After
living a "decent" life my time on earth came to an end. The first thing I
remember is sitting on a bench in the waiting room of what I thought to be a
courthouse. The doors opened and I was instructed to come in and have a seat by
the defense table.
As I looked around I saw the "prosecutor," he was a
villainous looking gent who snarled as he stared at me, he definitely was the
most evil person I have ever seen.
I sat down and looked to my left and
there sat my lawyer, a kind and gentle looking man whose appearance seemed very
familiar to me.
The corner door flew open and there appeared the judge
in full flowing robes. He commanded an awesome presence as he moved across the
room and I couldn't take my eyes off of him. As he took his seat behind the
bench he said, "Let us begin."
The prosecutor rose and said "My name is
Satan and I am here to show you why this man belongs in hell." He proceeded to
tell of lies that I told, things that I stole and in the past when I cheated
others. Satan told of other terrible perversions that were once in my life and
The more he spoke the further down in my seat I sank. I was so embarrassed that
I couldn't look at anyone, even my own lawyer, as the Devil told of sins that
even I had completely forgotten about.
As upset as I was at Satan for
telling all these things about me, I was equally upset at my representative who
sat there silently not offering any form of defense at all. I know I had been
guilty of those things, but I had done some good in my life - couldn't that at
least equal out part of the harm I've done?
Satan finished with a fury
and said "This man belongs in hell, he is guilty of all that I have charged and
there is not a person who can prove otherwise.
When it was his turn, my
lawyer first asked if he might approach the bench.
The judge allowed
this over the strong objection of Satan, and beckoned him to come forward. As he
got up and started walking I was able to see him now in his full splendor and
majesty. Now I realized why he seemed so familiar, this was Jesus representing
me, My Lord and my Savior. He stopped at the bench and softly said to the judge,
"Hi, Dad," and then he turned to address the court. "Satan was correct in saying
that this man had sinned, I won't deny any of these allegations. And yes the
wages of sin is death and this man deserves to be punished."
Jesus took
a deep breath and turned to his Father with outstretched arms and proclaimed
"However, I died on the cross so that this person might have eternal life and he
has accepted me as his Savior, so he is mine."
My Lord continued with
"His name is written in the book of life and no one can snatch him from me.
Satan still does not understand yet, this man is not to be given justice but
rather mercy." As Jesus sat down, he quietly paused, looked at his Father and
replied "There is nothing else that needs to be done, I've done it all".
The Judge lifted his mighty hand and slammed the gavel down and the
following words bellowed from his lips "This man is free, the penalty for him
has already been paid in full, case dismissed."
As my Lord led me away I
could hear Satan ranting and raving "I won't give up, I'll win the next one."
I asked Jesus as he gave me my instructions where to go next, "Have you
ever lost a case?" Christ lovingly smiled and said, "Everyone that has come to
me and asked me to represent them has received the same verdict as
you...
Paid in Full."
