Word of Salvation – Vol. 30 No. 36 – Sep 1985
The Last Judgment
Sermon by Rev. S. Voorwinde on Revelation 20:12
Scriptures: Matthew 25:31-46; Rev.20:11-21:8
(And Belgic Confession Art. 37)
What should be our motivation for Christian living? What is to be the driving force that gives us the incentive to live our lives for the Lord? The Catechism gives a very beautiful answer. We do good “so that in all our living we may show that we are thankful to God for all He has done for us.” (A.86).
So, quite simply, our motive is gratitude. Christ redeemed us by His blood on the cross and in response to that we live a life of thankfulness to Him. But did you ever hear of such a thing? That our basic motive should be one of gratitude, of all things?
Human nature being what it is, how powerful a force is gratitude in shaping our behaviour day by day? We may hear of great deeds done out of ambition or pride or even love, but out of gratitude – you’d think that was the weakest motivator you could possibly imagine.
And yet such is the change that Christ, through His Spirit, works in the lives of His people. They are so changed, that gratitude becomes a compelling power in their lives. They remember His broken body and His shed blood and it inspires them to live the good life, to live as Christians.
And yet, we must not stop there, for the Bible does not stop there. It encourages us not only to look back, but also to look ahead. We are not only to look back to our Saviour on the cross, but also ahead to our Judge on His throne. We are not only to remember that first Advent at Bethlehem, but also to look forward to His Second Advent on the clouds of heaven.
Whenever the New Testament urges Christian behaviour upon God’s people, then there are two reference points from which we get our bearings and not just one. Our lives are to be moulded and shaped by the two great events between which we live – that great event in the past and that great event in the future, namely the death of Christ on Calvary and His Second Coming in judgment.
And how easy it is for us to focus only on the one and to lose sight of the other, that as Christians we are only looking back- ward but not forward. Every year at Christmas we look back to Bethlehem, and at Easter we look back to what Christ did on the cross. And of course that’s well and good, but we should not neglect looking ahead. We get our direction in the Christian life not only by looking at what Christ has done, but also by looking at what He will do.
Someone has compared the Christian life to driving a car. Το drive safely you must look straight ahead, but you must also look in your rear view mirror to see what’s behind. You cannot drive by looking only forward or only backward, you must do both. And I’m afraid that the great danger facing many Christians today is that they are looking only to the past and not to the future. They are getting all their cues from what has happened and not from what is yet to happen.
But if we read the New Testament carefully, it becomes obvious that the future should determine how we are to live in the present. In fact, every writer of the New Testament, whether it be in the Gospels or the Epistles, mentions the Second Coming of Christ and the Day of Judgment and often in the same breath they urge us for that reason to live moral, upright, consistent Christian lives. The Day of Judgment is coming and human history is hurtling towards it at breakneck speed. And we are fools if we try to live our lives as though it wasn’t going to happen. Whether we like it or not, we are living in the shadow of the Great White Throne, and that fact should affect every detail of our behaviour, every word we speak and even every thought which crosses our mind.
Think again of the majestic words of our text. Christ has taken his seat on the great white throne and so awesome is the sight that earth and sky fled from his presence. In the vast emptiness that remains there stands that mighty throne. And then the description continues:
“And I saw the dead, great and small standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.”
Now you’ll notice that this verse is divided into three sentences and so each sentence can be one point in my sermon.
The first sentence is about books being opened; the second is about the book of life; the third is about how the dead are judged.
So let’s take a detailed look at this incredible verse which is just so filled with meaning. We’ll take it a step at a time.
“And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne and books were opened.”
You’ll notice right away that this verse takes pains to show that every human being who ever lived will stand before that throne from the tiniest baby to the most powerful ruler, from Adam and Eve to the last and not one will be missing. And when this vast multitude stands assembled, books will be opened. The scene is reminiscent of a court of law. We have a fuller description in the prophecy of Daniel:
“As I looked, thrones were set in place,
and the Ancient of Days took His seat…
His throne was flaming with fire,
and its wheels were all ablaze…
thousands upon thousands attended him;
ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him.
The court was seated,
and the books were opened.” (Dan.7: 9,10).
According to the Confession, these books are the consciences of men. Each man’s conscience will be opened so that he can judge for himself.
Dr.Francis Schaeffer has illustrated this point very well with the idea of a heavenly tape recorder. All that God will have to do for any person, whether he has ever read the Bible or not, is to play back to him all the value judgments that he ever made, all the moral expectations that he had of other people. And then not one person will have lived up to his own standards. Everyone will stand condemned by the words of his own mouth. And let’s not think that Christians are exempt when it comes to appearing before the Great White Throne. For us the Day of Judgment is not some token event at the end of time. It’s not some kind of lame duck. It does have teeth to it.
True enough, there are those who appeal to the words of Jesus in John 5:24 that Christians will never have to face judgment:
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes Him who sent me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.” (N.A.S.B.)
But surely Jesus is here speaking about judgment in the sense of condemnation and not suggesting that His followers will never appear before the judgment throne. Think of what Paul wrote to his fellow-Christians:
Rom.14:10:- “For we shall all stand before the judgment-seat of God.”
2Cor.5:10:- “For we must all appear before the judgment-seat of Christ, that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done whether good or bad.”
I repeat, these words are addressed to Christians. There is no side exit out of the court away from the judgment throne of God. The books will be opened for you and me, as well as for everyone else.
According to William Hendriksen in his book, “The Bible on the Life Hereafter”, this can only mean one thing: “Every deed which a man has ever performed, every word he has ever spoken, every thought he has ever conceived, every ambition he has ever cherished, and every motive that has ever prompted him to action or inaction, will be laid bare for himself and for all to see.” (p.193). Does that sound a little strong? A bit too scary? Don’t you think that’s going too far?
Maybe these are strong words, but if you don’t like them, I’ve got news for you. This is what the Bible teaches. If you cling to the opinion that the sins of God’s people will not be exposed, then how are you going to explain what the Bible says on the subject in both the Old Testament and the New Testament? Here we find out what it really means that the books will be opened:
(i) The very last verse of Ecclesiastes (12:14): “God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.”
(ii) Jesus in Matthew 12:36: “I say to you, that every careless word that men shall speak, they shall render account for it on the day of judgment.’
The world may regard it only as amusement and jest, but on that Day it will be disclosed and laid open before all.
(iii) 1Cor.4:5: “Judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and expose the motives of men’s hearts.’
(iv) And it is on that day, says Paul, that “God will judge men’s secrets through Jesus Christ.” (Rom.2:16).
How God is going to do all this is of course impossible to imagine. But however He does it, this truth is a tremendous deterrent to sin. Just think, that nasty word, that evil motive or lustful thought, that selfish attitude it’s all going to be exposed on the Day of Judgment. If that doesn’t stop you from committing sins you can get away with, then what will?
So that’s the first point. That everyone will stand before the Judgment seat of God and the books will be opened. Men’s sins will be laid bare.
Now if you think that’s a terrible prospect, something to shrink away from then the comforting part comes in the second sentence.
To put it plainly: first comes the bad news and then the good news:
“Another book was opened, which is the book of life.”
And what is that book of life? Very simply it’s the book in which are inscribed the names of those who have eternal life. Now the books had been opened for them too. Their secret sins had also come to light, but with a difference. As theologian Louis Berkhof explains: “It is sometimes objected that the sins of believers which are pardoned, certainly will not be published at that time; but Scripture leads us to expect that they will be, though they will, of course, be revealed as pardoned sins. Men will be judged for ‘every idle word’ (Mat.12:36), and for ‘every secret thing’, (Rom.2:16; 1Cor.4:5), and there is no indication whatsoever that this will be limited to the wicked.” (P.732). All men will have their sins revealed, but some of those sinners also have their names in the book of life.
This is where we get the great contrast of our text. The books that were opened were the books of men’s deeds. The book of life is the book of God’s grace. And the crucial point is whether you are represented only by the books that were opened or also by the book of life. When you stand before the judgment throne is it that just your deeds will be recorded or will your name also be in the book of life?
This is what Jesus had in mind when His disciples returned from a mission. When they come back all excited He reminds them of an even greater cause for joy:
“Do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” (Luke 10:20).
And to the Philippians Paul writes of his fellow-workers: “whose names are in the book of life.” (4:3).
But it’s not until we get to the Book of Revelation that the Bible gives us any specific details about this book of life:
– He who overcomes will never have his name erased from it (3:5).
– It is described as “belonging to the Lamb that was slain” (13:8).
– Those whose names are in it have been in from the creation of the world (17:8).
Only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life will enter the new Jerusalem (21:27).
The clue to this book lies in the fact that it belongs to the Lamb who was slain. That’s the key to the whole thing. Those whose names are inscribed in the book of life are those for whom the Lamb was slain. They have eternal life because the Lamb died. Those evil deeds of theirs that were recorded in the opened books are now forever blotted out and forgiven because of the Lamb who was slain.
Is your name inscribed in the book of life? If so, then you will enter into the New Jerusalem. If not, you will be thrown into the lake of fire.
This is the result of the judgment – described in the last part of our text: “The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.”
So how are the dead going to be judged? It’s on the basis of what’s written in the books – and that refers back to the books that were opened as well as to the book of life. And if it wasn’t for that book of life, not a soul would be saved; no one would survive the day of judgment. As it says in verse 15: “If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
Again there’s a vital distinction between those two sets of books. The first is a record of what we have done and the second is a list of those whom the Lamb has saved.
If it were just a matter of our own works we would be utterly doomed. Every man’s conscience will condemn him on the last day. When every conscience is activated to its full God-given potential it will declare every man guilty. Those books that are opened will condemn us all.
Not one man’s conscience will let him go free. Each man would be damned by his own conscience.
But there will be those – thank God! – for whom the opened books are overshadowed by the Book of Life. For them the end of the story is not in the books, but in the Book:
– They were registered in it from before the foundation of the world.
– It was for them that the Lamb was slain.
– They have overcome.
– And now they are about to enter into the New Jerusalem.
Has your name been inscribed in that book? Are you enrolled in heaven? Do you know that the Lamb was slain for you?
That book of the Lamb is our only hope. If we are not judged by that, then all that is left are those other books which can only mean a condemning conscience. “The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.”
Even those who are thrown into the lake of fire will not be able to complain of injustice. Their own consciences will concur with the judgment of God. Perhaps that will make their condemnation even worse because they know that the verdict is absolutely fair. With the Chamberlain trial still quite fresh in our minds, we can appreciate just how important that is. This time there is no question as to the verdict. Here there’s not a human jury but a divine judge. There is no doubt in anyone’s mind that justice has been done. And once the decision has been made, there’s no bail and no appeal. Justice will have been perfectly satisfied. And there’s yet another parallel with a human court of law. The outcome of a trial presents only two possibilities either you’re convicted or you’re acquitted. There is no third alternative. And so it will be on Judgment Day:
– There are the sheep and the goats.
– There are the New Jerusalem and the lake of fire.
– There’s eternal life or eternal punishment.
And for each of us it can only be the one or the other. Which of them it is depends on that one factor whether our names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
If your name is there, then the Day of Judgment will not be Doomsday, but the great Day of the Lord that you can look forward to and long for. In fact, it will be a day of joy. As the Confession says: “The faithful and elect shall be crowned with glory and honour; and the Son of God will confess their names before God His Father and His elect angels; all tears shall be wiped from their eyes; and their cause will then be known to be the cause of the Son of God.”
Therefore we await that great day with eager anticipation. The attitude of the Psalmist will be ours:
“Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;
let the sea resound and all that is in it;
let the fields be jubilant and everything in them.
Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy;
they will sing before the Lord for He comes,
he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
and the peoples in his truth.” (Ps.98:11-13).
For us the history of the world will end not with a bang, but on a note of triumph.
Come, Lord Jesus. Maranatha.
Amen.