We can all laugh at cartoons or comedy sketches about courtrooms where the judge breaks his gavel or looks foolish in some other way, but the fact is judgment awaits every one of us. Our perfect, holy judge, the Lord Jesus Christ, will be the One who dispenses justice at the end of the age (Matthew 13:39-40, 49; 24:3; 28:20). What about when He came in the flesh? What about now? How does the Bible describe Jesus as Judge?
Does the Bible Describe Jesus as a Judge?
The Bible does describe Jesus as a judge. However, His role as a judge will not be seen until (1) after we die and stand before Him, (2) after He gathers His church to our heavenly home, or (3) at the end of the tribulation mentioned in Matthew 24:21. Scholars are divided about meaning the timing and meaning of the tribulation.
In Jesus’ first advent, Scripture is clear that He came as a savior, not a judge. John 3:17 tells us God didn’t send Jesus as judge, but instead, He came “that the world should be saved through Him.”
Did Jesus come—in His first advent—to judge the world? Stephen Davey, the senior pastor at Colonial Baptist Church and President of Shepherds Theological Seminary in North Carolina, breaks down the passage this way:
“For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through Him. [John 3:17]
Now, people say, ‘See, it says right here that Jesus didn’t come into the world to judge the world.’
The word send, is the Greek word apostello, which is the word from which we get our word apostle. It simply refers to sending someone forth as a messenger on a mission. His message was not a message of judgment. Why?
Look on to the first part of John 3:18.
He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already...
Jesus did not bring a message of judgment, because the world was already under judgment. In other words, why condemn an already condemned world?!
No! When Jesus came to planet earth, His purpose for coming was clearly spelled out by the angels. They said to the shepherds, as recorded in Luke 2:11,
Not a judge, not a teacher, not a healer, not a philosopher . . . a SAVIOR!”
Taken from “Reborn - The Decision (John 3:16-19)” by Wisdom for the Heart Ministries (used by permission).
Why Did Jesus Say He Came?
Davey’s explanation raises the question of what Jesus said he came to do. He himself said that he came to:
- fulfill the Law and the Prophets (Matthew 5:17).
- glorify the Father (John 12:27; 17:4).
- testify to the truth (John 18:37).
- preach the good news (Mark 1:38).
- seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10).
- serve and give His life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45).
- bring a sword (Matthew 10:34-35).
- that we may have life abundantly (John 10:10).
In other parts of the New Testament, the writers say Jesus came to:
- save sinners (John 3:16; 1 Timothy 1:15).
- destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8).
- free those who feared death and remove the power from he who had the power of death (Hebrews 2:14).
- demonstrate His righteousness (Romans 3:25-26).
- confirm the promises given to the fathers and the Gentiles to glorify God for His mercy (Romans 15:8-9).
Why Did Jesus Say He Came for Judgment?
One verse tells us Jesus came for judgment (John 9:39), “And Jesus said, ‘For judgment I came into this world, so that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind’”
We must look at this verse within its context. Jesus had just healed a man born blind. The Pharisees took issue with it and tried to prod the man to renounce Jesus as a charlatan. They reasoned he surely must have sinned somehow to be struck with blindness. In the ensuing conversation, Jesus uttered His statement about judgment. Ligonier Ministries explains, “We see, then, an ironic contrast between two groups of people. Some people are born blind and know they are blind. Jesus is quite willing to open the eyes of these individuals, not merely physically, but spiritually, so that they may see and believe. The man born blind represents these individuals. Others, however, think that they can see, not only physically but spiritually. The Pharisees, who are actually blind to the things of God, represent this second group. Jesus came into the world for judgment, to give sight to the blind and to show how blind are those who trust in themselves spiritually. This is not at odds with His purpose to bring salvation (3:17) but is its secondary and necessary result.”
Did Jesus Judge Other People?
Jesus will apply His sole privilege as judge at His second coming. When He is called or calls Himself the “Son of Man,” He is calling Himself the heavenly judge, and that title foresees His coming role. Therefore, as we saw above, in His incarnation, he acted not as judge but as Savior.
We can ponder how we are to be conformed to His image (Romans 8:29) and imitate Him (1 Corinthians 11:1; 1 Peter 2:21; 1 John 2:6). It is this author’s contention we are to imitate Jesus as He was in His incarnation, as He commanded. We cannot, by the confines of our flesh, imitate Him in His post-resurrection high priestly state as eternal judge (Acts 10:42). Only our perfect Savior can mete out judgment purely and righteously. His role as judge was consummated when He ascended.
Matthew 7:1-2 tells us not to judge. J. C. Ryle, the first Anglican Bishop of Liverpool and prolific author of biblical commentaries, sums up the passage’s meaning as follows:
“‘Don't judge, so that you won't be judged. For with whatever judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with whatever measure you measure, it will be measured to you.’ (Matthew 7:1-2)
The first portion of these verses is one of those passages of Scripture that we must be careful not to strain beyond its proper meaning. It is frequently abused and misapplied by the enemies of true religion. It is possible to press the words of the Bible so far that they yield not medicine, but poison.
Our Lord does not mean that it is wrong, under any circumstances, to pass an unfavorable judgment on the conduct and opinions of others. We should have decided opinions. We are to ‘prove all things.’ We are to ‘try the spirits.’ Nor does He mean that it is wrong to reprove the sins and faults of others unless we are perfect and faultless ourselves. Such an interpretation would contradict other parts of Scripture. It would make it impossible to condemn error and false doctrine. It would bar anyone from attempting the office of a minister or a judge.
What our Lord means to condemn is a censorious and fault-finding spirit: a readiness to blame others for trifling offenses or matters of indifference—a habit of passing rash and hasty judgments—a disposition to magnify the errors and infirmities of our neighbors and make the worst of them. This is what our Lord forbids. It was common among the Pharisees. It has always been common from their day down to the present time. We must all watch against it. We should ‘believe all things’ and ‘hope all things’ about others and be very slow to find fault. This is Christian charity (1 Corinthians 13:7).”
Adapted from The Gospel of Matthew by J.C. Ryle (Chapter 7).
As always, the student of Scripture must be aware of the ever-important context of the passage and the speaker. Of course, Jesus is speaking in this passage. He is the One who will judge eternally. We are to judge temporally, as in church discipline. The meaning of the word “judge” is also vital to our understanding of the passage. Is it that we can utter eternal condemnation on a person? Absolutely not. Having the Holy Spirit, however, we gain the necessary discernment to determine the outcome of a member’s sinful behavior. Our judgment is based wholly and solely on the Spirit and Scripture’s direction. Pastor Don Stewart adds, “Judgment is something that believers are commanded to do in certain ways. We are not to judge people in the sense of condemning them. The church does have the responsibility to excommunicate people for sin. Any judgment that is done, is to be done righteously.”
Jesus’ mandates have been proclaimed and written for us in His Word. Until He comes in judgment, we are to occupy within His church to make disciples (proclaim the Gospel) and teach them to obey His commands (Matthew 28:19-20). As the One who reigns over everything in heaven and on earth, His rule will one day include judgment (Matthew 25:31-32).
Will Jesus Judge the World at the Second Coming?
“I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom” (1 Timothy 4:1).
According to Dr. Craig Nelson, “The judgment of every human being is sealed at the point of physical death” (Hebrews 9:27-28). He continues, “The Born-Again Christian should trust in the reward of Christ, which is the inheritance that He secured for them by His own works. When they stand before the Bema seat, they will stand as ‘righteous,’ and perfect in every way before God, because they have a Savior who died in their place and delivered them a full inheritance, a full reward by His work and became THE Mercy seat that covers all their sin, past, present, and future (Matt 10:41; Eph 14:18; Rom 3:25; Heb 9:5).”
Therefore, this coming judgment will occur for believers (Christians) at the Bema Seat (2 Corinthians 5:8-10), but this is for the dispensing of rewards, for our sins have been wiped out (John 5:24, John 5:28-29). When one is found in the Book of Life, he is not judged, but rewards are given according to his works for the Lord.
Some scholars say the Great White Throne Judgment for unbelievers (everyone who has rejected Christ) is concurrent with the Bema Seat judgment (Revelation 20:11-15). Matthew 25:31-46 tells us Jesus (as the Son of Man) will be the judge. Verse 33 says, “And He will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.”
Whatever the case, Jesus is our judge. It behooves us to be in the Word, abide in Christ, and walk by the Spirit. As believers, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ” (Colossians 3:23-24). Pray for unbelievers who could fearfully fall into the hands of our living God, who will judge all people (Hebrews 10:30-31).
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