There could be no more solemn passage to be read in the entire Word of God than this passage nor is there a more somber message to preach.
Many things have taken place to get us to the passage. People since Adam have lived their lives upon this Earth. God has been ever present down through the ages of time giving man every opportunity to know the richness of His grace, His unconditional love, the abundance of His mercy for mankind. He has shown Himself to prophets, patriarchs, priests, political leaders, preachers, and people.
The passage begins in this manner with this word…Then. What does “then” mean to this passage? Before the happenings of this passage many things have taken place. We have witnessed the fall of man in the Garden, the Earth destroyed by a Flood, the raising up of a peoples from Noah and his 3 sons, the calling forth of Abraham to be the father of Israel, the gathering of the nation of Israel to Goshen of Egypt, the calling of Moses to lead the children of Israel from Egyptian bondage, the building of the powerful nation of Israel through David their anointed king, the fall of that nation, the prophecies by the prophets of the rebuilding of that nation, the coming Messiah, Jesus born in Bethlehem, the life and ministry of Jesus, the Crucifixion, the Resurrection, the Ascension, the Promise of Christ’s return, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the New Testament Church, the Rapture of the Church, the Great Tribulation, the Antichrist, the Battle of Armageddon, the hurling of the false prophet and the antichrist into the lake of fire, the 1000 year reign of Christ and His followers on earth, and “Then”…
I want us to see the final end of the ages as we know them. Where it will all come to a close. Where God will be; where people will be; where the world as we know it will be; and where you and I will be. Make no mistake God has revealed His plan for all things and in His merciful grace has given us warning after warning; sign after sign; prophecy after prophecy; time after time.
Let us look very close to this scripture passage and determined it’s events and where God and man are for at this scene God has hurled the Devil, the False Prophet, and the Antichrist into the lake of fire forever where they will never be able to lead any rebellion against God and His people.
Revelation 20:11–15 - ESV
First let’s look at…
I. THE SETTING
1. The Picture of This Throne -
a. A Great throne - it is the highest court in the universe. Nothing compares to this throne. All judgments rendered here are final.
b. A White throne - all human courts are tainted with some prejudice and fallibility. This court is absolutely perfect. The Judge who occupies this bench is absolutely fair and just and renders judgment with perfect righteousness and fairness
2. The Person on This Throne – None other than Christ Himself who has been granted all power and authority. Before Him Heaven and Earth will pass away.
3. The Presence of This Throne – The Earth and the Skies have been removed. There is no hiding place from this throne. There was no place for the old earth, the old heavenly bodies, for that time has passed and will be no more. They have disintegrated.
Psalm 102:25-28
Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, but you are the same, and your years have no end.
The children of your servants shall dwell secure; their offspring shall be established before you.
II. THE SENTENCE
1. The Place of Those in the Courtroom
The defendants at this gathering are from the regions of the dead. The Scripture tells us that we who have trusted in Jesus as Savior have “passed from death unto life” – John 5:24.
God raises the dead from their tombs; from the seas; from where every particle of dust is located. Both Death – the state of death - and Hades – the place of death are called in to this courtroom. No defendant will not be able to missed this court date.
2. The Partiality to Those in the Courtroom
Both small and great are called to this courtroom. There is no partiality shown here. There are no differences made. Both male and female; both rich and poor; both healthy and ill; both young and old; both popular and unknown; both leader and follower. All are here in this courtroom.
3. The Posture of Those in the Courtroom
The Defendants are standing which leads us to know that the testimony and evidence are in. The only reason a defendant stands in our courtrooms is to hear the verdict against them.
4. The Pretense in This Courtroom
Then the books of evidence are opened and they are judged, each one according to his works. The literal Scriptures will speak to those who have rejected its content and its compassion. All the con games are over. Those who played church but never knew Christ are here.
Matthew 7:21-23 declares, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’
Finally, the Book of Life is Opened and the Names of those standing there are not found.
And they were judged – This is the day that the rebellious sinner who rejected truth during their lifetime will mock and sneer no longer; this is the day that all have been warned about; this is the most dreadful day of all days; this will be a day of great sorrow and regret. This will be a day of remembering but too late; this will be a day of reckoning with no forgiveness; this will be a day that men gambled their very soul over and lost.
III. THE SEPARATION
1. Excuses Will Be Futile
Note that every person will stand on his own! Regardless of the excuse used to justify not coming to Jesus today, in that day all will stand under judgment by themselves! It won’t make any difference who hurt me, who stood in our way, what hypocrite we looked at, or whatever excuse we have for not believing, not following Jesus. It will come down to you and judgment. There will be no appeals; all judgments rendered from this bench will be final and they will be binding.
2. Evidence Will be Final
The sentence rendered from this bench is “Death”. Not physical death, but the second death is eternal separation from God,
2 Thessalonians 1:5-9 - This is evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are also suffering— since indeed God considers it just to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might,
Imagine the horror of hearing Jesus say the words that will condemn you
“Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels”, Matt. 25:41.
Imagine living your life the way you wanted, without regard for God or His will and then having to hear the Lord who loved you enough to die in your place speak those awful words. There could be nothing so terrible!
This will be the last day any of those who are judged will ever see purity, holiness, and righteousness again. This will be the end of the road for them, for they are forever separated from all that is good, and righteous, and holy, and pure. They are forever separated from God with no hope of any help. Many don’t believe this is true. They deny the reality of Hell and claim that such a notion is old fashioned and out of date. The Bible tells us that Hell is real and that lost sinners do indeed go there to spend eternity.
Psalm 9:17 – the wicked shall be turned into hell and all the nations that forget God.
CONCLUSION
1. I believe that this is the most horrible scene mentioned in the Bible. I think the concept of people perishing forever is terrible beyond description. However, as horrible as it is, it is true nonetheless!
2. To the believer, this passage reminds us of the terrible need of the world around us. If nothing else, it ought to move us to come before the Lord and cry out for the souls of our friends, neighbors and loved ones who need Jesus.
3. To the unbeliever, you need to come to Jesus. If you will just trust Jesus by faith, He will save you and spare you from this terrible time of judgment that is coming upon all the lost. The only way to escape this courtroom is to Settle Out of Court.
John 5:24 – 29 - Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life. Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. (at the Ressurection) - For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.
