Jesus was judge of the living and dead

JESUS WAS JUDGE OF THE LIVING AND DEAD
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
Acts 10:42 42He commanded us to preach to the
people and to testify that he is the one whom God
appointedas judge of the livingand the dead.
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
Pulpit Commentary Homiletics
The Savior's Charge To His Ministers
Acts 10:42
R.A. Redford
He commanded us to preach unto the people. No secrets in the Christian
religion. Apostles witnessesfor the sake ofothers. The key opened the door,
and then was flung away. Baptism of the Holy Ghost precededthe universal
message.
I. THE DIVINEST WORK OF GOD'S PEOPLE - TO PREACH.
1. The greatness ofthe work rests upon the greatnessofthe necessity.
Teaching cannever be dispensedwith. The rootof a true faith is knowledge.
Popular ignorance immeasurable.
2. No ritualistic display can supersede preaching. Nor is devotion the whole of
worship. As a moral force, Christianity must be preachedto men, both
conscienceandheart.

3. Preaching is the most simple and pure channel of connectionfrom soul to
soul. The Spirit flows through the Word.
II. THE CHIEF AIM OF GOD'S MINISTERS MUST BE TO REACH THE
PEOPLE.
1. No sophistry should blind us to the fact that the proclamationof gospel
truth is the first duty of Christians.
2. The Word preachedmust be the Word which is adapted to the people, life
powerlike that of evangelicaltruth.
3. Churches must guard againstbeing "atease in Zion." Edification is best
aimed at through aggressive efforts onthe surrounding population.
Intellectual preaching must be subordinated to popular wants. An educated
ministry is the want of the times, but the education, like all other means
employed, must be full of the Holy Ghost.
III. THE MASTER'S COMMISSION THE SUPPORT OF THE CHURCH'S
HOPES.
1. Directcharge must silence all questioning and all speculation.
2. Jesus Christreads the future. Let the commander give the orders. Then his
predictions of victory will be fulfilled.
3. The reflex actionof zealous fulfillment of the charge on the Church's own
faith and experience. These who do much for the people the happiest
Christians, the most assuredbelievers. The triumphs of practicalChristianity
will be its best evidence. What are we doing, both as individuals and as
Churches, to preach to the people? - R.
Christ's Coming to Judgment
Biblical Illustrator
Acts 10:39-43

And we are witnesses ofall things which he did both in the land of the Jews,
and in Jerusalem;whom they slew and hanged on a tree:…
This last actof Christ is a specialpart of His exultation and honour, bestowed
upon Him because He is the Son of Man (John 5:27). Wherein we have four
things to be distinctly considered —
1. The subject of it, Christ. Judgment is the actof the undivided Trinity. The
Father and Spirit judge in respectof authority and consent, but it is the act of
Christ in respectof visible management and execution.
2. The object. The quick and dead — i.e., all that at His coming do live, or
ever have lived. This is the object personal, and in this is included the real
object: viz., all the actions (2 Corinthians 4:5; Romans 2:16).
3. The fountain of this authority is God the Father;for He hath ordained
Christ to be the Judge.
4. The infallible truth, or unquestionable certainty of all this. He gave us
commandment to preach and testify it to the people. We had it in charge from
His own mouth; and dare not hide it. This truth, that our Lord Jesus Christ is
ordained by God the Father, to be the Judge of quick and dead, stands upon
the firm basis of Scripture authority (John 5:22; Acts 17:31;Romans 2:16).
Three things will be opened here.
I. First, THE CERTAINTYOF A JUDGMENT.This is truth of firmer
establishment than heavenand earth.

1. As the Scriptures aforementioned (with 2 Corinthians 5:10; Ecclesiastes
12:14;Matthew 12:36, etc.)do very plainly revealit: so the justice and
righteousness ofGod require it should be so (Genesis 18:25). Righteousness
requires that a difference be made betwixt the righteous and the wicked
(Isaiah 3:10). But no such distinction is fully made in this world (Ecclesiastes
7:15; Habakkuk 1:13; Ecclesiastes3:16, 17;James 5:6. 7).
2. Man is an accountable being. His actions have a relation to a law (Romans
14:12;Matthew 25:14, 15).
3. What need we seek evidence of this truth, further than our own conscience?
II. THE NATURE AND MANNER OF THIS JUDGEMENT.
1. It will be a greatand awful day (Jude 1:6). Three things will make it so.
(1) The manner of Christ's coming will be awfully solemn (1 Thessalonians
4:16, 17).
(2) Much more the work itself. For it is to judge the secrets ofmen (Romans
2:16). To severthe tares from the wheat. To make every man's whites and
blacks appear.
(3) And no less the executionof the sentence.

2. It will be a critical and exactjudgment, every man will be weighedto his
ounces and drachms. The name of the Judge is the Searcherof Hearts. No
hypocrite can escape. Justiceholds the balances in an evenhand.
3. It will be a universal judgment (2 Corinthians 5:10; Romans 14:12;
Revelation20:12).
4. It will be a judgment full of convictive clearness.
5. It will be a supreme and final judgment, from which lies no appeal.
III. THIS JUDGMENT MAKES FOR CHRIST'S HONOUR. For —
1. This actof judging pertaining properly to the kingly office; Christ will be
glorified as much in it as He hath been in either of the other. We find but
some few glimpses of the kingly office, breaking forth in this world. Now that
office will shine as the sun in the midst of the heavens.
2. This will be a display of His glory in the highest, before the whole world (2
Thessalonians 1:10).
3. This will roll awayforever the reproach of His death,Inferences:Is Jesus
Christ ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead?
1. How greatthen is the security believers have, that they shall not be
condemned in that day. Who shall condemn, when Christ is Judge?

2. How miserable a case will Christless souls be in at that day! They that are
Christless now will be speechless, helpless, andhopeless then.
3. How are all concernedto secure their interest in Christ, and therein an
eternity of happiness to their own souls, by the work of regeneration?
4. Then look to it, all you that hope to be found of Him in peace, that you
avoid those sins and live in the daily practice of those duties which the
considerationof that day powerfully persuades you to avoid or practise.
(1) See you be meek and patient under all injuries and abuses for Christ's
sake (James 5:7-9).
(2) Be communicative, public-hearted Christians, studying and devising
liberal things for Christ's distressedmembers (Matthew 25:34, 35).
(3) Be watchful and sober, and see that you be not overchargedwith the cares
and love of this presentlife (Luke 21:34, 35).
(4) Improve all your Master's talents. Take heedof the napkin (Matthew
25:14, 18).
(5) But above all, be sincere in your profession(Luke 12:1-3).

(J. Flavel.)
Jesus, the Judge
C. H. Spurgeon.
Acts 10:39-43
I. THE MESSAGE.
1. This begins with the assurance thatthere is a moral government. There is a
Judge over the race of men. Men are not permitted to do whatsoeveris right
in their own eyes. The race is not left to anarchy: Jesus Christ is Head of all.
2. We have to go on to saythat there will be a judgment. Consider —
(1) The characterof God. Being the Ruler of the world, He must do justice.
We should count any man a miserable counterfeitof a monarch if he never
administered justice. And "the Fatherwho without respectof persons judgeth
according to every man's works" will not permit offenders to insult His laws
with impunity.

(2) The characterof man equally involves a judgment, for he is evidently a
responsible being. We count not the cattle of the hills or the fish of the sea
responsible;no one blames the wolfthat he ravens, or the lion that he
devours; but when we come to think of man, we regard him as a creature
whose actions have a moral quality about them, and are either right or wrong.
Surely, where there is responsibility there is a law, and where there is a law
there must, some day or other, be rewards for well-doers and punishments for
malefactors.
(3) The present tangled condition of the world's history requires that there
should be a day of rectificationat the end of time. We often see the wicked
prosper, while the righteous are abased. The Judge of all the earth must do
right; and how can this be but by a final adjustment in which it shall be
clearly seenthat, though the wickedprosper for a while, they are as bullocks
fattening for the slaughter; and though the righteous suffer for a while, it is
but as the gold suffers in the furnace, that it may come forth purified?
(4) Moreover, there is in the consciencesofmost a testimony to a coming
judgment. I will not say of all men, for I believe that some manage so to drug
their self-consciousnessas atlast to quiet all their fears;but yet the most of
men believe in a judgment to come, and in their more thoughtful moods are
alarmed thereat.
3. This judgment will be conducted by the Man Christ Jesus. He will be thus
enthroned, I suppose, partly because it is involved in His mediatorial office, in
which the Lord hath put all things in subjectionunder His feet. But specially
remember that the Judge is the Man Christ Jesus. There must be special
reasonfor this honour done to the manhood of our Lord, or it would not be so
continually insisted upon (Daniel 7:13; John 5:22, 27;Matthew 25:31, 32;
Matthew 13:41). Be ye sure, then, of His impartiality. He is God, yet Man,
having an intense sympathy both with the King and with the subjects.

4. This judgment will concernall mankind. He will judge the quick and dead;
that is, those who will be alive at His coming He will judge, as well as those
who have already died. The summons will exempt no man. Here and there a
criminal escapesthe vigilant eye of human law; but there shall be no such
instance at the coming of the Lord.
5. A few words concerning this judgment. It will be —
(1) A very eminent one. It will be a judgment fixed by the peremptory
ordinance of God, for the text saith that He hath "ordained" Jesus to sit as
Judge. The whole trial will be most solemnly conducted (1 Thessalonians
4:16).
(2) Very searching, into deeds (2 Corinthians 5:10); words (Matthew 12:36);
every secretthing (Ecclesiastes12:14).
(3) Very exact. It will proceedupon evidence and documentary testimony, and
slander and hearsay will not be mentioned there. "The books were
opened."(4)Very severe;for things will not be judged by their outward
appearance, but put to thorough testand trial.
6. The sentences will be so just as to be indisputable, and eventhe condemned
will own the justness thereof. That verdict will be final and irreversible. When
Jesus has once pronounced it, there will be no appeal, no suing out of a writ of
error, no reversalof the decree. "Theseshallgo awayinto everlasting
punishment: but the righteous into life eternal."

II. THE EVIDENT IMPORTANCEOF THIS MESSAGE.
1. This may be gatheredfrom the text.
(1) "He commanded us." Then God must know that there is a great necessity
for its being declared.
(2) "To preach" — to herald, to proclaim. Lo, we this day precede the great
Judge, as the trumpeters go before our judges on assize day, and this is our
cry, "He cometh! Jesus, the Judge of quick and dead!"(3) "To testify."
Having given the proclamation, we are then to bear witness solemnly, and to
speak the fact over and over again for God, adding our own belief that it is
surely true.
(4) "Unto the people" — not to some few, but to all.
2. There is importance in this from other reasons.
(1) It sheds a greatlight upon the future of the ungodly.
(2) It reflects greatglory upon Christ. Ye may despise Him, but He is your
Masterafter all.
(3) It has a beneficial effectupon our everyday life. I constantly hear people
say, "Tellthe people about something that has to do with today — about
cleanliness and honesty, and all that." But if I want men to live righteously, I

know of no motive that can have greaterweightthan this. You are stewards;
you will have to give in your account. Will anybody tell me that this is
unpractical? If God will judge men at the last, it behoves men to see how they
live today.
(4) It has a convincing and awakening power. Mentremble when they hear of
judgment to come, and they are led to cry," What must we do to be saved?"
This is the plough which makes furrows for the good seed;the surgeon's knife
which prepares for the receptionof the healing balm. Years ago a
gentlewomanhad been spending an afternoonat cards, and the evening at a
ball. She came home very late, and found her maid servant reading a book.
"Ah," said she, "are you still poring over your dull books? Theymake you
moping and melancholy." The lady retired to her chamber, but she slept not.
In the night she was troubled, and fell a-weeping. She tossedto and fro; and at
length she calledher maid. She said, "Madam, what ails you? I thought I left
you very merry and well." "Oh," said she, "but I lookedoveryour book, and
I only saw one word, but that word stings me: I cannotsleep; I cannotbear
it!" "Whatword was it, madam?" "It was that word 'eternity.' Oh, maid,"
said she, "it is very wellfor me to sport and play and waste my time as I have
done; but oh, eternity, eternity, eternity! How can I face eternity?" And so
that night was turned to prayer. I could wish the like might happen now to
many of you.
(C. H. Spurgeon.)
The Certainty and Circumstances ofa Future Judgment
I. Barrow, D. D.
Acts 10:39-43

I. THERE IS A JUDGMENT ORDAINEDBY GOD AND TO BE
DECLARED TO MEN. The Holy Scripture teachethus —
1. That God hath appointed a determinate time for this judgment. "A day in
which He will judge the world in righteousness."
2. That in order to this judgment all the actions of men are with greater
exactness registeredin books. "The books were opened."
3. That, in order thereto, there shall be a generalresurrectionof all persons,
both just and unjust.
4. That then all persons so raised shall be presented at the bar of our Lord, to
answerand undergo their trial.
5. That then and there every thought, word, and work of men shall be
thoroughly disclosedand discussed;so that it, togetherwith its due quality
and desert, shall plainly appear.
6. That on eachman, according to the true quality of his doings, a definitive
sentence shallpass, whereby he shall be acquitted or condemned.

7. That according to the purport of this sentence a discrimination shall be
made; and to one party a gracious reward;to the other, a sore punishment.
8. That all this shall be transactedin a regular, public, and most solemn
manner, in open court, in the face and audience of all the world, before angels
and men.
9. That the judgment shall pass to the full conviction and entire satisfactionof
all that are present; so that eachone concernedtherein shall be forced in
conscienceto acquiesce in his doom, as most just and equal.
II. THE JUDGE ORDAINED;Jesus, ourLord and Saviour. Why it should be
so, many reasons may be assigned.
1. It was requisite that the judge should be visible, and audible; such whom
the parties concernedmight discern and converse with, in order to their
clearerand fuller satisfaction, orconviction:such our Lord, the Son of man,
clothed with glorified flesh, will be.
2. This Judgeshipis a goodpart of that regal office which God did conferon
Christ; giving Him a power over all flesh, all authority in heavenand earth.
3. It is an office of too greateminence to be imparted to any other. "Worthy is
He alone to receive the book."
4. He alone also capacities properfor this judicature: that Divine faculty of
searching men's hearts;wisdom to know all matters of fact that ever were,

and to discern the right in every case;absolute goodness,perfectequity and
immutable love of right, and that exacttemperament of affectiontoward men
which is requisite to the distribution of equal justice towardthem, according
to due measures of mercy and severity.
5. By this designate on the glory of God is especiallypromoted: His wisdom
appeareth in constituting one so in all respects mostfit to discharge the office;
and His goodness, forsince it was requisite that a judgment should pass on us,
how could the terror thereof be better allayed than by putting it into the
hands of His Son? How also could He exhibit a more illustrious instance of His
justice and love to righteousness than in advancing Him to so glorious an
office, who, out of perfect compliance to His will, did freely stoopso low, and
gladly undergo so much?
6. Just it likewise was thatto Him should be consigneda powerto rewardHis
friends and do Himself right on His enemies.
7. This appointment is conducible to our edification.
(1) It is apt to raise in us a high reverence of our Saviour; and consequently to
dispose us to the observance ofHis laws and imitation of His example.
(2) It is a matter of specialcomfortand encouragementto considerthat hence
assuredlywe shall find a fair and favourable trial; since it is no enemy, but
our best friend.
III. THE OBJECTS, OR THE EXTENT OF THE JUDGMENT ORDAINED.
All, without exception.

IV. APPLICATION: The doctrine is calculated —
1. To make us circumspectand vigilant; for, since we must render an account
of every thought, word, and action, what exceeding reasonhave we, with most
attentive and accurate regard, to mind whateverwe do!
2. To begetand preserve sincerity in us. What a folly is it to delude men with
false appearances,orrather by them to abuse themselves;seeing they soon
will be rightly informed, and we grievously disgracedforit!
3. To render us serious in all our thoughts, opinions, affections, actions;
suppressing all proud conceits, alladmiration of these transitory things, all
wanton joys; for —
(1) Why should any apprehensionof worldly state, ofany endowment, puff up
our minds, seeing the day is near at hand which will quite level men?
(2) Why should we value those splendid toys, or that sordid trash, which men
here do so eagerlyscramble for; which then evidently will be
discountenanced?
(3) Why, having affairs on foot of such vast importance, should we amuse
ourselves with trivial matters?
(4) How shall we dare to embrace the serpent of sinful excess?

(5) And how can we be easilytransported into wild merriments, if we consider
how infinitely serious business lieth on us; how nearly our everlasting welfare
lieth at stake?
4. To engage us carefully to improve all the talents by God's providence and
grace committed to us. Hath God bestowed —
(1) Wealth on us? this will engage us so to use it in God's service.
(2) Power? this should induce us to use it moderately and fruitfully.
(3) Any parts, wit, knowledge? this should move us to employ them in drawing
men to the practice of virtue and piety.
(4) Honour or credit among men? this may oblige us to use it as an instrument
of bringing honour to God.
5. To induce us to the observing strict justice and equity in all our dealings.
"Let no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter, because God
will judge and avenge for all these things."
6. To breed charity in us; in giving, in forgiving, in judging and censuring of
men.

7. To support and comfort us, as againstall other wrongful dealing, so against
all unjust and uncharitable censures, groundless slanders and surmises,
undeserved reproaches ofmen; for that assuredlyat that judgment right will
be done, and innocence cleared.
8. To preserve us from being deluded and poisonedby the more favourable
opinions of men. For "Godseethnot as man seeth;for man lookethon the
outward appearance, but God lookethon the heart."
9. To encourage us to "judge ourselves so that we be not judged," or not
condemned with the world.
10. To guard us from infidelity and from impatience in regard to the
providential dispensation of affairs here. "We know that all things work
togetherfor goodto them that love God."
(I. Barrow, D. D.)
The Mediator-- Judge and Saviour
C. H. Spurgeon.
Acts 10:39-43

I. OUR DIVINE MEDIATOR'S POSITIONINVOLVES TWO OFFICES.
We are not now living under the immediate government of God, but under the
reign of the Mediator. Jesus as Mediatorhas become —
1. Our Judge. "The Fatherjudgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment
unto the Son." "To this end Christ both died, and rose, End revived, that He
might be Lord both of the dead and living, for we shall all stand before the
judgment seatof Christ." In this capacityChrist has judicial authority over
all men, and He will try all of us at the last, as He is even now sitting in
judgment upon all our acts and thoughts and intents. We shall eachone
appear before His greatwhite throne, and if any are condemned, His lips shall
say, "Depart, ye cursed";if any are glorified, from His lips shall proceedthe
sentence, "Come,ye blessed." Thatjudgment will be authoritative and final.
2. A Saviour. "That through His name whosoeverbelievethin Him should
receive remissionof sins." He has the sovereignright of condemnationor
justification. He has authority to pass by transgression, His atonementhas
made it possible for Him to do this in perfect consistencywith tits characteras
Judge. And the same universality which pervades the Mediator's dignified
proceedings as Judge is to be seenin His condescending operations as Saviour.
He is able to save to the uttermost all them that come unto God by Him. Let
the two offices dwell together:"He is a just God and a Saviour."
II. BOTH THESE OFFICESREGARD MEN AS SINNERS. I am sick to the
death of hearing men talk about the goodness whichis latent in human
nature. The case ofCornelius makes it evident that the best natural religion
needs to be illuminated by revelation, and instructed by the doctrine of the
Cross.

1. Christ comes to judge because there are sinners to be judged. If you find me
a nation which has no tribunals, no punishments, it must either be the scene of
utter anarchy, or else a nation where all obey the law, and such a thing as a
criminal is unknown. The setting up of the last greatassize, and the making of
that assize to have reference to all men, and the appointment of the supremest
Personin existence to conduct that assize — all these facts imply guilt
somewhere, andabundance of it.
2. Christ comes to save because there are sinners to be saved. He comes to
remit sin; but there canbe no remission of sins to those who have never
transgressed. Howeverwide the "whosoever" is, so wide is the guilt: the
remedy measures the disease.
3. Putting the two things together, the very fact that there is a Mediator at all
regards man as fallen. God could have dealt with us immediately, without an
Intercessor, hadwe been as the first Adam was before his fall. It is by reason
of sin's influence upon the race that it became necessarythat there should be a
"Daysmanthat might lay His hand upon both," and deal with God in His
Divine Person, and yet deal with fallen man in His humanity.
III. THE QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED BY OUR LORD AS JUDGE
MATERIALLY COMFORT US IN LOOKING AT HIM AS SAVIOUR.
1. As Judge, Jesus —
(1) Has full authority: He is fully commissionedof God to acquit or to
condemn. Oh, then, if He gives me pardon through His blood, it is a free
pardon under the King's own hand and seal.

(2) Possessesthe amplest knowledge. A judge should be the most instructed,
or he is not fitted to decide in matters of difficulty and importance. Jesus
Christ as Judge is incomparably fit to judge men, for —
(a) He knows men thoroughly. He is Himself a Man, and knows all about us
by experience as well as by observation.
(b) He knows the law. Hath He not said, "Yea, Thy law is within My heart"?
No one knows the law of God as Jesus did, for He kept it in every point.
(c) He knows what sin is. He has lived among sinners as a Physician, making a
specialtyof the disease ofsin. Though He had no sin of His own, yet all sin was
laid on Him.
(d) He knows the punishment of sin. A judge must know what penalties to
award. Jesus knows this wellenough, for He Himself also hath once suffered
for sin, the Just for the unjust, to bring us to God.
2. Inasmuch as Christ is qualified to be Judge, it equally qualifies Him to
pardon. For —
(1) He knows thee thoroughly, and cancleanse thee thoroughly. He knows the
law, and therefore He knows how legally to acquit, so that no further question
can be raised. Since He knows the penalty, because He has borne it all, He will
take care that none of it shall ever fall on us. Who shall lay anything to the
charge of God's electsince God hath justified?

(2) All the personalqualifications of our Lord as Judge remarkably tend to
make the pardon of His people the more blessedlyclear, for as a Judge He is
very just. "Thou lovestrighteousness and hatestwickedness."Well, then,
when He forgives it must be just to forgive.
IV. OUR KNOWLEDGE OF THE FIRST OFFICE OF THE MEDIATOR IS
NECESSARYTO OUR ACCEPTANCEOF HIM IN HIS SECOND
CAPACITY. This was why Peter preachedit; this was why Paul before Felix
reasonedconcerning righteousness, temperance,and judgment to come. This
is why the Holy Spirit Himself convinces the world of sin, of righteousness,
and of judgment. If you do not believe in Christ as your Judge, you never will
acceptHim as your Saviour.
V. THE SAVING WORK OF CHRIST'S MEDIATORIALOFFICE IS
THAT WHICH CONCERNS US MOST AT THIS PRESENTTIME.
1. Note the words, "Shall receive remissionof sins." What is this? It is the
causing of sin to ceaseto be. God in wondrous mercy is prepared to forget
your sin, to blot it out, to castit behind His back, to castit into the depths of
the sea.
2. Note that this is to be done in Christ's name. There is no other name in
which pardon can be bestowed.
3. This is to be had through faith.
4. This blessednews has reference to everyone in the whole world that will
believe in Jesus.

(C. H. Spurgeon.)
COMMENTARIES
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(42) And he commanded us to preachunto the people. No such command is
found in terms in the Gospelnarratives of the words of the risen Lord, but it
is partly implied in Matthew 28:18-20, andis coveredby the generalteaching
as to the things of the kingdom of God in Acts 1:3. It is interesting to note that
St. Peterand St. Paul agree in thus connecting the Resurrectionwith the
assurance thatHe who had risen was to be the future Judge of all men.
(Comp. Acts 17:31.)
Which was ordained.—More accurately, whichhas been ordained.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
10:34-43 Acceptancecannotbe obtained on any other ground than that of the
covenantof mercy, through the atonement of Christ; but wherever true
religion is found, God will acceptit without regarding names or sects. The
fear of God and works ofrighteousness are the substance of true religion, the
effects of specialgrace. Thoughthese are not the cause ofa man's acceptance,
yet they show it; and whatevermay be wanting in knowledge or faith, will in
due time be given by Him who has begun it. They knew in general the word,
that is, the gospel, which God sentto the children of Israel. The purport of
this word was, that God by it published the goodtidings of peace by Jesus
Christ. They knew the severalmatters of fact relating to the gospel. They
knew the baptism of repentance which John preached. Let them know that
this Jesus Christ, by whom peace is made betweenGod and man, is Lord of
all; not only as over all, God blessedfor evermore, but as Mediator. All

power, both in heaven and in earth, is put into his hand, and all judgment
committed to him. God will go with those whom he anoints; he will be with
those to whom he has given his Spirit. Peterthen declares Christ's
resurrectionfrom the dead, and the proofs of it. Faith has reference to a
testimony, and the Christian faith is built upon the foundation of the apostles
and prophets, on the testimony given by them. See whatmust be believed
concerning him. That we are all accountable to Christ as our Judge;so every
one must seek his favour, and to have him as our Friend. And if we believe in
him, we shall all be justified by him as our Righteousness. The remissionof
sins lays a foundation for all other favours and blessings, by taking that out of
the waywhich hinders the bestowing of them. If sin be pardoned, all is well,
and shall end wellfor ever.
Barnes'Notes on the Bible
And he commanded us ... - ; Matthew 28:19-20;Mark 16:15-16.
And to testify - To bear witness.
That it is he ... - See the notes on John 5:22-27. Compare the references in the
margin.
Of quick - The living. The doctrine of the New Testamentis, that those who
are alive when the Lord Jesus shallreturn to judge the world, will be caught
up in vast numbers like clouds, to meet him in the air, without seeing death, 1
Thessalonians 4:16-17. Yetbefore this they will experience sucha change in
their bodies as shall fit them for the judgment and for their eternal residence -
a change which will liken them to those who have died, and have risen from
the dead. What this change will be, speculation may fancy, but the Bible has
not revealed. See 1 Corinthians 15:52, "The dead shall be raised, and we shall
be changed."
Jamieson-Fausset-BrownBible Commentary
40-41. showedhim openly; Not to all the people—forit was not fitting that He
should subject Himself, in His risen condition, to a secondrejectionin Person.

but unto witnesseschosenbefore ofGod … to us, who did eat and drink with
him after he rose, &c.—Notthe less certain, therefore, was the fact of His
resurrection, though withholding Himself from generalgaze in His risen body.
he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead—He had
before proclaimed Him "Lord of all," for the dispensing of "peace"to all
alike;now he announces Him in the same supreme lordship, for the exercise
of judgment upon all alike. On this divine ordination, see Joh5:22, 23, 27; Ac
17:31. Thus we have here all Gospeltruth in brief. But, forgiveness through
this exaltedOne is the closing note of Peter's beautifully simple discourse.
Matthew Poole's Commentary
Our Saviour gave this charge to his apostles before his ascension, Matthew
28:19 Mark 16:15 Luke 24:47;and foretold that they should execute this his
charge, Acts 1:8.
Ordained of God to be the Judge:that God hath ordained to judge the world
by Jesus Christ, Scripture abundantly testifies, John 5:26,27 2 Timothy 4:1 1
Peter4:5. And this is here spokenof the apostle, and was given in charge by
our Saviour to be principally preachedof by them all, because the
resurrectionof Christ, and the glory of his kingdom in this world, is clouded
by the blindness and hardness of men; as also, because it is of the greatest
concernmentunto all, that at any time hear the word of God, to be persuaded
of this, that Christ, whose gospelandword they hear, will judge them
according unto it.
Quick; such as shall be alive at the coming of our Lord to judgment, 1
Thessalonians 4:15.
Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible
And he commanded us, to preachunto the people,.... Notonly of the Jews, but
of the Gentiles;to all nations, to the whole world, and every creature; for the

apostle seems to refer to the commissiongiven to him, and the rest of the
apostles, afterChrist's resurrection, Matthew 28:19.
And to testify that it is he which was ordained of God, to be the Judge of quick
and dead: the preaching of the Gospelis a testificationof Christ, or a bearing
a testimony for him; and among the rest to this truth, that he was from all
eternity in the counciland covenantof grace;appointed by God to have all
powerin heavenand in earth; and not only to judge and govern his church
and people on earth, but to be the Judge of all men at the last day, of such who
will be found alive at his coming, and of those that are dead; who will be
raisedagain, and stand before his judgment seat, to receive their proper
sentence;and though this is not expressedin the commissiongiven the
apostles, yetis implied therein; Matthew 28:18 That there will be a general
judgment at the last day is certain, from the reasonof things; from the
relation of creatures to God as their Creator, to whom they are accountable
for their conduct and actions;from the justice of God, which requires it,
which does not take place in the present state of things; and it has a testimony
in the consciencesofmen, which the most daring of infidels, at times, show by
the fears they are possessedof about it; and it is abundantly clearfrom
revelation, from the writings of the Old and New Testament;from whence it
appears that it is future, it is yet to come;that it is certain, being appointed by
God, though the time to men is uncertain; that it will be universal, and reach
to all men, righteous and wicked, quick and dead, and to all actions, goodand
bad, open and secret;and that it will be a righteous one, and be administered
according to the strictestrules of justice and equity; and that it is an eternal
one; not that it will be ever carrying on, but will issue in the determination of
the states ofmen to all eternity: now Christ he is appointed to do this work, he
was ordained to unto it in the purposes of God from everlasting;this was
settled in the covenant betweenthem; and for the executionof which, he has
all power and authority given him as Mediator: and for it he is every way
qualified: he is of greatand infinite majesty, being the mighty God; of great
sagacityand wisdom, having, as Mediator, the spirit of wisdom and
knowledge upon him, whereby he is of quick understanding and discernment;
and he is of great faithfulness and integrity, and will judge not after the sight
of his eyes, and the hearing of his ears, but with righteousness and equity, and

will do the thing that is right; and especially, inasmuchas he is omniscient,
and knows the secrets ofall hearts, and so capable of bringing every work into
judgment, with every secretthing; and also omnipotent, and so able to raise
the dead, summon all nations before him, separate the wickedand the
righteous, and not only denounce the proper sentences upon them, but execute
them.
Geneva Study Bible
And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he
which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead.
EXEGETICAL(ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)
Meyer's NT Commentary
Acts 10:42. Τῷ λαῷ] canonly denote the Jewishpeople, seeing that the context
speaks ofno other (Acts 10:41), and cannot include the Gentiles also
(Kuinoel). But the contents of ὅτι … νεκρῶν is so different from Matthew
28:20 (also Acts 1:8), that there must be here assumeda reference to another
expressionof the Risen One (for He is the subjectof παρήγγ.)unknown to us.
ὅτι αὐτός ἐστιν … νεκρῶν] that He (no other) is the Judge ordained by God
(in His decree)over living (who are alive at the Parousia, 1 Thessalonians
4:17; 1 Corinthians 15:51-52)and dead (who shall then be already dead).
Comp. 2 Timothy 4:1; 1 Peter4:5. Incorrectly Olshausen(resting on Matthew
22:32!) understands by ζώντων κ. νεκρ. the spiritually living and dead. This
meaning would require to be suggestedby the context, but is here quite
foreign to it. Comp. Romans 14:19-20;Acts 17:31.
Expositor's Greek Testament
Acts 10:42. παρήγγειλεν: chargedus, see on Acts 1:4.—διαμαρτύρ.,see above
on Acts 2:40, Acts 8:25.—ὁ ὡρισμένος, see Acts 2:23, cf. Acts 17:31, in a
strikingly similar statement by St. Paul at Athens. St. Peter and St. Paul are
both at one in their witness to the Resurrectionofthe Christ on the third day,
and also in their witness to His appointment as the future Judge of mankind.

This startling claim made by St. Peterwith reference to Jesus ofNazareth,
with Whom he had lived on terms of closesthuman intimacy, and in Whose
death he might well have seenthe destruction of all his hopes, is a further
evidence of the change which had passedoverthe Apostle, a change which
could only be accountedfor by the belief that this same Jesus was risenand
declaredto be the Son of God with power; cf. Enochxli. 9, edition Charles;
Witness of the Epistles, p. 403.—κριτὴς ζ. καὶ ν., cf. 1 Peter4:5; the words
point back to the universal lordship of Christ over Jew and Gentile alike, Acts
10:36, cf. Romans 14:9.
Cambridge Bible for Schools andColleges
42. And he commanded us to preach unto the people] This was among the
commandments alluded to Acts 1:2. Compare the charge given by Christ,
Matthew 28:19, where the wide commission“Go ye, teachall nations,” is one
that anticipated the preaching of the Gospelnot only to Cornelius, but to all
other Gentiles.
that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead] Cp.
Christ’s words to the Jews (John 5:22; John 5:27), “Forthe Father judgeth no
man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son,” “and hath given him
authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man.”
Bengel's Gnomen
Acts 10:42. Παρήγγειλεν ἡμῖν, He enjoined us) viz. God: ch. Acts 5:29, “We
ought to obey God rather than men.”—τῷ λαῷ, unto the people) Answering to
the beginning of Acts 10:41.—διαμερτύρασθαι,to testify) Understand, even to
the Gentiles:ch. Acts 1:8; Matthew 28:19.—αὐτὸς,it is He Himself).—
ὡρισμένος, ordained) by an immoveable decree.—κριτὴς, judge)This name
expresses by Synecdoche (a part for the whole) all the glory of Christ, and in
relation to believers it denotes the crowning consummation of the benefits of
Christ: 2 Timothy 4:8, with which comp. Hebrews 12:23. He will judge even
the Jews, who condemnedHim; even the Romans, who held the Cæsarean
seatof the government of Judea; eventhe dead, from among whom He rose

again, and who are about to rise again in their own proper time; 1 Peter4:5.
[Comp. ch. Acts 17:31. So the Lord Jesus also testifiedof Himself as the
Judge, before that He made mention of His own ascension;John 5:22, “The
Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son.”—V.
g.]
Pulpit Commentary
Verse 42. - Chargedfor commanded, A.V.; this is he which is for it is he which
was, A.V. To be the Judge, etc. This statementinvolves the resurrectionof the
dead (comp. John 5:21-29;Revelation20:11, 12). It is easyto see how the
creeds would be formed from the repetition of short doctrinal statements like
this (see 1 Corinthians 15:3, 4).
Vincent's Word Studies
Testify (διαμαρτύρασθαι)
See on Acts 2:40.
Remission
See on Luke 3:3; and James 5:15.
PRECEPTAUSTIN RESOURCES
BRUCE HURT MD
Acts 10:42 And He ordered us to preach to the people, and solemnly to testify
that this is the One who has been appointed by God as Judge of the living and
the dead.

KJV Acts 10:42 And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to
testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and
dead.
He ordered us to preach to the people Acts 1:8; Acts 4:19,20;5:20,29-32;Mt
28:19,20;Mark 16:15,16;Luke 24:47,48;John 21:21,22
that this is the One Acts 17:31; Mt 25:31-46;John 5:22-29;Ro 14:9,10;2 Cor
5:10; 2 Ti 4:1,8; 1 Peter4:5; Rev 1:7; 20:11-15;22:12
Acts 10 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries
HERE COMES
THE JUDGE!
Spurgeoncomments that "The apostle was not long in his address before he
came to the doctrine of the judgment of all men by Jesus Christ. He says that
he was commanded to preachit, and therefore he did preach it.”
Steven Cole - The point for us is that if God has savedus from our sins, then
He has appointed us as witnesses to others of the salvationthat is available
through Jesus Christ. God’s method is not to proclaim the gospelthrough the
angels or to shout it from heaven. His method is to use His people to tell
others.
THOUGHT - ARE YOU PROCLAIMING THE GOSPELIN YOUR
SPHERE OF INFLUENCE?
And He ordered us to preach to the people (cf Mt. 28:19; Mk 16:15;Lk 24:47)
- Like a Commanding General, Jesus issuedorders to preach the Gospel
(Acts 1:8, Mt 28:19,20,Mk 16:15, 16), that Jesus was notdead but alive and
that His victory over death was available to every personwho seeks Him. In
fact when the Jewishreligious leaders gave "strictorders not to continue
teaching in this name (NOTE HOW THEY EVEN REFUSE TO
PRONOUNCETHE NAME "JESUS!")" (Acts 5:28) "Peterand the apostles
answered, “We must obey God rather than men." (Acts 5:29+)

Ordered (3853)(paraggello from para = beside, alongside, nearby, at the side
of + aggelos = messenger, angello/aggello = to announce) means to hand on or
pass on an announcement from one to another who is at one's side, such as to
what must be done, usually with the idea of a command or charge. Paraggello
often was used in the contextof a military command and demanded that the
subordinate obey the order from the superior (2Ti 4:1-note) and required
unhesitating and unqualified obedience. (cp Lk 5:14, 8:29, Lk 9:21KJV, Acts
1:4, 4:18; 5:28KJV; Acts 15:5KJV; 1Th 4:11). It is like a mandate (an
authoritative command) or a call to obedience from one in authority.
MacArthur writes that in all the uses of paraggello "the idea of binding a
person to make the proper response to an instruction. The soldier was bound
to obey the orders of his superiors; a personinvolved in a legalmatter was
bound by the court’s orders; a person of integrity was bound by moral
principles; a patient was bound to follow his doctor’s instruction if he wanted
to get well; and a successfulwriter or speakerwas bound by the standards of
his craft. (Matthew Commentary)
Preach(proclaim) (2784)(kerusso fromkerux/keryx = a herald - one who acts
as the medium of the authority of one who proclamationhe makes;kerugma
= the thing preachedor the message)means to proclaim (publicly) or to act as
a public crier evenas a town official who would make a proclamation in a
public gathering. Kerusso was usedof the official whose duty it was to
proclaim loudly and extensivelythe coming of an earthly king, even as the
Gospelis to clearly announce the coming of the King of kings and Lord of
lords (Rev 19:16+)!
And solemnly to testify - Jesus gave the apostles a secondcommand, and it
was to warn that God has appointed a judgment day and had appointed Jesus
to serve as Judge in that day. In his address before the Athenian philosophers,
Paul makes the same assertionthat God " has fixed a day in which He will
judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed,
having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.” (Acts
17:31+)

And solemnly to testify (1263)(diamarturomai from diá = intensifies meaning
conveying idea of "thoroughly" + marturomai = witness, bearwitness)means
to bear witness, to exhort earnestly and with authority in matters of
extraordinary importance (here the integrity of the message proclaimed). It
carries the idea of giving a forceful order or directive. Paul obeyed Jesus'
instruction right up to the end of Acts and presumably the end of his life,
Luke recording
When they had set a day for Paul, they (JEWS)came to him at his lodging in
large numbers; and he was explaining to them by solemnly testifying about
the kingdom of God and trying to persuade them concerning Jesus, from both
the Law of Moses andfrom the Prophets, from morning until evening. (Acts
28:23).
Diamarturomai - 15x in the NT -
Lk. 16:28; Acts 2:40; Acts 8:25; Acts 10:42;Acts 18:5; Acts 20:21; Acts 20:23;
Acts 20:24;Acts 23:11; Acts 28:23;1 Th 4:6; 1 Ti 5:21; 2 Ti 2:14; 2 Ti 4:1;
Heb. 2:6
That this is the One who has been appointed by God as Judge of the living and
the dead - (See John5:21-29; Acts 17:30-31;2 Th. 1:7-10; 2 Ti 4:8; Rev.
19:11ff.) Jesus will be to every person who has ever lived either their Savioror
their Sentencer!Jesus is the dividing line of every man's eternal destiny either
one of forgiveness (Acts 10:43)or judgment (Acts 10:42).
The living and the death could refer to either those who have receivednew life
in Christ (spiritually living) or who have refused Christ (spiritual dead).
Alternatively, the living could refer to all who are alive at Jesus'return and
the dead to all who have died.
G Campbell Morgan- He is “the Judge of quick and dead,” not merely the
Judge Who is to sit upon a throne in some dim and distant time as the Judge
of the dead; but the Judge today, the Criterion of conduct, the One before
Whose bar men are for ever standing (cf Jn 3:18-20).
Kistemaker- No person is able to escape judgment, for everyone must appear
before God. Peteruses the idiomatic expressionthe living and the dead to

indicate that everyone is included when Christ judges the people. Here, then,
Peterwarns the members of his audience to seek forgivenessofsin through
faith in Jesus Christ, so that when they appear before the God-appointed
judge they may be acquitted.
Paul alludes to this appointment in his solemnwarning his disciple Timothy to
preach the Word in 2 Timothy
I solemnly charge (diamarturomai) you in the presence ofGod and of Christ
Jesus, Who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His
kingdom: 2 preach (aorist imperative - speaks ofurgency!) the word; be ready
(aorist imperative) in seasonand out of season;reprove, rebuke, exhort (All
these verbs are commands in aoristimperative ), with greatpatience and
instruction.(2 Ti 4:1-2).
Has been appointed (3724)(horizo from horos = limit; English "horizon" -
"the apparent line that divides the earth and the sky" which leads to the
thought that Jesus is the "line" that divides all time into BC/AD!) means
strictly speaking “to limit” and then figuratively “to fix,” “to appoint.” Horizo
is in the perfect tense which speaks ofthis appointment as abiding!
All NT uses of horizo - Lk. 22:22;Acts 2:23+ (predetermined plan); Acts
10:42;Acts 11:29; Acts 17:26 ("having determined their appointed times and
the boundaries of their habitation,'); Acts 17:31;Rom. 1:4; Heb. 4:7
Horizo is used in a parallel passagein Acts 17:31
“Therefore having overlookedthe times of ignorance, Godis now declaring to
men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in
which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man (JESUS -
JUDGE OF THE LIVING AND THE DEAD) Whom He has appointed,
having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.” (Acts
17:30, 31+)
The word "Judge" comes from a Greek wordthat gives us our English word
"crisis" As Ray Stedman said Jesus Christ "is the paramount figure in the
universe, the ultimate crisis of all men. He is no low-caloriedoptionin life for
you to take or leave as you like; He is the ultimate person. There is not one of

us here this morning who ultimately is not going to confront Jesus Christ. He
stands at the end of every path down which men go, and he waits there as the
One ordained by Godto be judge of the living and the dead. Therefore the
most important question you will ever face in life is, "What do you do with
Jesus ofNazareth?" What have you done with him?" (Acts 10:23-11:18 Life
For All)
Judge (2923)(krites from krino = to judge) is one who decides, the one who
makes decisions basedon examination and evaluation. Krites is used of of
human beings (Mt 5:25; Lk 12:14, 58;18:2.Ac 24:10). Krites is used of God
(Heb 12:23; Jas 4:12; 2 Ti 4:8; Acts 10:42;Jas 5:9) Krites was a leader of the
people in the period of the Judges (Acts 13:20).
BDAG - (1) one who has the right to render a decisionin legalmatters (2) one
who rules in a specialsense in the accounts ofIsrael’s theocratic period-
Krites -
Matt. 5:25; Matt. 12:27;Lk. 11:19; Lk. 12:14;Lk. 12:58;Lk. 18:2; Lk. 18:6;
Acts 10:42;Acts 13:20; Acts 18:15;Acts 24:10; 2 Tim. 4:8; Heb. 12:23; Jas.
2:4; Jas. 4:11;Jas. 4:12; Jas. 5:9
Krites in the Septuagint -
Deut. 1:15; Deut. 1:16; Deut. 16:18; Deut. 17:9; Deut. 17:12; Deut. 19:17;
Deut. 19:18;Deut. 21:2; Deut. 25:2; Deut. 29:10;Deut. 31:28;Jdg. 2:16; Jdg.
2:17; Jdg. 2:18; Jdg. 2:19; Ruth 1:1; 1 Sam. 24:15;2 Sam. 7:11; 2 Sam. 15:4; 2
Ki. 23:22; 1 Chr. 17:10;1 Chr. 23:4; 1 Chr. 28:1; 2 Chr. 1:2; 2 Chr. 19:5; 2
Chr. 19:6; 2 Chr. 26:11; 2 Chr. 34:13; Ezr. 7:25; Ezr. 10:14; Job 9:24; Job
12:17;Job 13:8; Ps. 7:11; Ps. 50:6; Ps. 68:5; Ps. 75:7; Ps. 141:6;Ps. 148:11;
Isa. 1:26; Isa. 30:18;Isa. 33:21; Isa. 63:7; Dan. 9:12; Hos. 7:7; Amos 2:3; Mic.
7:3; Hab. 1:3; Zeph. 3:3
Isaiah1:26 (Isa 1:25 describes the Time of Jacob's Trouble)“Then (IN THE
MILLENNIUM) I will restore your judges as at the first, And your counselors
as at the beginning; After that you will be calledthe city of righteousness, A
faithful city.”

Larkin comments that "The theme of final judgment occurs consistentlyin
speechesto Gentiles (Acts 17:31;24:25). It seems to be a way to talk about
repentance in terms relevant and motivating to them. Indeed, Petermoves
easilyin this one sentence from a particularist view, he commanded us to
preach to the people (the Jews), to a universal view, he is the one whom God
appointed as judge of the living and the dead (all humankind). To this
universal Judge all must answer. Peterimmediately turns to the goodnews
that through the name of this universal Lord (Acts 2:38; 4:12) all are
presentedwith the unique opportunity to receive the forgiveness ofsins. He
grounds this expressionof salvationblessings, forgivenessofsins (Lk 24:47;
Acts 2:38; 5:31; 13:38; 26:18;compare Lk 1:77; 4:18), in the witness of all the
Old Testamentprophets (Is 33:24; 53:4–6, 11–12/Lk 22:37;Jer31:34; Dan
9:24; compare Lk 24:25–27, 44–47). And he moves againfrom the particular,
the Jewishprophets’ witness, to the universal, the promise that everyone who
believes in him receives forgiveness."Peter’s preaching onthe impartial God
and the universal Lord and Saviornow shows how Christ’s Great
Commissionlies at the heart of a “go” theology(Lk 24:47;Acts 1:8). Such a
centrifugal momentum must drive the church today." (Amen!) (Ibid)
Spurgeon- “He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify.” These
two verses are an extract from a remarkable sermon, a sermon Peter
preachedin the house of Cornelius. What did Peterpreach? There were six
heads in his sermon, though he spoke only of one subject, that is, Christ.
(1) The apostle spoke first of the Lord’s person:“He is Lord of all” (Acts
10:36). Peteris clearon the sovereignGodheadof Jesus. Having spokenof his
person,
(2) Peter then spoke ofhis life—“how Godanointed Jesus ofNazarethwith
the Holy Spirit and with power” (v. 38). This was the spring of Jesus’s life’s
power—his anointing from the Holy Spirit. Petersetout the tenor of Jesus’s
life in the next sentence:“He went about doing goodand healing.”

(3) Then Petermoved on to his third point, which was the Savior’s death—
“they killed him by hanging him on a tree” (v. 39). Peterdoes not take away
the offense ofthe cross orput it in smooth language.
(4) Then Peterpassedon to the Lord’s resurrection, for that is an essential
part of the gospel:“God raisedup this man on the third day and causedhim
to be seen” (Acts 10:40). It was no fiction. He was openly shown on many
occasions to those best able to recognize him (Acts 10:41).
(5) Then Petercame to the judgment—which he felt it necessaryto preach,
declaring that Jesus Christ who died and rose againis now designatedthe
judge of all mankind (Acts 10:42).
(6) And lastly, Peterpreached salvationby the Lord Jesus mostfully and
graciouslywhen he said, “Throughhis name everyone who believes in him
receives forgivenessofsins” (v. 43). This was what Peterwas driving at, and
when he had reachedthis point, enough truth of God had been taught to save
a soul—and God, the Holy Spirit, at once used it.
The CarpenterJudge
Read:Acts 17:22-31
It is He who was ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead. —
Acts 10:42
Jesus Christ is the Inescapable One. We must either receive Him in this life as
our loving Savior or stand before Him in the life to come as our eternal Judge.
There’s a story in the Gray and Adams Commentary about a doctor who
“made it his chief concernin matters of religion to degrade the characterand
dignity of Christ.” He viewed the Savior with so much contempt that he
always spoke ofHim in a demeaning way by calling Him ”the carpenter’s
son.”
In time the physician became terminally ill. During the weeks before his
death, he became very agitated. He remarked to the person who was attending

him, “I’m a dying man, and what affects me most of all is that I must be
judged by the carpenter’s son!”
That doctor facedthe terrible future that awaits all who rejectChrist. Yet,
even in his lastconscious moments, if he had trusted Him as his Savior he
could have found peace and receivedeternalsalvation.
How have you been treating Christ? Remember, “the carpenter’s son” is the
Son of God, the “Word made flesh.” Trust Him today! You will receive the
blessing of salvation—notthe sentence ofcondemnation (Jn. 3:17).
What will you do with Jesus?
Neutral you cannotbe;
Somedayyour heart will be asking,
"What will He do with me?" —Simpson
Everyone must choose—Christorcondemnation!
By Richard DeHaan (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand
Rapids, MI. — Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)
DR. JACK ARNOLD
The Commissionto PreachChrist (v. 42a): “And He ordered us to preach to
the people, . . .“ -- Christians have been commanded and ordered by Christ
to preach the gospelto all men. Jesus Christis not dead. He is alive and
Christians are to preach Christ's availability to all men everywhere.
While preaching is not an essentialpart of the gospel, it is important to
explain to all men why Christians share Christ with everyone. Theyare
under orders to do so.

The Consummation of Judgment by Christ (v. 42b): “ . . . and solemnly to
testify that this is the One who has been appointed by God as Judge of the
living and the dead.” -- Jesus Christ, as Lord, will judge this world in
complete righteousness. No one, absolutelyno one, will escape judgment and
every person will ultimately have to confront Jesus Christ. “ . . . because He
has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness througha
Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising
Him from the dead” (Acts 17:31). What a person does with Jesus Christin
this life will determine his eternal destiny. If He is acceptedas Lord and
Savior, one will escapeGod's judging wrath. If He is rejectedas Lord and
Savior, one will be judged with eternalperdition.
The gospelhas not been preachedunless judgment for sin is mentioned. This
is the major weaknessin the Four Spiritual Laws put out by Campus Crusade
for Christ. If you are going to use the Four Laws in your evangelism, please
insert judgment somewhere in the secondlaw.
CALVIN
Verse 42
42.And he commanded us. He beginneth in this place to intreat of the
kingdom of Christ, when he saith that Christ did rise againfor this cause, that
he may once judge the world. For by the same right are the government of
heaven and earth, and the perpetual government of the Church, due to him.
He saith that he shall be judge of quick and dead; because, whenas the dead
shall rise again, others also, who shall then remain alive, shall be changedin a

moment, as Paul teachethin the fifteenth chapter of the First Epistle to the
Corinthians, (1 Corinthians 15:51,)and in the First to the Thessalonians, and
the fourth chapter, (1 Thessalonians 4:17.)In the word testify there is great
weight; because, as men are naturally inclined unto unbelief, the simple
preaching of the gospelshould not be so effectual, unless the Lord should
establishit with strong protestations. And chiefly, every one of us doth feel in
himself too much what a hard matter it is both to lift up our minds to hope for
the coming of Christ, which are entangledin earthly snares, and also
continually to keepthem fixed in this meditation, seeing they cease notwith
their lightness to be carried hither and thither continually.
DR. THOMAS CONSTABLE
Verse 42-43
Peterreferred to the GreatCommission, which Jesus gave his disciples after
His resurrection( Acts 10:41), in Acts 10:42.
"This entire experience is an illustration of the commissionof Matthew 28:19-
20. Peterwent where God senthim and made disciples ("teach")of the
Gentiles. Then he baptized them and taught them the Word." [Note:Wiersbe,
1:447.]
Jesus Christ will one day judge all people as forgiven or not forgiven (cf. Acts
17:31). To be forgiven one must "believe in Him" (cf. Acts 5:14; Acts 9:42;
Acts 11:17). Petersaid this is what the Old Testamentprophets taught (e.g,
Isaiah53:11; Jeremiah31:34; Ezekiel36:25-26;et al.). The Messiah(Christ)

would be the Judge of all people, and Jesus of Nazarethis that Messiah(cf.
John 5:27). The Lord of all ( Acts 10:36) is also the Judge of all ( Acts 10:42).
Note how Peterstressedthe universal benefit of Jesus" ministry in this
messageto Gentiles;it was for Gentiles as well as Jews. Notonly is Jesus Lord
of all ( Acts 10:36), but He went about healing all ( Acts 10:38). Furthermore
He is the Judge of all ( Acts 10:42)to whom all the prophets bore witness (
Acts 10:43 a), and God forgives all who believe in Him ( Acts 10:43 b).
"This simple outline [ Acts 10:34-43]. . . is perhaps the clearestNT example of
the kerygma, the earliestform in which the apostolic proclamationof the
gospelwas apparently couched." [Note:Kent, p94.]
JESUS, THE JUDGE NO. 1476
A SERMON DELIVERED ON LORD’S-DAYMORNING, MAY 25, 1879,
BY C. H. SPURGEON, AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE,
NEWINGTON.
“And He commanded us to preach unto the people and to testify that it is He
which was ordained of God to be the Judge of the quick and the dead.” Acts
10:42.
You will notice throughout this short address by Peterhow very carefulhe is
to speak not at all upon his own authority, but wholly upon the authority of

the MostHigh. He commences his conversationby saying that God had shown
him that it would be right for him, as a Jew, to commune with Gentiles. God
had shownit to him—he had not, therefore, broken through Jewishlaw as the
result of his own judgment, but under divine direction. He goes onto
commence his sermon by saying, “The word which God sent unto the children
of Israel.” He had come, therefore, not with a word of his own inventing, but
with a word of God’s sending. “That word, I say, you know.” Thenhe speaks
of Jesus of NazarethHimself as anointed with the Holy Spirit and with power,
and he speaks ofhimself and his fellow apostles as “witnesses,” bearing
testimony to what the Lord Jesus haddone. Now, this wayof speaking was
perhaps rendered the more necessaryby the mistaken reverence which
Cornelius had rendered to his person, for he fell down at the apostle’s feetand
worshipped him, but it should be the constanthabit of all the ministers of
Christ. It is ours to keepwithin the boundaries of our commissionand shield
ourselves behind its authority. What are we that we should of ourselves have
anything to say unto you, my brethren? What is our authority and by what
right can we speak of ourselves? Verily, we have no such power over you and
if we come unto you in our own name, bid us not God speed. Every true
minister must speak because he is commanded to speak. He must speak what
he is commanded to speak and he must be prepared to fall back upon the
authority of the Word of God continually. “If they speak not according to this
word, it is because there is no light in them.” But if the testimony of any man
is in accordance withthe Word of God then is God with him and it would be
perilous to rejecthis testimony. The apostle was not long in his address
before he came to the doctrine of the judgment of all men by Jesus Christ. He
says that he was commanded to preach it and therefore he did preach it. It
may not be called, “the gospel,” but it is certainly a most important accessory
truth to the gospel—itis one of those doctrines without which a gospel
ministry would not be complete. I mean that if in any testimony concerning
Christ, the doctrine that He shall come a secondtime to judge the world were
utterly neglected, sucha testimony would not be a complete gospel. Hence you
find that Paul, when he preachedto the famous congregationofthe
Areopagites, took care to insist upon this truth. In Acts 17:30-31, he says,
“The times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commands all men
everywhere to repent because He has appointed a day in the which He will

judge the world in righteousness by that man whom He has ordained; whereof
He has given assurance unto all men, in that He has raisedHim from the
dead.” This was also a part of Paul’s subject when he stoodbefore Felix, “He
reasonedofrighteousness, temperance and judgment to come”—andthis
made Felix tremble, for there is greatforce of conviction in that solemn truth.
The doctrine of the judgment of the world by Christ was used by Peterand
Paul and other apostles as a sort of preliminary truth which they insisted
upon before they came to the essence ofthe gospel which consists in preaching
Jesus Christ as a Savior. They plowed with this doctrine before they sowedthe
invitations of the gospel. Theydid not, however, lay the axe to the root and
then forgetto proclaim the word of grace—theypreachedthe terrors of the
Lord, not in a legal, but a gospelmanner. Peterdoes so in this case, forhe first
speaks ofChrist in the judgment and then in verse 43 he adds, “To Him give
all the prophets witness, that through His name whosoeverbelieves in Him
shall receive remissionof sins.”
Jesus, The Judge Sermon #1476
Tellsomeone today how much you love Jesus Christ. Volume 25
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This morning, in obedience to the same command, I shall try to speak, first of
all, upon the message, andsecondly, upon the evident importance to be
attachedto it which we shall in a greatmeasure gatherfrom the words of our
text. May the Holy Spirit who in Peter’s day fell on all those who heard his
word, fall also upon you as you are led to believe in the Lord Jesus. I. First,
let us considerTHE MESSAGE whichGod commands all His servants to
declare. Thatmessage begins with the assurancethat there is a moral
government. There is a Judge over the race of men—we are not as the locusts,
of whom Solomonsays that they have no king. The world is not left
unobserved of God to be as a den of wild beasts or a pond of fish where
everyone devours his fellow and none calls them to account. Men are not
permitted to do whatsoeveris right in their owneyes, but there is a law and a
Governorover them. God has committed all authority unto His Son and Jesus

Christ at this moment reigns and rules over the whole race of men, taking
accountof all the actions that are done in their bodies and making note of
everything in order to the summing up of all things by-and-by. There is a law,
there is a rule, and there is a government over the human commonwealth. The
race is not left to anarchy—Jesus Christis Head of all. That being
announced, we have to go on to say that there will be a judgment. “It is
appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” As the result of
there being a government overmankind, a judgment will be held wherein
caseswill be tried and justice will be administered. This indeed is the sanction
and support of the law that it will callmen to account. Its voice of power
proclaims, “O you house of Israel, I will judge you everyone after his ways.”
There will be a day of final account. I need not stopto quote the numerous
passagesofScripture which assertthat every one of us must give an account
of himself before God, for we are fully persuadedthat “We shall all stand
before the judgment seatof Christ.” But my brethren, we think that all
reasonable persons willconclude that there must be a judgment if they will
only considerthe characterofGod. Being the ruler of the world, He must do
justice. We should count any man who was made a king but a miserable
counterfeit of a monarch if he never administered justice at all. If we had a
state without laws or laws without punishments for those who broke them, we
should be indeed in a wretchedcondition and our king would be the mimicry
of royalty. But such is not the case in the kingdom of Him who rules over all.
It is said of our Lord, “You love righteousness andhate wickedness”—this
makes us feelthat He wills to do justice, and as assuredlyas He has powerto
punish transgression, we feelcertain that He will do so. There will come a day
in which He will judge the acts of men because His characteris not such that
He could or would trifle with evil. “Be not deceived, God is not mocked;
whatsoevera man sows, thatshall he also reap.” “The Fatherwho without
respectof persons judges according to every man’s works” willnot permit
offenders to insult His laws with impunity. It is wrapped up in the very idea of
God that He is Judge of all the earth and must do right—and to do right He
must hold a final court in which He will “render to every man according to his
deeds.” The characterof man equally involves a judgment, for he is evidently
a responsible being and this is dear to anybody who cares to open his eyes. We
count not the cattle of the hills or the fish of the sea responsible—letthem do

what they may. No one blames the wolf that he howls or the lion that he
devours, but when we come to think of man, we regardhim as a creature
whose actions have a moral quality about them and are either right or wrong.
In fact, he is a responsible agent. Surely, where there is responsibility there is
a law and where there is a law there must some day or other be rewards for
welldoers and punishments for malefactors. The constitution and nature of
man inevitably require this or else his responsibility is given to him in vain.
Now, the present tangled condition of the world’s history requires that there
should be a day of rectificationat the end of time. At this moment, we often
see the wickedprosper while the righteous are abased. At this day, the mirth
and the jollity are often connectedwith sin, while sorrow and grief go hand in
hand with godliness in many and many an instance. Remember how the wise
man argued and be persuadedby his reasoning, “Moreover, I saw under the
sun the place of judgment, that wickednesswas there;and the place of
righteousness, thatiniquity was there. I said in my heart, God shall judge the
righteous and the wicked.” Since the actions of men are evidently left
unpunished now and high-handed sin holds power, there must come a
righting of the wrong and a clearing of the just. The Judge of all the earth
must do right and how can this be but by a final adjustment in which it shall
be clearly seenthat though the wickedprosper for a while, they are as
bullocks
Sermon #1476 Jesus,The Judge
Volume 25 Tell someone todayhow much you love Jesus Christ.
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fattening for the slaughter—andthough the righteous suffer for a while, it is
but as the gold suffers in the furnace—that it may come forth purified. Every
heart that has ever groanedunder the oppressor’s wrong, everysoul that has
ever writhed under the proud man’s arrogance mustfeel that there must be
an end to the reign and riot of evil and a time in which innocence shallbe
avenged. Every Job may lift himself up before his false accusers andsay, “I
know that my avengerlives and that He will stand in the latter day upon the

earth.” Moreover, there is in the consciencesofmost, if not of all men, a
testimony to a coming judgment. I will not sayof all men, for I believe that
some manage to drug their self-consciousness as atlastto quiet all their fears.
But the most of men believe in a judgment to come and in their more
thoughtful moods are alarmed thereat. There is more faith as to the judgment
than we dream of in those who are most profanely daring in their speeches
againstGod. The reasonwhy they speak so exceedinglyproud is because their
consciencesmake them cowards and to veil their cowardice they use
bombastic words. These are the men that tremble first—the men that first cry
out for mercy when the hand of God begins to touch them. How very seldom
do you find a man die in uninterested unbelief! At some time or other, reason
will speak and consciencewillbe heard and then that “dreadof something
after death” makes men cling even to the most wretchedstate—choosing,
rather, to bear the ills they have than fly to others that they know not of.
Universal conscience, oralmost universal conscience, speakslike a prophet
within the soul and tells of a throne of judgment, a heaven, and a hell. Now,
whether we had or had not this argument to support us would make not one
jot of difference to those of us who believe in the Word of God. What God says
would always be enough for us, even if the nature of things and the apparent
force of reasonshould flatly contradictHis Word. Yes, I will even put it in
that harsh way. We are always gladwhen we get the subordinate help of
arguments fetchedfrom the nature of things and so forth, but we care very
little about them. We have acceptedthe Bible as God’s revelation. We believe
the teaching of this book to be infallible and inasmuch as the Scriptures
declare that there is a judgment to come, we confidently look for it. Now,
according to the revelation of the gospel, this judgment will be conducted by
the man, Christ Jesus. Godwill judge the world, but it will be through His
Son whom He has ordained and appointed to actually carry out the business
of that last tremendous day. He who shall sit upon the throne is “the Son of
man.” He will be thus enthroned, I suppose, partly because it is involved in
His mediatorial office in which the Lord has put all things in subjectionunder
His feet. He is at the right hand of God—“angelsandauthorities, and powers
being made subject unto Him.” God has been pleasedto put the world, not
under the direct government of personaldeity, but under the government of
the Mediator, that He might deal with us in mercy. That Mediatoris Prophet,

Priestand King—and His kingship would be shorn of its glory if the King had
not the power of life and death and the powerof holding court and judging
His subjects. Jesus Christ, therefore, being mediatorial King and Sovereign
and all power being given unto Him in heaven and in earth, He will take unto
Himself His greatpowerat the last and will judge the nations. This high
position is also awardedto our Lord as an honor from the Fatherby which
shall be wiped awayevery trace of the shame and dishonor through which He
passedamong the sons of men. The kings of the earth stoodup to judge Him,
but they shall stand before Him to be judged. The rulers took counseltogether
to condemn Him, but the rulers shall stand at His bar to be themselves
condemned. Pontius Pilate and the chief priests shall all be there, and Caesar
and all Caesarsand Czars and emperors and kings and princes shall do
homage before Him in the lowestmanner by standing before His judgment
seatas prisoners to be tried by Him. There will be no recollectionofthe
scepterof reed, for He shall break His enemies with a rod of iron. There shall
be no marks of the thorn-crown, for on His head shall be many a diadem. Men
shall not then be able to think of Him as the man of tears with His visage sadly
marred by grief and shame, for His eyes shall be as flames of fire and His
countenance as the sun shining in its strength. O cross, whateverofshame
there was about you shall be wiped out forever among the sons of men, for
this man shall sit upon the throne of judgment! The Father designedto put
this honor upon Him and He has right well deservedit. Jesus Christ as God
has a glory which He had with the Father before the world was, but as God-
man, He has a glory which His Father has given Him to be the rewardof that
labor of life and death by which He has redeemedHis people. “Give unto the
Lord glory and strength” is the ascription of all His saints and God, the
everlasting Fatherhas done
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this unto His Son, concerning whom He has sworn that every knee shall bow
before Him and every tongue shall confess that He is Lord to the glory of God
the Father. “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints to
execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them
of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their
hard speeches whichungodly sinners have spokenagainstHim.” I want you
especiallyto remember that in the Holy Scriptures we are perpetually
reminded in reference to the judgment that it is a judgment by the man Christ
Jesus. There must be specialreasonforthis honor done to the manhood of our
Lord or it would not be so continually insisted upon. Danielin his prophecy
(7:13), says, “I saw in the night visions and behold, one like the Son of man
came with the clouds of heaven and came to the Ancient of days, and they
brought Him near before Him.” The coming one in his vision was “the Son of
man” and we all know to whom that title belongs. Hence our Lord Himself
very early in His ministry took care to claim for Himself this power of
governance and judgment. Turn to John 5:22, where He says, “The Father
judges no man, but has committed all judgment unto the Son: that all men
should honor the Son, even as they honor the Father.” Then in verse 27, He
gives us the reasonfor His being thus ordained to be the Judge, “And He has
given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Sonof man.”
So that not only does Danielsee Him as the Sonof man, but Jesus Christ
Himself declares that the authority to judge is given to Him because He is the
Son of man—there being in that fact a peculiar reasonwhy He should be
Judge of all mankind. Your memories will at once allow you to recollectthat
in the famous pictures drawn by our Lord wherein He describes the judgment
(Matt 25:31-32), He takes care to begin by saying, “When the Son of man shall
come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the
throne of His glory: and before Him shall be gathered all nations: and He
shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from
the goats.”He does not callHimself the Son of God in this case, but says, “The
Son of man shall come in His glory.” So is it too in Matthew 13:41—“The Son
of man shall send forth His angels and they shall gather out of His kingdom all
things that offend.” This it was which seems to have struck the apostle Paulso
much when he quoted from the Psalms and applied the language to Christ in
Hebrews 2, “What is man that You are mindful of him? Or the son of man,

that You visit him? You made him a little lowerthan the angels;You crowned
him with glory and honor, and did set him over the works of Your hands: You
have put all things in subjectionunder his feet.” Whereonhe says, “We see
Jesus crownedwith glory and honor.” It is as Sonof man as well as Son of
God that our Lord will judge the world at the last greatday. Be sure then of
His impartiality. He is God yet man—having an intense sympathy both with
the King and with the subjects—having manifestedHis grace evento the
rebellious and being yet filled with intense love to the Father and His law. If
we could have the electionof a judge, what being could we suppose more
impartial or so impartial as the Lord, who though He counted it not robbery
to be equal with God, yet made Himself of no reputation and took upon
Himself the form of a servant and was made in the likeness ofsinful flesh? O
blessedJudge, be You at once enthroned by the choice of the whole creation!
This person is peculiarly suitable to be Judge because He has a perfect
knowledge ofthe law. Yes, “Your law is My delight,” He says. He put on
righteousness as a garment. The Lord Jesus Christ, from His youth up, was an
exceedinglydeep scholarof the law of God. He grew as a child in wisdom
concerning the will of God. His ears were openedto hear as He learned that
He might know how to speak a word in seasonto them that are weary. He
knows the law, for He made Himself subjectto it and kept it in all its parts.
This is the first requisite of a judge—to be thoroughly well-acquaintedwith
the statutebook. Yetfurther, He knows also the evil of law-breaking. Whata
Judge is this whom God has appointed, who, strange to say, has Himself
suffered for sin though in Him was no sin, for He was holy, harmless,
undefiled, and separate from sinners. Yet the sting of sin, which is death, He
has endured and the curse of sin has passedupon Him, as it is written,
“Cursedis everyone that hangs on a tree.” With what precisionthen can He
judge who, being both God and man and knowing well the law, has also an
intimate acquaintance with all the heinousness and wickedness oflaw-
breaking!Well did the Fatherchoose Him to be the Judge of the quick and
the dead. It puts judgment beyond a fault when He who is the Friend of
sinners is made the Judge of sinners.

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Thus much then concerning the fact that there will be a judgment and that
this judgment will be conducted by the man, Christ Jesus. Now observe that
this judgment will concernall mankind. He will judge the quick and the dead,
that is, those who will be alive at His coming He will judge as well as those
who have already died. He may come before some of us shall die. The time of
His advent we cannotguess, but we shall certainly appearbefore His
judgment seatwhenever He shall fix the assize. The summons will exempt no
man—from the utmost ends of the earth shall they come. None will be able to
hide themselves in solitary places orto find shelteramongstthe crowded
cities. Here and there a criminal escapesthe vigilant eye of human law.
Though it is difficult to do so, there have been cunning men who year after
year have managedby various disguises to escape recognitionand have
continued their depredations and evadedthe police. But there shall be no such
instance among all that shall be alive and remain at the coming of the Lord.
And as for the dead who have died in past ages, they shall all rise again. What
prodigious multitudes! What crowds that baffle all arithmetic! Yet shall they
all be arraignedand tried—all the living and all the dead of Christian lands
and heathen lands—ofantediluvian ages andof ages upon which the ends of
the earth have come. Kings and princes and every bondman, rich and poor,
small and great, shall all stand in that lastgreatday in Christ’s great
judgment hall. It concerns you, my brothers, as it does me. It concerns you,
my sisterand your children, as wellas those who have gone before. As surely
as the Lord lives, the things that are seenshall pass away—mountains and
hills shall flee before Him and rocks shallbe melted down at His presence—
but His Word shall never pass away. And behold, He comes. “Behold, He
comes with clouds and every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced
Him and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because ofHim.” Just a few
words concerning this judgment. When He does come, that judgment will be a
very eminent one. It will be a judgment fixed by the peremptory ordinance of
God, for the text says that He has “ordained” Jesus to sit as Judge. It is by
ordinance and decree that Jesus Christwill take the throne. He takes not this
honor upon Himself on His ownauthority, but He claims the throne as one

that was ordained of God as was Aaron. In all His offices, He quotes the divine
decree and for this, the lastof all, He has the ordinance of God to be the Judge
of the quick and the dead. Everything done will be by divine authority—there
will be the stamp and sealof the everlasting God set upon everything that
shall be transactedon that grand occasion. The whole trial will be most
solemnly conducted. I shall not for a single moment attempt a description of
the scene. There is room indeed for imagery and poetry, but we have none of
these and want them not this morning. This will suffice, “Forthe Lord
Himself shall descendfrom heaven with a shout, with the voice of the
archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first”
(1 Thes 4:16). There shall be shoutings when He comes, as if all the angelic
bands lifted up their voices in acclamationand above them all one voice shall
ring out most majestically, the voice of the archangel. And yet above all other
sounds a trumpet callshall thunder forth, most dreadful to the ears of
ungodly men. Louder than ten thousand thunders shall it peal over earth and
sea and none shall be able to resistthe summons. Then, in His descent, the
Judge shall pass into the regionof the clouds upon a greatwhite throne shall
He sit and every eye shall see Him—and also they which crucified Him. His
coming will be with greatpomp of angelic splendor, fit for the state of such a
King and for the solemnity of such a day. That judgment will be very
searching, for the apostle Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 5:10 that we shall give
an accountfor the deeds done in the body, eachone according to what he has
done, whether it is goodor whether it is bad. And our Savior, in Matthew
12:36, informs us that for every idle word that man shall speak he must give
accountin the Day of Judgment—words, therefore, will be put in evidence as
well as actions. Yes, and there will be an accounttakenin that day of things
which never reachedthe publicity of words, for you know how Solomonclosed
up the book of Ecclesiastes by saying that, “Godwill bring every work into
judgment, with every secretthing, whether it is goodor whether it is evil.”
Paul also says, “Godwill judge the secrets ofmen by Jesus Christ according to
my gospel.”Suchthings as were never known by our fellow creatures and
were forgottenby ourselves shallbe revealed and judged. Imaginations,
lustings, and desires of the soul, secretthoughts and passions and murmuring
shall be laid open before all men and before God shall a reckoning be made.
That judgment will be of a very exactkind. It will proceedupon evidence and

documentary testimony—slander and hearsaywill not be mentioned. No
condemnation will come upon goodmen through
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the whisperings of malicious tongues, but everything shall be gone about in
due order and according to the rules of the court of heaven. Listen to this,
“And I saw a greatwhite throne and Him that sat on it, from whose face the
earth and the heavens fled away, and there was found no place for them: and
I saw the dead, small and greatstand before God, and the books were
opened”—documentarytestimony brought into court as evidence, “and
another book was opened, which is the book of life and the dead were judged
out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.”
Don’t you see that the judgment will be done by recordand solemn affidavit,
in that greatCourt of King’s Bench? There will be no hurry, no passing over
judgment with a light hand—all will be done in truth and equity and
according to facts recordedby the infallible omniscience of God. But what
severity of justice will then be seen, for things will not be judged by their
outward appearance, but put to thorough testand trial. Hear the words of the
Lord, “Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it,
because it shall be revealedby fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of
what sort it is.” Well may we cry with Malachi, “But who may abide the day
of His coming? And who shall stand when He appears? ForHe is like a
refiner’s fire and like a fuller’s soap.” The sentences whichwill then be
pronounced will be so just as to be indisputable and even the condemned will
admit the justness thereof. At the last greatday, not one of the condemned
shall be able to deny his guilt nor the justice of the sentence. Thoughsentto
hell, he will feel it is what he deserves. Youremember when the king came in
to see the guests and found a man that had not on a wedding garment, the
intruder could make no excuse, but stoodspeechless?There shallbe an assent
in every human mind to the sentence ofthe Christ of God—it shall flash such

awful conviction into the soul of every sinner that, though he is damned, his
own soul shall say, “Amen,” to the condemnation. Oh, what a Judgment Day
will that be in which everyone shall be certain, even in his own sad case, that
the verdict of the Judge is bright as the sun with righteousnessand cannot be
appealedagainst!This, surely, will be the hell of hell that it is deserved evenin
its utmost pang and bitterest pain. Oh, my hearers, will any of you have to
say, “Amen,” to your own condemnation? I pray the Lord to save you from
such a fate. That verdict will be final and irreversible. When Jesus has once
pronounced it, there will be no appeal, no suing out of a writ of error, no
reversalof the decree. He Himself has said it, “These shallgo awayinto
everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.” There will be no
delay in execution, nor escape from the doom. There will be no steeling of the
heart to endure it and no outliving the doom. It will last on in all its terror, the
final verdict of the Judge of all the earth, pronounced by the Christ of love. I
know not how to speak upon such a theme as this, but must leave it as it
stands before you. May the Holy Spirit impress it upon your minds. II. I
desire, in the secondplace, to callyour attention for a little while to THE
EVIDENT IMPORTANCEOF THIS MESSAGE. Its importance may be
gatheredfrom the text because it says, “He commanded us to preachthis.”
Did the eternal God give a command for us to preach this truth? Then He
must know, in His infinite wisdom, that there is a greatnecessityfor its being
declared. But please notice the way in which the command is to be executed.
“He commanded us to preach.” Now, to preach means to herald, to proclaim.
Lo, we this day precede the great Judge, as the trumpeters go before our
judges on judgment day and this is our cry, “He comes!He comes!He comes!
The Man of Nazareth, Jesus, the crucified, is coming, appointed Judge of the
quick and the dead!” And we are to cry this with all the loudness of voice and
earnestnessoftone and solemnity of manner which become the heralds of the
King of kings. Whether you believe it or not, He comes;whether you trifle
with it or not, whether you are rebels or loyal subjects, He comes and that
speedily. He comes to judge the world in righteousness and the people in
equity. Thus we make solemn proclamationin His name, declaring to you a
fact which you do well to hear with serious hearts and thoughtful minds. But
then it is added that we are “to testify that it is He.” Having given the
proclamation, we are then to bear witness solemnly and to speak the fact over

and over againfor God, adding our own belief that it is surely true. In the
Greek, this word “testify” is very forcible, something like the affirmation
which those of us who accountit wrong to take an oath are knownto make in
courts of law. We give our solemn affirmation and truthful testimony that it is
so. It is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth that we declare
when we tell you that Jesus Christ of Nazareth, the Son of man, is coming
upon the
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clouds of heavento judge the quick and the dead. We are to speak of this as a
thing we know and are certain of—and we are to stand before men, and
whether they will hear or whether they will forbear— testify that it is so. That
which is to be both proclaimed and testified in obedience to the divine
command is no mean matter. Hearkento it and take goodheed, I beseechyou.
And this is to be done “unto the people”—notto some few, but to all the
people—to the Gentiles, to the nations. Wherever we go, this is to be part of
our proclamationas the heralds of Christ, “Behold, He comes to judge
mankind.” To you, my hearers, evento you is this word of warning sent. Will
you not regard it? Now, brethren, there is importance in this, not only
according to the text, but from other reasons.If you think awhile you will see
that it sheds a greatlight upon the future of the ungodly. Whateveryou, my
brother, chooseto say of the wrath of God which is revealedconcerning the
impenitent, please think of this. It may be you feel troubled about its dread
severity and eternity, but let this ease your perplexity that the Judge upon
whom the sentence depends is Jesus Christ, the Savior of men. I feelperfectly
safe in leaving the future of the wickedin such hands as His, and however
terrible may be His own words— and they are terrible to the lastdegree—
about the future of the lost, I, for one, can never quarrel with Him. If it were
Moses thatspoke, if he spoke for God, I dare not challenge him, yet there
might be the temptation. But when He speaks who is the Son of man, let all

the earth keepsilence before Him. The severity which He exercises mustbe
inevitable severity—you can be sure of that. If there is pain and anguish and
wrath to every soul of man that does evil, then since it is the Christ who will
pronounce it, it will be because it must be and cannotbe helped, but must be
so in the nature of things. Therefore, we bow before this dreadful doctrine of
Scripture and instead of trying to quiet men in their sins, we know the terrors
of the Lord and we beseechthem in Christ’s stead that they be reconciledto
God— “You sinners, seek His face, Whose wrathyou cannotbear. Fly to the
shelter of His cross And find salvationthere.” Fly into the clefts of that rock
which otherwise will grind you to powder when it falls upon you. This
doctrine too, that Christ is Judge, ought never to be forgottenbecause it
reflects greatglory upon Him. Ah, sons of men, you may despise Him, but He
is your Masterafter all. You may say, “Let us break His bands asunder and
castHis cords from us,” but Jehovah’s owndecree has set Him as King upon
His holy hill of Zion. You may, if you will, bite your lips and rage and rave
againstthe incarnate God, Jesus our Lord and King, but you shall stand
before Him as surely as you live, to confess the blindness and the futility of
your opposition and to be made to bow your knees in terror, if you will not
bend them now in reverence. Yes, He is King. The world may say what it wills
and there may come darker times than these, but the lone stargleams afar
with undying brightness—the Star of the morning which ushers in the eternal
day. Jesus comes and when He comes, light breaks for all that are on His
side—and the black and murky darkness ofan endless night shall descendon
all that are His foes. I close by noticing that the importance of this doctrine is
very greatif we recollectits beneficialeffect upon our everyday life. I
constantly hear silly people, wickedpersons, say, “Tellthe people about
something that has to do with today—aboutcleanliness and honesty and all
that.” As if we did not do that and as if we were not the first to exhort men to
fulfill all manner of socialduties. Do we not bid them think on whatsoever
things are pure, honest, temperate, and of goodrepute? But if I want men to
live righteously, soberly, and honestly, I know of no motive that can have
greaterweightwith them than this of a judgment to come. Take that away
from us, what have we to urge upon the sons of men at all? If they are to die
like brutes, they will live like brutes. If there is no hereafter, they do well to
say, “Let us eatand drink, for tomorrow we die.” This, though it looks like a

future thing, is one of the present-day questions of every hour. You are
stewards—youwill have to give your account. Your Lord will come and
question you as to your use of His goods. Will anybody in his sensestell me
that this is unpractical? Surely every reasonable manwill admit that for the
promotion of right and truth and holiness, this is one of the most practical
considerations that canpossibly be found. If God will judge men at the last, it
behooves men to see how they live today.
8
8
Another specialbenefit of this truth is its convincing and awakening power.
Men tremble when they hear of judgment to come and they are led to cry,
“What must we do to be saved?” Menbegin to confess theirsin when they are
told that the law by which they will be judged is spiritual and reaches evento
the thoughts and intents of the heart. “Then,” they say, “who canstand before
His presence whenonce He is angry? If even to think an evil thought or to lust
an evil desire brings condemnation, who among us can stand when the heart-
searching Godshall sift the sons of men?” This is the reasonwhy it ought to
be preached, for only penitents convinced of sin are likely to acceptthe
remissionof sins. This is the plow which makes furrows for the goodseed.
This is the surgeon’s knife which prepares for the receptionof the healing
balm. And O, my brothers and sisters, you all know how quickening this
doctrine is to Christians. We do not fear the Day of Judgment—we do not
dread the thought of standing before our Lord Jesus becausewe have a plea
which we know will answerevery purpose. Our plea is this—we have been
tried, condemned, and punished already. Judge of all, You know when we
were tried, judged, and condemned! Lo, in Your hands are the nail prints
which are the witnessesthat You did bear our sins in Your own body on the
tree. Lo, at Your side You wearthe ruby gem which tells how Your own heart
made expiation for the guilt of all that trust in You. We are not afraid, for
there is no judgment for him who is judged already. There is no punishment

for him who is punished already in a Substitute whom God has accepted. Yet
this expectationof judgment quickens us to holy duty—we feelthat since the
Mastercomes, we would be as men that look for their Lord and stand with
our loins girded, doing service, expecting to hear His footstepat any
moment— “O watch and pray! The Judge is at the door, Before His flaming
bar you soonmust stand. O watch! And keepyour garments spotless pure,
And then shall you be found at His right hand.” I shall be glad if any word
that I have spokenupon this truth shall strike and stick and abide in your
hearts—andmake those think who have been most thoughtless concerning the
world to come. Years ago a gentlewomanhad been spending an afternoon at
cards and the evening at a ball and such-like amusements. She came home
very late and found that her maid-servant, who was sitting up waiting for her,
was reading a book. “Ah,” she said, “are you still poring over your dull
books? Theymake you moping and melancholy.” The lady retired to her
chamber, but she slept not. In the night she was troubled and fell a-weeping.
Sleepforsook her. She tossedto and fro and at length she calledher maid. She
said, “Madam, what ails you? I thought I left you very merry and well.”
“Oh,” she said, “but I lookedover your book and I only saw one word and
that word stings me. I cannot sleep. I cannotbear it.” “What word was it,
Madam?” “It was that word, ‘ETERNITY.’Oh, maid,” she said, “it is very
well for me to sport and play and waste my time as I have done, but oh,
eternity, eternity, eternity! How can I face eternity?” And so that night was
turned to weeping and to prayer. I could wish the same might happen now to
many of you. The Judge is at the door. Jesus comes to judge you—will you
have Him now to be your Savior? If not, His coming will cause you to weep
and wail—andthat throughout eternity. Remember that word, ETERNITY.
God bless you all. Amen.
THE MEDIATOR—JUDGE AND SAVIOR NO. 1540

A SERMON DELIVERED ON LORD’S-DAYMORNING, MAY 30, 1880,
BY C. H. SPURGEON, AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE,
NEWINGTON.
“And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he
which was ordained of God to be the Judge of the quick and the dead. To him
give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believes in
him shall receive remissionof sins.” Acts 10:42-43.
THESE two verses are an extractfrom a very remarkable sermon, a sermon
preachedby Peterin the house of Cornelius upon the occasionofthe Gentile
Pentecost. I think we are entitled to call the event by that name, for then upon
the Gentiles was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. Peterpreachedat the
first Pentecost, whenthe Holy Ghostfell upon the company of Jewish
believers, and it is remarkable that he should be the preacherat the second
Pentecost, whenthe Holy Ghostdescendedupon those of the uncircumcision
while they were listening to the Gospel. Philip was at Caesarea,and might
have been calledin, but God had determined that the strict Peter, the minister
of the circumcision, should himself open the door of faith to the Gentiles. Paul
was at that time converted, and it might have seemedto be more appropriate
to have used him in enlightening this Italian officer, but the Lord thought not
so, He would send the Spirit upon the Gentiles in connectionwith the same
person who preachedwhen this visitation blessedthe converts of Israel. Peter
preachedas it were upon the ruins of the middle wall of partition which once
divided the sons of men. The occasionwas very special, and hence the
sermon is the more worthy of our earnestconsideration. What kind of
discourse is that which is likely to be sealedby the Holy Spirit? We may learn
something upon that point from the instance before us. Notice that it was a
sermon “preachedby request.” I have seenthose words printed upon the title
page of very poor sermons, as a sort of apologyfor their being printed. I have
wondered who it was that did requestthem, and whether the requesters were

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