ask for mercy! I want Jesus to be my Savior; I want the Jesus of love, not the Jesus of hate. Please God, for Christ’s sake forgive me for all of my sins! I do believe that Jesus died for me; I do believe that He will save me, and I believe the blood of Jesus washes away all of my sins. Come into my heart Jesus! Come on in Jesus! If you meant that prayer you now can say, Hallelujah, He has come! Hallelujah, Jesus is mine!

Isn’t it wonderful to know you don’t have an appointed day to worry about! Salvation cancels that appointment. You had that appointment before you found Jesus, but now it’s cancelled through the mercy, the blood that stained the Old Rugged Cross. The blood is the only thing that could have cancelled out your day of appointment.

You who are sick and afflicted: You can be made well. You who are blind can have your sight. Even if you’re afflicted with AIDS or leprosy, you can be healed. You who have heart trouble, sugar diabetes, cancer, it doesn’t matter what it may be; there is nothing God cannot heal. You may need a miracle of re-creation, God is the creator and He re-creates; He’s done it again and again through this Jesus ministry. I’m His believer endowed with His gifts, and the Holy Spirit operates His gifts through my life; untold hundreds of thousands have been healed by the miracle power of God. If you have a little one who is afflicted, that little one can be healed right now; just believe God with me; believe His Word that promises with his stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53:5).

Lord, I bring the sick and afflicted to you; I bring them in your healing faith, your love faith, your love healing power; and as the servant of the living God, I inject your miracle power into the bodies of the people. Heal! in the name of Jesus of Nazareth. Heal! in the all-powerful name of Jesus. Heal! Heal! in the name of the Lord.

The healing power has gone into you or into your child if you believe His healing promises. Watch yourself or your child get well and write and tell me about it so I can rejoice with you.

Let’s Win the Lost at Any Cost

Think again of the appointed day and feel a burden for the lost. To see Christ lay aside His robe of love and become a cruel, cruel judge should make anyone tremble. Those eyes of such love and such kindness are now full of hate, the terrible eyes that I read about in the book of Revelation. I’m glad that after Jesus judges the world, after God judges the wicked dead, they will lay aside their robes of judgment and hate. All judgments will be over and God will adorn Himself in that robe of love for His children for all eternity.

Let’s win the lost at any cost, even giving our very lives if necessary to bring them in. See the horror they must be saved from. So many are in darkness; they’ve never had the Gospel light; they don’t know who Jesus is. They know only night, and it will be eternal night they’re going to plunge into if we fail. We must not fail or multitudes will die and go to hell. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:12-15). Oh God help us not to fail!