The final Judgment Day is obviously one of the fundamentals of Christian doctrine (Hebrews 9:27), "it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." The contemporary Gospel of Love and Positiveness has driven, for the most part, this truth from both the pulpit and the pew. The concept of fearing (from the Greek phobia) God and moral integrity has been flushed into the cesspool of political correctness.

However, there are still numerous disciples in America that still fervently desire to live a godly life, in harmony with the righteousness of God revealed in the Bible (Romans 1:16-17). Because of the efforts of the media to undermine biblical righteousness, it becomes easy for us (as individuals) to come down with the "Elijah" virus. When Elijah was being pursued by King Ahab and his famous wife Jezebel (1 Kings 19), he cried out to God, "I alone am left; and they seek to take my life" (verse 10). After commissioning Elijah to anoint Elisha as his successor, God pointed out, "I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal" (verse 18).

Solomon (the wisest of the wise), in Ecclesiastes, reveals how man is to be happy and contented in this life. After admonishing young people to, "Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them" (12:1). Solomon then summarizes the whole duty of man (12:13-14). He writes, "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil."

Jesus not only taught the reality of the Day of Judgment (Matthew 11:22), but also the "danger of hell fire" (Matthew 5:22). However, it was the apostle Paul that gives us real insight to the final Judgment Day. In discussing the God of the Bible with the Greek philosophers in Athens, Paul points out that their pagan ignorance of the true and living God was once overlooked or "winked at" (Acts 17:30). Paul then states, that God now (in the age of the Gospel) commands all men every where to repent of sin and immorality. The rational or reason for repentance is that God has "appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness" (verse 31). Furthermore, the assurance of the final judgment is the resurrection of Christ from the dead.

In writing to one of the most licentious cities in the Roman empire, Paul stated, "we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad" (2 Corinthians 5:10). In the next verse, Paul points out that because we know the terror of the LORD, we are to persuade men to obey the Gospel before it is too late (2 Corinthians 5:11)!

Dale I. Royal, Elk City, OK