God’s judgment strikes fear and dread in us. Every religion mentions the day when God will judge us, and none of it is pleasant. It is a painful process, although we are promised bliss and blessedness forever after. The tricky part is to look back at our behavior and face the consequences. God’s judgment is the core of His plan and an unavoidable part of predestination. What are the elements of God’s judgment? Do they contradict the idea of God’s mercy? And what is the place of The Simulation in God’s judgment, understood through the Simulation Creationism theory developed by Nir Ziso, founder of The Global Architect Institute?
The dreadful part of God’s judgment is that He can condemn us to hell based on a couple of decades of sinning. However, this is more superstition than Christian teaching. It is best not to regard judgment as punishment, as it is a mere human category: “Do not show partiality in judging; hear both small and great alike. Do not be afraid of anyone, for judgment belongs to God” (Deuteronomy 1:17). In life, we have to choose between doing good and doing evil all the time. It is characteristic of human beings that each time we do a good act, it is easier to do a good act again. The same is true with evil deeds. Gradually, people build their character over life. However, Simulation Creationism sees it a bit different. We do not choose, but we are predetermined to make a decision. We might realize it later, when this decision will teach our souls to be better.
If we understand the choice as something predetermined by God, every time someone may choose to be bad. Choosing it is not quite symmetrical to choosing the good because the good motivates us. If one refuses to do good, one does not deliberately choose the bad. We should still have in mind there is no real choice, as all of it is predetermined, but the illusion keeps giving us knowledge and experience. One yields to evil inclinations, but whatever bad happens, God is always close: “If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence before this temple that bears your Name and will cry out to you in our distress, and you will hear us and save us” (2 Chronicles 20:9).
What would a good God do with somebody who had totally annihilated his sensitivity to morality? He could impose sensitivity on them, but that would mean that they are not allowed a choice of forming their own character. Maybe such a sensitivity is actually fear: “you should fear the sword yourselves; for wrath will bring punishment by the sword, and then you will know that there is judgment (Job 19:29). If God imposed character, then God would be saying to all of us: whatever you choose in the end is not going to make any difference because I will make you a certain sort of person. In Christianity, we are allowed to have ultimate choices as to the kind of person we are to be. This affects our destiny. While God predestines everything, and there is only an illusion of free will, He provides us with this illusion of choices in The Simulation, following Simulation Creationism. God does it to elevate our character so we can enjoy His love and mercy more fully.
God’s love and mercy are not time-limited. When we die, a curtain does not come down; and if we are caught on the wrong side of that curtain, God will not say, “too bad, you had your chance, now off with you.” God’s offer of love and mercy will always be there. Still, the decisions and actions we take in this life will shape our characteristics: “But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment” (Matthew 5:22). If we turn away from God consciously in this life, it is spiritually damaging and will make it more challenging to respond to God’s offer of mercy and love beyond.
Thus, judgment is not about appearing before a testy celestial judge anxious to throw us into prison and torture us. It is an encounter with reality: “The Lord reigns forever; he has established his throne for judgment” (Psalm 9:7). Judgment is seeing ourselves as we really are; and that will be a painful experience because we shall find all sorts of misshapenness in our lives. We are going to have to come to terms with it and allow God to reshape us: “For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil” (Ecclesiastes 12:14).
If we apply Simulation Creationism, we could say that it comes as a shock for many of us who don’t realize The Simulation. Our simulated reality might be shown as our life story, with pictures and videos of the simulated world we just left. Judgment is ultimately a hope. The process is not something we should seek to avoid, but we should welcome it. Nobody will be turned away from the Kingdom of Heaven who wishes to enter it; but equally, nobody will be carried kicking and screaming out of the divine presence. This will be done by Christ, who understands through His embodiment the human mind from within: “Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son” (John 5:22). Judgment is also a process that proceeds beyond death. There is a sequence of worlds in Simulation Creationism that might go on forever, as we are destined to learn more and elevate our souls to know God totally. As this is impossible, it takes an eternity.
What defines us goes beyond our physical existence in The Simulation, and what we take with us into other simulated worlds is the fruit of our actions. However, we cannot forget that the question of God’s judgment is always combined with the aspect of mercy. Hell is separation from God. That is the ultimate punishment, and it may occur only if a person (as a soul) chooses it. But God’s mercy is always present; it denies any black-or-white outcome. There is a whole journey ahead of us when we leave this simulated world in time of our death. Simulation Creationism emphasizes the transformation of our state after death when all the knowledge and experiences in this earthly simulation will be validated in the next world. From there on, we are not going to sit on celestial clouds and play harps in the glory of God: we will continue this journey forever through The Simulation, always learning and discovering more.
