The Great White Throne Judgment
Revelation 20:11-15
May 28, 2017
It most certainly is not a popular theme, but one thing that is certain
Is that judgment is a constant theme in Scripture.
Matthew 7:21-23 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. “Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’”
Matthew 12:38-42 “Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.” But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet; for just as JONAH WAS THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS IN THE BELLY OF THE SEA MONSTER, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. “The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment, and will condemn it because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. “The Queen of the South will rise up with this generation at the judgment and will condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.”
Matthew 13:41-43 “The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. “Then THE RIGHTEOUS WILL SHINE FORTH AS THE SUN in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.”
Matthew 13:49-50 “So it will be at the end of the age; the angels will come forth and take out the wicked from among the righteous, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
Matthew 16:27 “For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS.”
And those aren’t even close to all the passages.
If we tried to read all the passages in Scripture which speak to the judgment,
I’m confident we couldn’t even read them all inside of an hour.
Judgement is a constant theme and topic of Scripture.
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 “The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.”
Yet still there are many in our world who ignore this reality.
• They ignore the righteous requirements of God
• They ignore the atonement of Jesus Christ
• They ignore the call of the gospel
They are described by the writer of Hebrews
Hebrews 10:26-31 “For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgment and THE FURY OF A FIRE WHICH WILL CONSUME THE ADVERSARIES. Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY.” And again, “THE LORD WILL JUDGE HIS PEOPLE.” It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”
And again
Hebrews 12:25-27 “See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns from heaven. And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, “YET ONCE MORE I WILL SHAKE NOT ONLY THE EARTH, BUT ALSO THE HEAVEN.” This expression, “Yet once more,” denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.”
God promises that there is a judgment coming and that
It will indeed be a dreadful day for all those who offended God,
Dishonored Christ, and ignored the gospel.
It is that day we see in our text this morning.
It is the day of final judgment.
We have seen
• The 7 year tribulation period which contained God’s judgments on the earth.
• The return of Christ and the annihilation of the wicked.
• The 1,000 year reign of Christ and the final rebellion.
All that is left now is the judgment of the dead.
Hebrews 9:27 “And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment,”
Let’s look at this dreadful day together.
#1 THE RIGHTEOUS JUDGE
Revelation 20:11
“Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.”
The first thing which must be seen here is
The One who actually does the judging.
Now, in this passage the specific Judge is not identified,
But I do think it is important that you know who He is.
And in fact, it may surprise you.
IT IS THE LORD JESUS CHRIST.
John 5:22 “For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son,”
John 5:26-27 “For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man.”
Acts 10:42 “And He ordered us to preach to the people, and solemnly to testify that this is the One who has been appointed by God as Judge of the living and the dead.”
Acts 17:31 “because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.”
2 Timothy 4:1 “I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom:”
I used to think it was the Father seated upon the throne and Jesus was just sort of sitting there by His side claiming those who are His.
Not so.
All judgment belongs to the Son.
He judges “the living” (the redeemed) and “the dead” (the unredeemed)
And while He is not specifically identified here,
His character most certainly is.
First we see:
“a great white throne”
• “great” speaks of its size and majesty
• “white” obviously speaks of its purity and justice
• “throne” speaks of its authority to judge
From this throne will come absolute, perfect, binding,
And permanent judgments.
There is no need for appeal because the judgments are true.
There is no ability to escape because of the power of this throne.
There is no hint of corruption or injustice.
This is the most perfect judicial system the world will ever see.
AND THEN we see “Him who sat upon it”
And more specifically we learn “from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.”
Now, we have just come out of the Millennium,
Which was no doubt a wonderful place.
But it was not a perfect place.
For it is true that people lived longer, but it’s not as though death was totally absent.
• Isaiah 65:20 “No longer will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, Or an old man who does not live out his days; For the youth will die at the age of one hundred And the one who does not reach the age of one hundred Will be thought accursed.”
It is true that the enemy was bound, but it’s not as though people did not have the capacity to sin or need forgiveness.
• You can read the end of Ezekiel and see even there a continual sin offering which is being offered to Christ.
It is true that Christ reigns supreme, but we learned last week that even then a rebellion will arise.
So it’s a good place, but not a perfect place, and so even this earth and heavens are not able to stand before this throne.
That speaks to the absolute perfection and holiness of this judge.
• Creation was fallen
• Creation was tainted
• And so creation is undone.
Just as He spoke it into existence, on this day, it is totally annihilated.
“no place was found for them.”
It is gone forever because it could not measure up to
The righteous standard of this holy judge.
That tells you a great deal doesn’t it?
IT IS PERFECTION OR BUST HERE.
So you see the Righteous Judge
#2 THE RESURRECTED DEFENDANTS
Revelation 20:12-13
Here we see exactly WHO IS BEING JUDGED here,
And the answer is simple, it is “the dead”
(12a) “And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne”
(13a) “And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged,”
This is important because as we read a moment ago,
Jesus is the judge of “the living and the dead”
If this is the judgment of “the dead”,
So when is the judgment of “the living”?
The judgment of the living is the judgment of all believers.
1 Corinthians 3:10-15 “According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each man must be careful how he builds on it. For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man 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 to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself 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 burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.”
2 Corinthians 5:9-10 “Therefore we also 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.”
All believers, will appear before “the judgment seat of Christ”
Where we will be rewarded or disciplined for the manner in which we lived this Christian life.
IT IS NOT a judgment of condemnation for eternal hell, for “there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
But it will be a time in which we will all answer to the Lord
For the manner in which we followed Him.
That is the judgment of the living.
What we read of here is a different judgment.
This is the judgment of “the dead”
These are the spiritually dead, and they are also physically dead.
• They either died before the tribulation
• Or they died at the second coming of Christ,
• Or they were born in the Millennium, were part of the rebellion and died as a result of the fire which fell from heaven.
Either way, they are “the dead”; and this is the place of their judgment.
And when we get to this point, it doesn’t matter WHO you are.
“I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne”
In attendance will be the rich and the poor, the famous, and the forgotten,
The important, and the expendable, the moral and the immoral,
The noble, and the common.
No one is above or beyond the judgment of God, and no one is forgotten.
We may live in a day where people can escape judgment
If they have enough political clout, or enough financial means,
BUT NOT ON THIS DAY.
In fact, you can’t even be insignificant enough to escape judgment.
The somebody’s and the nobody’s alike will all stand here.
It doesn’t matter WHO you are.
It also doesn’t matter WHERE you are.
“And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged”
In Bible days, the sea was an enormous mystery.
People even viewed the “gods” of the sea to be the most powerful.
It was mysterious.
Things that fell in there, never came back.
Even believers used it as an analogy of God’s forgiveness.
Micah 7:19 “He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities under foot. Yes, You will cast all their sins Into the depths of the sea.”
That was used because people knew that if it was cast into the sea
It couldn’t be recovered.
That is why the sea is specifically mentioned here.
Sinners will be gathered from everywhere,
Even from the depths of the sea.
It doesn’t matter who you are or where you are,
Sinners will appear before the judgment.
Psalms 139:7-12 “Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, Even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me. If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, And the light around me will be night,” Even the darkness is not dark to You, And the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You.”
Point being, there is no escaping it.
The Righteous Judge, The Resurrected Defendants
#3 THE RECORDED EVIDENCE
Revelation 20:12-13
Also in those verses is the evidence listed against men.
(12b) “and books were opened;”
It is all of God’s books of evidence.
Do you realize that nothing a lost person ever says or does or thinks is forgotten?
Certainly when a person comes to Christ and their sin is washed away,
They are justified and all condemnation is gone.
But for those outside of Christ, nothing is forgotten.
It is all recorded and remembered, and on this day it will all come to light.
FOR INSTANCE?
(and this list isn’t exhaustive since I don’t claim to be God)
YOU WILL BE JUDGED BY HOW MUCH YOU KNOW
This was the idea behind Paul’s statement in Romans 2
Romans 2:1 “Therefore you have no excuse, everyone of you who passes judgment, for in that which you judge another, you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.”
His point was that you clearly knew better than to do those things, and we know you knew better because you actually condemned those who did do them.
Therefore at the judgment
God will use your own knowledge as evidence against you.
Consider what Jesus said to the cities where He worked His miracles and shined His greatest light.
Matthew 11:21-24 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles had occurred in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. “Nevertheless I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. “And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will descend to Hades; for if the miracles had occurred in Sodom which occurred in you, it would have remained to this day. “Nevertheless I say to you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for you.”
How could judgment be more tolerable for Sodom?
Because they didn’t know as much as Capernaum did.
Men will be judged by what they know.
And I might also add that judgment is MORE SEVERE depending on how much you know.
Luke 12:47-48 “And that slave who knew his master’s will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, will receive many lashes, but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy of a flogging, will receive but few. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.”
Or do you remember that passage we read earlier in Hebrews?
Hebrews 10:29-31 “How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY.” And again, “THE LORD WILL JUDGE HIS PEOPLE.” It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”
Key word there being “severer”.
Those who know better receive a harsher punishment.
But don’t assume that it’s just those who have adequate understanding of the gospel who are to be judged.
Some actually think this way.
That, if people never had the opportunity to hear the name of Jesus,
That somehow they will be exempt from the fires of judgment.
They may not have ever heard the name of Jesus,
But they are not without knowledge.
In fact, Scripture says that even the LIMITED KNOWLEDGE they do have
Is MORE THAN ENOUGH to condemn them.
What knowledge do they have?
Romans 1:18-20 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.”
If all a person ever saw as a sunrise or a sunset or a sandstorm
Or whatever, that is enough.
The Psalmist said:
Psalms 19:1-2 “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. Day to day pours forth speech, And night to night reveals knowledge.”
It is called NATURAL REVELATION
And it is enough revelation to condemn a man.
And that is still NOT ALL THE KNOWLEDGE man has.
• Granted only some have knowledge of the gospel by which they are doubly accountable.
• Others have knowledge of creation.
I’ll tell you something else all men have knowledge of:
THEIR CONSCIENCE
The conscience is the moral code of God written upon the human heart.
It is what instinctively tells a man that stealing is wrong or that murder is wrong.
Now certainly the conscience is fallen and can be seared or corrupted,
But it doesn’t change the fact that it is a form of knowledge.
Romans 2:12-16 “For all who have sinned without the Law will also perish without the Law, and all who have sinned under the Law will be judged by the Law; for it is not the hearers of the Law who are just before God, but the doers of the Law will be justified. For when Gentiles who do not have the Law do instinctively the things of the Law, these, not having the Law, are a law to themselves, in that they show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them, on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge the secrets of men through Christ Jesus.”
Men will be judged by what they know, even if all they know
Is the testimony of creation and the witness of their conscience
I’ll tell you another thing you will be judged by, is not just what you know, but obviously by WHAT YOU DID. YOUR ACTIONS
Matthew 16:27 “For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS.”
I know our world loves to throw out the statement “Don’t Judge Me!”
As if to say, “I’m free to do whatever I want”
Another would say, “Only God can judge me!”
(And honestly, that should terrify you)
Because He will.
He has never forgotten a single thing the unredeemed ever did.
They are all still STINGING OFFENSES COMMITTED AGAINST HIM.
And that includes the things we know about
And even all the things you thought nobody knew about.
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 “The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.”
If sinful actions aren’t forgiven through the atonement of Christ,
They are brought forth at the great white thrown of judgment.
How about this one? EVERYTHING YOU SAID.
Matthew 12:36-37 “But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment. “For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”
That’s a painful one right there!
Every word you’ve ever spoken recorded and remembered.
HOW ABOUT YOUR THOUGHTS, ATTITUDES, AND INTENTIONS
(Even those that never got carried out)
Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”
Even the “thoughts and intentions of the heart” are judged.
This was the very idea behind Jesus famous
“You have heard, but I say” sermons.
• Where Jesus indicated that it isn’t just murder which condemns a man, but hatred.
• Where he revealed that it isn’t adultery that condemns a man, but lust.
God judges even the attitudes.
Jeremiah 17:10 “I, the LORD, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give to each man according to his ways, According to the results of his deeds.”
ARE YOU GETTING THE POINT?
There will be no lack of evidence at the great white throne judgment.
• Men can’t plead ignorance, for God knows what they know.
• Men can’t plead innocence, for God knows what they did.
• It’s all there.
ALL THE EVIDENCE GOD WILL EVER NEED IS IN THE BOOKS.
You will also notice that there is another book here.
“and another book was opened, which is the book of life;”
And you will see in a moment (15) “If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
WHAT IS THIS?
In chapter 21 it is called “the Lamb’s book of life”
You already saw it once.
Revelation 13:7-8 “It was also given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them, and authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation was given to him. All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain.”
This book is not the book of the innocent.
This book is the book of the redeemed.
This book is the book of those
Whose sins have been atoned for in Christ Jesus.
And you should know that
God wants to know what is in all these books at the judgment.
The Righteous Judge, The Resurrected Defendants, The Recorded Evidence
#4 THE REASONABLE SENTENCE
Revelation 20:14-15
“Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
What do we learn from that?
Certainly that according to Scripture eternal destruction and judgment is real, and God really will send men there.
This judgment is total and permanent and horrific.
It is called “the lake of fire” after all.
Jesus said it was created for the devil and his angels, and it will also be the eternal dwelling place for all the unredeemed of all the ages.
Men will go to hell and will burn in hell for all eternity.
WHY?
BECAUSE THEY OFFENDED THEIR HOLY CREATOR
THEY DESERVE IT
You do not get to live this life (which God gave you)
In total defiance of the God who created you
And expect that there will not be repercussions.
God does not tolerate insubordination.
He judges sinners.
And we see that here.
ANOTHER IMPORTANT THING WE LEARN IS WHILE ALL MEN DESERVE IT, NOT ALL MEN RECEIVE IT.
REMEMBER THAT OTHER BOOK?
“the book of life”
That is not the book of the innocent, it is the book of the forgiven.
The point then is simple, the deciding factor of man’s judgment
Is not his guilt, it is his redemption.
It is just as Paul said:
Romans 3:23-24 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;”
And this is why we talk about
THE ABSOLUTE NECESSITY AND EXCLUSIVITY OF CHRIST.
It is why we are so adamant about verses like:
John 14:6 “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”
Acts 4:12 “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”
1 Timothy 2:5 “For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,”
Now, don’t get me wrong.
I’m NOT trying to minimize sin as some trivial thing that we just shrug a shoulder at because everyone does it.
SIN IS NO LAUGHING MATTER.
It is because of sin that these men and women
Are being cast into hell for all eternity.
It’s just that, while we lament sin, we also acknowledge and exalt
The only Savior from that sin, who is Jesus Christ.
Let’s be very clear this morning.
• You are a sinner and as such you deserve to stand before God and to be cast for eternity into the fiery hell.
• But, there is a Savior and His name is Jesus Christ.
• He was the only sinless man who ever lived and God proved that by raising Him from the dead.
• This man’s death served one purpose and that purpose was to justify those who have faith in Him.
• His death was to bring salvation to sinners and to provide a means for them to escape this place of torment.
The judgment is real
The judgment is coming
The judgment is deserved
But there is salvation from the judgment
And that is through faith in Jesus Christ.
Passages like this remind us of just how important Jesus is don’t they?
Romans 8:1-4 “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”
And this forgiveness is for all those who REPENT of their sin,
LET GO of their idols, CLING wholeheartedly to Jesus
And TRUST in His atoning work.
Those who do that need not fear the great white throne judgment,
For Christ already bore their wrath.
