 We're in Revelation chapter 20. We're going to be looking today at verses 11 through 15. And let me preface it by saying even as last week I reminded the Second Service that what we're looking at is serious stuff. It's called meat in Scripture. You have what is called the milk of the Word, which every believer ought to take of. Of course, it's the nourishment that comes to us through the Word of God. You have what is called the milk of the Word, but the word milk is also used to describe that which the young partake in babies drink of their mama's milk and all of that. But meat is for those who are through the use of their spiritual gifts and all, are growing in wisdom and discernment. Meat is for those who are growing in maturity in the things of the Lord. And what we have here in these chapters that are closing Revelation are especially filled with what would be called the meat of the Word. And so because that's so, I've been taking my time. And some of you perhaps have joined us along the path as we have studied Revelation. And it is something fresh and new to you. Today we're going to be looking at judgment. We're going to look at the Great White Throne Judgment. Again, it's a section that contains a lot of information and a lot of meat. And you're going to note that I'm going to be very careful to give you everything that I wrote down because I feel that these are important things for us. And a lot of times I like to inject humor and I do that naturally because that's just part of my personality. But this probably isn't going to be one of those studies that I'll find something humorous and just letting you know in advance because what we're speaking about is very serious. We're speaking about the Great White Throne Judgment. If I start sensing some tension in you, I might say something silly just to get you back. But who knows? That's as much funny as I'll probably be. Anyway, here we are. Revelation chapter 20 verses 11 through 15, the Great White Throne Judgment. John writes, then I saw a great white throne and him who sat on it from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead small and great standing before God. Books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to the works by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it. And death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged each one according to his works. Then death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire. And so you can see right from the onset that this is a very, very serious and a very sobering portion of Scripture. And so I'll treat it with the respect that it deserves. And let me give you an introduction. And the introduction that I will give is going to be just a reminder for those of you who have been through the book with us or have studied the book in your paths. When we first began our study in the Book of Revelation, we saw that John, the apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, the one whom Jesus loved, John, was on an island called Patmos. And Patmos is an island in the Aegean Sea if you were looking at a map and you see Turkey. Well, Patmos was 30 or 40 miles to the west of the Turkish coast. And John had introduced this book by telling us that he was in exile. He said that he had been exiled for the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. He said that in Revelation 1 verse 9. In other words, he had been arrested for faithfully preaching the gospel. Now, when I introduced the Book of Revelation, when we were looking at chapter one, I mentioned that Christianity was a hated religion in Rome. The Christian faith was considered superstitious. It was practiced only by the ignorant, the uneducated. The Roman governor Pliny had said Christianity is a depraved and extravagant superstition. The Roman historian Tacita said Christians are a class hated for their abominations. It was commonly believed that the Christian faith was only embraced by those who were ignorant, by slaves and peasants. No wealthy, no educated, no sophisticated person would ever stoop to become a Christian. And that was commonly believed. It was so commonly believed that the apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians chapter one and spoke of it to the Corinthians in chapter one verse 26 of 1 Corinthians. He said it like this. He said, you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called. So Paul said, not many wise, mighty or noble are called. When he said not many wise, he was speaking of the philosophers of the age. When he spoke of the mighty, these are the men of dignity. These were the men of influence and power. And when he spoke of the noble, these were those of high birth, what would be called nobility. Those are the three claims to aristocracy, culture, power and nobility. So Paul was making it clear that the church was filled with wealthy intellectual people. It was looked at as being the religion of slaves, not of the educated. And as he wrote, he went on to say, this is why. Because in 1 Corinthians 1, 27 through 29, this is what Paul said. He said, God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise. God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty and the base things of the world and the things which are despised. God has chosen and the things which are not to bring to nothing the things that are that no flesh should glory in His presence. He said, it's true, there are slaves who are coming to faith in Christ. There are regular peasant types who are coming to faith in Christ. He says, because God is going to do a work in them that will cause those who consider themselves wise and mighty and noble and all of that. It'll awaken the reality of the fact that the things that they cling to have no value at all. And so by the time of the writing of Revelation, persecution had become more common amongst believers. And because of this, John had been arrested. He had been exiled on the island of Patmos. And it was during this time, as we saw when we opened up the study in Revelation, it was during this time that he was given this revelation. Now think for just a moment how John must have felt when he recorded the vision that is being revealed to him. He'd been arrested for preaching about Christ. He's there on an island. He's possibly on a hillside or in a cave and he receives this revelation. And so he's going through so much and now he's receiving this. In the midst of these conditions, he experienced the most amazing thing ever. The future had been opened up to him and he was writing of what was going to take place. And as we've gone through Revelation, we've seen that he wrote of the judgments. He wrote of a coming world leader, a false prophet. He speaks of final battle. He's written of judgment of the beast, judgment on the false prophet, judgment on Satan and his followers. And at this point, as we get to this place in Revelation, the rebellion has been ended. And we have seen that Satan has been cast into the lake of fire. So now he's going to speak about what's going to happen to those who have rejected the Lord Jesus Christ. That's what we're looking at today. He's about to write about the final judgment, the judgment of the wicked. Now, the subject of final judgment is difficult. Many don't come to terms with it. On one hand, the idea of a penalty that fits the crime is something that most people would agree with. The majority of people feel that law should be obeyed and lawbreakers should be penalized. But on the other hand, it's hard for them to think of themselves as lawbreakers. It's hard for the average person to consider themselves even a sinner. They often think that they're much better than the average person. And that would fall under what is called self-deception. It's like what John says in 1 John 1 verse 8 when he says, If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, the truth is not in us. Or in 1 John 1-10, if we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar. His word is not in us. See, so people who think they're better than they are are basically self-deceived. And John would say, No, no, we have sin. We have a sin nature. And yes, we do commit sins. Well, when you begin to speak concerning these kinds of things, when the idea of a final judgment is raised, people reject it. They ask questions like, how could a loving, merciful and forgiving God, how could he judge people? They wonder about the goodness of a God who would do such a thing. You see, the Bible is filled with promises of blessings, but it also contains warnings of judgment. And from almost the beginning, a denial of judgment for sin can be clearly seen. All you need to do is read the first few chapters of Genesis. Remember that God had told Adam and Eve not to eat of the fruit of a certain tree in the garden. He said that if they eat of that fruit that they were going to die. They could eat of the fruit of other trees, but there was only one tree. There was an exception of one. They were not to eat of it. In Genesis 2, 16 and 17, it says, The Lord God commanded the man saying, Of every tree of the garden, you may freely eat. But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat. For in the day that you eat of it, you shall surely die. Well, remember how the serpent had approached Eve and questioned what God had said. In Genesis 3 verse 1 he asked, As God indeed said, You shall not eat of every tree of the garden. Well, when Eve told the serpent that God had forbidden a certain tree, Satan pounced. In Genesis 3 verse 4, The serpent said to the woman, You will not surely die. So in saying that, Satan denied God's word in relation to judgment on sin. And ever since this lie has permeated the thinking of humanity, people will say, We can do anything we like. We're never going to suffer any final consequences. That's what is commonly believed by atheists and agnostics and people in general. When everyone does what is right in their own eyes, though the idea of judgment is nonexistent. After all, who can say what is right? And who can say what is wrong? And if everything's permitted, who can be judged for doing what they desire to do? What standard do you use to determine this? Well, the standard for what is wrong and what is right is the word of God. Because within it, God reveals what is right and what is wrong. And those who have more knowledge of His word, those are going to receive greater judgment. Those who have less knowledge of His word will receive a lesser judgment, but they both are going to be judged. In Luke 12 48 it says, The one who does not know and does things to deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. For everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded. And from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked. So people who have been in Bible studies and listened to study of the word of God who have been somehow or other exposed to God's word, have heard the claims of Christ, have heard the gospel. They have much more to be judged for because they rejected. They had more knowledge than the person who'd never heard anything at all. So in the end, judgment that is determined will be fair. In Psalm 96 verse 13 it says, 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. Jeremiah 17 verse 10 says, The Lord searches the heart and examines the mind to reward a person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve. So the unrepentant who stand at the white throne judgment have no basis of complaint. They have rejected God's grace. They rejected His mercy. And now they face His justice. Acts 1731 says, He has fixed the day on which He will have the world judged in righteousness by a man whom He has appointed. And of this He has given assurance to all by raising Him from the dead. Though many believe that there is no judgment day, the fact is there is. And today we will be looking at the great white throne judgment. Now notice with me as we begin in verse 11 how He says, I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them. He sees the great white throne. He sees a judge. He sees a sea of humanity. The judge is seated before Him or all the accused. This is going to take place after the second coming. This takes place after the thousand year reign of Jesus Christ. Now notice as we look at the throne, it's a great white throne. So the throne represents God's sovereign rule. It's great because it speaks of authority and majesty. It's white because it speaks of purity and impartial justice. It speaks of holiness. Psalm 9 verses 7 and 8 says, the Lord shall endure forever. He has prepared His throne for judgment. He shall judge the world in righteousness. He shall administer judgment for the peoples in uprightness. And so we have a picture of a throne. Now this picture of the throne is not found just here. It's also found in the book of Daniel, an Old Testament book, where Daniel gave a lot of insight into future things. And in Daniel chapter 7 verses 9 and 10, he wrote, I watched till thrones were put in place and the ancient of days was seated. His garment was white as snow. The hair of his head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame. Its wheels a burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him. A thousand thousands ministered to him. Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. The court was seated and the books were opened. Paul speaks of this also when he was writing to the Romans in Romans 2, 5 and 6. This is what the apostle Paul said. He said, in accordance with your hardness and your impended in heart, you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God who will render to each one according to his deeds. So he speaks concerning their hardness and their impenitent heart. When he speaks concerning the hardness, the word hardness speaks of that which is stubborn or obstinate. Their hearts are hardened because of a life of sin. It's callous by sin. He speaks of impenitent. The word impenitent means unwilling to change. It speaks of being unrepentant. So the consequence of refusing God is wrath. He says it comes in the day of wrath. He said you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath. You're treasuring up. You're accumulating. You're gathering. You're storing up the way that you might get a paycheck and put something away for a rainy day or as some kind of money that you're using in the stock exchange or whatever you might do with it or put it in your stock for the stock exchange. I don't know, but you're putting it away. See, I told you I'd say something dumb eventually. There it is. What is he saying? He's saying your bank account is full and you're going to receive just penalty for your life. In Ecclesiastes chapter 12 verse 14, it says God will bring every work into judgment including every secret thing, whether good or evil. God is going to render, Paul said, to each one according to his deeds. So that's God's final judgment on sinful humanity. What criteria will be used? He said God will render to each one according to his deeds. On one hand, we're saved by grace, not by good works that we perform. Our good works are not sufficient to save us. Salvation is based on grace that is received through faith. You see that in Ephesians 2, 8 and 9. It says it's by grace you've been saved through faith. This is not from yourselves. It's the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast. So you're not saved by your good works. Good works are an evidence of salvation. It's not the cause of it. So God does not add our good works to what Jesus did for us on the cross. We're not saved by works. But the one who is saved will always produce good works. And that's because we were once dead in trespasses and sins. The Bible says it in the book of Ephesians chapter 2, you who are once dead in trespasses and sins. I want you to think about this for a moment, because when people begin to discuss what my good works, and I do good works, and God is going to save me based on good works, and there may be some watching right now or in this room. God will save me based on how good I am. We'll look at that a little bit more in just a moment. But when you start saying that, that God will save me based on my works, you need to understand the Bible in Ephesians 2, says you are dead in trespasses and sins. You're dead. I have never seen a corpse do good works. Have you? Have you ever gone to a funeral where the guy gets up and says, excuse me, would you like some water? No, I've never seen a corpse do good works. Why not? Because they're dead. And we don't seem to get that. We don't understand that the Bible is very clear. Dead men cannot do good works. There's not a good work a dead person can do. And the Bible says in Ephesians 2, you are dead in trespasses and sins. So it cannot be your good works that saves you because dead people can't do good works. So what did God do? God gave you grace. God gave you grace. It's by grace that we have been saved through faith and that not of ourselves and not by works, less any man should boast. We are saved not by the good works we do. We are saved and we do good works. And that's how it is in the kingdom of God. See, we've been made alive in Jesus Christ. And because we've been made alive in Jesus Christ, we're able to do things that please Him. And 2 Corinthians 5, 17 says if anyone's in Christ, he's a new creation. Old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new. So genuine salvation is entirely of God. But it results always in a life of good works. Ephesians 2-10 says we are God's workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do. So we've been born again for the purpose of God to bring glory to Him. And these are the ones who are standing before God who have rejected Him in the salvation that He offered and they are now going to actually pay for the lack of faith in Him and rejection of Him. That's what He's saying again in verse 11. He says, I see the throne, but I also see Him who sat on it. So the one who has seated on the throne is God. We saw that in Revelation chapter 1, chapter 4, chapter 5, chapter 6 is God on the throne. In Revelation 19, verse 4 it says the 24 elders, the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sat on the throne saying, amen. Hallelujah. But Jesus is sharing the throne with His Father. We saw in Revelation 3.21 He who overcomes, I will grant to Him to sit down with me on my throne as I also overcame and sat down with my Father on His throne. So the Father and the Son are sharing this throne, but Jesus, the Son, is the judge. In John 5.22 Moreover, the Father judges but is entrusted all judgment to the Son. And so, He says, I saw a great white throne Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them. Now, look how He says from whose face the earth and heaven fled away, there was found no place for them. Now we've gone through the different chapters relating to the tribulation. And think with me for a moment in the description. The description of the earth is that it's been devastated. We've seen earthquakes, meteor showers, lightning strikes. We've seen the waters polluted. We've seen droughts, burning heat from the sun, islands that have fled away, mountains that have disappeared. So we've seen all these natural disasters, but notice here heaven and earth are fleeing. We see this more next week in chapter 21. But it describes the end of the universe as we know it. One commentator says that they will be uncreated totally going out of existence. And so as we look at this and it speaks to concerning that and it says the earth and heaven fled away. There are other scriptures that say the same kind of thing. For example Psalm 102 verses 25 and 226 of old you laid the foundation of the earth. The heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish. You will endure. They will grow old like a garment, like a cloak. You will change them. They will be changed. Isaiah 51 6. Lift up your eyes to the heavens. Look on the earth beneath. The heavens will vanish away like smoke. The earth will grow old like a garment. Those who dwell in it will die in heaven. But my salvation will be forever. My righteousness will not be abolished. Remember how Jesus in Matthew 5.18 said, assuredly I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass away one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. So we see here heaven and earth and they fled away. But in their place God is going to create a new heaven and a new earth. 2 Peter 3.12 and 13 he says, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God because of which the heavens will be dissolved being on fire. The elements will melt with fervent heat. Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. So we're getting a picture of this. We'll see more of it in the coming chapter. But he says in verse 11 again, I saw a great white throne, him who sat on it from whose face he fled away. There was found no place for them. And verse 12, I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God. Books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to their works by the things which were written in the books. I saw the dead, small and great. Now the righteous dead, for those who take notes, the righteous dead have already been rewarded in the first resurrection. We saw that in verses 4 and 5 of this chapter. Those who are standing before the great white throne are unbelievers. But they're not just from the millennial rebellion, which we looked at last time. They're not just those. These are those who once lived from all eternity, from all time. In John 5, 28 through 29, Jesus said, do not marvel at this for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear his voice and come forth those who've done good to the resurrection of life, those who have done evil to the resurrection of condemnation. So these are those who have lived on earth. It includes, notice this, the small and the great. Now I want to look at that for a minute. The small and the great. When it speaks of the small, that literally would speak of and this is the way one commentator put it, and I think it's accurate, though it sounds almost insulting. But he put it this way, he said, this speaks of the nobodies, and you'll see why he used that phrase in a moment. And I think it's an adequate thing to say. When he said the nobodies, he's saying, these are the ordinary people of earth. These are the ordinary people who've lived throughout whenever there have been people on earth. These are those people, the nobodies, these are the small, these are the petty, these are the selfish, these are the mean spirited, these are the vulgar, these are the spiteful. These are ordinary people, is what he's talking about. These are just people in general, the small, the people who are not well known, the people who are of little consequence, the people who would go to school and nobody knew them, the people who never ran for office, the people who never became a movie star, the people who were just ordinary people, they would go to work and come home, raise a family and do what you do, go to the parks, play with the kids, whatever it is. These are the ordinary people, but these are the people who never received Christ. These are the ordinary people over time. These are the people that you're related to, these are the people that you work with, these are people that you live close by, these are the people you go to school with, these are the people that we know. Every person that you know who doesn't know Christ, they die without Christ are part of this group. That's who they are. Your mom and your dad that you don't want to insult by telling them they need Jesus. The brother or the sister that you don't want to get in a fight with because they're going to get mad at you because you told them they need Jesus. The friend that you hang around with in school that you don't want to insult by telling them that they're lost, so you never say anything. It's those people, it's the ones that God opens doors of opportunity to us to speak to that we refuse to because we don't want to be canceled by them. We don't want them to think that we're weird or odd or like some of the people that are portrayed in the news and how odd and weird those people really are. We don't want to be like that. These are those people that never got a chance to hear the gospel from our lips because we refuse to say anything. These are ordinary people, neighbors, these are relatives, these are friends, these are co-workers. That's who these are, the small, the ordinary, but he speaks also of the great. The great is obviously, speaking of the famous, the well-known, and there are many of those. We begin to put our heads together and speak about people if I use certain names and all people will say, oh, I've heard of him, even ancient history, even old history, if I speak of a Caesar. I say, yeah, I've read about that or heard about the Caesars in Rome if I talk about various people from the past, Napoleon, and say, oh, yeah, I've heard about him and all of that. Hitler, yeah, heard of him, too. Mussolini, yeah, I've heard of him. If I speak of religious figures like Muhammad or Buddha, you say, of course, I've heard of their names and I have friends perhaps who follow after their teachings. So these are famous people and every one of these people that are mentioned are people who have influence. And so their names that if you use their names, many people might be aware of who they are. They're famous. They're the great. They've been known for things that they've done. They're known. The Allende Generuses. The Hugh Hefner's. And they say, Hugh Hefner, who's that? Well, some of you who are young wouldn't know. Some of you who are older would be aware. Because Hugh Hefner did more to corrupt the morality of America than almost anybody. Hugh Hefner was the guy who started Playboy Magazine. Hugh Hefner was a person who fought for the right to publish the kinds of things that he published and all. Everybody would be aware of him and his Playboy mansion and the Playboy bunnies and things of that nature. But Hugh Hefner popularized in his way porn and easy sex. When he stands before the Lord he has a lot. He has a lot to give account of. There's the ordinary petty people who just didn't like their neighbor and were spiteful towards somebody else and then there's the others who influenced entire civilizations. Entire nations. And anybody who would argue against Hugh Hefner being an influence is probably not aware of what he really did. He popularized something that today we're already paying the price for. He popularized those things. And people wanted to know of the things that he said. He wrote a magazine. People said, why? I looked at his magazine just to read the articles. These are people who are liars. But they're all arrayed. Try and picture that in your mind. You can't. It's too amazing to think of. But they're there. They're there. There's a commentator named John Phillips and John Phillips said now one and all are arrayed and on their way to be damned a horrible fellowship congregated together for the first and last time. All of these people both small and great. They're all there before this great white throne. And as they're there they're not saying anything. They're standing before God. And the books are now being opened. It says another book was opened in verse 12 which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to the works by the things which were written in the books. So the books are opened. The dead are judged according to their works by the things written in the books. Now these books that are spoken of would contain the works that are recorded. The book of life is mentioned to show that no name of anyone there is in that book. These who are standing before the throne are all who have rejected Christ. The rejection of the Savior has placed them in the situation of judgment. The life that they lived proves that they deserve what they will receive. And in reviewing their life they will know judgment that is coming upon them is just. Their life will be reviewed. There was a track that was out once many years ago and it simply said this is your life. And it was speaking about judgment now I'll talk to you about that for just a moment. There are things that we think we got away with. That nobody knows about. But the secret things are known by the Lord. There is a book apparently that contains all of our activities, all of our works. I wasn't raised in a Christian home. I was raised in a home that thought it was Christian. My mama thought she was a Christian. So she sent me to religious classes as a little boy. All of us, all the kids went to religious classes. My sisters did and my brother and I did. We went to religious classes. And so I grew up with an awareness that there's a God. I grew up with an awareness that there is there is a Bible that contains things of God. I grew up with that awareness but didn't know God and didn't know the Bible. So I didn't really know anything about it. I never really had any more religious training outside of when I was 12 or 13. And I went through an advanced training in the Catholic Church. I was raised a Catholic. It was my confirmation classes. So they gave you more information. So I had been baptized as an infant. I received my first communion. I had the sacrament of penance and I also went through my confirmations. So I had that kind of exposure but I didn't know anything about the great white throne judge. I never had heard a thing about that. I had been raised believing that baptized Catholics had the opportunity to avoid going to a permanent place of punishment by making sure you had a priest there for last rites and then that your soul could be prayed out of purgatory. That's how I had been raised. And that was pretty much the only hope I had. To be honest with you. The only hope I had for heaven was to marry a good Catholic girl who would pray my soul out of purgatory and hopefully I wouldn't spend that much time in it. That was my faith. So I didn't know anything about a throne judgment. So at the age of 15 I started dabbling with drugs and alcohol. At the age of 17 I was with two friends of mine in a house and I was sharing this with John just the other day. I mentioned it first service. I normally don't bring these things up but I want to use it as a way of illustration. And we were partaking in an illegal substance that produced hallucinations. That's what the substance did and I won't tell you what it was because it wasn't acid, psilocybin or anything like that. So you can stop wondering. It was something else. But it was something that could kill you. It was something you could die from using. And some people had died of this. And I was a stupid kid who didn't care. So I was doing this particular thing. And as I did it I was telling John just the other day about this. As I did it I was immediately transported in my own mind into a place I'd never seen before. I still can describe it. It was, I was standing on a pathway and the pathway was perfectly straight like this isle in front of me. Perfectly straight. On either side of me were trees like redwoods. But the redwoods that I saw went up like two or three hundred feet. They were very huge and very tall and very straight. Everything was perfectly straight. And the ground I was walking on and I was walking towards something was gold dust. And it was so thick and heavy that when I stepped on it it didn't rise with any dust at all. But it was dust. It was like sand. But it was heavy. Great substance. And I looked up in front of me and as I looked in front of me there was a white throne. And there was someone on the throne and it was a huge white throne. I didn't see who it was on the throne because there was a brilliant light behind it. All I could see was the silhouette of a figure on a throne. And I was walking towards it. It was me, just me alone. And I walked towards this. And as I'm walking towards the throne I hear a voice. I didn't see anybody but I heard the voice say David Rosales this is your life. Now I'm 17 years old. I don't know anything of this kind of thing. This is your life. And it was like a book was in front of me and someone was flipping the pages very fast. And I saw my sins. I saw the very first sin I ever committed. I was 5 years old. I went to a supermarket and I stole bird seed. We didn't have a bird. It was a parakeet on a yellow I still remember it. It had blue parakeet on a yellow container. And I just thought this is and I remember putting it in my pocket my mother caught me because I mean you know and she's doing the wash and where did this come from? I don't know. I believe in miracles. Mom do you believe in miracles? She said where did you get this? I said I got it at the supermarket. I went back and I had to go and hand the bird seed to the manager and they told me off. You shouldn't steal. Funny thing is that was the first thing I saw in the book. First thing was me stealing bird seed but it was so fast and I saw every sin every sin I ever committed in an instant. It was like they just looked at that book open in picture after picture just until I saw myself as I was partaking in this illegal substance. The last thing I saw was me partaking in that illegal substance and the voice of the Lord said I could take you right now and if I did you would go to hell. And I opened my eyes. He said I'm giving you another chance I'm sending you back. I opened my eyes. I had had a friend named Nicky Morales who was there and another guy. I said where's Nicky? And my other friend said you were talking about God. You said I'm seeing God. I'm seeing God. And Nicky freaked out and he ran out of the house. That's the truth. I wish Nicky were here right now. He could get up and run out again. I didn't know anything about the great white throne. I didn't know anything about a book of life. I didn't know anything about a book that had my deeds. I didn't know any of that. I still can't explain it but it made an impact on me. I've never forgotten it. I was 17 years old and that happened. When I got saved I started reading and I was taught about the great white throne and I said I've experienced in a personal level not to equate my experience with Scripture, please. I hope it doesn't sound that way. I'm just saying that I can understand how this is going to take place. I do understand how this is going to take place. I did have a weird experience that helps me and if I never had that experience it's still going to take place. It's not my experience I'm preaching. It's just the fact that this is going to happen. This is going to happen. What you've done, you think nobody knows for those that were unsaved. You think nobody knows. No God knows. And there's a record and your record is going to be revealed to you. Every evil thing that we've ever done. Now what keeps me from having that book now is the blood of Christ washes all my sins and it's been erased. There's nothing there. It's completely gone. That clap again because that is the stuff that makes my heart happy because all of them are wiped away. It's all gone. It's all washed away by the blood of Christ. When he sees me he sees Jesus' righteousness. He has imparted to me imputed to us the righteousness of God and Jesus Christ. But those who have rejected that, that's what's going to happen. They're going to be judged. And your deeds will be exposed and you will know that God's justice is right. There was no argument. I had no argument in my own experience. I had no argument with that. That was all absolutely true. And it says again in verse 12 it says that the dead were judged according to their works by the things which were written in the books. Verse 13, the sea gave up the dead who were in it and death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them and they were judged each one according to his works. Death and Hades. When it says death and Hades, death gives a picture of a grave. The grave is a receptacle of dead bodies. And what happens is the dead souls are reunited with their dead bodies and they're appearing before God. They're going to have a new resurrection type body as they stand before him. So death symbolizes all who have died and death is the receptacle of their physical body and so death symbolizes all who have died and it's interesting because he's in a moment going to speak of the sea giving up the dead that were in them so death would also give a picture of the receptacle of dead bodies of all the dead. But when it speaks of Hades Hades is where the souls of the dead are held. It speaks of the realm of the dead in the New Testament it is normally the place of punishment and when you read about Hades it is like a holding cell where the unrighteous dead are held awaiting judgment, incarcerated and Hades is temporary it is eventually done away with. So the dead will be given resurrection bodies that are suited for hell and they'll be sentenced to the Lake of Fire and the Lake of Fire unlike Hades lasts forever. Notice again in verse 13 the books have been opened and they're judged according to their works. Again the books contain a record of every thought, every word every deed that they ever had and God has kept a complete and perfect record of every person's life. That's why if a person thinks they can earn heaven by their own merit they're wrong. Why? Because the standard of entrance into heaven according to Jesus is perfection. In Matthew 5.48 it says you are to be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect. Well somebody says well no wait a minute I live by the Sermon the Mount. Or I try to keep the Ten Commandments. Well that's not true because if you've never lied and you've never stolen well undoubtedly there are other things you have done you've had an idol before you and so in order for you to enter in by keeping the Ten Commandments you would say perfectly that's impossible. James makes it clear in James chapter 2 verse 10 in the New Testament when he says whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point has become guilty of all. So if you break one law you're guilty of all of them and God's justice demands payment and there is a payment there's a penalty for sin and that's why Jesus died for us. In Isaiah 53 verses 5 and 6 it says he speaking of Christ he was wounded for our transgressions he was bruised for our iniquities the chastisement for our peace was upon him by his stripes we are healed all we like sheep have gone astray we have turned everyone to his own way and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all he took upon himself what we deserved and he gave us that which we don't in 2nd Corinthians 521 it tells us that he gave us his righteousness he made him who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in him. God's standard is perfection we are not perfect Jesus is he gave to us his righteousness which makes us able to stand before the Lord in his righteousness when he says in verse 14 death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire this is the second death well the evidence is undeniable the sentence is now given the temporary place of punishment is done away with now Jesus spoke of this lake of fire he referred to it in a different way he spoke of it as Giena when you read Giena that's what Jesus said is the lake of fire in Matthew 10 28 he said do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body the word hell in those verses in that verse and other verses is often the word Giena Giena is a word used for the valley of Hinnom the valley of Hinnom when you go to Israel is located just southwest of Jerusalem we have stayed in a hotel with our tour overlooking the valley of Hinnom so we actually have in the morning we wake up and we see this valley of Hinnom was a place where the idolatrous Jews actually had burned their children to false gods in Jeremiah 19 and the valley of Hinnom Giena had become Jerusalem's dump it's where the garbage was burned and sometimes they would actually bring the body of dead criminals and throw these dead criminals bodies on the fire because there was a fire in the valley of Hinnom in Giena it was known for its smoke that was constantly rising it was also known for the great amount of maggots that were there because all the dead bodies the dogs and cats and various things that were left there that actually had maggots and that's why Jesus said that their worm dies not and the fire is never extinguished he was pointing to Giena and he was saying you want to go? you want to be there? well remember this is what it's like now those who have been part of the first resurrection do not experience the second death those who have rejected God they ultimately will reside there forever and I was looking at one commentator for a description of what that would mean I mean when you're looking at hell what does it mean and he pointed out that hell is in scriptures is portrayed as a place of darkness it's portrayed as a place of banishment it's portrayed as a place of sorrow but what else he said that spoke to my heart most it's a place of torment of torment when Hades was used in reference to this temporary place in Luke 16 the rich man who had gone to Hades waiting place actually says that he's thirsty he needs water because he's in torment and torment speaks concerning of great pain and one of my commentators said something that made me think he said torment doesn't necessarily have to refer simply to a pain it can speak of listen to this for a minute it can speak of regret a regret that is never ever going to go away what is it that made someone like me come to faith in Christ what is it I can tell you it was torment it was internal torment it was pain what kind of pain was it physical no because you can get used to some degree physical pain no it was internal pain it was a heart pain I was in torment I was already feeling the pangs of sorrow already at the age of 20 I hurt my family I hurt my friends I had hurt girls who cared about me I had hurt everybody who knew me and loved me everybody I had hurt them I felt bad I could tell you stories I wanted it's not worth it but I can tell you that's where I was at regret and sorrow where I would wake up feeling bad about the things I've done with no sense of any relief with no sense of how can I make this good I can't make this good my dad had I had gotten in an accident I was driving I had been I was drunk and loaded I smashed into a pole and I was taken to Norwalk substation and next morning transported to LA to the jail in LA I called up a friend of mine's father I said can you bail me out don't tell my dad I was 18 and so my dad came and picked me up my dad didn't smoke but he was so upset at what I'd done because I'd been in so much trouble and this is just another thing another crazy thing I smashed up the car I was put in jail for it and my dad was upset and my dad said I don't understand you David and I remember sitting there saying dad give me a cigarette and I smoked a cigarette with my dad because I used to smoke and I smoked a cigarette with them and I said you know dad I'm sick and my dad sent me to a psychiatrist and I started seeing a psych and he started trying to talk to me about why am I doing the things that I'm doing and I wouldn't tell him because I didn't trust anybody and I wouldn't share with him what I was feeling what was going on in me so I was there for an hour and just kind of talk about the weather and sports there was nothing else to tell him and my dad was paying like a lot of money every every time I went and I went for a few times I finally told my dad it's not worth the debt I'm not going to open up to this guy and I didn't trust anybody I wouldn't allow anybody into my life I was the one who kept everybody away and I'd say dad I'm not going to open up my heart to this guy but my friend Bill had been sharing with me about what God can do and finally I went and I heard the gospel and I thought it's too good to be true but I heard the gospel and I didn't receive Christ the first time I heard it clearly spoken but within three or four months I was there and that's how I heard the evangelist Arthur Blessed giving a message about God's grace and God's love and God's forgiveness and the transformation that comes when you believe him and I said God I don't I didn't believe in hell I don't care about hell but God I feel like I'm in a hekeny now please do something change me I'm so tired of hurting people change me forgive me and that day I got saved and that regret was gone because that was swallowed up with the joy I am telling you I am telling you you don't want to go into eternity with that torment you don't you don't want to go forever regretting and sorrowful for the things you've done when God can say God can I can make you a new creation all things are passed away behold all things are become new I will make you my child and I will bless you and I will keep you and I will strengthen you and I will be with you and I will make you brand new and that comes to Jesus Christ that's why I went into ministry that's why I told my dad you're a good man the best man I'll ever know but daddy you will be the best man in hell if you don't give your heart to Christ I love you you don't want to go to heaven without you bow your head you're giving your heart to Christ right now and that's what I've been doing now for 50 years and I am blessed in the Lord to tell you that God wipes away all of your sin God wipes away all of the sorrow he dries those tears from your eyes and God blesses you you don't want to go to this lake of fire and say well that's where all my friends are going we'll party no you won't it's a place of darkness it's a place of torment it's a place of sorrow it's a place without God but there is a way to avoid it and that's when you confess and forsake and receive forgiveness for your sins which is the wisest thing anybody's ever going to do and 31 says it very basically it says it's a terrifying thing it's a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God but you know what if you gave your heart to Christ your name is written in the Lamb's book of life and one day one day you're going to stand in the Lamb's book of life we'll say could be opened and you can go down like that say okay David Rosales welcome come on in your reservation is now being fulfilled come on in come into the joy of your Lord come to the place that has been prepared for you from the foundation of the world come to the place that I have been waiting and longing to enjoy with you why would I choose the other place when I can be with Jesus forever doesn't make sense our Father we ask that you would work in our hearts such a basic study and yet so full of so many deep things but I ask Lord for those who are listening now online in the overflow in this room that we would all make sure that we know where we're going to end up in eternity that we would know for sure that our names are in your life your book of life and even now there may be some right now I can't see you online but I can see those of you who are in this room and if you know you need to get right with the Lord and you need your sins forgiven and you need to be washed by the blood of Christ you want to be in that Lamb's book of life you need to turn from your sin you need to confess you need to forsake it and you need to turn to the Lord and if you want to do that if you know that it's time for you to do that right now as our eyes are closed our heads are bowed I want to give you an opportunity to do just that if you know you need to get right with the Lord would you raise your hand let me pray for you right where you're at your hands going up throughout this place right now Father in Jesus name I ask that you would reach down and you would touch each person whose hand is raised to you Lord right now that they might say yes to you Jesus and say God be merciful to me I'm a sinner wash me and Lord I want to be new and I don't want to live in this life anymore the way I do I want a new life I want to be born again and Lord I ask that you would forgive me of my sins and cleanse me and that you would come into me and make me brand new and Lord I will follow you from this time on I will follow you and I will be a Christian I will serve you and so Lord even as you see these hands that are raised to you right now I pray that you would honor the faith that it's taken for them to even raise their hand and I pray in Jesus name that their lives from this moment on would be different because of you so we receive from you we give you praise and we give you thanks Lord for the work that you're doing right now and we thank you in His name and bless you thank you Lord you can put your hands down and Jesus for the rest of us we do ask that you would work in us and for those who didn't raise their hand right now but know that they need to I pray that you'll continue hounding them until they yield to you and for those of us who love you and are following you may we love you and follow you even closer I pray for this now in Jesus name