Why judge at all?
(Season 1, episode 1)
Eleanor: I just want to say once more, for the record, that this whole good/bad system is bullshirt.
(Season 1, episode 8)
Why should there be a judgement anyway? This hasn’t really been explained in The Good Place (as of season 3), but reading between the lines, the idea may be that there is justice and fairness in the universe, and what you do on earth matters. (Though as Michael has discovered, the system has some major problems).
There are two kinds of final judgement according to the Bible: one for people who have accepted God’s forgiveness, and one for people who have not. These two judgements are about very different things. For the second group, the central idea is justice; it will be clear to everyone that God’s judgement is right and fair, and that turning from God (which everyone has done) is a crime that deserves punishment if it is not forgiven. This can be hard to swallow; if someone has lived a good life, surely that counts for something? We’ll look into that in a later post.
But judgement isn’t always negative. A judge at a science fair or a dog show is looking for positive qualities in the entries. When Jesus judges his own people, he is looking for treasures and things to reward and praise. One verse talks about our life’s work being tested by fire, and what remains unconsumed – gold, silver and precious stones – is rewarded.
From that point of view, Jesus isn’t interested in his people’s sins – after all, they are forgiven! What he is interested in is the treasure he sees in us.
Having said that, there are also verses about giving an account of our lives. Apparently “those who teach will be judged more strictly”; “to whom much is given, much will be required”; “we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.” A hypocritical TV evangelist might be quite shocked when he sees the reality of his life and the damage he did to so many people through greed and manipulation, for example.
One way to reconcile those two ideas – that our sins are forgiven, but we must also give an account for our actions – is to think of it this way: who is the judgement for? One verse says, “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” If God already knows it all, why give an account for our lives?
Jesus is judging his bride (the church) who he dearly loves and died for, and has her best interests at heart. The judgement is for our benefit. In areas of our lives that we were blind to on earth, he wants to bring us out of hiding (like he brought Adam out of hiding in the garden when he hid from God), see the truth, and know we are accepted and loved and forgiven. There is no hiding in heaven, just absolute transparency. And it is completely safe to be transparent and fully known by God. (There are no “Eleanors” running around in fear of being discovered!).
To add to that: God doesn’t identify his people with their sins. Someone who stumbled badly when they were on earth but still trusted God to forgive them will not be labelled with it in eternity. Our sins really are forgiven and forgotten (otherwise God would be a liar). Their label is “dearly loved child of God” – and many other amazing things. Nobody is ever put to shame in heaven, and standing before Jesus won’t be a time of shame either; just rewards for good things, and seeing the truth about other things, all the while being wrapped in God’s comfort and acceptance.
(For more about the idea of judgement being a positive thing, see the book The Final Quest by Rick Joyner, particularly the second half).
Next: Ethics (part 1) – what would Chidi do?
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