The Time for Judgment

"We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign. The nations were angry; and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your saints and those who reverence your name, both small and great—and for destroying those who destroy the earth." Revelation 11:17-18

In the Tour de France, yesterday was judgment day. It was the final day in the Pyrenees and it included a mountain top finish on the highest mountain of the Tour, the Col du Tourmalet at almost 7000 feet. The Tour de France is won or lost in the mountains and in the individual time trials. Since Alberto Contador is a much better time trialer than Andy Schleck, Andy needed to gain at least 8 seconds on Alberto on the climb up the Tourmalet so that he could ride last in the time trial and try to match Alberto's split times. Andy's teammates set a furious pace up the mountain, seeking to tire Alberto. When his last teammate dropped off, Andy powered ahead, but Alberto stayed right on his wheel. Andy led the whole climb except at one point when Alberto attacked in an effort to break Andy. Andy, however, would not be broken and caught up to Alberto immediately. They rode almost side by side to the top of the mountain, where Alberto allowed Andy to take a well earned win.

On the podium, Andy received the prize for the stage win, but Alberto received the more important prize, the yellow leader's jersey. He will ride last in the time trial on Saturday, and will most likely win the Tour de France. Hence the fact that yesterday was judgement day.

The book of Revelation contains numerous references to Judgement Day. It repeatedly reminds us that the day will come when God will punish evil and reward good. Revelation 11:17-18 is one of those references. On Judgement Day Divine wrath will be poured out on all the unbelievers who were angry with God, all the evil doers who by their wickedness destroyed God's good creation.

On the other hand, Judgment Day will be a day of rewards for all true believers. The servants of God, both Old Testament prophets and New Testament saints who have declared the Word of the Lord and lived in reverent obedience to His will will be rewarded for their faith. And it won't be just the big names of old (like Moses or Paul) but even the small names like Bob who will be rewarded for their faith.

Many people, even some believers, think of Judgment Day with a sense of dread. Only those who despise God and His Word need fear the Judgment. God's servants, both small and great, have been washed clean in the blood of the Lamb. Judgment Day for us will be a joyful day filled with God's gracious rewards. We should look forward to it even more than Alberto and Andy look forward to the podium in Paris.