Sunday
November 6
1. DEATH AND JUDGMENT: TWO INESCAPABLE EVENTS
a. What does the Bible teach about the great day of judgment? Ecclesiastes 12:14; Hebrews 9:27.
“When we become children of God, our names are written in the Lamb’s book of life, and they remain there until the time of the investigative judgment. Then the name of every individual will be called, and his record examined by Him who declares, ‘I know thy works.’ If in that day it shall appear that all our wicked deeds have not been fully repented of, our names will be blotted from the book of life, and our sins will stand against us. If the professed believer becomes self-confident, if in word or spirit he breaks the least precept of God’s holy law, he misrepresents Jesus, and in the judgment the awful words will be spoken, ‘Blot out his name from the book of life; he is a worker of iniquity.’ But the Father pities the self-distrustful, God-fearing soul, harassed though he may be with doubts and temptations. Jesus pleads for him, and confesses his name before the Father and His holy angels.”—The Signs of the Times, August 6, 1885.
b. Will anyone be able to escape the judgment of God? Romans 2:1–3; 14:12.
“Everyone must be tested and found without spot or wrinkle or any such thing.”—The Great Controversy (1888), p. 490.
Monday
November 7
2. THE GUILT OF THE WHOLE WORLD
a. Why must the entire world be judged? Romans 3:9, 10, 19, 20, 23; 5:l6, 18, 20.
b. Is there an exception for faithful Christians, or will they also be judged? Romans 14:10, 12; 2 Corinthians 5:10.
c. What pitfall of the Jewish nation must we carefully avoid? Romans 11:13, 17–21.
“To a people in whose hearts His law is written, the favor of God is assured. They are one with Him. But the Jews had separated themselves from God. . . . Their minds were darkened by transgression, and because in times past the Lord had shown them so great favor, they excused their sins. They flattered themselves that they were better than other men, and entitled to His blessings.
“These things ‘are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come’ (1 Corinthians 10:11). How often we misinterpret God’s blessings, and flatter ourselves that we are favored on account of some goodness in us! God cannot do for us that which He longs to do. His gifts are used to increase our self-satisfaction, and to harden our hearts in unbelief and sin.”—The Desire of Ages, p. 106.
“Every soul is accountable for the talents entrusted. As a church, as individuals, we are to stand upon the elevated, holy ground where the truth has placed us. We are to represent to the world in character and unity the accumulated light which shines upon us in these last days.”—The Review and Herald, April 25, 1893.
d. Who will be judged first—the righteous or the ungodly? 1 Peter 4:17, 18.
“In the typical service only those who had come before God with confession and repentance, and whose sins, through the blood of the sin offering, were transferred to the sanctuary, had a part in the service of the Day of Atonement. So in the great day of final atonement and investigative judgment the only cases considered are those of the professed people of God. The judgment of the wicked is a distinct and separate work and takes place at a later period.”—The Great Controversy, p. 480.
Tuesday
November 8
3. OUR NAMES IN THE BOOK OF LIFE
a. What are the main reasons why all true Christians should rejoice? Luke 10:20; Philippians 4:3.
“The book of life contains the names of all who have ever entered the service of God.”—The Great Controversy, p. 480.
“While Jesus is pleading for the subjects of His grace, Satan accuses them before God as transgressors. The great deceiver has sought to lead them into skepticism, to cause them to lose confidence in God, to separate themselves from His love, and to break His law. Now he points to the record of their lives, to the defects of character, the unlikeness to Christ, which has dishonored their Redeemer, to all the sins that he has tempted them to commit, and because of these he claims them as his subjects.
“Jesus does not excuse their sins, but shows their penitence and faith, and, claiming for them forgiveness, He lifts His wounded hands before the Father and the holy angels, saying: I know them by name. I have graven them on the palms of My hands. ‘The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise’ (Psalm 51:17).”—Ibid., p. 484.
b. What assurance does Christ give to His faithful followers? Matthew 24:13; Revelation 2:10.
“All who have truly repented of sin, and by faith claimed the blood of Christ as their atoning sacrifice, have had pardon entered against their names in the books of heaven; as they have become partakers of the righteousness of Christ, and their characters are found to be in harmony with the law of God, their sins will be blotted out, and they themselves will be accounted worthy of eternal life.”—Ibid., p. 483.
c. What will be the fate of professed Christians who think they can be saved in their sins? Exodus 32:33; Ezekiel 18:24; Matthew 7:21–23.
“Every name is mentioned, every case closely investigated. Names are accepted, names rejected. When any have sins remaining upon the books of record, unrepented of and unforgiven, their names will be blotted out of the book of life, and the record of their good deeds will be erased from the book of God’s remembrance.”—Ibid.
Wednesday
November 9
4. “RESERVED . . . UNTO THE JUDGMENT OF THE GREAT DAY”
a. What do we read about the specific time—at the end of the world—that God has appointed for the work of judgment? Acts 17:31; Revelation 11:18. Describe the solemnity of that hour. Matthew 7:13, 14.
“The righteous judgments of God will not spare the trifler. The people who have had great light will not be excused if they neglect to give, by a godly example, the light of truth to those with whom they associate.
“Not to unbelievers only, but to church members the words are spoken, ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near’ (Isaiah 55:6). With the light that has come to him, the believer has serious responsibilities placed upon him. He must not allow trifles to lead him to neglect the religion of Christ.
“It is dangerous for us to subordinate matters of eternal interest to the common affairs of life. . . .
“What can I say to you, my brethren and sisters, that will arouse you to the importance of the times in which we live, and lead you to a faithful examination of heart and life? Are your lives in harmony with the life of sacrifice that Christ lived on the earth? In giving His Son to the human race, the Father gave to His church a wonderful example of self-forgetting love.”—The Review and Herald, September 28, 1911.
b. Daniel chapter 7 confirms the teaching of the Bible that the judgment takes place, not at death, but at the end of the world. Summarize: Daniel 7:9, 10, 22, 26.
c. What does Jude say about that time? Jude 6.
d. How do we know that the patriarchs (Hebrews 11:13–16), the prophets (Daniel 12:13; Acts 2:34; Hebrews 11:39, 40), the apostles (John 14:1–3), and those that are dead in Christ are not in heaven? 1 Thessalonians 4:13–17.
e. In what words does the Bible teach that the ungodly are not burning in a lake of fire? What must take place before they can meet the fate they have chosen? 2 Peter 2:9; John 5:28, 29 (last part).
Thursday
November 10
5. THE JUDGMENT SEAT IN ZION
a. Where is the judgment to take place at the end of the world? Psalm 9:7, 8.
“The judgment is now passing in the sanctuary above. For many years this work has been in progress. Soon—none know how soon—it will pass to the cases of the living. In the awful presence of God our lives are to come up in review.”—The Great Controversy, p. 490.
b. Where does God have His throne in heaven? Psalm 9:11; Isaiah 6:1; Revelation 7:15; 14:1, 2.
c. Since we must know God in the interest of our salvation (John 17:3), what does this knowledge include? Psalms 9:16; 77:13. What event will take place after the judgment of God’s people? Hebrews 9:27, 28; Colossians 3:4.
“The subject of the sanctuary and the investigative judgment should be clearly understood by the people of God. All need a knowledge for themselves of the position and work of their great High Priest. Otherwise it will be impossible for them to exercise the faith which is essential at this time or to occupy the position which God designs them to fill.”—Ibid., p. 488.
“In the typical service the high priest, having made the atonement for Israel, came forth and blessed the congregation. So Christ, at the close of His work as mediator, will appear, ‘without sin unto salvation’ (Hebrews 9:28), to bless His waiting people with eternal life.”—Ibid., p. 485.
Friday
November 11
PERSONAL REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. What does the Bible say about the judgment day?
2. Will Christians be judged—and if so, when?
3. In what assurance should all Christians rejoice?
4. What do we know about the specific time of the judgment?
5. What will Christ do at the close of His mediatorial work in the sanctuary?