Why Can't God Forgive on Judgment Day?

Tough Question for Christians #1—When Can God Forgive?
Tough Question #1

AZ asks how it is that if a person has known they’ve done wrong all their lives, and tries to ask forgiveness, but just doesn’t know about Jesus or follow Christian teaching, then why can’t they be forgiven at judgment day?

We need to understand what judgment day is about. In almost all religious traditions there is an accounting of one’s life before a deity. At this point one’s whole life is evaluated, and the character of the person is determined. The actual reward or punishment is determined by which religious tradition one follows, but we are speaking about the Christian tradition, and thus the New Testament.

This is the same pattern in the NT. It is not a single act or belief that determines one’s destination at judgment day, but the tenor of one’s whole life—one’s character. If one characterizes oneself to be unfaithful, a judgmental person, a liar, a coward, etc, then that one is not a proper individual that will establish God’s kingdom of justice. That’s what Jesus, Paul and John the Revelator says.

There are two things that causes one to escape judgment on the final day. The first is repentance. If we repent of our sins, then God erases it out of the book, he forgives us. The second is having Jesus as our Lord. Jesus will give us the resources to live a life of mercy, of love, of peace and of sacrifice—the very kind of people God wants in His kingdom. “Belief” isn’t a magic wand of forgiveness, but rather it is a tool to help us become the kind of people God wants us to be.

So why can’t God forgive at the judgment day? It doesn’t matter who we are, or what we’ve been taught religiously—we know the kind of people we should be. We know that helping people is better than hurting them. And, in our heart of hearts, we know that the excuses we make to hurt people are just that, excuses. If we repent of our sin and do all we can with whatever resources we have to live a life that is merciful and loving, then God won’t condemn us.

But let’s face it, most people, even most Christians, reject God’s grace to be the people we should be. Most Christians see Jesus’ grace as a cover for their evil deeds rather than an opportunity to be a different person. Most non-Christians ignore all the resources at their disposal to be a good person. I can see why some people see Christianity as an impediment to doing good instead of a help. Because most of ways it’s used, it is an excuse to do evil or to be apathetic instead of being actively merciful. This is why the NT doesn’t say that Christianity is the way. It says that Jesus is. Jesus, as our Lord and Government, instead of a general “God” or a religion or a government made by men. Jesus will help us to be loving and merciful and helpful to humanity at large. Jesus is the one way to God because He is the only One to teach us the true Life that God has established. And His gift of the Spirit is the most powerful tool of all to act in such a way to pass judgment day.

Anyway, I’m going off a bit. Why doesn’t God give us a chance on judgment day? Why doesn’t a teacher give us a chance to pass the test with the answers in front of us? Because the training and resources ahead of time is sufficient to pass the test. If we fail, it is simply because we ignored the opportunities right in front of us. Because our life is sufficient to say what kind of people we are. The time to change ourselves is now. Once we’re dead, we are who we are. No turning back.