Listen to this post NOW on Beyond Everything Radio!

If you grew up under the eschatology of the religious industrial complex, this is likely the first time you’ve heard a biblical alternative to Jesus coming back at any moment to judge the world and establish his kingdom. I’ve been following the text closely hoping to free you from these unbiblical ideas:

1. Heaven is another time and place we go to after we die.
2. We live in Satan’s world as evidenced by sin, evil and suffering.
3. Jesus started a new, alternative religion, which is the only one God cares about.
4. The tribulation described in the Bible is a global, cataclysmic time of utter destruction, marking the end of our world, and prophesied 2000+ years ago.
5. Jesus hasn’t set up his kingdom’s rule, and isn’t reigning in power at the right hand of God.

A common question has been about the THREAT of Judgment Day. “Keven isn’t Matthew 25 an eschatological passage about the future since it foretells the day of judgement? Great question, let’s look at the passage.

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.  Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.” (Mathew 25:31-33)

When does this happen?

Textually, Jesus has told his disciples that the tribulation, and the (Matthew 25:31-ẽrxomai-coming/going, happening) into his kingdom would happen in their lifetime (23:36, 24:34). I don’t blame anyone for concluding the final judgment seems to be future base on our English translations. But it’s not a clear future indicative tense, but Aorist Active Subjunctive which is a completed action which includes a hypothetical context which may include future events. Textually, Jesus “coming/going” has taken place, but there is also a sense in which his coming is perpetually occurring.

Last week I showed the problem with a binary epistemology. Just as the wise and the fool are the same, so the Day of Judgment (separation, decision) is describing Ultimate Reality, and not threatening an event one day after we die.

The Bible’s perspective is that the kingdom of God is here now, Christ is presently reigning and ruling this Kingdom, and the Great Day of Judgment, is the eternal present moment, where everyone eternally exist before God. We are always before God. He gathers us from the four corners of time and space, to face him in this moment.

What I’m about to say, I haven’t found anywhere else. Others have come to similar conclusions by different ways. This comports textually, and is more coherent theologically and historically, than those widespread beliefs I’ve listed above. I offer this as a biblically reliable alternative orthodoxy.

The common assumption:

Whereas English translations have inserted bias, the Greek translations have far less. The Bible stands up well to historical criticism, but religion doesn’t. Religion’s imported bias records this judgment as God sending some people to eternal punishment or eternal life (V.46). This binary quicksand of Heaven or Hell inferences are assumed by preachers, but not integral to the text. Given the ternary framework of Jesus teaching and the Gospel, we must find his way holding tightly to these texts, not disregard them as deconstructionists do?

What is happening?

This Day of Judgment (krino-decide between, judge, determine, legal decision) is inferred and is not explicit in this text. The text says that Christ going to (àphorizo-exclude, appoint, separate) and this is absolutely vital to this text. Judgment Day is discussed in many places in the Bible, but within this text,the first observation is that Jesus is making a determination between two identities, not religions, not if people were converted, and not even based on if they knew Jesus. Jesus judgement does not follow Evangelicalism’s “saved/unsaved” binary. He is “dividing into two”, deciding between, who is real and who is superficial and this is demonstrated by our treatment of the hungry, thirsty, naked, sick and imprisoned. Our claims of knowing God, following Christ, or being religious have zero to say in this decision. It is entirely on how we treat the least of our fellow humanity. Full stop.

Let this marinade. Trust the Bible more than tradition…please!

So I ask, if this is the eternal judgment, and the eternal punishment is eternal Hell, then why do our pastors try and convert us to Christianity instead of teaching us to show compassion to others?

Buckle Up, this will be a talk you’ll want to send to a lot of people… hopefully your pastors.

 “…the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know ⁵¹ and will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew 24:50-51)

This word (dixotomeo-cut into two-parts, separate, divided, judge severely) has a similar meaning as “aphorizo” (seperate). This comes within our text during a portion where Jesus is illustrating the importance of staying ready, diligent, and not remaining foolish and lazy (think both). The arrival of God comes when we don’t expect it, when we have forgotten about him. Then he shows up and what? Hacks us to bits and destroys us? The text says nothing about a contingency for “saved” people who subscribe to a religion that didn’t exist then.

Come closer… let’s review the Greek

“kai dizotomései auton kai to méros aùtoù metà tôn ùpokritòn…”

“and divide him in two, and “that part of him” put with the hypocrites…”

Sit with this. Keep in mind that the scripture doesn’t say: “in that place…” but only “there” revealing inserted bias.

What if the Day of Judgment, is the moment where Christ evaluates all of humanity and instead of lumping us into groups of good and bad, the foolish and the ready, the faithful and the lazy, he sees each of us as we are, possessing both good and bad, both real and fake, both truth and falsehood and He separates the good (meros-part, portion) from the bad part? Why does religion insist this is all or nothing? Since His decision is not based on salvation, but treatment of the least, why has religion ignored this? I’m not the only one who has read this in Greek.

Isn’t passing through the water or fire require for purification? (Numbers 31:23) Isn’t the crucible of fire to purify the gold. (Proverbs 17:3, Malachi 3:3, 1 Peter 1:7) Nothing impure can be in the presence of God. God is perfect truth and cannot know anything false. They do not really exist.

Stay with me…

If this is true, certainly the scripture would corroborate this elsewhere, right? Ok, hold my beer…

Luke 12:46 says the same thing “that part of him” in his version of the master and the unaware/ not awake servant. But the same story doesn’t really constitute a sufficient biblical precedent, right? Show it to me in Revelation.

First off, the “One seated on the throne” is “Making All Things New.” (Rev 21:5)The dwelling of God is with man…he is wiping every tear away…he is removing death…all sad things become untrue…That’s what judgment does, it decides between human doings and human beings (20:12) “It is accomplished” The thirsty get water… the overcomer get a heritage.. and as for the evil (6-7).

“But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars (pseudo-falsehood), their portion (that part of them) will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.” (Revelation 21:8)

So there it is. Hiding in plain sight, obscured by the translation and 2000 years of church history. Well, Keven, if this is true, then certainly Paul would have said something. Ok, but if you are trusting Paul, then how do you account for the fact he never once taught about hell? But he did say this…

 “the Day (of judgment) will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. ¹⁴ If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. ¹⁵ If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire. (1 Corinthians 3:13-16)

When I say I could go on and on. I mean it. This entire podcast is dedicated to retelling the scripture in a new wineskin. It’s an ethos not a pathos, marinated into the true message of God to his beloved. We can trust scripture, but we must be willing to give up childish things, unbiblical doctrines, and heal the community of God.

This discovery IS THE EASTER MESSAGE. We will all stand before Christ, and he will look at us and immediately see the authentic, true part, he knows our real name. And in love, he will surgically remove everything false which cannot exist in the light of truth, these are the aspects of ourselves that as Thomas Merton says, “God can know nothing about”. Easter is a story of how Jesus doesn’t throw the baby out with the bathwater. The message of Easter is not turn or burn, but that the everlasting, all consuming fire of God consumes everything that cannot last, and transforming what can last into the fire of God itself.

How’s that for an alternative orthodoxy? Happy Easter.