October 21, 2026

The Courthouse

Acts 17:31 – “For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.”

The county courthouse stood at the center of town, a gray stone building with tall columns and wide granite steps. On a weekday morning, people climbed those steps for all kinds of reasons. Two neighbors arrived separately with their lawyers to settle a dispute over a property line. A young couple carried a folder of papers for a custody hearing. Around the side of the building, two deputies walked a man in handcuffs through a back entrance to face the charges against him. Some came hoping for fairness and others dreaded it, yet every one of them walked into a place built for judgment.

Earthly courthouses exist because people know wrongs must be answered and disputes must be settled. Even at their best, they remain limited. Cases drag on for years, verdicts are sometimes wrong, and many injustices never reach a courtroom at all.

Paul told the philosophers in Athens that God has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the man He has appointed. That man is Jesus Christ, and God gave proof of it by raising Him from the dead. The same Savior who offers mercy today will one day sit as Judge over every nation and every person.

The coming day of judgment brings both warning and comfort. Long before Paul, Abraham asked whether the Judge of all the earth would do right, and the answer has never changed. Every hidden wrong, every unsettled grievance, and every injustice that slipped through human courts will finally be answered. Those who belong to Christ can face that day without fear, trusting the One who judges perfectly and has already paid for their sin.

Today’s Prayer: Lord, help me live today ready for the day Jesus judges the world in righteousness. Amen.

Reflection Question: What injustice have you been carrying that you need to entrust to the Judge of all the earth?