Our Lord Jesus Christ made a promise. I will never leave you nor forsake you. Precious words from our precious Lamb there. Thank you, Brother Ed. How many today speak of preachers in a disapproving way of hellfire and brimstone preachers? They judge those who speak of the final judgment. But if the minister is to be faithful to the Gospel, faithful to all the Word of God, It must be mentioned. It must be declared. Hell, fire, and brimstone must be talked about because the Word of God talks about it. Now, if what they mean by that, the person overdoes it, they always ride that issue, that's all they talk about, well, then I guess we can understand that. But I think we live in a day and age where little if any of that goes on any longer, at least in most of the churches. Surely, we need to hear more about the biblical truth of what hell's all about. J.C. Ryle said, it's not possible to speak too much about Jesus, but it is possible to speak too little about hell. Today, people laugh at judgment. They laugh at the idea of hell. Comedians use it in their language and they laugh about it. And as millions perish. On the American troop ship a number of years ago, soldiers were crowded around the chaplain. They asked the chaplain, do you believe in hell? The chaplain said, I do not. Well then, sir, would you please resign? For if there is no hell, then we don't need you. And if there is a hell, we do not want to be deceived. Oh, how Satan knows where to place his greatest emissaries, does he not? The Bible clearly validates the existence of hell. Jesus spoke more about hell than anyone else in all of Scripture. He warned all of us to flee from the wrath to come. But hell is not the final destiny of the damned. There's actually a worse place you can go, isn't there? You see, there's a final day coming for all unbelievers, for all those who rejected Christ, for all those who would never live for the Lamb and trust in His finished work. There's a great white throne to come, and then all will be cast into the lake of fire. Hell is simply a holding tank for that great white throne to come. Well, if you remember, last time we looked at the Bema Seat Judgment. Christians will be judged as well. It's called the Bema Seat Judgment. We'll stand before the Lord there. As Romans 14.10 says, we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God. That's all of us. In fact, over in 2 Corinthians 5.10, it says we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ. That's all of us. And if you go on with the text, it says that each one may receive. See, each one of us will be held accountable individually before the Lord. Not for our sins, right? Romans 8.1 is very clear about this, as well as many other texts. There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Jesus Christ. So a true believer can never be condemned for their sins. That's impossible. But 2 Corinthians 5.10 says here, For we must all appear before the judge of the seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body according to what he has done, whether good or bad. whether good or bad. What's the bad? That word there in the Greek, the idea of worthless things has the idea of stewardship. What we've done with the things we've been entrusted with, that's the idea. I dare say a hundred years from now, each one of us in this room will look back on things we've done and places we've spent money and energy and ask ourselves, why on earth did they ever invest that in that kind of project? Good perspective. A hundred years from now, ask yourself, what are we doing now? This includes, no doubt, my use of time, my use of money, my use of resources, my use of energy. Raising my kids to the glory of God includes all of that. Stewardship, what the Lord has entrusted us with. Christian, Christ has done all for us. How shall we not live for Him? And we all will give an account to Him. John Piper said it like this, The cross witnesses to the infinite worth of God and the infinite outrage of sin. That's what the cross is all about. God's mercy, God's love and what he thinks of sin and how he dealt with sin for all those whom Christ represented there at Calvary. Well, if you have the outline, I encourage you to pull it out and follow along with me here today. We have a couple points here we've referenced before and then some ones we have not gotten to. Last time we dealt primarily with the Bema Seat. Today we're going to look at the Great White Throne Judgment. There are four questions we must ask of the Great White Throne here, four of them. And remember now, this is the culmination, culmination of that great day of judgment when all believers will be called up and judged before the Lord. They haven't been judged yet. That day is still to come. It's the Great White Throne Judgment. First question we want to ask is what is the scene? What do we see here? Take your Bibles and turn with me to Revelation chapter 20. Revelation chapter 20 in verse 11. What is the scene? In 20 of Revelation verse 11, the Apostle John says, then I saw a great white throne. Notice those first words, then I saw. We see that phrase keep showing up. Remember, this is normal sequential pattern of events happening. John sees this, he sees this, and this is how it lays out. Remember now what happened. Christ returns in chapter 19. He defeats his enemies in chapter 19. The kingdom is set up in chapter 20 for a thousand years. He reigns from Jerusalem, a God on earth, and then after a thousand years, what do we see? The great judgment here, the white throne judgment. Throne is mentioned some 40 plus times, but this is the first time, this is the only time it's mentioned as great white throne judgment. White speaks of purity, righteousness, sinlessness, Great speaks of majesty, authority. The Great White Throne speaks of the One who is going to rule and reign on it. Who is this One who is going to judge all? None other than the Lord Jesus Christ. John 5.22, For the Father judges no one but has committed all judgment to the Son. A number of times we see that theme in the Word of God. Christ is the One. The One who lived among us. The One who understands what it is to grow up as a human. The God-Man is the One who will judge man. No one better than Him. Finally, the earth will be seen justice in a true and righteous sense. Think of all the man's inhumanity to man, all the corrupt justices, ministers of justice out there, all the things that have not been done right, all the evil, all the wickedness, the immorality of mankind has seemingly gotten away with. No one knew about that sin that happened 20 years ago. It's been dead. It's been gone. It's been buried. It's like those Even in Toledo here, what do we do? We dig up ancient crimes and come up with a criminal after a new DNA testing or whatever? Well, God is the final one and he'll take care of all wrongs and make them right someday at the Great White Throne for every unbeliever. Brethren, there's a judgment coming for all. Bema State for the Christian and the Great White Throne for the unbeliever. Jonathan Edwards, one of our greatest preachers of America, greatest theologians, he said it like this about young children. He called young children, he said, the young serpents who have not yet learned to bite, but full of poison. Indeed they are. Children are in danger of judgment and they too need to learn about the wrath of God and a judgment to come, even for so-called little ones who don't know much about sin. You see, parents, your responsibility. Parenting is getting our children ready to meet God. That's what it's all about. Faith comes how? By hearing. Hearing by the Word of God. That's why our homes need to be Word-driven, Word-centered, and it needs to be Word-incarnated. They need to see living examples of Christ before them in the home. How important. Oh, the importance of family devotions, of bringing our children to church services, of modeling Christ before them, of praying for them, all so important, so critical. Mark says it like this in 8.36. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul? What's your soul worth? What would you give for it? It goes on forever. May we take heed. Well, that's the scene. What a scene that is. But now we have another question. What are the scrolls? We looked at this somewhat last time, but I'm going to combine something else here. We're going to ask the standard as well. It fits so well. As we look at the scrolls, the books, And we look at the standard, the righteous standard that God holds these judgments according to. We're going to put this all together in this question. So, Revelation 20, verse 12. Look at this. And they saw the dead, small and great, standing before God. And the books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged according to their works by the things which were written in the books. Notice two types of books there. There's books, plural, and book, singular, there. In verse 12 at the end, it calls it the Book of Life. Book of Life. That term is found some eight times in the New Testament. All of them are in the New Testament, none in the Old. And they're all found in the Book of Revelation except for the one found in Philippians 4, 3. What is this Book of Life? It's all the names of those who are elect, all the ones God has chosen, all those who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Is it possible for God to blot your name out, to remove it from the book of life? Impossible. Revelation 3, 5, God says, I will not blot your name out. Oh, the importance here of understanding this book of life. But then the books are mentioned here. Plural. What is this? Well, at the end of verse 12 it tells us, doesn't it? Look at this. And the dead were judged according to their works by the things which were written in the books. What things are written in the books? This is the divine record of all unbelievers. God has a record of all of us, and here we see it for those who refuse Christ. God takes all their deeds, they're all recorded, all their words they've ever spoken, all their motivations, all their secret sins, everything they've done. Imagine their entire life, from the first breath they take to the very last breath. There it is, all in full color, full display, before them. And can you imagine? As one would look at their works, and we know what those works are like, before a holy, infinite, awesome God, no wonder nobody retorts, nobody says, this is unfair. Once you see God in His pure righteousness, guess what? It's all over. It's all over for any of us, if that's where we're going to stand in our works. God concludes what? Based on what they've done. How many make it to heaven? How many good things do we have to do to get to heaven? Wrong question. How many bad things do we have to do to get to heaven? Just one, really. Just one sin, right? James says it like this in 2.10, For whoever shall keep the whole law and yet stumble at one point, he is guilty of all. Just one. Just one sin. It's something like a pane of glass. You break a pane of glass at one point, it's ruined. We've got a big picture window in our living room. A couple of winters ago, it got very cold. And all of a sudden, it goes down the bottom corner of this crack, starting to work its way up. Once there was one crack there, guess what? The whole thing was done for. Once you sin once in your life, it's all done. You have a blemished record, and God wants only a perfect record in His kingdom. That's the only way you can get in there. You have to be perfect. You must have a perfect record to make it. And none of us do. None of us will ever make it. In fact, if the truth be known, how many of us do good? Now, we all do good, bad. We do good things on the surface, but how many really do good all the way down to the center core? Scripture tells us. See, God looks underneath. Not just what we do on the outside looks pretty sweet and nice, but He looks at the core, the motivation, and where the true love is for the true Savior. He looks at all this, and guess what He finds? It's not too good. It's not too good at all. We were out in Kelly's Island a while back. Take a walk along the South Shore there sometime. Very interesting. I noticed this big snake just curled up on top of the rock there. And as I started looking around, I noticed these little, I thought they were twigs sticking out. And what they were, snake heads, just keeping an eye on me here and there in the water and big black things swiggling through. And I mean, the whole place was snake infested. It looks pretty nice, I thought, until I looked rather closely. We look rather nice. You know, we're kind of dressed up today. We look pretty good. We say nice things to one another. But if the truth be known, how many do what's righteous? Romans 3 says there's none. Romans 3.10, there's none righteous. And just in case you're in the back pew and you think you're the one, he adds, no, not one. Not even you. Romans 3.23, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Ecclesiastes 7.20, for there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin. We all do. Galatians 3 22 but scripture has confined all under sin that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to all who believe You look at the foot of the cross and the ground is level. Nobody comes the cross on a higher plane another we're all sinners We've all sinned greatly some have said maybe a little greatly than others, but if the truth be known we're all in the same condition We're all in need of a Savior Most people think man is pretty good, don't they? In fact, that's my understanding how education got started in this country, or should I say public education, up until the 1800s and even into the early 1800s is all private. There's a group that got together, didn't like their teaching on man, total depravity of man. That's how it was taught back then. And so the public school system gradually got encroached and now they think they're the only ones on the block and we're all told man is pretty good. Except God doesn't say that. He says just the opposite. Man is pretty awfully bad, full of sin. He's sinful, God says. 1 John 1, verse 8. Let's go back there. John wrote the book of Revelation, right? Who wrote 1 John? Tough question. Who's buried in Grant's tomb? John wrote 1 John, right? 1 John 1, verse 8. 1, 2, 3 John. These little epistles here written by John, and he was on Patmos writing Revelation, wasn't he? Listen carefully, those who want to deny sin, those who think man's pretty good. 1 John 1, verse 8. If we say that we have no sin, what do we do? We deceive who? Ourselves. And the truth, by the way, is not in us. See, if we don't admit we're a sinner, You know, it's so important to know reality, right, brethren? If we want to paint over with rose-colored glass and think things differently, we can do that. It might work for a moment, but it's so important to deal with reality, things as they really are, so then we can take real action. And here he says, we've all sinned and we deceive ourselves. We're not of the truth, because if I never see my sin, I can never repent of it and never claim Jesus. I don't need Jesus. If I am not a sinner, verse 9. But if we confess our sins, 1 John 1, verse 9, if we confess it, He's faithful and just to forgive us our sin and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Did you notice that? He just doesn't forgive us. You just don't have a half record. No, you have a whole record. You have Christ and pewter rices to your account. He forgives us, but then He cleanses us. It's one thing for the little kid to go out in the mud puddle and play in the mud and get all muddy. Mom might forgive him, but then those clothes got to get cleansed. And she does that too. And so does our gracious Lord. Cleanses us. Verse 10. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and the truth his word is not in us oh brethren how important is it to know that we're sinners God says we're all sinners and because of that truth we can take action we can take hope knowing that someone is dealt with our sin the Lord Jesus Christ now if one is judged by what they have done think about this now if you judge by the works you've done in this life and remember These unbelievers are without God, they're without Jesus Christ, without the power of the Holy Spirit. Can you imagine? Here they're judged, they think they're pretty good, and God shows them the true record in light of His pure righteousness. Can you imagine the stark reality, the wake-up call that will be for some, someday, when they stand in that light of His purity? Isaiah says, our most righteous works are like filthy rags. He says, that's the best things we've done. What on earth are the mediocre like? Not to mention the things I don't even want to mention. Isn't that amazing that God has a record of every one of us? It's like some kind of videotape, like some kind of computer scan, that all our thoughts, motivations, words, actions, what I've really said to someone behind their backs, what I've really, secret sins, I've really, it's all there, all exposed, just as if I did it right in His presence on that very day, comes to light at the great white throne. The books are opened and they are judged, are they ever. But you see the perversity of man's heart? Man has this great problem. Man thinks he's okay, though. He's got this great problem of sin, but yet he doesn't see his sin. We compare ourselves to one another. You know, in a few days from now, it's 23rd, isn't it? The bridge is going to be open. The Great Bridge. 220 million plus. The Great Skyline Bridge over Toledo. I'm sure there's going to be a lot of great events around that. No, that's the 24th. 23rd, you get to walk over it, I guess, if everything goes according to schedule. And let's say they're going to have some great events at this Great Bridge opening here, okay? And they're going to have a leaping contest. Who can leap the furthest, you know? And there we are on the edge of the Maumee River. Who can leap the furthest, you know? And we got a couple of us from Lemoyne here, and they jump. And boy, we clap each other on. And finally, the winner, one of us right here, goes 47 feet. Can you imagine? They present him an award, and he's the greatest. We compare ourselves to one another, but the standard was what? You have to jump across the river several hundred yards. How many make it? Nobody measures up to God's standards. We do some good, bad things. None of us are pure but one. There is one without sin, Hebrews 4.15, and that's the Lord Jesus Christ. That's our only hope. We compare ourselves to one another. We don't even know reality. You see, the reason God gave the law was to show us how bad we are, so it would drive us to our knees, to drive us to the cross. God gives us the law for that purpose. But man changes the law. He makes good things bad and bad things good, and he gets it all messed up, and now he thinks he's pretty good. And he's going to make it on his own through his religion, through his works, through his keeping the standard, keeping the law, whatever it is. He declares himself pretty good. What's one of the worst things? Let me rephrase that. What is the very worst thing that can happen to you? The very worst thing? All your friends desert you? Your teacher give you an E? Your boss fire you? Have to declare bankruptcy? The very worst thing is what? to die in your sin. If you die in your sin, your eternal soul goes to a place called the Lake of Fire. That's the very worst thing. Outside of that, not much can happen to you if you take care of that problem. You have everything else pretty much in place. You see, you have an eternal soul. And to die in your sins, that's going to be a bad day. You know, people talk about a bad day. I'm having a bad hair day today, you know. This is going to be a very bad day. A rude awakening. Many have no idea. They think they're very tight with God. They're bound for glory. They even sing testimonies in churches. But, they don't make it. John 8.24, you will die in your sins for you do not believe that I am He. You will die in your sins. At the trial of Julius Rosenberg and his wife, they were accused of being Russian spies. There they were convicted of treason against the United States of America. They were found guilty of transmitting top secret data on nuclear weapons to the USSR. During the summation, the trial lawyer stated, Your Honor, what my clients asked for is justice. The judge responded, The court has given what you asked for, justice. What you really want is mercy. This court cannot give mercy. On June 19, 1953, both Rosenbergs were executed. And so will all be executed who stand at the great white throne judgment. They will be found wanting. They will never make it, for we cannot do it on our own effort. There's only one. It's only on the effort of Christ can we make it. So that's the scroll. That's the standard. Now, let's look at the summons here. What is the summons? Just who are the ones who were called up here before this great white throne? Revelation 20, verse 13. Revelation 20, verse 13. What's the summons? The sea gave up the dead who were in it. Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. Now remember, the moment you die, as a believer, you're absent from the body, present with the Lord, right? if you're a believer. But if you're an unbeliever, you go immediately to hell. But now at the end of time, after all the unbelievers have been in hell for some time, now they're all summed up, and even the sea and even the earth gives up their bodies. The resurrection and the death. How can we be sure this is unbelievers here? Go back to verse 4. Notice what it says at the end of verse 4 of chapter 20. What's it say? And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. Who are these? The word lived there means physical resurrection. These are the ones who are born again, and now they have a physical resurrection. But verse 5 says, the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. They didn't get their resurrection bodies, these unbelievers, the rest of the dead, until now, until the great white throne judgment. That's who we're talking about here. Then it says, this is the first resurrection, referring back to the end of verse 4 there, the first resurrection. Anastasia means physical resurrection for the believer and also for the unbeliever at the end. The first resurrection of verse 5 points to the second resurrection, right? If you mention first and emphasize that, that means there's a second is the idea behind it. The concept of a general resurrection, a general judgment for all mankind, is not allowed here by verse 5. It doesn't fit. All those judged here at the great white throne will fall under the authority of the second death. In fact, the context is king. The context guarantees it. Look at verse 6. Let me show you the guarantee. Blessed and holy is he who is part in the first resurrection over such the second death has no power But shall be priest of God and of Christ and shall reign with him a thousand years So there we have it the context of verse 16 6 guarantees believers will never see This great white throne this second death which all get at the great white throne all this fits now with the Lord's statement remember what the Lord said back in John 5 28 and Do not marvel at this, for the hour is coming in which all who are in the grave will hear his voice, and come forth, those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation. All receive a body, believers, unbelievers alike, some unto life, and some unto death." There's a double reference here in verse 13. Did you see it? For death. Notice what it says there. The sea gave up the dead who were in it. Death and Hades delivered up the dead, stressing the fact that only the unsaved are here. This is the great white throne judgment. God summons all those from the sea now. All the dead, they come up here. Those who drowned during Noah's flood. Those who have drowned down through time through the Titanic, the Lusitania, the Arizona, and countless other ships that have gone down. Those who have drowned at sea. All those now. Those who have perished from the tsunamis. Just the drowning in the lake the sea offers them up and then in verse 12 It says here the small and the great and I saw the dead small and great. Who is that? Well, the great would be the Hitler's Alexander Napoleon Stalin, can you imagine men who had done such great evil but never repented of it never came to Christ? Think of all the atheists all the atheists out there. They're so sure they're so right and Yet, you know what God does? He puts actually a knowledge in our spirit. Romans 1 displays God before us, so without excuse. Then he puts a knowledge of him within sight. Then we have people going around saying there's no God. They have to lie to themselves to believe that. Barna in one of his recent surveys just noted that most atheists and agnostics, that's 56% in his survey, agree with the idea that radical Christianity is just as threatening to America as radical Islam. Really? Did you know that? You know what a radical Christian is? That's if you go to church once a week, pray once a week, read your Bible once a week. That's a radical Christian, and you're as bad as an Islamic fundamentalist who straps bombs to them, according to the atheist. That's how bad your thinking can go once you go down that road. Atheists are more aggressive than ever, Barna notes. He says it's the younger and the college-educated who tend to be atheists. In other words, it takes much indoctrination to turn one into an anti-God being. That's true of me. I went to Michigan State University believing in God. By the time I came out, I was an agnostic, not knowing if there was a God or not. Much indoctrination can do that for you. John Phillips says it like this about this great white throne. Little men, paltry women, whose lives were filled with pettiness and selfishness and nasty little sins will be there. Those whose lives amounted to nothing will be there, whose very sins were drab and dowdy, mean and spiteful, peevish, groveling, vulgar, common and cheap." End quote. And I might throw in there, Hollywood too will be there, who parade their sins before us and say what is so dastardly is so normal and want us to follow along with them. Another group that will be there with the small and great are the religious ones. Yes? There's probably no more excellent vehicle than religion to take one straight into hell. In fact, I don't know of one that does a better job. Religion does that. How Satan must love the stupor of religion that coaxed so many in. Karl Marx did call religion the opium of the people. He is partially right. I think he is. He's on course here to a good degree. In James 2.19 it says, even the demons believe and they tremble. They believe in God. People in hell, 90 what percent, believe in God. Believing in God never got anyone out of hell. Agnosticism, atheism, communism, evolution, no doubt have taken their many thousands, millions into hell. But let me put it like this. Religion has done a far better job. They've taken their billions into hell. Religion does that for one. Let me show you what I mean. Turn over to Mark chapter 7, or Matthew rather. Matthew chapter 7. Here's the greatest preacher ever preached, the greatest sermon ever delivered on planet Earth. The Sermon on the Mount, 5, 6, and 7. And at the end of this, now he delivers these warnings. I want you to listen to this. These warnings at the end of this great sermon, pleading, getting people to understand the shortness of life and why do you do what you do. Matthew chapter 7 and verse 21. Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven. He even can say it twice. Very religious. Lord, Lord. But he who does the will of my Father in heaven, it's got to be righteous purity. Verse 22, many will say to me in that day, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name, cast out demons in your name, and done many wonders, miracles in your name? They served the Lord. Please note the quantity there. How many are going to do this? What's the number? It says many there. Drop back a few verses. We've seen that before, right? That sounds familiar. Verse 13 of Matthew 7. Enter by the narrow gate, for wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leads to destruction. And there are many who go by it, because narrow is the gate, and difficult is the way. You know how narrow it is? You squeeze through, you've got nothing left. You have to repent, let go of everything, and claim Christ. Lay hold of Him. which leads to life, and there are few who find it. See, he talks of two ways there. The broad way, that's the way of religion. That's the way religion loves it, the easy way. Just keep these rules, just do this, show up every now and then, give us some of your money. You know what they do out there. There's many on that road. But in verse 22 now, it says, in that day. Did you get a hold of that? What day is that? That's the Judgment Day. That's the Great White Throne we're talking about right here. The whole context here talks of that. It talks about two different ways with judgments at the end. It talks about two roads, wide and narrow. It talks about two trees. You can judge a tree by their fruit. And by the way, what happens to those trees? You're to what? Do with the bad ones that don't produce? Throw them into the fire. Again, judgment. It talks about two builders. One who builds his house on a Stony foundation weather builds it on the sand and talks about a storm a judgment to come and we know what happens Christ Consistently relentlessly brings this truth home a judgment to come Just because you profess Christ doesn't mean you possess Christ 1st Corinthians 1128 but a man let a man examine himself once the last time you really examined yourself and 2 Peter 2, make your calling and election sure. Let me be sure with you that it's absolutely sure with God if you're in Him or not. You're to make it sure from your vantage point. How do I know I'm elect? How do I know I'm in the Lord? He says in 1 John 2 verse 4, He who says, I know Him and does not keep His commandments is a liar. And the truth is not in Him. You see what he says here in Matthew 7 verse 23 now? And then I will declare to them, I never knew you. Depart from me, you who practice lawlessness." What does Jesus mean here? I never knew you. They were so sure. They did these great events. They led their people in the worship service. I mean, they were right tight with the Lord, right? And Jesus said, I never knew you. Over in John chapter 10, Christ says, I and the Father are one. Christ is God. God is what? Omniscient. He knows all things. Psalm 145, His understanding is infinite, without number. He's omniscient. So Christ knows everything. What's He mean? He doesn't know Him. Well, that's a Hebrew idiom for, I've never been into an intimate relationship with you, is the idea. Never knew you in that sense. Didn't know you in some kind of relationship. Notice the word there, never, in verse 23. I never knew you. Not for a single moment. Not for an instant. Not for one point in time. You who love me, you say. You who worship me. You who did all these wonders in my name. You who prophesied in my name. I never knew you. But look what they've done for the Lord back in verse 22. Prophesied. Cast out demons. Done many wonders. Jeremiah 17.9 says, The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. Who can know it? We think we know ourselves. We think we understand, but it's desperate. One of our very own people right here, Scott Hancock, remember him? Last year, last July or so, he got up early every morning for years, read his Bible. He got up every morning and prayed to the Lord early. I mean, this is early. You got to fight for this to get this done. He was an elder in one of the churches he served in. He witnessed for the Lord Jesus Christ. He led people to the Lord Jesus Christ. One problem was Scott Hancock. Nobody led him to the Lord. He had what? He had anger in his life. Where does anger fit with the Holy Spirit, with the Holy God? How many homes in our church have anger in them? And the Lord convicted him of anger, showed him he really never knew the Lord, drove him to his knees, and he came to a saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord is faithful, the Lord is good. He says here in verse 21, depart from me, or rather in verse 23, depart from me, you who practice lawlessness. What he confirms back in verse 21, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels. This is the lake of fire that awaits all false professors. We visited a missionary in Europe a while back, a couple of our missionaries in Germany, And we're in Lubeck, Germany. It's a place like marzipan candy. They invented it there. They were under siege and all that, a few ingredients, and that's how they came up with marzipan candy. But there's a cathedral there. And in that cathedral, there's this following engraving on that cathedral wall. Thus speak Christ our Lord to us. You call me Master and obey me not. You call me light and see me not. You call me the way and walk me not. You call me life and live me not. You call me wise and follow me not. You call me fair and love me not. You call me rich and ask me not. You call me eternal and seek me not. If I condemn you, blame me not." Very interesting. Lord and Savior? Is He your Lord? A lot of people say, well, He's my Savior, but He's not my Lord. You know, you never see that in Scripture, Savior and Lord. You never see that combination. It's always Lord and Savior. When you come to Him, you bow to Him. No, we don't live perfectly. I understand that. But we sure live different. All things of old have passed away. All things become new. Well, we've seen the scene. We've seen the scrolls. We've seen the summons. What's the sentence here? What is the sentence? Let's wrap this up. Revelation chapter 20. and verse 13. Notice the sentence handed out now at this great white throne. Revelation 20, verse 13. Then the sea gave up the dead who were in it. Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. Verse 14. And then death and Hades were cast out into the lake of fire. This is the second death. Death and Hades, that's a couple. You always see them together. Death and the place of the abode that depart, here the unbelievers, the holding tank. Do you know what the second death is? That term is only used four times in the Word of God, only all times here in the book of Revelation. There's a promise back in verse 6. Remember, for those who lay hold of Christ, they have promised never to see the second death. What is the second death? That is where the unbeliever receives a body, a resurrection body, he's judged at the great white throne judgment, and then cast into the lake of fire forever, eternally, ceaselessly, perpetually, unendingly, everlastingly, without end. The lake of fire. Sweet said it like this, the commentator. These voracious monsters who have themselves devoured, so many are in the end themselves destroyed. There's a number of evangelists who hold to annihilationism, where all of a sudden you're going to go out of existence. A number of evangelicals hold to that. John Stott holds to that, John Wenham, Clark Pinnock. They overemphasize the love of God. They fail to bring into obedience with the love of God the justice, the holiness, the righteousness. God is righteous. He has to. He must. He's a just judge. They don't understand that side of it. Jesus said in Mark 9, where the worm does not die and the fire is not quenched. But they say, oh, yes, the fire is going to be quenched. Jesus said, no, it's not. But they say it will. It will be quenched. I place my side with Jesus and what he clearly says. In spite of different shades of views, there can only be three positions concerning the destiny of the unsaved. Only three for the unsaved. What are they? Restorationism, annihilationism, and everlasting punishment. Restorationism, sooner or later, what happens? Everybody's saved. Satan's saved. Demons are saved. Everybody. That's what the Universalists hold to. They say since Christ died for everyone, everyone's going to be okay someday. Then there's annihilationism. Sooner or later, all the wicked will be annihilated, destroyed, obliterated. They're just worn out. Jehovah Witnesses, Seventh-day Adventists, told of this, where you go to hell, you might be punished for a while, but after a while, you're just done away with. It's not a forever thing. And then there's the third view, everlasting punishment, Jesus Christ view, I dare say, where the sinner is punished forever and ever by the righteous justice of God. Jesus is the only one who talks about hell in the scripture. Did you know that? By and large. Of all the times it's mentioned, only one time or another it's mentioned by James, the word hell. Gehenna. All the rest of the time it's spoken by Jesus. Peter never mentions it. Paul never mentions it. James mentions it one time. Matthew never mentions it. John never mentions it. But Jesus keys on it. Very interesting. You know who he mentioned hell to? Only those who professed his name. Only those who said they were one of his followers. He wanted to make sure. He's cautioning. Are we sure? Are we listening? Listen, there's no better one to tell us the truth than Jesus. No better one who loves us. Can you imagine if Jesus would have never told us about it? Can you imagine the Lord not telling us about this reality? What is hell like? It's a place of consciousness, Luke 16. It's a place of darkness, Matthew 8. It's a place of torment, Luke 16 again. Remember the rich man there and Lazarus? He was burning thirst. And remember what he asked for? It wasn't a drink of water. It wasn't a gallon of water. It wasn't a glass of water. What did He ask for? No, it wasn't even an ice cube. Not a thimble. What did He ask for? One drop. Why? That's the intensity of hell. And if I just had one drop to ease the pain, the eternal pain. It's eternal separation from loved ones, Luke 13. The torment of memory in hell forever, Luke 16. Without the slightest hope of release, Matthew 25. Goes on forever and ever, Mark chapter 9. When you think of eternity, what do you think of? I mean, how can we get our mind around this word? Think of that eternal lake of fire and souls who refused to come to Christ, held Christ at arm's length, wanted to do it their way, really thought they were God. That's bottom line what you're saying if you hold Christ away from you. I can do this on my own. Please, thank you, Lord. You stay out of my life. And then to be cast headlong into that lake forever and ever. I don't know if any of us can contemplate this. The preacher William Muncy put it like this. Eternity cannot be defined. Beginningless. Endless. It cannot be measured. Its past increased. Its future diminished. It has no past. It has no future. It has no ends. It has no middle. It has no parts. An unanalyzable, tremendous unity. If all the mountains of the whole world were pressing upon the brain, they could not weight it down more heavily than eternity's least conception. It is something which always was, is, and always will be. It is coeval with God. It began when He began, and it had no beginning. It will be, and when He will end, and He will end and have no ending. It is unorganized, beginningless, endless, unperishableness, indescribable, undefinable thing. Itself is its only definition. Eternity. And what hangs on these scales? Every religion in the land. I don't care what religion you name. Every cult. I don't care what cult you name. They all do it except for biblical Christianity. But every other one does this. Your good works are weighed on one side. Your bad works are weighed on the other side. And maybe there's some faith mixed in there too somewhere. But that's what's going to equal it out. That's not why we have these scales here. You can throw all you want to, all your righteous, all your good works, all your works in church, all your grace, all whatever on the one side, and yet the bottom weighed out, they'll come up wanting is what? Rejection of the Lord Jesus Christ. You reject Him. You have nothing. Hopeless. Bankrupt. No place to go. There are three kinds of death mentioned in Scripture. Physical death, spiritual death, and the second death. The remedy for physical death is what? Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. The remedy for spiritual death is what? Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. The remedy for second death is what? Verse 15 of Revelation 20, And anyone not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. There's no hope. There's nothing we can do. A hopeless, helpless, bankrupt eternity without Christ. My question to you today is, have you truly believed? Have you turned from your sin and trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ? Have you come to Him? Have you embraced Him? Do you live for Him? Have you seen your sin as it really is in God's holy eyes? See the horror of your rotten, stinking garments you wear, these sins upon you, and bow before Him and embrace the Lamb who died for my sin, who imputes His righteousness, His cleanness. The only way you can get to heaven is perfection. And by faith alone, in Christ alone, He gives me Christ, perfect work in my account. Come, believe, trust in Him, and He'll give you everlasting life. Let us pray. Let us thank our great Lord for His great truth that indeed judgment is to come for all.