“For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God, and if it first begins with us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?” 1 Pet 4:17
Our word judgment may be properly applied to not only the process of the trial, but also to the result of the trial that is the decision or verdict. In the former sense the judgment (krisis) of the Church began over nineteen hundred years ago, and has been progressing ever since. But in the latter sense it (the krima), is due in the end of the harvest of the Gospel age.
When the scriptures state that judgment begins with the “house of God”, we must understand that both the true house, and the false house have existed together for most of these many centuries but, only the true house has been under judgment sense its conception, It began with the Head of the “house of God,” with our Lord Jesus Christ, who was tempted (tried) in all points like as are we (Heb 2:18), BUT NOW at the end of the age the time has come to separate the true and the false Christian, the wheat and the tares in the nominal (professing) church.
As our Lord stated in Matt 13:30 “Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.”
And in Matt 13:38-40 “The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; the enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world (age); and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world (age).”
We can now see by having a proper understanding and meaning of the word “judgment” what the statement made in 1 Pet 4:17 means, which states that “judgment must begin at the house of God” That is the “krisis”, or testing time, for every true Christian, (the wheat class), which began, when at first, the individual made his or her consecration to the Lord, the individual was then, at that time, placed on trial for life, and as they progress or regress the final decision “krima” is being decided in their individual cases by the Lord.
And since the Church is not to be brought into judgment with the rest of the world, their trial must of necessity take place now, in the Gospel age. “For the time is come” not only for the true, but for the false as well.
As we have reached the end of the age, the harvest, it is time for the “krima” of the nominal professing Church, the organization, NOT the individual members, the individual members are only being judge so far as to separate the true, (the wheat), from the false, (the tares), the true are now coming to the “krima” decision for their part, but the false are only being judge as a system, this is not the time for their individual judgment, that will come later in the “appointed day”.
For now judgment has come upon the system, “Babylon”.
“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.” Rev 14:7
This judgment against Great Babylon has already taken place, the “krima” or final decision has been rendered, and the sentence pronounced:
“Thou have been weighed in the balances, and have been found wanting…” (Dan 5:27)
“Behold, thy house is left unto you desolate.” Matt 23:38
(Compare Isa 8:14) The nominal Jewish house, the fleshly of the Jewish age and the nominal Christian house, the spiritual of the Gospel age stand related to each other as type to antitype.
“Babylon hath been (was) a golden cup in the Lord’s hand that made all the earth drunken: the nations have drunken of her wine (false teachings); therefore the nations are mad. Babylon is suddenly fallen and will be destroyed: howl for her; take balm for her pain, if so be she may be healed. We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed: forsake her, and let us go every one into his own country: for her judgment reaches unto heaven, and is lifted up even to the skies.” Jer 51:7-9
“…Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.” Rev 18: 2-4
“And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all. And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee; And the light of a lamp (the Word of God) shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom (Our Lord) and of the bride (the True Church) shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.” Rev 18: 21-23
These are but a few of the scriptures which show that the “krima" or judgment has already been made, now at the end of this age, in the case of “Babylon the Great”, “the false house”, but let us make clear that Babylon’s judgment or final decision is a judgment upon the system NOT the individual members within her.
In our next post we will take a look at our second scripture Acts 17:31 concerning the judgment of the world.
Our word judgment may be properly applied to not only the process of the trial, but also to the result of the trial that is the decision or verdict. In the former sense the judgment (krisis) of the Church began over nineteen hundred years ago, and has been progressing ever since. But in the latter sense it (the krima), is due in the end of the harvest of the Gospel age.
When the scriptures state that judgment begins with the “house of God”, we must understand that both the true house, and the false house have existed together for most of these many centuries but, only the true house has been under judgment sense its conception, It began with the Head of the “house of God,” with our Lord Jesus Christ, who was tempted (tried) in all points like as are we (Heb 2:18), BUT NOW at the end of the age the time has come to separate the true and the false Christian, the wheat and the tares in the nominal (professing) church.
As our Lord stated in Matt 13:30 “Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.”
And in Matt 13:38-40 “The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; the enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world (age); and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world (age).”
We can now see by having a proper understanding and meaning of the word “judgment” what the statement made in 1 Pet 4:17 means, which states that “judgment must begin at the house of God” That is the “krisis”, or testing time, for every true Christian, (the wheat class), which began, when at first, the individual made his or her consecration to the Lord, the individual was then, at that time, placed on trial for life, and as they progress or regress the final decision “krima” is being decided in their individual cases by the Lord.
And since the Church is not to be brought into judgment with the rest of the world, their trial must of necessity take place now, in the Gospel age. “For the time is come” not only for the true, but for the false as well.
As we have reached the end of the age, the harvest, it is time for the “krima” of the nominal professing Church, the organization, NOT the individual members, the individual members are only being judge so far as to separate the true, (the wheat), from the false, (the tares), the true are now coming to the “krima” decision for their part, but the false are only being judge as a system, this is not the time for their individual judgment, that will come later in the “appointed day”.
For now judgment has come upon the system, “Babylon”.
“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.” Rev 14:7
This judgment against Great Babylon has already taken place, the “krima” or final decision has been rendered, and the sentence pronounced:
“Thou have been weighed in the balances, and have been found wanting…” (Dan 5:27)
“Behold, thy house is left unto you desolate.” Matt 23:38
(Compare Isa 8:14) The nominal Jewish house, the fleshly of the Jewish age and the nominal Christian house, the spiritual of the Gospel age stand related to each other as type to antitype.
“Babylon hath been (was) a golden cup in the Lord’s hand that made all the earth drunken: the nations have drunken of her wine (false teachings); therefore the nations are mad. Babylon is suddenly fallen and will be destroyed: howl for her; take balm for her pain, if so be she may be healed. We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed: forsake her, and let us go every one into his own country: for her judgment reaches unto heaven, and is lifted up even to the skies.” Jer 51:7-9
“…Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.” Rev 18: 2-4
“And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all. And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee; And the light of a lamp (the Word of God) shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom (Our Lord) and of the bride (the True Church) shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.” Rev 18: 21-23
These are but a few of the scriptures which show that the “krima" or judgment has already been made, now at the end of this age, in the case of “Babylon the Great”, “the false house”, but let us make clear that Babylon’s judgment or final decision is a judgment upon the system NOT the individual members within her.
In our next post we will take a look at our second scripture Acts 17:31 concerning the judgment of the world.
