Remember when you signed up for a class? For some of you that time is now. For others, we have to think a long way back. You were motivated by the desire to learn, the need for credit hours, or the reputation of a teacher. Regardless of your motivation, you also had an expectation. You knew that there would be a final exam.
Finals. The final reckoning of how well you did during the quarter or semester. If you were faithful along the way, then there was no particular need to fear the final.
There was always a desire on my part as a student to ask the teacher along the way, “Is that going to be on the test?”… Or… Do we have to know this for the final?
When you signed on to follow Jesus by accepting Him as your Lord and Savior, you may not have thought about a final exam. Nevertheless, the Bible is crystal clear that our lives will be evaluated one day after we die.
How will God evaluate our lives? What will be on the test?
This Sunday we will look to answer these questions. This is the next step in our series: New Expectations – What do we have to look forward to… Below are some passages from the Bible that will help set the stage for our study together.
Looking forward to our study session together. May it help us be ready for the final exam!
See you Sunday morning.
Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him. Heb 9:27
The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. Rev 20:13-15
We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due to him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. 2Corinthians 5:8-10
For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living. You, then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. It is written: “‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘Every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.’” So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God. Romans 14:9-12
Submitted by Pastor Keith, 3:00 pm
