Introduction
If God has forgiven your sins and cast them into the deepest sea, never to be remembered again, what will you be judged for on the last day? This question reveals a thoughtful tension many believers feel between the promise of complete forgiveness and the biblical teaching of a coming Day of Judgment. Pastor Jim Butler walks through how justification by faith relates to the final judgment, explaining that the Day of Judgment is not an investigation to determine our status, but a confirmation and manifestation of what God has already done through the righteousness of Christ.
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Transcript
Summary Keywords: Judgment Day, forgiveness of sins, Day of Judgment, justification by faith, Psalm 103, Micah 7, righteousness of Christ, earthly courtrooms, glory of God, mercy of God, condemnation, salvation, gospel, final verdict, Son of God.
Speakers: Wim Kerkhoff, Pastor Cam Porter, Pastor Jim Butler
The Question
Wim Kerkhoff (00:00):
A great question, it was submitted, is, if I’m forgiven and my sins are cast into the deepest sea and remembered no more, then what sins do I have to give account for when I die? So really on Judgment Day, I guess we could interpret there. And so thinking of Psalm 103:12, or Micah 7:19.
Understanding the Day of Judgment
Pastor Jim Butler (00:24):
Yeah, that is a great question, and I think that it shows, you know, good contemplation of the age to come. It’s a bit of a difficult answer, and I’m not going to confess or state that I have everything right, but that the Bible teaches a day of judgment for both the righteous and the unrighteous. Everybody agrees. Now, obviously there’s some that don’t agree, but for the most part, the Christian consensus has been there is a day of judgment coming. Christ will separate the sheep from the goats. The sheep will be received into glory, and the goats will be cast off into everlasting punishment. So that the Bible teaches that nobody doubts that.
But how that operates is a bit of a different story. What is it or what does it look like in terms of the Day of Judgment? What does it look like in terms of us then being ushered into the presence of God?
So as I reflected upon the question, I would just highlight that the questioner is right in the sense of the verses here, Psalm 103 and Micah seven, of course. Psalm 103 the psalmist rejoices in the forgiveness of sins. Micah 7:19, the prophet talks about God casting our sins into the depths of the sea.
Good question, what am I going to be judged for? Then, on the Day of Judgment?
The Foundation: Justification by Faith
Well, I want to establish, first, justification by faith alone, that in justification, God does pardon all of our sins and accepts us as righteous in His sight only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us and received by faith alone. Justification by faith is a legal or forensic declaration. Paul is able to say in Romans 8:1 there is therefore, now no condemnation for those who are in Christ, Jesus.
Earthly Courts vs. Divine Judgment
Now how that all plays out on the Day of Judgment? I would want to make a few observations. I would suggest, first, we need to sort of separate what happens on the Day of Judgment versus what happens in earthly courtrooms today.
In an earthly courtroom today, there is an examination of evidence, there is witness testimony, there is cross examination to determine the guilt or the innocence or the not guilt of the party that is under examination. It’s not going to be that way. On the Day of Judgment, God’s not going to say, hey, Wim, on August 4 in 2025 Did you commit this sin? It’s not going to be like that.
I think our confession deals with it well in Chapter 32 at paragraph two, that says the end of God’s appointing this day is for the manifestation of the glory of His mercy. So with reference to the righteous, the Day of Judgment functions to manifest the glory of God’s mercy. It’s going to be the ultimate verdict rendered. And then, of course, the pathway opened again, how that looks for us to be ushered into the presence of God Most High.
The Purpose: Manifestation of God’s Glory
But the bottom line, it’s not an investigation to determine status, but a confirmation of what God has already done, and a manifestation of the glory of God, specifically directed to the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
So, you know, I’ve thought all your sins are going to be published, and then it’s going to be not guilty, not because of you having atoned for it, but by virtue of the work of the only begotten Son of God.
So, yeah, great question, a difficulty in terms of the logistics and the how. But I think making that separation between what happens in earthly courts versus what happens on the Day of Judgment is helpful, and then keeping in mind the manifestation of the glory of His mercy.
Yeah, we are guilty. Yeah. We did sin on August 4, 2025, and every day that we lived. But the glory of the gospel is we have no condemnation presently, and we’re going to have that sort of verdict rendered finally on the Day of Judgment, not in terms of a second justification or final justification, justification, but declaring what has been true by virtue of the work of the Son of God, For that manifestation of the glory of His mercy.
Pastor Cam Porter (04:43):
Yeah, excellent. It’s an excellent answer. It’s not going to be about the believers sin, but about the Savior’s salvation. Praise God for that. Amen.
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