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"Out of your own mouth I will judge you, you wicked servant." (Luke 19:22)
Many people have the impression that the final judgement is simply God dividing the sheep from the goats, opening the books, and sending them to either eternal life or eternal condemnation. Yet the final judgement will be much noisier than that. The scriptures say at least three things will stand against people then.
First, the word they have heard. Jesus said "He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him - the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day." (John 12:48).
Secondly, other people will stand up and condemn people. As Jesus also said: "The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here" (Matt. 12:41)
Lastly, some people are self-condemned. As Paul wrote: "Reject a divisive man after the first and second admonition, knowing that such a person is warped and sinning, being self-condemned." (Titus 3:10-11)
I want to spend some time to explore that last group: those who are self-condemned. In my view, one of the most striking things Jesus ever warned us with is the following scripture:
"How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." - Matt. 12:34-37
Let's break it apart. First, it says "out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks" and then "by your words you will be justified or condemned". What we have in our hearts will come out and judge us. Our mouth speaks what is in us. We cannot help but express what we hold inside ourselves. If you want to know what is in you, listen to what you say.
Those words that come out of us will come back to haunt us, because by them we will either be justified or condemned.
Every day we are presented with opportunities to either condemn or forgive people in all sorts of situations. When you're watching the news and some famous figure comes on and you've got the opportunity to judge them. Do you forgive or condemn? These things happen all the time and many times people don't think anything about it. Remember the golden rule:
"Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets." - Matt. 7:12
If you're not doing to others what you'd have them do to you, your mouth will betray you, because you have evil residing in your heart and you will come out and condemn someone guilty of something you would want to be forgiven of. And those words will stand against you on that great and terrible day.
Remember David, after he cheated with Uriah's wife and had him killed.
"Then the Lord sent Nathan to David. And he came to him, and said to him: 'There were two men in one city, one rich and the other poor. The rich man had exceedingly many flocks and herds. But the poor man had nothing, except one little ewe lamb which he had bought and nourished; and it grew up together with him and with his children. It ate of his own food and drank from his own cup and lay in his bosom; and it was like a daughter to him. And a traveler came to the rich man, who refused to take from his own flock and from his own herd to prepare one for the wayfaring man who had come to him; but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.' So David's anger was greatly aroused against the man, and he said to Nathan, 'As the Lord lives, the man who has done this shall surely die! And he shall restore fourfold for the lamb, because he did this thing and because he had no pity.' Then Nathan said to David, 'You are the man!'" - Sam. 12:1-7
Nathan the prophet said to David, after he pronounced judgement on a man in a figurative story, "You are the man!" David condemned himself as he was not doing as his own moral code required of him. We face situations like this all the time and don't even realize it. Are you condemning yourself?
"Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things." - Romans 2:1
Do you judge others for something you practice yourself? Do you think you will be found guiltless?
"Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you." - Matt. 7:1-2
The way we judge others is the way that we will be judged. You have to be very careful of what resides inside of you, and what you say. The tongue will betray you.
"The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell." - James 3:6
What evil you speak defiles you entirely. This is why we have to be so careful about what is in us, and what we say. When I think about all the times I've let careless words go out of my mouth, I realize I've got a long way left to go. All I can do is ask forgiveness and keep trying.
"Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips" (Isa. 6:5)