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Oct 02, 2026 06:00am

When Judgment Comes

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“When Mom comes home, you’re gonna get it.”

We didn’t have a lot of rules growing up, but among us kids, for the most part, we knew what was right and wrong. And if one of us stepped too far over the line, the threat came out.

Mom was going to hear about it.

And judgment would come.

In the moment, whatever we were doing that was wrong—well, let’s be honest—it felt right. We probably felt justified or vindicated.

Like the time my sister and brother got into it while riding in the back of the truck.

It was dark, and Mom was taking us down the road to my grandma’s because she worked nights. We loved riding in the back of the truck. Mom didn’t go too fast, so I usually sat on the hump over the tires, and Echoe and Chris would fight over the tailgate.

My sister called him a bad name and didn’t want him to sit on the tailgate with her.

So, he pushed her.

And there she went, rolling down the gravel road.

(And yes, she was fine.)

Even though he felt like she got what was coming to her, we knew it wasn’t his place to execute punishment.

In my mind, I can still see the dust in the taillights and my sister sitting on the road. I can see the face of my brother, knowing he was probably going to get in trouble. And in my heart, I hurt for him, knowing he would have to face the consequences.

We’re not kids anymore, but we all still have an authority over our lives. And what we do while we are here on this earth will be judged—good and bad—whether we felt justified or not.

2 Thessalonians 1:6–10

“Since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe, because our testimony among you was believed.”

The believers were being persecuted. And some of that opposition came from people who had the Word of God yet rejected Jesus. Those who opposed Christ’s followers could believe they were justified in their actions, but they were still under the authority of the very One they had rejected—Jesus.

Jesus, the One who had been crucified, had risen from the grave and ascended into Heaven. And He promised that He would return.

That was what Paul reminded the church at Thessalonica.

The sin and injustice of this world will not go unanswered. In Christ’s perfect timing, He will return with all authority. And those who have chosen their own way instead of following Him will face judgment for their disobedience and sin.

I can remember the look on my brother’s face.

First defiant, angry, and triumphant.

But there was also the knowledge—and fear—of the consequences that were coming.

Those same emotions stir in hearts today.

But for those who have trusted in Christ and surrendered to His authority, there is hope. We will not face the wrath of God for our sins.

How?

Because Jesus took that judgment upon Himself when He died on the cross.

He took the punishment we deserved and offers us salvation through faith in Him.

We simply have to believe in Him.

Don’t waste another day trying to do things your own way.

Recognize your need for the Savior.

Trust in Jesus.