Sermon Illustration: Judgment

This story appeared in the May 10, 2010, edition of the "Turning Point Daily Devotional": Recently a young man in suburban Chicago tried to escape during his trial, as he'd seen done many times on television. While being led out of the courtroom, he burst free, ran across a walkway, and tried to leap through a window. The bulletproof glass didn't break, and the man bounced off, landing on the floor where he promptly was rearrested, this time in worse trouble than ever.

David Jeremiah observes, "There's no escaping judgment; and there's no escaping God's judgment except through the grace and pardon of Jesus Christ. He is our Advocate, our Barrister and our Defense Attorney (1 John 2:1). The prophet Zechariah once had a vision in which he saw Israel's high priest Joshua standing before the Lord, dressed in filthy rags and being accused by Satan. The Lord removed the man's filthy garments and clothed him with rich robes and a clean turban, all of grace.

"The judgment that we deserve has been suspended permanently. Our Advocate provides robes of righteousness as our shame, guilt and judgment are washed away by His blood."