The Judgments of Scripture

Transcript

GRM 885
The Judgments of Scripture
Selected Verses
01/18/04


We spent the last several weeks looking through Matthew chapter 24 regarding the Second Coming of Christ to earth, and then Matthew chapter 25, some of the judgments of those alive on the earth at the Second Coming of Christ to the earth. And I just want to back up and take an overview picture of what the Bible says about the judgments that will take place, both on the living and the dead, so that we see the perspective and the proper setting for the various judgments in scripture. There are certain judgments that pertain to those who will be alive on the earth in connection with the coming of Christ, and then there are judgments associated with the resurrection of the dead that follow the resurrection of people to appear before God for judgment. Every single person has to appear for judgment, and they appear at one or more of the judgments in scripture. We’ll see the unbelievers will be appearing, some at 2 judgments, for sure all at 1 climactic judgment.

Ought to back up to the beginning and say that foundational for all is the judgment that Christ brought about on the world, the flesh and the devil at the cross. John chapter 12 verse 31, and we’re not going to read every scripture that could pertain to each of these judgments, John chapter 12 verse 31. As Jesus is closing out His earthly ministry, chapter 13 moves us to events of the last night with His disciples. Preceding His crucifixion Jesus anticipates His impending crucifixion. In verse 31 He says, ”now judgment is upon this world, now the ruler of this world will be cast out.” And here the judgment that He’ll bring about on the world and the ruler of the world, brought about judgment on sin. “He died to sin once for all,” Romans 6:10, for example, speaks of that fact. Hebrews chapter 2 verses 14-15 talk about Christ breaking the power of the devil. That’s foundational to everything else that is going to take place. And in His death on the cross He paid the penalty for sin, made possible the redemption of fallen humanity and ultimately the redemption of all creation in the sense of not just human creation, but for the lifting of the curse from this world. That will come with the establishing of His kingdom.

Then we have the church age in which we are living now. Come from the cross, we could associate the resurrection of Christ back there as well with coming resurrections because Christ is the first fruits of the resurrection to come. So His death on the cross bringing judgment on the world, the flesh and the devil. His resurrection preparing the way for the resurrections that will come. But following the church age, this period of time in which we live that began in Acts chapter 2 and will culminate in the rapture of the church, which is referred to as the first phase of the Second Coming, where Christ calls the church to meet Him in the air. That will involve living believers and dead believers. And you’re aware the order that is given is the dead in Christ rise first, then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. So it’s the catching up of the church to meet Christ in the air. Believers who have died since Acts chapter 2, when Christ descends in the air their bodies will be called back from the grave. They as persons, their spirits, have been in the presence of the Lord in glory since they died. To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. “The body without the spirit is dead,” James 2:26 says. The physical death occurs when a person moves out of this tent, as Paul describes it in II Corinthians chapter 5. The person does not cease to exist, but a believer in Jesus Christ moves from his physical body on this earth into the presence of the Lord in glory. His body now is at rest, unused, asleep, put in the grave. And then at the rapture of the church that body is called back to life in a glorified state, now suitable for God’s presence in glory. And that person moves back into that body. Then those who are alive on the earth when the rapture of the church occurs will just bodily be caught up. I Corinthians chapter 15 is the key passage on that as you are aware, I Corinthians chapter 15 verses 50 and following. I Thessalonians chapter 4 verse 13-18 focus on the dead in Christ. I Corinthians 15 verses 50-57 focus on those who are alive. And I just want you to note, verse 51, there is a mystery, new material being revealed that had not before been revealed in scripture. “We will not all sleep,” not all go through the experience of physical death, but we’ll all undergo the “change in a moment,” in an atom of time, “the twinkling of an eye, the last trumpet. The trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.” Perishable will put on the imperishable, the mortal will put on immortality.” That’s what takes place at the rapture of the church. That is a resurrection, resurrection of dead believers and the catching up of the believers who are alive.

Following that there is a judgment that takes place where all believers stand before the Lord to be judged by Him. That is not a judgment that determines their eternal destiny. That has been resolved. This is a judgment of rewards, what we call the Bema Seat of Christ. And believers at this judgment are rewarded for faithful service. You’re in I Corinthians, back up to chapter 3 verse 12. “Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man’s work will become evident for the day will show it because it is revealed with fire. The fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If any man’s work is burnt up he will suffer loss.” But note this, “but he himself will be saved so as by fire.” We’re at this judgment. Believers stand and all that they have done with their lives as the servants of God, redeemed by His grace are now put to the test. And we can be thankful that the dross, the worthless things are consumed. And what is left forms the basis of the rewards. Sometimes we become super spiritual and say well what more reward could I want than heaven. That will be good enough for me. You know that becomes a form of arrogance. God says this is a serious matter. Tell Him it doesn’t matter to me. When we stand at that Bema Seat and our works are put to the test of the fire it will matter. It will not be a light thing, it will not be something that we face with indifference.

II Corinthians chapter 5 verse 10. Paul has been talking about the death of a believer. The analogy of a tent in the first part of this, our earthly tent which is our house is torn down, and so on. Then verse 6, “therefore being always of good courage knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. We walk by faith not by sight. We are of good courage I say and rather prefer to be absent from the body and be home with the Lord.” Far better to leave this body and go into the presence of God in glory than to continue in this body. “Therefore we have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Therefore knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men.” There was an awe and a reverence and a respect in Paul in the recognition he would stand some day before the Lord to give an account. Moved him in his ministry.

What we do here does count. Romans 14 verses 10-12 speak of this judgment as well. Something we as believers will face. We ought to look forward to that time because we are pouring our life into those things which matter for eternity. Not pouring our lives in those things, you know we get caught up and say well is this bad. Well what we want to ask is this gold, silver, precious stone, will this endure? We don’t want to fill our lives with the worthless and be satisfied and say well it is not necessarily sin, we just wasted our lives, we just didn’t do those things which really mattered for eternity. This becomes a failure to be a faithful servant and accomplish all that He would intend us to accomplish by His grace.

Our sin has already been dealt with, so in that sense I do not have to pay any penalties for my sin. Now I am to be rewarded for my faithfulness to Him as His servant. So that happens at the rapture. So at the rapture of the church we have both a resurrection and a judgment, the resurrection of all who have died, a transformation of those who are alive, and then the judgment of all believers to determine the rewards that they receive. This only includes church saints. The rapture only those who have come to trust in Christ from Acts chapter 2 down to that event are resurrected. Old Testament saints, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David. They are not present at this time, they are not resurrected at this time. We’ll see those in a moment.

The next judgment in scripture is what we have already looked at. That will take place at the Second Coming of Christ to earth, the second phase of the Second Coming. You recall the first phase He doesn’t come to earth, He comes in the air and calls the church to meet Him in the air and takes the church to His Father’s house. Then a period of 7 years goes on, the 70th week of Daniel. At the end of that 7-year period Christ descends to earth and we come with Him. Revelation 19 remember, we are there clothed in garments of white, which are described as the righteousness of the saints, which, I take it, have to do with the rewards we have received for faithfulness of service. And at the Second Coming then, when Christ comes to earth, those who are alive on the earth are gathered to meet before Him, Jews and Gentiles. And this is a sifting judgment to determine who will go into the millenium, the kingdom He is going to establish, and who will be closed out of the kingdom. And those who are closed out of the kingdom are destined to an eternal hell. So by the fact they are closed out of the kingdom, judgment has been pronounced. And so in Matthew 25 they are told to “depart, cursed ones, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” But there will be a final sentencing that will take place that we’ll see in a moment.

Matthew chapter 25, those judgments relate just to those who are alive at the Second Coming of Christ to earth, and it sifts out all unbelievers. They will be executed. So that there will come a period of time as the kingdom starts on the earth where there are only believers alive on the face of the earth. No unbelievers alive. Those who are alive and have come to trust in Christ during that 7-year period, because remember at the beginning of the 7-year period the rapture occurred. Every believer was removed from the face of the earth, so there were no believers alive on the face of the earth for a period of time. And by God’s grace some are saved. But through that 7-yeard period many people will get saved through the hearing of the message of Christ proclaimed, perhaps by the 144,000, by the 2 witnesses that God raises up, and through the testimony of others who gets saved.

Now the kingdom is established at the Second Coming of Christ to earth. Now in connection with that Second Coming there is also a resurrection and a judgment that takes place. So when Christ returns to earth there will be the judgment of the living to determine who goes into the kingdom. At the Second Coming of Christ there will also be a resurrection of Old Testament saints and the judgment to determine the rewards of those believers. And that will occur at that point in time.

Turn back to one passage in the Old Testament, then we’ll look at one in the New. Daniel chapter 12, Daniel chapter 12. The end of chapter 11 is talking about events relating to the antichrist, the little horn, the willful king, the king who will do according to his will. And in chapter 12 we move into the events at that time, “Michael the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people will arise. And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time. And that time everyone written in the book will be rescued.” So here you have the tribulation and the grace of God in saving His people. Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake. Here we have the resurrection of Old Testament saints. These to everlasting life, the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt. And there really is 1,000 years between these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and contempt. Those resurrected at this point are Old Testament saints, Old Testament believers. And they’re being resurrected so that they can go into the kingdom that has been established. Because remember it was the kingdom promised to these Old Testament saints, was the kingdom promised to David and his descendents. So naturally they will be raised to go into that kingdom. So here we’re told of the resurrection that will take place there.

Turn over to the New Testament, to Revelation chapter 20, Revelation chapter 20. Chapter 19, remember talks about the return of Christ to earth. Revelation chapters 6-18 dealt with the 7-year tribulation. In chapter 19 you have the glorious return of Christ from heaven. Verse 11 of chapter 19, “I saw heaven open and behold a white horse and he who sat upon it is called Faithful and True and in righteousness He judges and wages war.” And his description here, the armies of heaven, verse 14, “clothed in fine linen white and clean were following Him on white horses.” So their description up in verse 8 of chapter 19, the bride of Christ. “It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen bright and clean, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.” So you see now as Christ returns at the Second Coming the church, the bride of Christ, has already stood before Him for the judgment of rewards. Clothed now in find linen which represents the righteous acts of the saints. We’re clothed in the righteousness of Christ, but we also now have the righteousness that is manifested in the deeds we did as His servants. We are preparing for the marriage supper of the Lamb that’s announced in verse 9. So now in verse 14 we are joined in this glorious return to earth described.

Then you come to chapter 20. The chapter opens up by talking about the 1,000 years. Satan is bound on this occasion and that means he’ll no longer be free. Remember in Job, the opening chapters of Job, God asks Satan where have you been? He says I’ve come “from roaming to and fro on the face of the earth” Peter warned in his first epistle that we have to be on the alert because our adversary the devil goes about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. But at the beginning of the earthly kingdom of Christ, in connection with His Second Coming, Satan will be bound and no longer be free to roam. He’s thrown into the abyss. The end of verse 2 says he’s “bound for 1,000 years” and then he’s confined in the abyss until the , And this is where we get the word millenium, Latin word millenium comes from the 1,000 years here meaning 1,000 years. So why do you talk about 1,000 years? Because the book of Revelation says it’s 1,000 years. This is the only place in the Bible where this kingdom is marked off as 1,000 years. The 1,000 years is not the whole length of the kingdom because the kingdom is an eternal kingdom. So the 1,000 years are the first phase of that eternal kingdom, during which God will complete His program in dealing with the sin and rebellion of Satan and his followers. So Satan is bound for 1,000 years. He will not, verse 3, deceive the nations any longer until the 1000 years are completed. Then he’ll be released for a short time.

Look at verse 4, “then I saw the thrones and they sat on them and judgment was given to them. I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus because of the Word of God, and those who had not worshipped the beast or his image and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand, they came to life and reigned with Christ for 1,000 years.” So Old Testament saints are raised at this time, now tribulation saints, those who are saved during that 7-year period, because remember the 7 years is the conclusion of the 70 weeks of Daniel, completing God’s program with the nation Israel. And they are raised so they can reign with Christ in the kingdom He is going to establish.

Now note verse 5, “the rest of the dead did not come to life until the 1,000 years were completed.” So really once you get to this point, Revelation chapter 20, you have now all those who are going to spend eternity with Christ having been resurrected. Any of those not resurrected by this point are going to hell. By the time you get to the beginning of the millenium here, this resurrection in connection with the Second Coming of Christ, all those who have been believers, who have trusted in God, the revelation He has given of Himself throughout Old Testament times down to the coming of His Son and down to now, by this time everyone who is a believer in Christ who has died is resurrected. At this point there will also be a judgment for them because part of their reward will be to rule and reign with Christ for 1,000 years. And evidently part of the rewards that we receive have to do with the responsibility entrusted to us in the kingdom.
The church and Israel are not the same. The church was resurrected at the beginning of the 70th week of Daniel, before that began, 7 years prior. Now we have at the end of the 7 years Israel preparing for the kingdom, then naturally they’re resurrected and the saints who have died in the 70th week of Daniel resurrected. They will be judged because everyone must appear before God for judgment, and their reward is they rule and reign with Christ for 1,000 years.

The end of verse 5 says “this is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who has part in the first resurrection. Over these the second death has no power. But they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for 1000 years.” And verse 7 says and “when the 1,000 years are completed Satan will be released.” Six times in 7 verses we are told it’s a 1,000-year period. I take it, it means it’s a 1,000-year period. I take it to be a literal 1,000 years. Just as I take the rest of the numbers in the book of Revelation to be literal numbers. We ought to note here, the first resurrection encompasses all believers. It’s a quality of resurrection, it will include the church saints at the rapture, it will include the rest of the saints at the Second Coming to earth. That means those are the ones who form the first resurrection. That is a resurrection to life. Those who are part of the first resurrection, the second death will not touch them. They are resurrected to share in the glorious kingdom that God has prepared for those who love Him. We will be there as the bride of Christ and Israel and Old Testament saints and others there as the friends of the bridegroom.

All right, we go through the 1,000 years. When the1,000 years are completed Satan is released from his prison and he’ll come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war. The number of them is like the sand of the seashore. One of the things the millenium does is demonstrate the corruption and total depravity of fallen humanity, because with the establishing of the kingdom on earth Jesus Christ becomes the sovereign directly ruling over the earth. We now have a world with a perfect environment. Sickness and disease and all of that taken care of. Violence and all of that gone. This is the time when the desert will blossom as the crocus, or the rose as we’ve come to call it. The lion will lie down with the lamb. They will not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain in all the kingdom, Isaiah’s prophecies in Isaiah 2, Isaiah 9, Isaiah 11 and multitudes of other verses. And as we start this period of time we only have saved people. We have 2 kinds of saved people involved in the millenium, the kingdom. We have people who have been glorified, therefore the church, that have received glorified bodies through bodily resurrection or transformation at the rapture. We have Old Testament saints, tribulation saints who have received glorified bodies when they have been resurrected from the dead. They will be present to rule and reign with Christ in the millenium. We also have Jews and Gentiles who were saved in the 7-year tribulation and survived to the end of that period, and so go into the kingdom or the millenium in their physical bodies. They will have children, they will repopulate the earth that has been so decimated by the judgments of the 7 year tribulation, and then by the judgment of Christ who has destroyed all unbelievers remaining at His Second Coming. But now you have people go into the millenium in physical bodies to have families, produce children and I take it, the population will explode because there are not going to be any miscarriages, there will be no death in childbirth. There will be no diseases, sickness, illness. The book of Isaiah says that if one dies at 100 he’ll be a child and he’ll be considered cursed, just a kid. And the only reason he would have died was because of the judgment of God, because Christ reigns in righteousness and there will be no overt acts of sin tolerated. What happens though, these believers that go into the millenium have children. You got a lot of things when you’re parents, and one of the things you got was a sin nature. And that will be passed on in the millenium. So every baby born in the millenium in that perfect world, in that perfect environment, with a perfect king will be born with a sin nature and will need redemption through faith in the King who rules in Jerusalem.

Now because the King reigns and He rules with a rod of iron, and you must do homage to the Son lest He be angry and you perish from the way. So people will have to keep their sin in check. You know it’s like, perhaps you can draw a parallel with the days of Noah. And when God was going to bring the flood on the earth, found only Noah and his family to be righteous people. So He puts them on the ark and brings them through the flood and all the rest are killed. But what happened? You get on the other side of the flood and Noah’s family begins to reproduce again. And what do they reproduce? Sinners, because the sin nature has crossed over in them. We don’t see sin ending with the flood. Why? Because you have Noah and his family get on the ark and they survived, and what did they bring with them through the flood? Their sin nature. What is passed on to the grandchildren and the grandchildren’s grandchildren? The sin nature. What is going to happen going into the millenium? Here are these believers now, alive in physical bodies, they have survived the tribulation, the glorious King says enter into the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the earth. Now they will go in in their physical bodies, they’re producing children who have sin nature. But because overt, open acts of sin will not be tolerated anywhere in the kingdom, they will not hurt or destroy in all my holy kingdom, holy mountain Isaiah prophesied, people will hold their sinful impulses in check. It can be done, you know. We all do it. I come down 84th Street and often there is a policeman parks his car back there and he puts on an orange vest, then he steps out on the curb with one of these Star Wars machines. And you know it’s amazing how everyone can keep their sinful impulses in check. They what? Obey the law and submit. Why? They are afraid of the penalty.

In the millennium there will be a fear of the penalty. You don’t have to see too many kids at 100 years of age die to realize I won’t get away with it, like sometimes children in our homes. They are raised in godly homes with godly parents and they go through the motions, but their heart is in rebellion. But the opportunity is not there to express that rebellion, so they continue to conform. And then the occasion comes they sense the freedom, the opportunity to rebel without, they believe, facing the consequences, and then they reveal their character. That’s what’s going to happen in the millennium.

So the millennium serves a key purpose. It demonstrates not only is there a perfect environment with a perfect King, but you know who’s missing? Satan. So people will not be able to blame their sin on their environment, the conditions in which they were raised and on and on and on, nor will they be able to blame it on Satan. So this 1000-year period when we’re done will reveal that the real problem of each and every human being is their own sinful heart. And you take the devil out of the picture, you take the world out of the picture, and leave the flesh in the person, the sinful nature, and you know what you have? You have a totally depraved individual. So at the end of the 1,000 years Satan is released from his prison. Now you know what you have? You have a window of opportunity for people who for somewhere under a 1,000 years, because you begin the 1,000 years with saved people, babies born after that born with a sin nature will have to grow up and respond in faith to Christ or not. So now you have an alternative king. Satan is released to go through the world. He comes out to deceive the nations, verse 8. And you know how many people are ready to rebel against Christ and follow the devil? You say no more than a handful, I mean you’ve lived under a perfect king in a perfect environment. It can’t get any better than this. The end of verse 8 tells you “the number of them is like the sand of the seashore.” You say why would you do it? I mean, what could you gain? Under this king you have a perfect world in perfect conditions. What else would you want? You know what it is with a fallen heart? They can’t take it. Every day lived under that environment grates on them. They can’t take it. There is no logic to sin. Why do people willingly self-destruct, I mean even as unbelievers. Why? Because that’s what sin does, sin always is destructive.

So now Satan comes to offer himself as an alternative king and people are falling over themselves to get to him. Not just turning away from Christ, turning against Christ because for Satan to reign Christ must go. So verse 9, “they came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city.” Remember Jerusalem now is the capital of the world. Jesus Christ rules and reigns. You know what they’re going to do? They’re going to march on Jerusalem and dethrone Christ and enthrone Satan. You know we fail to appreciate the depths of depravity of the human heart. How great is the hostility and total rejection of the living God. It’s not a matter He has not done enough, it’s a matter at the root of our being we hate Him, we despise Him. We would far rather have the devil as our king than we would Christ, apart from the grace of God that brought about a supernatural transformation. That’s why we have this first 1,000-year period. It’s God’s final display of the depravity of fallen human beings. That you can remove all excuses, no excuses will ever be tolerated, but here is a clear evidence. Put a fallen person in a perfect world under a perfect king and what does he want? The devil. Given what seems to be a choice, a number like the sand of the seashore. What you’re saying there is you can’t count them. I mean you go to the seashore, some of you have been to the seashore, you look at the sand and say all right I want you to count the grains of sand. You say you can’t. That’s what we have here. Looks like the world is turned against Christ. And you think what stupidity. What makes them think they could overthrow the Son of God. Is there any hope of victory here? Absolutely none. You share the gospel with people today. God has spoken as clearly as He can, he that has the Son has life, he that has not the Son of God shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him. Are people falling over themselves to believe that message? No, you share it with them and they often become hostile, they’re antagonized by it. Why? This is the great demonstration of God’s love that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. That demonstration of love and it makes them angry? Is there any rationale to sin? Any explanation for the depravity of the human heart? No, that’s what we are as fallen beings.

So they come up and surround Jerusalem. Satan has been bound for, 1,000 years. You’d think he would be so glad to get out of the abyss and say I’m going to reform. First thing he’s got to do is what? Give it one more try. So he does, “and fire came down from heaven and devoured them,” verse 9. There’s not a big war here, there’s not an engaging battle, they’re just cooked on the spot. The end. They’re dead. Fire comes down from heaven and they’re all consumed.

Now the final sentencing that will take place, that’s the judgment on the living unbelievers at the end of the millenium. So that’s another judgment we could add to our list. Living unbelievers at the end of the millenium. So we’re going to have another sifting out here, and I take it every single unbeliever on the face of the earth will respond to the call of Satan. And now they are judged, similar to the judgment that began the millenium when all unbelievers were sorted out, executed, so they didn’t go into the kingdom. Now at this point all unbelievers are destroyed. So again, there are no unbelievers in the kingdom, and never again will there be an unbeliever in the kingdom.

Now you have judgment on Satan here, the final judgment, and the sentence was carried out when Christ died on the cross, brought His judgment on Satan, a defeat that enabled redemption to be brought to fallen humanity. But now, verse 10, “the devil who deceived them was thrown in the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are also.” Now the beast and the false prophet were cast here 1,000 years earlier. Back in chapter 19 verse 20 when Christ returned to earth in His Second Coming, chapter 19 verse 20, “the beast was seized and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had the mark of the beast, those who worshipped his image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone.” One thousand years later we are told in verse 10 of chapter 20, the beast and the false prophet are there. Now Satan joins them and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. Now there is what is truly the last judgment of scripture. Though we’ve had a series of judgments, judgment of the church following the rapture, the judgment of living people at the Second Coming of Christ to earth, the judgment of resurrected Old Testament and tribulation saints at the Second Coming of Christ to earth, the judgment on living unbelievers at the end of the millenium when they are consumed by fire as they surround the Holy City.

But now we come to the last judgment, the Great White Throne judgment of scripture, so described because it is called in verse 11, “then I saw a great white throne” a throne of holiness and purity. “And Him who sat on it from whose presence earth and heaven fled away. There was no place for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small standing before the throne, and the books were opened.” An awesome scene. This throne set up and now the dead, and this is all unbelieving dead, gathered before Him. The exception of those like the beast and the false prophet who have already been cast into hell. “The books were opened.” And there really are two sets of books here, there is the book which is the Book of Life, and then the books of their deeds. So one book, the Book of Life. In that is written the name of everyone who is a believer, redeemed by God’s grace. Then there are the books that record all the works that have been done by these people. “The sea gave up the dead which were in it, death and hades gave up the dead which were in them. They were judged, every one of them, according to their deeds. They’re judged according to their deeds.” That mean you could get to heaven on the basis of your works? No, because read verse 15, “and if anyone’s name was not found written in the Book of Life he was thrown into the lake of fire.” But they’re judged according to their deeds. Everyone at the Great White Throne is going to hell. The Book of Life is here to show their name isn’t there. And the book of their deeds reveals that they deserve it, they are worthy. And I take it, just like there are rewards for believers going to heaven, there will be degrees of hell. Jesus told the account of unfaithful servants, and the one who knew his master’s will and didn’t do it was beaten with many stripes. The one who didn’t know his master’s will and didn’t do it was beaten with fewer stripes. Greater light brings greater responsibility. That’s why Jesus told the citizens of his day that it would be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the Day of Judgment than for you. Why? You have greater light, so you have greater responsibility. So I take it people in a country like ours who have heard the Word of God and have had opportunity upon opportunity will face the greatest judgment. There is nothing so fearful as to grow up in an evangelical bible-preaching church and not believe. Where do you think that leaves you when it comes to the judgment at the Great White Throne? Where is a person like that going to be? They have had the greatest of all opportunities, they have heard the fullness of what God has done in and through His Son. And to have heard that and heard that and rejected it. We sometimes say, oh what about poor people who have never heard, that’s not fair. What about those wretched people who have heard and heard and heard and not believed? They will have the worst of hell. The deeds are here--I think everything that is done, every time the gospel was preached, every time someone shared with them, every time they were exposed to the truth, everything they did that revealed their character. That’s why Christ said by your words you’ll be judged. Why? Because out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. So the words reveal the condition of the heart. You say how can this be? What a judgment. Everybody’s works laid out before the throne of God.

Here we’re told “death and hades were thrown into the lake of fire.” This means everybody who is dead, everybody who had been in hades is now thrown into the lake of fire. Hades is the holding place for people going to hell. According to the account in Luke it is a place of suffering and torment. Remember the rich man lifted up his eyes and being in torment—he was in hades. It’s like you’ve been put in jail awaiting final sentencing to prison. You know somebody’s found guilty. Well they say their sentencing will be on this date, and you see them being bound, putting chains behind them and taken to jail. What’s the difference between being in jail and in prison? Well it’s duration, isn’t it? You go from one cell to another cell. So those in hades who’ve experienced torment. You understand there have been people in hades like that rich man for thousands of years and here will be the only respite that they get. They’ll come out to appear before the Great White Throne for final sentencing to their place in the fires of hell.

This is the second death, the lake of fire. If anyone’s name was not found written in the Book of Life he was thrown into the lake of fire. Hell is not annihilation. We have some among evangelicals today, some evangelicals of some note who have adopted the idea that hell must be annihilation where they’re consumed and they just don’t exist anymore. That’s wishful thinking. Hell is far worse than we can even imagine it will be. Remember at the end of verse 10, they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

Back up to Revelation 14. Speaking of this coming judgment in Revelation 14 verse 10, “he will drink of the wine of the wrath of God which is mixed in full strength in the cup of his anger.” Speaking of the final judgment in hell that these people will experience. It is the full strength of the anger of God, it is unmixed, there is no mercy mixed into this. He will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever and they have no rest day and night. You begin to dwell on this and you say this is more horrible. I’m not amazed that people don’t want to believe in hell. But you know we do a great disservice by playing it down. Oh a loving God could never do that. Well don’t despise His love. Don’t fool yourself what a holy and righteous God will do. Don’t think that you understand something of the depths of the anger of a holy God. You cannot plumb the depths of the love of our merciful God, you cannot plumb the depths of the anger and wrath of our righteous God. It is so serious it took the death of His Son to rescue the lost.

So the Great White Throne is the culmination of everything. And it’s the ultimate destiny of every person you talk to, every person you work with who does not come to believe in Christ. There is no middle ground, there is no other place to go. He that is not with Me is against Me, Jesus said. You’re either in the Book of Life or you’re going to hell. You’ll either enjoy the presence of His glory and unending splendor and joy for all eternity, or you will be tormented day and night with no rest for all eternity. Those are the alternatives. You say let’s debate whether we think this is what God will do. There is no debate. When Almighty God speaks and says this is the way it is, that’s a sure thing. Heaven and earth will pass away, My word will not pass away. His word never returns to Him without accomplishing what He says. We’re amazed that unbelievers don’t believe it, but I sometimes wonder if we really believe it. How driven are we to share the gospel with the lost? Oh I don’t want to embarrass them, oh I don’t want them to think I’m some kind of a fanatic. Do I really believe this truth? Do I really believe that every single person is going to some day appear before Christ as their judge at one judgment or another? Well then that would help me, you would think, get over my embarrassment, get over my fear of their hostility. They don’t know how serious their condition, but we do, by the grace of God and the revelation He has given.

So that’s the unfolding of something of the pattern of scripture with the judgments and resurrections. Praise God we’re looking forward to seeing Him in the air, we’re looking forward to a judgment that will bestow upon us rewards upon rewards, the glories of His presence. And added to that, rewards beyond what I can imagine for being faithful to Him. What else would we want to be? We ought not to want to invest our lives in anything but those things which are of eternal value, and we’ll endure the judgment of His presence.

Let’s pray together. Thank you Lord for your grace. Thank you for our Savior who has rescued us from wrath to come. And now we look forward to glory, the wonder of your presence, and we have no fear because perfect love casts out fear. We have awe and reverence and respect, we have a passion to be pleasing to you. Thank you Lord for a salvation that is might enough and powerful enough and wonderful enough to save those who are worthy of hell, who deserve hell, but who are rescued by your grace through the death of your Son. Lord I pray that you will use us to bring this message to many others. We pray in Christ’s name. Amen.