The Bible speaks repeatedly about the judgment of God, including the final judgment that is coming. In this sermon, Greg addresses what God’s judgment means by explaining the concept of organic judgment in contrast with judicial judgment. 
In the imagination of many, the Final Judgment is just a matter of Jesus saying, “You’re in” or “You’re out.” This mindset is taken from a court of law. The verdict is simply imposed on sinners, and the punishment has no natural or organic connection to the crime. This judicial judgment is contrasted with organic images of divine judgment, where a sinner’s sin brings about its own punishment. Both metaphors for God’s judgments are found in Scripture, however, the judicial metaphors have been so centralized by Church tradition, it’s often the only way people think about God’s judgment. This is the case even though the organic metaphors are used more frequently in Scripture.
This sermon introduces examples of organic judgment from the Bible. The first passage Greg shares is the focus scripture, Romans 1:18-28 (quoted in the “Focus Scripture below), which speaks of the wrath of God as “giving them over.”
To give someone over implies that God was previously hanging on to them, trying to keep them from going down this self-destructive path. However, there came a point when God’s efforts were having no effect and God had no choice but to let them learn the hard way. He lets them do whatever they want, and they march down self-destructive paths. This is the wrath of God. When God lets people go, all the destruction that eventually comes down on them is of their own doing.
The second passage uses the images of a refiner’s fire and a launderer’s soap to convey the meaning of judgment:
“But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver…” (Malachi 3:2-3)
Refining involves subjecting metals to intense heat to remove impurities. The fire doesn’t destroy, it refines. In doing this, the fire also exposes the truth of how many impurities were embedded in the metal. A launderer is one who cleaned sheep’s wool before it would be woven into garments. God’s judgment is depicted as involving a process of removing impurities that hinder us from flourishing. It is not about merciless vengeance that seeks to destroy or torment people forever. It’s about God allowing us to experience the consequences of our choices, in order to reveal and burn away all our impurities.
Paul also wrote about God’s organic judgment:
“Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw—the work of each builder will become visible, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each has done.” (I Corinthians 3:12-13)
Here, the fire makes visible the quality of the lives we’ve built. This quality will be revealed on “the Day,” referring to judgment day. This is the process that the Holy Spirit is trying to do in our lives right now, a process called “sanctification.” God is always working to bring the good of Christlikeness out of the struggles we face.
The best illustration in Revelation where John presupposes organic judgment is found in Revelation 19. It reads:
“I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war … Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations … And the rest were killed by the sword of the rider on the horse, the sword that came from his mouth, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.” (Revelation 19:11, 15, 21)
His name is Faithful and True because the slain lamb, who is now a warrior, reveals the true character of God and the truth of how God judges. The sword comes out of his mouth because he speaks only the truth. Jesus has come at the end of the Age to strike down the nations, slaughter the kings of the earth, and defeat the deceptive Dragon. What he’s striking down are the kings and the nations insofar as they are given over to deception and opposed to truth. It’s a battle of truth versus deception, which is the polemic that runs throughout Revelation.
This reframes judgment as an organic process. Sanctification is not optional. We will experience it now, or later. We can work with God now—as God is always working on something—or we can submit to the purging of our sin later.
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I still think organic punishment is faulty because it doesn’t seem to address systemic consequences of sin. How many innocent lives must be harmed before the sinner?? Isn’t justice delayed justice denied!?
My mind is also stuck on this: is it truly possible for a human soul to be so stubborn and sinful that it stays out of Heaven forever?
Hi Sarah,
Here is a response from Greg.
—Emily from Communications
Hi Sarah,
Thanks for your thoughtful question. There are organic consequences for systematic sin. It’s just that systemic sin tends to be propped up by money and power, so the self-destructive consequences of systemic sin can be delayed for long periods of time. Is this delay unjust to the victims of systemic sin? Absolutely! And this is why the souls of the martyrs cry out “How long will you delay bringing us justice?” But this injustice is part of what God must make right in the Final Judgment. On the other hand, I would argue that the injustice of justice-delayed is bigger if you adhere exclusively to a judicial model of the Final Judgment, because this model can provide no explanation for the delay, which the organic model has a built-in explanation.
In my humble opinion, Greg