Free from
Fear of Judgment

The Christian should be free from the fear of judgment. The natural man should fear it; the Christian should be free from such fear. Is there anything that is more glorious about the Gospel than just that?...

It is not death but what comes after it that frightens me. But, says the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews, that was the whole purpose of Christ’s coming— that He might deliver us from this torment of death that holds us captive....

“Ye,” says the Apostle Paul in Romans, “have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba Father…[We] ourselves also,” he goes on to say, “which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for”—that is it—“waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body” (Rom 8:15, 23–24). This is everywhere in Scripture, so that to assume that this is something to which the Christian is not entitled and to consider it as a kind of presumption is to be thoroughly unscriptural....

The first way to get rid of this fear is to understand the doctrine of justification by faith only. That is why the Protestant Fathers emphasized it, and that is why only an utterly superficial idea of Christianity dislikes this doctrine. The first way for us to get rid of this fear of the Day of Judgment is to realize what God has done for us in the Person and the work of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Let me put this practically. As I contemplate myself standing before God on the Day of Judgment, I know perfectly well I am a sinner. I have offended God, have broken His Law, and have forgotten Him. I have not loved Him with all my heart, mind, soul, and strength. I have been guilty of sins against His people and against myself. I am a sinner. How can I stand there? There is only one way in which I can stand: that is to know and believe that He sent forth His Son to bear my sins in His own body on the tree. Hiding in Christ—nothing else can give me peace at that point. I may say that I have done a lot of good, but what is the value of good to counteract the evil I have done? There is only one thing, and it is Christ. I am hiding in Him....

My only hope is that there is a cloak of righteousness woven by the Son of God Himself that will cover me, that will cover the darkness of my sins and my sinful life, so that I shall stand clothed, robed, and perfected in my Lord and Savior. That is the first thing to realize—the love of God and what He has done for me. Justification by faith only!...

Let us be clear as to the position here. We will not be perfect in this world, but as we dwell in Christ and as we manifest this love, we will know that we are in God and God in us. We will realize that we have nothing but Him, that though we are still imperfect, “He which hath begun a good work in [us] will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Phi 1:6). He will perfect us; and so at the end, He will “present [us] faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy” (Jude 24). The more I am like Christ, the less I will fear the Day of Judgment, and the greater will be my boldness as I think of it and as I contemplate it.

Full Text: https://www.monergism.com/free-fear-judgment-1-john-418