We Need to Examine Our Own Lives
Jan 14, 2008
1st Corinthians 11:31 says, “For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged.” We need to judge, or assess, our own lives to avoid being judged, or condemned. Just like a good student will test himself on the class material before exam day, a good Christian needs to examine his own life before Judgment Day. The Bible says that “we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ” (2nd Corinthians 5:10). With judgment coming up, we must be sure we are ready for it. And to get ready, we need to find out what we will be judged by and examine our lives to make sure we are living up to it.
Judgment is going to come for us all (2nd Corinthians 5:10). It will be a separation of the righteous from the unrighteous (Matthew 25:31-46). This is, above all, what we need to be ready for. At that time, we may hear “come, you blessed of My Father” (Matthew 25:34); or we may hear “depart from Me, you cursed” (Matthew 25:41). The judgment will not be general or random. It will be based on the law that Jesus instituted as He spoke God’s word. As recorded in John 12:48 and 49, He gave the following warning: “He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him " the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day. For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak.”
Since we will be judged by God’s word, it is important that we are familiar with God’s word. It is our duty to “[find] out what is acceptable to the Lord” (Ephesians 5:10). We are instructed in Ephesians 5:17 to “not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” If you were going to be a lifeguard, you would first learn how to swim because your life might someday depend on it. It is even more important to learn God’s word because our souls are going to depend on it. Our responsibility is to pay attention to God’s will. If we fail to do so, He is not going to force us. He will allow us to sin, if that’s what we choose (Romans 1:28).
Being familiar with God’s word is not enough, however. It is equally important to examine our own lives and be sure that we are living up to His requirements. The Bible says that we are to “walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise” (Ephesians 5:15). According to Thayer’s Lexicon, the word circumspectly means, “to live carefully.” Pretending that we have no faults will not do us any good (1st John 1:8-10). Instead, it is important that we address these problems and take care of them. It may be uncomfortable or even painful to discover these problems in our lives and fix them. However, it is better to find out about them now and fix them than it will be to find out about them on Judgment Day when it is too late.
Judgment Day will come for each and every one of us. Rather than learning of how we failed God on that day, why not examine our lives from day to day and correct whatever problems we have now? If we disobey God, He will judge us harshly. But, “if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged” (1st Corinthians 11:31).
Judgment is going to come for us all (2nd Corinthians 5:10). It will be a separation of the righteous from the unrighteous (Matthew 25:31-46). This is, above all, what we need to be ready for. At that time, we may hear “come, you blessed of My Father” (Matthew 25:34); or we may hear “depart from Me, you cursed” (Matthew 25:41). The judgment will not be general or random. It will be based on the law that Jesus instituted as He spoke God’s word. As recorded in John 12:48 and 49, He gave the following warning: “He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him " the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day. For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak.”
Since we will be judged by God’s word, it is important that we are familiar with God’s word. It is our duty to “[find] out what is acceptable to the Lord” (Ephesians 5:10). We are instructed in Ephesians 5:17 to “not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” If you were going to be a lifeguard, you would first learn how to swim because your life might someday depend on it. It is even more important to learn God’s word because our souls are going to depend on it. Our responsibility is to pay attention to God’s will. If we fail to do so, He is not going to force us. He will allow us to sin, if that’s what we choose (Romans 1:28).
Being familiar with God’s word is not enough, however. It is equally important to examine our own lives and be sure that we are living up to His requirements. The Bible says that we are to “walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise” (Ephesians 5:15). According to Thayer’s Lexicon, the word circumspectly means, “to live carefully.” Pretending that we have no faults will not do us any good (1st John 1:8-10). Instead, it is important that we address these problems and take care of them. It may be uncomfortable or even painful to discover these problems in our lives and fix them. However, it is better to find out about them now and fix them than it will be to find out about them on Judgment Day when it is too late.
Judgment Day will come for each and every one of us. Rather than learning of how we failed God on that day, why not examine our lives from day to day and correct whatever problems we have now? If we disobey God, He will judge us harshly. But, “if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged” (1st Corinthians 11:31).