The Courts of Heaven for Beginners
When Jesus taught on prayer in the book of Luke, He introduced the idea of coming before God as the Judge. Approaching God as Father brings us into the secret place, and approaching Him as Friend opens the Council of the Lord. Coming before Him as Judge gives us access into the Courts of Heaven. Before we can understand the dimension referred to as the Courts of Heaven, we must know how to come before God as Judge. Many people are comfortable seeing God as Father. Most would be good with seeing God as Friend. Approaching God as Judge, however, might be a little more challenging. This is only because we don’t understand the power of this place that works on our behalf. Again, in Luke 18:1-8 we see Jesus putting prayer in a judicial setting.
Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart, saying: “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man. Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’ And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’”
Then the Lord said, “Hear what the unjust judge said. And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?”
The main message in this story is that if this widow woman with no power, influence, wealth, or might could, through a persistent presentation of her case, get a verdict from a corrupt and unjust judge, how much more will God the Judge of all render verdicts and decisions on behalf of His elect! Having said this, we need to understand that coming into the sphere called the Courts of Heaven requires us to approach God as Judge. Just like with the other dimensions of the secret place and the Council of the Lord, the Courts of Heaven have a protocol that must be observed. Just like in a natural court there are protocols that govern them, so it is in the Courts of Heaven.
One of the main protocols is the reverence and honor for the Judge. In the judicial system of the United States, where I reside, when a judge enters the court all are expected to rise in honor of the judge’s presence. The person and position of judge are to be held in high esteem. If this is true in a natural court, then how much more in the heavenly court where God is the Judge. When approaching God as Judge we must always do so with a humility and surrender before Him. Hebrews 12:23 tells us that we have come to God, the Judge of all.
To the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect.
As New Testament believers we have been repositioned before God as the Judge of all. This means, as Hebrews 4:12-13 tells us, nothing is hidden from Him and ultimately everything will be judged, unveiled, and seen by Him.
For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
God, as Judge discerns our thoughts and intents. We may fool man, but God is looking at the heart. Just like in the days when God chose David over his brothers to be king of Israel, God looked at the heart. Samuel almost made a mistake in choosing David’s oldest brother because of what he looked like in the natural. God quickly spoke to him and changed his mind in I Samuel 16:6-7.
So it was, when they came, that he looked at Eliab and said, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before Him!”
But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
God was not judging from what the natural eye could see. He was discerning the thoughts and intents of the heart. When we come before God as Judge, we must be willing to allow Him to judge us. This means we give Him the right to expose our heart and bring any wrong motives to light. My experience before God as Judge in the Courts of Heaven causes me to believe that in this place things are exposed and revealed. This is a good thing. I Corinthians 11:32 tells us that God corrects us so that He will not have to judge us with the world.
But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world.
So right now, the Lord is disciplining us to remove issues from our hearts so we will not partake of the condemnation that will come on those who are in the world. What a powerful statement. The judgment of God in dealing with us is actually His mercy at work on our behalf. He is judging us now so we will not be judged later and in eternity. This is why we must allow the judging of God to take place in us presently. He is freeing us from things that would require His judgment later. Some of this goes against the grain of what is being taught today in the church. We are told quite often that everything is automatically covered by the blood of Jesus. However, it seems that the blood only speaks for that which is repented of. Hebrews 12:24 tells us the blood of Jesus is speaking on our behalf before the Courts of Heaven. It is giving testimony there.
To Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel.
When the Bible speaks of the blood of sprinkling speaking better things than that of Abel, it is speaking of the blood of Abel spilled when his brother Cain killed him. Genesis 4:9-12 shows us the verdict God rendered against Cain because of the murder of his brother Abel.
Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?”He said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”And He said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground. So now you are cursed from the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength to you. A fugitive and a vagabond you shall be on the earth.”
The testimony of Abel’s blood caused God to sentence Cain to a life of a fugitive and a vagabond. Abel’s blood clearly cried for judgment. The blood of Jesus, however, is crying for mercy. This is why the Scripture says Jesus’ blood of sprinkling is speaking better things. If Jesus had spoken judgment against us, we would have been sealed in our sin. However, He spoke forgiveness and mercy. Luke 23:33-34 shows Jesus asking the Father for mercy and forgiveness for those who were crucifying Him. This is the voice of His blood even now speaking for us.
And when they had come to the place called Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the criminals, one on the right hand and the other on the left. Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.”And they divided His garments and cast lots.
This epitomizes the heart and cry of Jesus and His blood for us. He didn’t want us judged for our sins. He desired us cleansed and forgiven of them. There had to be something that would speak for us before Him. That is His blood of sprinkling. His blood grants God as Judge the right He needs to forgive us. The judicial system of heaven demands there be evidence that allows God to forgive. God’s heart is to forgive, but there must be testimony that permits it. It is the blood of Jesus speaking for us that allows this. Even in the Old Testament there had to be blood giving testimony for God to roll sin off the people a year at a time. Every year this had to be redone on the day of Atonement. Hebrews 10:1-4 reveals that every year the High Priest would go behind the veil in the temple and offer a sacrifice of blood for the nation.
For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins.
The blood of bulls and goats could never take away sins. They could only roll the punishment off for a year. The testimony of the blood of bulls and goats was only able to bring about this limited redemption. However, Jesus died and took His own blood and put it on the mercy seat in heaven, and what it is speaking allows us to be completely and totally forgiven. Our sins are not just rolled away for a year; they are completely extracted from us forever, never to be remember again. In fact, they are so removed that their effect against us is demolished. The voice of our sin speaking against us is so silenced by the voice of His blood that our conscience is cleansed and purified. This is the whole sprinkling issue. Hebrews 10:22 tells us what the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus does.
Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
When our evil conscience is sprinkled with the blood of the covenant, we can draw near with a true heart in full assurance of being accepted without guilt. Our conscience is no longer condemning us. The sprinkling of the blood is now speaking for us, silencing the voice of our previously evil conscience. We now have complete faith, hope, and assurance of being accepted by Him. We are a new creation because the blood of Jesus is speaking for us and silencing every other voice!
However, the voice of the blood of Jesus only works for us when we come into agreement with it through repentance. Our confession brings agreeing testimony before the Courts of Heaven and grants God as Judge the legal right to forgive us. I John 1:9 tells us that if we confess forgiveness and cleansing are secured.
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
The word confess is the Greek word homologeo. It can mean to agree with another’s statements and to concede guilt before a judge. So when we confess, we are agreeing with the conviction of the Holy Spirit. We are agreeing with heaven about us. We are agreeing with the testimony of the blood of Jesus. When we do this according to the word of God, we are forgiven. My agreement through confession grants me access into what the blood of Jesus says about me. I am now legally forgiven because of my agreement with His blood.
Notice that when we confess, we are not just forgiven. We are also cleansed from all unrighteousness. Being forgiven is a legal issue. Cleansing is the power of the Holy Spirit washing away every defilement my sin would have left in my spirit. When I confess and concede my guilt, I grant the blood the right to forgive me because of its testimony on my behalf. I also grant the Holy Spirit the right to reach deep in my heart and purify every defiled place. This makes me functionally a new creation. My conscience is cleansed and I am free. My confession allows God as Judge to declare me justified and innocent. All condemnation, guilt, and shame are removed from me. Heaven’s Judge and court has rendered me forgiven and cleansed on the basis of Jesus’ blood and what it is saying on my behalf!
There are several places in Scripture where we see God spoken of as Judge. We should look at them and gain some insight into what it means to approach Him in this capacity. I Peter 2:21-23 shows how Jesus understood that God was a righteous Judge.
For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:
“Who committed no sin,Nor was deceit found in His mouth”;
who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously.
How could Jesus go through the torment, agony, and suffering He endured without rising to defend Himself? The answer is found in His revelation and understanding of God as the Judge who judges righteously. His power to not strike back was found in the righteous judgments of His Father as the Judge. When we know God as Judge, we can trust in His correct judgments. We know that before it is over, there will be justice because of who our Judge is. If we could just get this in our spirits it would make us less reactive. We would have a trust and a confidence that cannot be shaken. As a result of Jesus committing Himself to the One who judges righteously, He was raised from the dead, given a better Name than all other names, and is seated at the right hand of God in the highest place. God is just and rewarded Him immensely for His confidence in His righteous judgments. May we too have this revelation of God as the righteous Judge of all the earth. We see this same awareness reflected in Revelation 13:10.
He who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; he who kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.
The confidence that those who hurt and wound will be repaid with the same is the faith and patience of the saints. In other words, the saints believe there is justice with God; therefore, it births the power to endure in them. Knowing God is just and will right all wrongs gives the saints strength and encouragement to continue. When we have this revelation of God as judge it births this hope in us. II Thessalonians 1:3-9 gives us a view of the way the early Christians thought in the midst of their persecution and troubles.
We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other, so that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure, which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer; since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power.
Sometimes we think that as believers we should always be loving, caring, and not wishing hurt on anyone. I will admit this is a fine line to walk. However, in these scriptures the apostle Paul declares that the awareness of God as the righteous Judge who repays with tribulation those who trouble you is the hope of those counted worthy of the kingdom of God. He even says the trouble they are experiencing is the evidence of the righteous judgment of God. The idea is that God is allowing it so He can righteously judge those who stand against them and Him. This scripture says that God as the righteous Judge will repay with tribulation those who trouble us while giving us rest! The problem is waiting for the judgment of God during the process. Also, we must keep our hearts free of anger, bitterness, and even vengeance. God is clear that as Judge vengeance belongs to Him. Romans 12:19 tells us that God as Judge reserves the right for vengeance.
Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.
So when we are waiting on the righteous judgment of God we must labor to keep our hearts pure. God as Judge will be faithful to judge righteously, but we must leave it completely to Him. This requires grace to work this kind of heart into us and wait for Him as Judge to prevail. Proverbs 24:17-18 actually says that if I allow myself to rejoice when my enemy comes under the judging hand of God, it can cause God to lift the judgement off him.
Do not rejoice when your enemy falls,And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles;Lest the Lord see it, and it displease Him,And He turn away His wrath from him.
A wrong heart in me can stop the process of God. I must always labor to have a right heart, yet know there is righteous judgement with God as the Judge. When I understand this aspect of God as Judge, I must always follow the leading of the Holy Spirit as I stand before Him. The Holy Spirit will help me to know how to posture myself in agreement with the protocols of the Courts of Heaven.
We also see God revealed as Judge in James 5:1-11. In these scriptures we see rich people oppressing rather than blessing with their riches.
Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you! Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth- eaten. Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in the last days. Indeed the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. You have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury; you have fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter. You have condemned, you have murdered the just; he does not resist you.
Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.
Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door! My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience. Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful.
This passage of Scripture is revealing God as Judge with regard to people not receiving what is rightfully theirs for their labors. Notice that their riches and the corrosion of them will be a witness against those who hold back the wages. This is the Greek word marturion. It means something evidential. It means to testify and give a testimony. It is something that happens in a judicial system. So the Scripture is saying that money gives testimony in the spirit realm, which allows God as Judge to render judgment against oppressive economic systems. Systems that hold people in bondage of poverty, God will judge when the cry of the laborers agrees with the cry of the money held back. God promises to bring justice into these situations.
We are then exhorted to not grumble against others, because the Judge is standing at the door. This would seem to imply that judgement is near. Clearly our complaining and speaking evil of others is of consequence before God as Judge. We must be very careful of the things that come from our lips against others. Our words can work against us when the Judge is hearing them and aware of them. James then begins to speak of the justice of God seen in the occasion of Job. Job lost everything because the devil brought a court case against him. In the end, however, Job was rewarded and restored with double everything he lost. This was the justice of God rendered in Job’s life from God the Judge of all the earth. It is interesting that before God rendered the verdict of double restoration, Job had to pray for his friends who had not stood with him in his afflictions. Job 42:10 tells us that Job found restoration when he prayed for the friends of his who had not helped him during his troubles.
And the Lord restored Job’s losses when he prayed for his friends. Indeed the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.
This scripture is very clear. When Job prayed for these faithless, false-counseling friends, God gave Job twice everything he had lost. There was something about Job’s gracious attitude that allowed God as Judge to render his restitution on his behalf. If we are to see God as Judge move for us, we must guard our mouth and also walk in a spirit of forgiveness toward those who might have hurt and offended us. This obviously has great power before God as Judge. It allows Him to render decisions for us from His courts.
Rachel also understood the power of God as Judge working for her. Genesis 30:6 shows Rachel crediting the ability to give birth to children after years of barrenness to God as Judge deciding in her favor.
Then Rachel said, “God has judged my case; and He has also heard my voice and given me a son.” Therefore she called his name Dan.
Rachel desperately desired to have children with Jacob. However, her womb was shut up. She was forced to sit by and watch her sister Leah and their handmaidens have children. The pain of this as they rejoiced must have been unbearable as she sat in her barrenness. She clearly had cried out to God. The miraculous occurred. Her handmaiden gave birth to Dan. Her declaration was “God has judged my case.” She had been presenting her petitions and case before the Judge of the earth and had found favor in His eyes. He came to remove her pain. It’s interesting that she named this son Dan. Dan means judge. Genesis 49:16 actually shows the tribes being prophesied over. Dan is declared to be a judge.
Dan shall judge his people
As one of the tribes of Israel.
Out of Rachel’s pain and her cry before God as Judge, God raised up a judge to administer righteousness and justice. From Rachel’s revelation of God as a Judge who would hear her case, God produced a judge who would represent Him in the earth. Rachel had presented her case to the ultimate Judge and had found favor in His eyes. Her voice was heard and God had granted her request. Her years of frustration and pain were over. How often do we go through pain and frustration but don’t know where to go with it? We must be as Rachel and take it before the Judge and let Him hear our voice. We must know how to present our case in His courts and see Him render decisions and verdicts on our behalf. Not only did Rachel’s handmaiden give birth to Dan, Rachel herself would later give birth to Joseph from her opened womb. Joseph would be the preserver of life who would save nations from extinction, including the budding nation of Israel. Genesis 45:5 shows Joseph being aware of His reason and destiny.
But now, do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life.
Through the cry of Rachel to God as Judge, the one who would be used to preserve life in the nations was rightly positioned. The emptiness, pain, and years of misery endured by Rachel were not for nothing. They brought her to a place of presenting her case before God the Judge and Him rendering a verdict on her behalf. Please know that regardless of what we are going through, there is a Judge who judges righteously. He is awaiting our petition before Him to render decisions for us. He takes into account the pain we have endured even unrighteously when deciding for us. I have come to realize that any mistreatment, abuse, and/or hurt I might have endured actually works for my benefit before the Judge of heaven and earth. Again, this is what we see in the abuse and torture of Jesus as our Savior. I Peter 2:21-23 shows us that Jesus’ power to endure this inhuman pain was the fact He was convinced God as Judge would reward Him for it.
For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:
“Who committed no sin,Nor was deceit found in His mouth”;
who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously.
Jesus was absolutely confident that the torment of His abusers would be recompensed by the decisions of God His Father as the Judge. The Bible actually speaks of suffering and afflictions having this effect before God on our behalf. Colossians 1:24 reveals Paul’s awareness of what his suffering was accomplishing.
I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church.
Paul understood that his hardships and persecutions were filling up something in the spirit realm that would allow God the right to render judgements. Jesus spoke of this in Matthew 23:31-32.
Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers’ guilt.
In speaking to the religious leaders of His day, Jesus said they were actually releasing testimony against themselves by claiming their lineage. They were acknowledging that their fathers had killed the prophets and they were therefore worthy of judgment. Jesus proclaims, “Fill up then the measure of your fathers’ guilt.” In other words, He is saying, “Through your activities and resistance to Me and My words, give the legal right for judgment to come on you as a hardened nation.” This is exactly what happened to Israel. It was because they filled up something in the spirit realm that demanded judgment from God as Judge. The same thing can be true of us. When we have suffered before the Lord, that suffering speaks on our behalf and fills up what is necessary for God to relieve and even bless us. I Peter 3:8-9 declares we must go against our natural inclination to speak evil and curse in the midst of being harmed.
Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous; not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing.
When we are confident of our future and our destiny, we can speak blessings even in the midst of harmful and hurtful things. The Judge who is in heaven is watching. He is evaluating everything that would speak concerning us. Notice that Peter in this scripture connects suffering to inheriting a blessing. So when we suffer and are mistreated, it is testimony that speaks for us in heaven that brings a judgment forth on our behalf. God is moved to release our inherited blessing to us because of the suffering we have endured!
I have experienced this very thing. Mary and myself have gone through persecution, thievery, character assault and assassination, loss, and much pain. I’m not saying others haven’t known this as well; I’m just recounting our life. In the midst of this, we have tried to walk in the fear of the Lord and maintain a right heart before the Lord. We have sought to have a soft and pliable heart before His presence. After many years of rejection, lies, and even abuse, I had a dream. In my dream, one from the Cloud of Witnesses (see Heb. 12:1) began to prophesy over me. As they prophesied over me, someone stood up and interrupted. This one from this spirit dimension then very sternly declared, “It’s Robert’s turn.” I knew in the dream they were declaring, “He’s been left out, passed over, abused, and mistreated, but heaven has decided it’s now his turn.” From the point of this dream on, a new favor came over my life. New doors, opportunities, blessings, and prosperity were released to me. This was because God had looked on my afflictions and decided, “Enough is enough.” The Judge had rendered a verdict for me! Exodus 4:31 shows the people being aware of God looking on their affliction and moving for them because of it.
So the people believed; and when they heard that the Lord had visited the children of Israel and that He had looked on their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshiped.
God was going to deliver the people from Egyptian rule at this time because God saw their affliction and pain. Pain before the Lord can give a very powerful testimony. It grants God the right as Judge to vindicate us and move concerning us. May God grant us the power and heart to maintain our integrity before Him as we walk through our pain. That I might be found worthy of His deliverance in my life! I Peter 5:10 unveils Peter confirming this principle.
But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.
Notice that after we have suffered a while God would perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle us. Why would we have to wait a while before God would do this for us? It is our suffering speaking before Him that allows the judgment to be rendered on our behalf. We must walk in a way that allows God as Judge to move for us. May we each have grace to respond in the appropriate way so the decisions of heaven can come for us. God as Judge is waiting for us to come and present ourselves before Him. May great grace be on us all.
Robert Henderson
