The Only Way to Defeat Our Accuser

Sacred-space

When we study biblical passages about judgment, it is clear that people are stuck in a vicious loop, under constant condemnation from an accuser:

Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son (John 5:22).
You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one (John 8:15).
Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven (Luke 6:37).

What is striking in the above verses is God the Father does not judge anyone in the first, Jesus says He does not judge anyone while He was in the flesh because it was the time for repentance and proclaiming the Kingdom in the second, but the one who does judge us constantly is not named in the third verse. 

So, this raises the question: who does Christ refer to when He says that we are being judged constantly while we are on earth.

Now, just to be clear, Jesus will indeed be our judge at the end of time:

Death puts an end to human life as the time open to either accepting or rejecting the divine grace manifested in Christ. The New Testament speaks of judgment primarily in its aspect of the final encounter with Christ in his second coming, but also repeatedly affirms that each will be rewarded immediately after death in accordance with his works and faith. The parable of the poor man Lazarus and the words of Christ on the cross to the good thief, as well as other New Testament texts speak of a final destiny of the soul — a destiny which can be different for some and for others (CCC 1021 ).
However, Jesus is referring to another accuser in Luke.
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Our Enemy

We have an enemy that is convinced that he was misjudged and that he does not have to apologize for anything. An enemy who uses every single misdeed we do to prove his point. An enemy who knows that God is so just and correct that would grant him passage to heaven (he even let his son be killed, didn’t he?) if his enemy could prove that he was wronged.

This is the judge Jesus speaks of. Someone who uses each and every little thing the entire human species does to try to make a point to grant himself entry to a place he does not deserve.

Satan, The Accuser

It is no wonder that his name “satan” means in Hebrew “accuser” and the bible says “The accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them day and night before our God” (Revelation 12:10).

Now, one can say: “Ok, so let’s just not do anything wrong, and our accuser will have nothing to say about us!”. That’d be great, but still does not solve the problem for 2 reasons:

First, satan is a known liar: Jesus said,

He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44).

So, if he cannot come up with something, he will just make up something.

Second, even when he cannot come up with a lie, he will just say that what we have, what we are, what we do, is unfair and undeserved. We see that at the Book of Job when it describes him:

This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil” (Job 1:1), and we see Satan saying to God “Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face (Job 1:11).

Now, what’s really interesting is that it is not God who takes away all of Job’s possessions, but the enemy: “The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man, himself do not lay a finger” (Job 1:12).

So, what can we do then? If we misbehave, our accuser will have grounds to accuse us. If we do everything right, he will make up a lie or just say we don’t deserve what we have. Apparently, there is no escape here!

What Can We Do?

There is something we can do; turn to The Sacred Heart of Jesus, and the month of June is actually consecrated to him. Jesus said to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque:

In the excess of the mercy of my Heart, I promise you that my all-powerful love will grant to all those who will receive Communion on the First Fridays, for nine consecutive months, the grace of final repentance: they will not die in my displeasure, nor without receiving the sacraments, and my Heart will be their secure refuge in that last hour.

Jesus also promised Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque :

  • I will give them all of the graces necessary for their state of life.
  • I will establish peace in their houses.
  • I will comfort them in all their afflictions.
  • I will be their strength during life and above all during death.
  • I will bestow a large blessing upon all their undertakings.
  • Sinners shall find in My Heart the source and the infinite ocean of mercy.
  • Tepid souls shall grow fervent.
  • Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection.
  • I will bless every place where a picture of my heart shall be set up and honored.
  • I will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts.
  • Those who shall promote this devotion shall have their names written in My Heart, never to be blotted out.
  • I promise you in the excessive mercy of My Heart that My all-powerful love will grant to all those who shall receive communion on the First Friday in nine consecutive months the grace of final penitence; they shall not die in My disgrace nor without receiving their sacraments; My Divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment.

So, in the end, we see that there is nothing we can do to not be judged by our enemy, the accuser, but these promises, given to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, clearly show only Jesus has the power to get us out that loop. It is no wonder He said, “apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).

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12 thoughts on “The Only Way to Defeat Our Accuser”

  1. Pingback: THVRSDAY EDITION – Big Pulpit

    1. Of course not. However, any comments which “doubled down” on personal attacks, and also (by inference) call a writer un-Christ-like and part of the darker element of Christ’s Church will be deleted.

      Disagree with ideas without disparaging the writer personally.

    2. That actually wasn’t the article I was talking about – although that article disparages and attacks many people. I was attacked by the mockery in that article, and I am a straight, white, catholic, male, father of three. I would expect the articles published to face the same scrutiny as the comments.

      If you want to remove my comments on that article, that is fine. I was more interested in the article on rigidity. Nothing would post on that article?

    3. There was a comment on the rigidity article but it wasn’t what I wanted to ask. My original question wouldn’t post after a few tries so I hacked it down to one generic sentence that didn’t get at the heart of what I actually wanted to get the author’s viewpoint on. I have legitimately no clue what was wrong with that one. The censoring seems out of control on this website. Good luck growing the faith when you don’t allow open discussion.

  2. I honestly find it hard to remember everything I’ve done in my life in order to judge it. Also, it is so hard to admit wrongdoings and defeat; most likely, we would be the most biased judges in the universe.

    1. an ordinary papist

      I meant at the initial judgement, after we die; when everything will be brought to light.

  3. an ordinary papist

    Al, I was always taught that we would judge ourselves, revealing every secret wrong from
    across our lives. Could that be another interpretation ?

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