I constantly encounter sincere believers who are experiencing loss or difficulty

As a group many really committed believers in South Africa are experiencing difficulty, some are in poverty, others are suffering injuries and other losses

Fundamentally it is written that "Satan roams around like a roaring lion seeking whom he MAY devour"

Most people focus on the roaming and the lion when, in fact, it is the permissive "MAY" that should receive maximum attention

The forces of darkness require sin in our lives in order to attack us -- this article discusses the principles and mechanisms that apply

May Yah bless you and keep you and make His face to shine upon you.

2013.03.07

Judgment in THIS life

by

James Robertson

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I continue to encounter believers who do not understand that there is judgment in this life and that NOTHING will go wrong in their lives other than through their own foolishness, laziness, negligence or sin.

In this article I will give you the basis of judgment in THIS life and give advice on how to avoid such judgment.

In the sections that follow I will build a picture step-by-step of the Court Room of Heaven and how it operates so that you are no longer unsure of how things go wrong in your life and what to do about it.

1. History is packed with examples of judgment in this life
The historical accounts contained in the book {bible} are packed with cases of judgment in this life – things that happen that cause loss, inconvenience, death, etc.

Immediately following their rebellion in disobeying the commandment of Yah Adam and Chavah {Eve} are banished from the garden and huge judgment was pronounced over the sons (children) of Adam that remains in force today.

In the time of Noah huge judgment was pronounced over the earth and the flood resulted.

Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by fire from the sky.

Egypt experienced repeated judgments culminating in the slaughter of the first born and the drowning of Pharaoh's Army in the Red Sea.

Moshe {Moses} was judged for striking the rock and died before entering the promised land.

David was judged for his adultery with Bathsheba, was deposed by his son and had to flee Jerusalem and had his ten covenant woman servants {concubines} raped in the sight of all Jerusalem.

Ananias and Saphira dropped dead for lying to the set-apart {holy} Spirit of Yah.

Shaul {Saul / Paul} suffered severe judgments from the time he was taken prisoner in Jerusalem to the time that he got to Rome for his disobedience in going to Jerusalem when Yah told him not to go.

There are clear indications of judgement to come at the end of this age on the living and the dead.

There are numerous other historical passages that speak of judgment in this life.

If you are not aware of judgment in this life you are ignorant of one of the most important factors that influence your life as a believer and it is vital that you give deep and prayerful consideration to what follows.

2. Your own doing – NOT judgment necessarily
Your own foolishness can cause things to go wrong in this life without there necessarily being sin – a woman who simply does not do the things that she should do as a covenant woman {wife} may experience strife with her covenant man {husband} simply because her behaviour is not acceptable to him.

Likewise a man can experience strife because he does not treat his covenant woman well.

A lazy person will experience things going wrong without necessarily breaking any of the commandments.

An argumentative person will experience things going wrong without necessarily breaking any of the commandments.

If something is NOT working in your life the first place to look is whether YOU are being ill disciplined, not conducting yourself in a constructive and appropriate fashion, etc.

If you are doing these things you need to course correct before you expect the things that are taught in the remainder of this article to work for you.

3. Satan seeks who he MAY devour
In 1 Peter 5:8 it is written "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:" (KJV)

Take particular note of the work "MAY" – Satan and his forces cannot touch you without permission from Yah and that permission will ONLY be given if there is sin in your life.

So, the next time that Satan or his cohorts touch your life and you are wondering why, stop rebuking Satan, go to the mirror, look in the mirror and ask yourself what YOU have done to open the door for Satan and the forces of darkness to operate in your life.

I say again, Satan and the forces of darkness CANNOT TOUCH YOU UNLESS YOU HAVE SIN IN YOUR LIFE!

4. Yahooshua is our advocate – why?  There IS a court!
In 1 John 2:1 it is written "My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Yahooshua the anointed of Yah {Jesus Christ} the righteous:" (KJV)

Believers love to quote this verse but they do not understand its significance.

What is an "advocate"?  An advocate is a senior legal representative who speaks on behalf of the defendant in a court case – the advocate knows the law and ensures that the evidence of the defendant is appropriately structured and argued in order to ensure the most favourable outcome in the court.

So why does Yahooshua need to be our advocate?

Because there IS a court and we DO get charged.

So Satan and his forces constantly patrol the earth looking for sin and then they bring charges to the Court of Heaven and Yahooshua represents us as our advocate.

The forces of darkness are NOT obliged to bring charges, they can wait until the sin builds up and THEN bring charges in order to secure a heavier sentence OR, if the person concerned is serving Satan at a material level the forces of darkness may choose NOT to bring charges as the lack of repercussions for sin may encourage the person concerned to dig themselves deeper and deeper into sin and therefore remain in service of Satan.

This is the reason so many Christians remain in their huge errors with regard to worshipping Jesus, using the wrong names, worshipping the Bible, using the Cross, keeping Sunday as the Sabbath, etc.  By doing these things they are in service of Satan and so Satan and his cohorts have no reason to bring charges.  They know that the offenders will be judged at the end of the age and will probably end up in the Lake of Fire serving Satan for eternity.

Yahooshua as our advocate can plead for mercy – he has lived in this world and knows how difficult it is and, therefore, if you are in ignorance or a young believer, or have asked for Grace in an area you are battling with Yahooshua has the right to plead for Grace on your behalf and it MAY be granted.

However, IF you are a mature believer who should know better then there is NO Grace, you must face the full consequences of your sin.

If you have prayed "Father judge me severely and correct me harshly that I may serve you more perfectly" then you have voluntarily requested the withdrawal of Grace and should expect the full force of the Law of Yah to be applied against you when you sin.

Even here, if Yah has given you a particular mission that you are not well equipped for Yah may still extend Grace at His discretion and Yahooshua's request.

You may well ask why you would pray for judgment – the simple answer is that the more you are judged in this life and the more sensitive you are to judgment and the more willing you are to course correct when judgment comes the LESS severe will be your judgment at the end of your life, the more likely you will be to overcome to the end of your life and the better equipped you will be to sit on a high throne alongside Yahooshua as a King and judge in the Court of Heaven.

There is GREAT REWARD for actively seeking to be judged in this life.

Seeking judgment in this life is a prerequisite for living a life above sin in this life.

5. Satan is the prosecutor in the court
In Revelation 12:10 reference is made to "the accuser of our brethren …, which accused them before our Mighty One {God} day and night." (KJV)

Here we see confirmation of what is written above.

Satan and his cohorts are before the Throne (= Judgment Seat) of Yah day and night bringing accusations against the brethren.

So, they are not that concerned about those who are not believers, why should they be?  Those people are Satan's servants, Satan and his cohorts will not bring charges unless Yah forces their hand, see examples below.

They concentrate on the brethren, those who believe and, in fact, they concentrate most of their energy on those who are really making an effort to serve Yah.

If you are lukewarm, not praying much, not doing much to serve Yah and not constituting a real threat to Satan and his forces he will leave you alone a lot of the time.

To the extent that there are blood-line curse and similar factors at play they may attack you at some level but their preferred mode of operation is to leave you alone in your sin.

If, on the other hand they see that you are a threat to them they will focus all the attention necessary to try and keep you from having the time and energy to serve Yah.

So, IF you are reading this and questioning the validity of what is written here then check out your standing with Yah.

Unless you have prayed prayers like "Father I give you my life to do with as you will" or "Father I desire to be found a good and faithful servant on the Day of Judgment" or something else along these lines AND you are making an effort to grow closer to Yah and to serve Him then Satan and his forces will likely leave you alone.

BUT, IF you have made a serious commitment and are really serving Yah or seeking to serve Him materially THEN expect that there is a whole army of demons and fallen messengers {angels} watching your every word and deed and looking for every situation that will give them a right to destroy you or attack you or damage you in any way they can.

IF you fall into this category it is VITAL that you understand what is written here.

6. Satan and his forces ALSO stimulate sin and error
Notwithstanding what is written above Satan and his cohorts WILL seek to lead all people into sin and error – that is part of their mandate with Satan as mighty one {god} of this world and they do NOT need the consent of the Court of Heaven to do this.

So they will bring temptation, get people to curse you, assign demons to find a basis on which they can attach themselves to you, bring people and material to you that will bring you into wrong teaching (doctrine), etc.

BUT these attempts will only take effect IF you submit to them and do not discern correctly that these things are sin, error, etc.

It is so that a curse without a cause cannot alight – in other words, no matter how much Satanists, Witch Doctors, etc curse you those curses will ONLY have effect if you open the door for them to attach to you and operate against you – so, the forces of darkness can curse you but they need the consent of the Court of Heaven for those curses to operate.

Last year I discovered through a number of Yah's spokes persons {prophets} that there were something like 193 death curses against me but they were not touching me because I did not have sin in my life deserving of a death sentence.  Had I committed any sin deserving of a death sentence ALL of those curses would immediately have kicked in and I would likely have been killed very quickly, whether in a motor car accident, through a deadly disease or whatever unless I had rapidly repented and turned from my sin and returned to Yah.

If you have had close shaves with death you need to look at what sin there is in your life that is opening the way for the forces of darkness to gain the right to take your life.

You can claim the promises of Yah and at some level these WILL offset the consequences of your sin but it will be a constant battle for Yah to save your life when at the same time he is forced to give judgments against you.

7. Job – an example of the operation of the Court of Heaven
In Job 1:6-13 we see a clear description of the operation of the Court of Heaven:
"6 Now there was a day when the sons of The Almighty {God} came to present themselves before Yah the eternally self-existing {the LORD} , and Satan came also among them.
7 And Yah the eternally self-existing { the LORD } said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered Yah the eternally self-existing { the LORD }, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.
8 And Yah the eternally self-existing {the LORD} said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth Yah, and escheweth evil?
9 Then Satan answered Yah the eternally self-existing { the LORD }, and said, Doth Job fear The Almighty {God} for nought?
10 Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.
11 But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face.
12 And Yah the eternally self-existing { the LORD } said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of Yah the eternally self-existing { the LORD }." (KJV)
So we see the Court of Heaven where Satan has been roaming the earth.
We see that a dialogue takes place between Satan and Yah regarding what Satan has found and specifically relating to Job.
We see that Satan is of the view that Job is protected by Yah in every way such that Satan cannot touch Job.
BUT we see that Yah actually tells Satan that all that Job has is "IN YOUR POWER" but that Satan is not permitted to touch Job's person.
It is widely believed that Job is one of the oldest, if not the oldest passage in the collection of writings known as the Bible and with this information together with a description of what happens in the Court we deduce that this situation took place early on when sin was not widespread in the earth and when Satan did not fully know his legal rights.
In Job 3:25 we see the basis of the judgment against Job "For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me." (KJV)
Here we see that by his own admission Job was walking in fear.

Fear is the opposite of faith, fear is faith in Satan and the forces of darkness and distrust of Yah.

Accordingly, Job, through his fear, gave Satan a legal right to touch ALL THE THINGS HE FEARED LOSING.

Later, in Job chapter 2 we see that Satan is also permitted to touch Job's person but not kill him and in Job chapter 29 we see that Job was also walking in pride and so, since pride is also sin because it exalts oneself against the knowledge of Yah, Satan was also permitted to humiliate Job.

If you do not understand this about the story of Job you can draw seriously wrong conclusions.

The fundamental lesson is that, no matter how righteous you are, no matter how much you are in right standing with Yah, ANY SIN in your life will grant Satan the legal right to cause you loss, suffering, illness, disease, etc.

8. Ahab – an example of how the forces of darkness are used to execute sentence
In 1 Kings 22:19-24 and 2 Chronicles 18 we see another example of the Court of Heaven in operation:

"19 And he said, Hear thou therefore the word of Yah the eternally self-existing { the LORD }: I saw Yah the eternally self-existing { the LORD }  sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left.
20 And Yah the eternally self-existing { the LORD } said, Who shall persuade Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead? And one said on this manner, and another said on that manner.
21 And there came forth a spirit, and stood before Yah the eternally self-existing {the LORD}, and said, I will persuade him.
22 And Yah the eternally self-existing { the LORD } said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt persuade him, and prevail also: go forth, and do so.
23 Now therefore, behold, Yah the eternally self-existing { the LORD } hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and Yah the eternally self-existing {the LORD}  hath spoken evil concerning thee." (KJV)
Here we see a situation in which Ahab, who has sinned mightily against Yah and Yah's servants and has seemingly escaped Yah's justice, crosses the line and Yah decides to kill him.

Yah puts the judgment to the Court of Heaven and asks for volunteers to execute the death sentence.

A demon comes forward and offers to be a lying spirit in the mouth of Ahab's prophets and Yah gives his blessing to the course of action proposed by the demon.

We read before and after this passage how the demon was able to carry out the sentence and how Ahab died a long and lingering death after having been shot by an arrow fired at random that penetrated between the joints in his armour thereby giving effect to a prophetic statement of his death given by the spokesman of Yah {prophet} EliYahoo {Elijah}.

9.  So … what should YOU do?
It is vital to understand that when things go wrong in your life, not matter WHAT, YOU AND ONLY YOU are ultimately responsible for what happens.

You can either ignore the judgment, or you can use language that imputes power to Satan and his cohorts, or you can have a pity party, or … OR you can take RESPONSIBILITY for what has happened and get on your knees before Yah and ask Him what YOU have done that has opened the door to that judgment.

In the middle of last year I tripped and fell in front of about fifty people while walking through a conference venue.  I was carrying a computer, video camera and tripod slung over my shoulder and could do nothing to stop the fall.  I landed full length on my chest and was seriously winded and bruised in various places.  I struggled to walk for several days because of the pain in my hip.  My cell phone screen was shattered.  I was humiliated in front of a large group of people who were going to hear me speak a short while later!

I could have blamed the person who was responsible for the stand that I tripped over, instead I took it as a judgment and when I got home got on my knees and asked Yah WHY this had happened.  He told me I was allowing pride to creep into my heart and it was affecting my behaviour.  I repented and course corrected.

What will YOU choose to do?

Will you seek and welcome Yah's judgments as always just and fair and merciful or will you continue in your own strength to avoid Yah's judgments and to moan and complain and give Satan glory when you sin?

IF you chose to become sensitive to judgment in your life then the first thing you should do whenever anything goes wrong is get on your knees before Yah to seek instruction as to your sin and what correction is necessary.  Repent, ask for and receive forgiveness in the name of Yahooshua, course correct and continue.

Course correction may require that you apologise to people you have wronged, return with interest and penalties things you have stolen, come clean with people you have lied to, cut off adulterous relationships, change your language, etc, etc.

Note that judgments tend to correlate with your sin – so, if you have stolen from someone then it is likely that the judgment will relate to someone stealing from you.  Many years ago, when I had recently made an intense commitment to serve Yah He showed me through a dream that a former employee was going to steal from me and then told me that He could not protect me because I had stolen goods in my possession.  He required me to take some items I had removed from the University when I was a student and return them openly to the University and confess that I had stolen them before Yah was able to protect me against my disaffected former employee!

Conclusion
The basis of judgment in this life has been set out.

Things that go wrong in our lives are entirely the consequence of our own actions.

Will you accept responsibility for your actions or will you duck and dive Yah's judgments and get a nasty shock on the Day of Judgment?

May Yah bless you and keep you and make His face to shine upon you and give you peace.