“The Great White Throne” | Revelation 20 | Pastor Keith | Midweek Study

I was glad when they said let us go into the House of the Lord.

And I love being here tonight. I love the fact that we just,

we're going to pray and study the word of God.

You know, that's what a church does.

It studies and loves the word of God.

It gathers together praise. Then we go about our business.

Let's stand and open with prayers.

Lord, better is one day in Your courts than 1000 elsewhere.

Your word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path.

Lord, You tell us that You are the way, the truth, and the

life, that there is no coming to the Father.

But by You. Lord, you tell us we must be

born again. You promised that Lord you would

rise on the third day, and you did.

And you promised that you'd come back and take us with you.

Lord, you'd call us. And so, Father, we gather

because of all these promises and because of how you've

changed our lives. You've rescued us, saved us and

washed us, cleansed us. Your mercy is new every morning.

Lord, great is your faithfulness.

And Father, we stand before you with open hearts and our hands

lifted up because we pray and thank you for our salvation.

And now, Lord, we give you this evening.

Lead us, teach us, convict us by your Holy Spirit, these things

we ask and pray now in Jesus holy name.

And everyone said Amen. Please take a seat and open your

Bible to Revelation chapter 20, which Lord willing, we'll finish

Revelation 20 · chapter mention

tonight. But before we finish chapter 20,

I want to give you a quick fly over.

I touched on it on a Sunday of the differing views that some

have on the teaching period known as the Millennium.

Remember we read 6 times. It's 1000 years, it's 1000

years, it's 1000 years. We Calvary Chapel believe in the

premillennial teaching of the Word of God.

There is a group of people, churches whose view on the

Millennium difference to that on the period 1000 year reign the

Kingdom of Christ here on earth and they are called

amillennials. Their view means a means

literally. There's no 1000 years, not going

to be 1000 years. Actually the thousand years is

purely symbolic. And so the millennial to an

amillennialist represents the Church age which we taught in

Revelation chapter 2 and 3, and the Church age continuing on

Revelation 2 · chapter mention

now. And Christ is ruling the earth

in this Kingdom through the Church.

It originated A millennialism with Augustine and a fellow

called Origin who taught that the Millennium period 1000 years

is to be interpreted spiritually has been fulfilled.

As I said in the Christian Church, which many churches

today, you can see why the massive focus is inward on the

church being where it all happens, that Satan was bound

during the earthly ministry of Jesus.

That's what they teach. Augustine denied that the

Millennium would follow the Second Advent or the second

coming of Christ, and that the church, as I said, is the

Kingdom spoken of bringing all the promises, and that there

would be no literal fulfilment of any of those promises to the

nation Israel. So that tells you what churches

who are a millennial also have nothing to do with Israel.

Israel. God's done with Israel.

But history clearly tells us that Satan was not ever nor is

bound now. We are not living in the

Millennium now. We are not experiencing all that

was promised during this period. If I go near a lion, you'll tear

my head off. If a child goes near a snake, a

snake will bite it and kill it. They say the Kingdom is right

now a millennials and that Jesus is ruling and reigning in the

church over his people. And if this now the world in

which we live is the Kingdom, that means that they're saying

that Satan is bound at this time.

You only have to read the news lately because if this our world

now and what's happening is a demonstration of Satan being

bound, then it's not a very good binding or it's a very long

chain. A millennialist believers say

that Satan was bound at the cross.

That's where all happened. No, Satan was not bound at the

cross. He was sentenced at the cross

but not does not serve time until Revelation chapter 20

Revelation 20 · chapter mention

during the true millennial Kingdom and he gets a sentence

of 1000 years. Because if Satan was bound at

the cross now, then why would Peter say to Ananias in Acts

Acts 5:3

chapter 5 verse 3, Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to

lie to the Holy Spirit? Keep back part of the price of

the land for yourself. And Paul writes to the church in

Corinth and Two Corinthians chapter 4 verse 4, Satan, who is

the God of this world, little G has blinded the minds of those

who don't believe. Why does Peter go on also to say

one Peter 58 be sober, be vigilant.

Why? Because your adversary the devil

is chained up. No, he walks about like a

roaring lion, seeking whom me whom he may devour.

Paul went on also to say in One Thessalonians chapter 2 verse

18. Therefore we wanted to come to

you, even I Paul time and again, but Satan handed us.

Now the other side of millennial view is that of a post

millennial view. This is the belief that Jesus

won't return until after the 1000 years or the period.

Post millennial teaching says that the Kingdom of Christ will

be ushered in by the church through preaching, politics,

Christians getting into government, and getting people,

the right people, into power. You can see how that's why

churches sometimes go adrift sometimes in that area.

Post millennials teach that the world, much of the world will be

saved through the gospel making earth.

What's going to happen is the church will eventually make

earth primarily a Christian world and only then will Jesus

return to rule and reign once we've done our job, got everyone

saved. And they say post millennial

people, the teaching is that the 1000 years is not a literal 1000

years, but it's simply a long period of time.

Just how long it's going to take the church to do this, we're not

sure. But the church will overcome the

evil of the world and that we as believers, we will go Jesus,

look at what we've done, come back now, come back now.

And so they also teach that the world is going to get

progressively better until Jesus returns.

So that's a millennial post millennial.

So we believe in pre millennial teaching literal a literal 1000

years is a literal 1000 years. So let's look at our text.

We got up to chapter 10. Now we're in verse 11, sorry,

verse 11 tonight of chapter 20, John says, 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. That means everybody standing

before God. And books were opened and

another book was opened. So we've got plural books.

And now a singular book 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.

The sea gave up all the dead who were in it.

Everyone who died in the sea, Death and Hades delivered up the

dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one

notice according to his works, then Death and Hades, the

abiding place at the moment. Now when someone dies and

they're unsaved, they go to their Hades, both those places

now no longer going to be needed.

So those two locations cast into the lake of fire.

And then it says this is the second death, spiritual,

eternal, not physical. And anyone not found written in

the look of life was cast into the lake of fire.

And that's the end. So the great white phone

judgement is really not a judgement as such, a courtroom

as such. It is judgement, I should say,

but it's not like a like, you know, when you go to the court

here and you stand before a judge, there's not a courtroom

as such where you have a prosecutor and a defence.

While we are on my client, he was not doing this.

The other one said, well, I would say that this person here

he is guilty of and there's this argy bargy and a judge in

between. No, the Great White Throne

judgement is actually you've been found guilty.

That's why you went and were resurrected through the 2nd

resurrection. You're guilty already.

So there's not like am I guilty or not?

It's not that it's the sentence, it's how long you're going to

get. It's what's going to fall upon

you for being guilty. It's called great, the great

White Throne judgement, because of the dignity of the judge

himself, who's the judge Jesus Christ.

And it's called great because of the greatness and unparalleled

solemnity of the occasion. This is a moment in time for

every individual who rejected Jesus Christ that they'll never

forget. It's called great because of the

vastness of the scene, for here is the dawn of eternity.

It's called great because of the eternal consequences involved.

There's no going back. It's called great because of the

great destinies. It will decide.

It's called great because there will be a judge but no jury.

It's called great because there will be a sentence but no

appeal, no karma, no reincarnation, not no Hinduism.

Come back a second time, have a crack, have a have another go.

John chapter 3 verse 18 tells us he who believes in him is not

John 3:18

condemned, but he who does not believe is condemned already.

This is after John 3/16/17 Speaking of Jesus the Son of

God, he who does not believe. So your unbeliever is condemned

already. You're guilty already because he

has not believed. In the name of the only begotten

Son of God the judge is the Lord Jesus Christ.

As I said, John chapter 5 verse 22 For the Father judges no one,

John 5:22

but has committed all judgement to the Son.

So Jesus is the one who provided salvation.

John 316 For God so loved the world that he gave his only

begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him should not

perish, but have everlasting life.

Jesus is the one who provided salvation.

He is the one in the Great White Throne judgement who will judge

those who have rejected His offer of salvation.

When Jesus came the first time, you remember so many cast a

judgement upon him. Caiaphas, you call yourself the

Son of God. Anas Herod Pilot, I wash my

hands crucifying the Sanhedrin. It's guilty and all the

religious leaders of Israel. Can you imagine at this time the

Great White Throne Judgement, Caiaphas, Anice, Herod, Pilot,

all standing not collectively but as individuals before the

one who they had cast judgement on before?

And he is still. Remember the Judge Jesus is

still wearing the marks of his crucifixion.

Remember, remember this, remember this, it says in verse

11 from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away.

This refers to the destruction and dissolving of the universe

as we know it. And to Peter, Peter picks this

up chapter 3 verse 9. He says the Lord is not slack

concerning his promise. That is a coming back, as some

count slackness, but is long suffering toward us, not willing

that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in

which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the

elements will melt with a fervent heat, both the earth.

So they spoke of the heavens and the earth and the works that in

it will be burned up. So why the earth and the heaven

must be destroyed and recreated? Because both have been polluted

by sin. The earth was the scene of sin

and rebellion, and it bore the stain of the judge's blood.

Jesus crucified on Calvary. The aerial heavens around us

cannot remain either since they were polluted by Satan.

Why he had the title Remember the Prince and power of the air.

So instead of cleaning or putrefying them, God will

dissolve them, recreate them. New heaven, new earth next

chapter. And it says and there was found

no place for them. Who?

The unsaved, because the unsaved will have no place to hide for

the final judgement. You can't go anywhere.

This is it, verse 12. And I saw the dead, small and

great, standing before God. So that's everybody.

And the books were open. We read that and the other book,

Book of Life. The dead were judged according

to the works, things written in those books.

The unsaved will stand as individuals before God, before

Jesus Christ. For an individual.

Judgement won't be in a group. I'll be collective.

Oh man, I'll be there with all my mates.

No, as an individual, As salvation is individual, you

must receive Christ yourself. Don't receive it as a group.

So judgement is individual. How long will this judgement

take? Don't know.

But imagine all the unsaved dead that have died and now are

resurrected. Every one of them will stand

before God, The books will be open and out will come all the

information, nothing left unturned, All the unsaved dead

will be resurrected to stand before the Lord.

Hades we read giving up the dead.

Remember in Luke's Gospel chapter 16 when the rich man and

Lazarus both died, Lazarus went where?

To Abraham's bosom, which was emptied out as Jesus, He Who

descended first, for who ascended first descended.

Let those free the final judgement.

Luke chapter 16, the rich man, he is resurrected.

Luke 16 · chapter mention

He's part of this and it speaks of the sea.

Now you might think, well see well, how many people die at

sea? Well, there's a few shipwrecks

and things, but we forget. Go back to the book of Genesis

when only 8 souls were saved out of the entire world's

population. Just 8 and the great flood and

the rest of the entire world's population died in the global

flood. Each one of them.

As I said, this is the second resurrection and it's only for

non believers. This is not about whether you've

saved it or not. It's a sentencing.

You're guilty. They will have a resurrected

body. Bible tells us that not like

ours in One Corinthians 15, because our body is suited for

heaven, where we're going to go. But those involved in the second

resurrection will have a second a new a new body as well.

Not suited for heaven, but it will be a body suited for

eternal punishment because the Bible tells us over and over

again that they'll feel pain, anguish, sense darkness, loss,

isolation. They'll grind their teeth,

they'll gnash their tongues, all those things for eternity.

Back in verse 12, it stated that all the books were opened.

Then a book singular. So all the unsaved are to be

judged by what is written. I dealt with that in detail in

my blog the other day, How yes, all will be judged, but Hitler's

judgement compared to somebody else's judgement, somebody else,

there'll be measures of judgement.

In that way, all the unsaved are to be judged by what is written.

The Bible tells us, Jesus tells us every idle word will be

written down and goes before us, catalogued in perfect detail

every sinful word, thought or deed.

The question is, but what about the people who have never heard

the gospel? We've always been asked that

question, haven't we? How will they be judged?

The answer is God will judge them.

Jesus Christ will judge them just like everyone else.

As we read in the book of Romans chapter 1 and 2, every man,

Romans 1 · chapter mention

woman and child over the age of reason that is coming to the

place where you have a conscience, you can decide as

well as the witness of God's creation testifies them.

So they have a conscience. As saying earlier on, Mick

Jagger has come out now he's not a believer.

He's come out and said I had to speak up on Twitter.

How can people celebrate the murder of a young man?

Conscience we have that each and everyone of us have right and

wrong. Psalm 19 verse one the heavens

declare the glory of God and the firmament shows His handiwork

the heavens. Psalm 96 verse 97 verse 6 the

heavens declare His righteousness and all the people

see his glory. Romans chapter one verse 18 Paul

goes into further detail. He says, For the wrath of God,

that is, the judgement of God is revealed, shown from heaven

against all ungodliness that is, not living right before God, and

unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in

unrighteousness. Because what may be known of God

is revealed unto them, manifest to them, for God has shown it to

them. How?

For since the creation of the world, His invisible attributes

are clearly seen being understood by the things that

are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are

without excuse, oh, but no excuse, because although they

knew God, unbelievers, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were

thankful, but became futile in their thoughts and their foolish

hearts were darkened. Now the Bible tells us that the

road to glory as we read in Pilgrims Progress, great book.

Read it once a year. It's a great book.

Matthew 713 Jesus said enter by the narrow gate, for wide is the

gate, broad is the way that leads to destruction.

Everyone's going down that path and there are many who will go

in by it because narrow is the gate.

Jesus said I am the way, difficult is the way.

Take up your cross and follow me.

You want to follow me, then you must deny yourself and take up

the cross. It's a it's a narrow difficult

way which leads to life and there are few who find it.

So the narrow Rd has been well marked.

Jesus said an evil and adulterous generation. 6 after a

sign, I'll give you a sign like Jonah was in that great wish 3

days and three nights the resurrection.

That's the sign. People say well if I saw a

miracle, if God did a miracle before me, then I believe.

Remember that was the going on in Luke 16.

Don't, don't. I got brothers.

You got to send someone back. And even if someone were to come

back from the dead, they wouldn't believe.

And there is the singular book, the Book of Life.

This book records the names of every saved person, every

citizen of heaven. Remember what Jesus said a bit

said about this book to his disciples.

He sent his disciples off for the first time.

They came back when man it was amazing.

We were casting out devils sick with being healed and people

came wanted to know more about repentance and getting right

with God man. Jesus said hey hey hey settle.

Don't rejoice over this that the spirits are subject to you, but

rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven as

this is the judgement of the unsaved.

No person in the second resurrection has their name in

this book, the book of life. And so the response to every

person appearing here will be name so and so.

Your name is not listed, simple as that.

This judgement is as I said, more of a sentencing of the

already proven guilty. Now some will say, and this is

the worst thing as a pastor, it's the worst verse.

As a pastor, some will say at that time many will say to me in

that day, Lord, Lord, have I not prophesied in your name, cast

out demons in your name, done many wonders in your name and

the judge will declare under them never knew you depart from

me. You who practise that means you

live a lawless life. So the second death is

spiritual. Where is the lake of fire?

Don't know. And some far off Galaxy

somewhere. Where will the Great White

Throne judgement be? This is the final judgement.

It is the final judgement. It's not on heaven and it's not

on the earth, and it's after the 1000 years, literal 1000 years

has passed. This judgement takes place.

It's the judgement of the dead. It's the judgement of the

unsaved. It is not a judgement as to

salvation, but a judgement as according to the evil works of

the unsaved and the measure of punishment that is going to be

laid out. Besides separation from God

forever, So in the light of Calvary, no lost Sinner can

condemn God for casting them into hell.

Why? For God has provided a way of

escape. You get to have your way kicking

and screaming and says in book of Romans, it's a sad scripture

too, that God gave them over. He said, OK, I've tried, I've

tried, I've tried as he did with Pharaoh.

Pharaoh I mean plague after plague after plague and they're

all targeted, specific plague. And each time Pharaoh's heart

hardened, God has provided a way of Skype and He's patiently

waiting for sinners to repent. The great White Throne judgement

is final. There is no more judgements

after that. And those will be cast into the

Lake of Fire forever.