After living what I felt was a 'decent' life, my time on earth came to the end.
The first thing I remember is sitting on a bench in the waiting room of what I thought to be a court house.
The doors opened and I was instructed to come in and have a seat by the defense table.
As I looked around I saw the 'prosecutor.'
He was a villainous looking gent who snarled as he stared at me. He definitely was the most evil person I have ever seen.
I sat down and looked to my left and there sat My Attorney, a kind and gentle looking man whose appearance seemed so familiar to me, I felt I knew Him.
The corner door flew open and there appeared the Judge in full flowing robes.
He commanded an awesome presence as He moved across the room I couldn't take my eyes off of Him.
As He took His seat behind the bench, He said, "Let us begin."
The prosecutor rose and said,
"My name is Satan and I am here to show you why this man belongs in hell..."
He proceeded to tell of lies that I told, things that I stole, and in the past when I cheated others. Satan told of other horrible perversions that were once in my life and the more he spoke, the further down in my seat I sank.
I was so embarrassed that I couldn't look at anyone, even my own Attorney, as the Devil told of sins that even I had completely forgotten about.
As upset as I was at Satan for telling all these things about me, I was equally upset at My Attorney who sat there silently not offering any form of defense at all.
I know I had been guilty of those things, but I had done some good in my life - couldn't that at least equal out part of the harm I'd done?
Satan finished with a fury and said, "This man belongs in hell, he is guilty of all that I have charged and there is not a person who can prove otherwise."
When it was His turn, My Attorney first asked if He might approach the bench. The Judge allowed this over the strong objection of Satan, and beckoned Him to come forward.
As He got up and started walking, I was able to see Him in His full splendor and majesty.
I realized why He seemed so familiar; this was Jesus representing me, my Lord and my Savior.
He stopped at the bench and softly said to the Judge, "Hi, Dad," and then He turned to address the court.
"Satan was correct in saying that this man had sinned, I won't deny any of these allegations. And, yes, the wage of sin is death, and this man deserves to be punished."
Jesus took a deep breath and turned to His Father with outstretched arms and proclaimed, "However, I died on the cross so that this person might have eternal life and he has accepted Me as his Savior, so he is Mine."
My Lord continued with, "His name is written in the Book of Life, and no one can snatch him from Me."
"Satan still does not understand yet. This man is not to be given justice, but rather mercy."
As Jesus sat down, He quietly paused, looked at His Father and said, "There is nothing else that needs to be done."
"I've done it all."
The Judge lifted His mighty hand and slammed the gavel down. The following words bellowed from His lips..
"This man is free."
"The penalty for his sins has already been paid in full."
"Case dismissed."
As my Lord led me away, I could hear Satan ranting and raving, "I won't give up, I will win the next one." I asked Jesus as He gave me my instructions where to go next, "Have you ever lost a case?"
Christ lovingly smiled and said,
"Everyone that has come to Me and asked Me to represent them has received the same verdict as you."
~"Paid In Full"~
If you do not pass this along to 15 people immediately,absolutely nothing will happen.
Passing this on to anyone you consider a friend, (as I have done here), it will bless you both.
I thought overall it was a good illustration though I had some small scruples about it . . .
1. "This man is not to be given justice, but rather mercy."
This sentence implies a conflict between justice and mercy. Implying if we give mercy then we do not give justice and vice versa. A unrepentant sinful man going to hell is justice. However, while a repentant man receives mercy by not having to bare the punishment (eternal death and separation from God in hell) justice is still done because Jesus took the punishment for us. If Jesus had given us mercy without having the penalty for sin carried out then that would be injustice not justice. If God were unjust then He would not be God.
I think the illustration could have done a better job in making this important distinction.
2. If Jesus were the defense counsel and God were the judge (Dad), the judge would have to recuse himself for conflict of interest! :laugh:
Have any of you seen the music video to Ray Boltz' song "One Drop of Blood"? I think it represents a much better courtroom type illustration . . . check it out on youtube, it is powerful!
