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Bibleline Bibleline, here God’s Word on Bibleline, everywhere, every time. Here God’s truth on Bibleline. Welcome to Bibleline with Dr. Ralph Yankee Arnold, pastor of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida. Clearly declaring the gospel of Jesus Christ through the radio and the internet. Your regular prayers and monthly support make it possible for Bibleline to continue on the air. You can reach us toll free at 1-800-576-3771. Online donations may be made by clicking on the donations link on the BibleLineMinistries.org homepage.

We pray that you will enjoy our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ and that today’s message will be a blessing to you and your family. I want you to take your Bible and turn to the book of Revelation, Chapter 20, the book of Revelation and Chapter 20. We’re going to look at four different things here in these few verses from verse 11 to through verse 15. One will be the setting, one the summons, the secrets and the sentence that’s found here in these verses.

You and I are to proclaim to the world that God wants people to know that there is a great, quiet, throne judgment coming. And this is something that every person is going to have to attend. The setting is called the great, quiet, throne that takes place. There’s also going to be a new heavens and a new earth because the first heaven and the first earth will be done away and it says they’re found no place for them. At this setting it’s called the Great White Throne.

Great because of the power that’s going to be there. You realize there is no one with the power of God except God. No one greater. Down here, People are trying to put together all kinds of ways to prove to the world they have more power than someone else. A fighter wants to beat another fighter because then he’s the greatest of all time. And somebody’s out trying to outrun somebody. There’s always the games and the competition that we have competing against one another.

nation against nation, race against race. Everyone trying to weld more power in order to put fear into other people. But the thing is, there is no power greater than God’s. The great, white-thrown judgment, great because of its power, but the word power means the authority. He has the power, the authority, at this judgment to do whatever he wants to do. That is power. To have that kind of authority. There is no appeals court. And to be able to summons the whole world to attend.

And the Bible says the angels will be there. And I believe that You and I as believers will also be there, but we have an escape. We have a substitute. We don’t have to be judged. It’s right because of its purity. Purity because it’s going to be a judgment that will be just. Remember whatever God does, whatever His power that He has and His authority to make whatever decisions and to execute whatever judgment it has to be right. has to be fair.

He has to be just in whatever he does. That’s why over and over again he is called the righteous judge that he is. But it’s the great white throne and just throne because of its purpose. Why are we standing here? Because it’s a throne. It’s a judgment. Everybody is going to be judged, judged according to what? The Bible says the books will be open and they will be judged out of those books according to their works. And therefore, yes, every man needs to be getting together his evidences for his defense, because should he stand before God and lose his case, the results are devastating.

The punishment is eternal separation from God in a literal fire burning hell forever. Also, the summons is to the great and the small. It’s to the living and the dead. And the Bible says even death and hell will deliver up the dead which were in them and they will stand at this great white throne judgment. So the summons goes out and you and I are supposed to be letting people know, look, you’ve been summons and you will appear. Down here, people jump bail when they’re supposed to appear.

The other thing is the secrets of every individual are going to be revealed. It means the hidden motives of the heart. Not only has the deeds that you have done been recorded, because the Bible says your judge is according to your works out of the books. So that means that all your deeds are being placed in a book, along with your thoughts, and the motive and the intent of your heart. That’s powerful. That means that there’s a lot of things that nobody knows about.

A lot of things you’ve kept secret. But the Bible says what is secret here, one day will be shouted from the house top. In other words, everybody will know. If I was a loss, man, and knew all of this was true. That scared me to death. But see, you’re looking at an individual. I’m not worried. One, I owed about the great white throne judgment. I’m not scared. You say, what about all those bad things you’ve done? And all those bad thoughts you’ve had over the years, I don’t have to worry about it because none of my sins can ever be brought up.

Because see, I had a substitute. I had someone pay for all of my sins. So I won’t be judged in my glad God helped the person who has not accepted a substitute, someone to stand in their judgment for them. But someone has already took my punishment and I don’t have to take it. And I’m so thankful for that. I want you to know two things about the sentence that’s going to be given at this great white-thrown judgment. One, it is sure.

It is sure because God said they shall be judged. And if God says they shall be judged, they shall be judged. And also the severity of this judgment. You see, it’s not just going to be a slap on the hand. It’s not going to be, I’ll give you three strikes and you’re out. This is not going to be some little warning. The punishment here is called the second death. It’s called being cast into the lake of fire. Now take your Bible and look there in the book Revelation chapter 20 and verse 11.

chapter 20 in verse 11. I want you to notice there in verse 11, he says, and I saw a great white throne and him that sat on it from whose face the earth and the heavens fled away and there was found no place for them. So the Bible does teach that after the thousand year reign upon the earth that the devil will be cast into the lake of fire found there in verse 10, where the beast and the false prophet are and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever.

That’s where the devil is and his angels, the beast and the false prophet, and that’s where the people are that have already rejected Christ’s Savior and at the end of the tribulation period we’re casting to the lake of fire. But it’s not over. And there’s others that are coming. I want you to hold your place here and look in 2 Timothy chapter 4. 2 Timothy and chapter 4. There’s a verse mentioned there that I’d like to share with with you that also sheds a little light on this concerning the judge at the Great White Throne judgment.

This is on page 1281, 2 Timothy chapter 4 verse 1 says, I charge thee therefore, before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead. The quick are the living, although that have trusted Christ as Savior and have eternal life, and the dead, though that are those that are spiritually dead. And he says, the judge, the quick end of that at his appearing. You see, when he appears and he takes us out and we stand at the Judgement City of Christ.

But there’s others who will not be at the Judgement City of Christ because that one is for the Christian. That’s for the believers. That’s to receive rewards. But then there’s another judgment that’s coming at the end of time and he says at the end. of the kingdom or in his kingdom. So at his appearing and his kingdom. So at the end of the thousand years there is going to be the great white throne judgment. So that’s something that even the Apostle Paul was preaching to the churches in those letters.

The letters concerning Timothy. Here in Revelation now in chapter 20, look again in verse 11. And I saw a great white throne in him that sat upon him. it from whose face the earth and the heavens fled away and there was found no place for them. Verse 12, and I saw the dead small and great stand before God. The dead means those that are living even today but have not trusted Christ’s Savior, they are spiritually dead. They’re cut off from the source of eternal life.

They’re cut off from the source of God. But they’re physically alive. When you and I talk about death or dying, well death means to us to be absent from the body, But absent from the body doesn’t mean you don’t exist anymore. It simple means you’re not living there in the body anymore. You’re absent from the body but you’re present with the Lord. But you’re still very much alive. You see, when God created you, you will always be. You will never cease to be.

You’ll just be in a different place. That’s all. You’re only in this world for a few short years. But the house that you live in, your body, will not last forever down here. and you don’t know how long it’s going to last. It could last 50 years, 60 years, 70 years. You could die tomorrow. But when the body goes, you got to move out. And the Bible says you’ll either be with the Lord or you’ll be in a place of torment.

Now here he makes the statement in verse 12, and I saw the dead small and great. So it doesn’t matter if you’re small or if you’re great, it doesn’t matter. You are going to stand at the great white-thrown judgment. This is an appointment for every individual Unless, of course, they have accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior. Now, notice what he says here. And the books were open. There’s books that will be open by which when you were born into this world, everything that you have done is in these books.

They are recorded. And so there is the book of the living, and there’s also a book of those who have eternal life. Look at this. And the books were open, and another book, singular, was open, which is the book of life. You see there’s the Lamb’s book of life. Well, the Lamb’s book of life is the book that you get into when you trusted Christ as your Savior and we’re supposed to rejoice that our names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

You see your name’s not written in the Lamb’s book of life until you trust Jesus Christ as your Savior. Anyone whose names are not found written in the Lamb’s book of life, don’t go to heaven. You see what he says under in verse 15, and whosoever was not found written in the book of life. That’s the Lamb’s book of life was cast into the lake of fire. So you see there’s two sets of books that will be open. The one set of books, that’s the one that contains their works.

The other one contains the name of when you trusted Christ as your Savior. So if you have not trusted Christ as your Savior, your name is not in the Lamb’s book of life. Your name is in the book of living. Even Moses said, Lord brought out my name out of the book of the living, but he wasn’t talking about the Lamb’s book of life. He was talking about the book of living. Take my life while I’m up on the earth.

And God will not. He said not blot your name out of the book of life because that cannot be done. That’s why when you read in the book of Genesis in chapter 5 when it says, and Noah lives so many years and he died and and the layman lives so many years and he died and Mathews lives so many years and he dies but they all died. That’s the book of the generation of Adam. But in Matthew chapter 1 you have the book of the generation of Jesus Christ.

Those who were born into the family of God there are no deaths recorded because you see once you’re born into God’s family you can never die. That’s a different book. This one is a book of eternal life. This one over here is your human life, your physical life. So yes, human life is temporary. My spiritual life is eternal. This one will die, but the other one will never die. And that’s why Christ says, if a man believe in me, he shall never die.

And though he died physically, yet he shall live. That’s because he has eternal life. And so there are these two books. That will be opened. And these books is to contain the works that an individual has done. Look what he says, which is the book of life there in verse 12. And he says, and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books according to their work. So their works are going to judge them.

What is the requirement to get to heaven? You have to be perfect to go to heaven. You have to be righteous. So you’ve never done anything wrong. Anybody here like that? No, don’t you raise your hand. You have to be righteous to go to heaven. But you see, there are people that do not believe, one, that there is a God. They don’t believe in heaven and hell, and therefore they don’t need a Savior, and they don’t worry about what they do.

Then there’s others who believe that, yes, there is a heaven, and you’ve got to be real good to get there, and they’re going to do the best they can. So you have some. You have some people that believe there’s a heaven and there’s a hell and they figured they can’t make it anyway so they might as well have a ball before they get there. And hope that somewhere along the line out of the goodness of God, he’ll let them in anyway.

And so they always intend to get right with God and never do. the works to determine whether or not they go to heaven or hell? No. They’re going to be judged not to determine their destination because their destination has already been settled. You see, a man has already condemned while he yet lives. He that believeth in Christ and him is not condemned, but he that believeth not is condemned when? Already because he hath not believed. So you see, The man doesn’t stand at the great white throne judgment to find out if he’s condemned or not.

He’s already condemned. That’s why he’s been hauled into court. There’s charges that have been filed against him. Remember the Bible says that whenever you and I, we commit this sin. That means we have broken God’s law. All these transgressions of ours were wrote on a piece of paper and nailed to Christ’s cross. So when he died, he died for all our transgressions. But he did it for the sins of the world, but see, not everybody will accept that payment that was made for them.

So now that little piece of paper with all their sins, now they’re going to have to account to God and they’re not cleared. This payment is put to your account only when you believe that he did it for you. And think of how many multitudes of people have not accepted this payment. Christ made for them. You see, this is an awful place to have to be. Have you ever thought about this? Think about all the people that do not know the Lord, don’t like God, don’t like anything to do with Christianity, and love to just do anything that they want to do in sin.

They are not very comfortable in a godly church. They’re not godly, they’re not comfortable. They don’t feel at home. They’re uneasy. I’ve even met Christians that don’t like to go to church, don’t like to do godly thing, but it’s not because they’re not saved, it’s because they want to live ungodly. You see, when you want to live godly and do right, God’s people are okay to be around. But when you’re not right, you don’t want to be around them.

You’d rather be with the people who are like that in the world. So you’re more comfortable with them because you see, when you want to clean up your life, Well, then you need to hang around people who are also trying to clean up theirs, but when you don’t want to it doesn’t matter who you hang around Interesting But it’s an awful place But when you stop and think that the Bible says no man has seen God and lived You can’t see God and look upon him because it would kill you Because his holiness his pureness and his power the Bible says it with blind you would kill you So that’s why when Christ came into the world, He was God in the world.

He had to veil Himself. So you could see His physical form, but if you saw God without that form, then it would kill you. Now people are going to stand at a judgment and be face to face with God. Now they’ll be standing in a body that won’t be like the body they have now because it to be a body that will live or exist forever. A body that will be able to be cast into the fire that burns with brimstone and never die, like a burning bush that burns and never consumed.

Here’s a perfect God meeting a sinner. And here’s a sinner that’s got to try to justify clear himself in front of God. What evidence is he going to use? So God opens up the books and let’s look at the evidence. Now, is this man by his work and by his actions, by his needs, going to be able to prove to God he never sinned? God has all the facts. God has the evidence. There will not be a substitute standing there saying, look, Lord, let him go because I’ve already paid for his sins.

No, it’s too late now. That payment was rejected. He stands alone. And he has been summoned to appear, and the sentence is to be rendered. Look what he says there in verse 13, and the sea gave up the dead, which were in it, and death and hail delivered up the dead, which were in them. You see, death is where the body is placed in the grave. So the bodies will be brought forth. And the soul is in hell, and so the soul will be brought forth.

So death and the hell or the body and the soul will come together and stand at this judgment. What is going to be the sentence of all of this? You’ll notice there in verse 13, in the last part of it where he says, and delivered up the dead which were in them, and they were judged every man according to their words, every man. You don’t have to worry about what somebody else did or did it do. How many times I’ve heard people say, well, I’m just as good as they are.

I’m not as bad as they are. And they do something they say, well, everybody else does it. What’s that got to do with you? Every man is going to be judged for what he hath done individually. For you and I, those that have trusted Christ as their Savior, the Bible says every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor. Going to heaven is free. That’s free. That’s what God did for us. Christ died paid for our sins and we get to go to heaven and it didn’t cost us anything.

That was a gift. What I have when I get to heaven, all those rewards, if there’s any of them, those rewards are earned. That’s what you get as a result of your works down here. You see we don’t do good works to determine our destination. Our destination is determined by our belief or unbelief concerning what Christ did on the cross. If I believe he did it for me and trust him as my Savior, I go to heaven. My destiny is fixed.

If a man does not believe that, then he is lost. He goes to hell for all eternity. His destiny is fixed. One thing has not yet been fixed. I am now in the process of my Christian life. By the deeds that I do, I’m either earning or losing rewards in heaven and the blessings of God now. The lost man by his deeds until the day he dies, by what he says and what he does and how he thinks and all those things about him is determining the amount of punishment that he receives in hell.

But you see, the judgment is not to determine your destination. It’s to determine the amount of punishment that is going to be upon an individual that goes to hell in verse 13. If a person wants to trust in their good works to get them to heaven, your good works must be perfect works. There can be no sins against you, not one sin written against you. In this book, one sin is written against you. That’s all it takes to send you to hell for all eternity.

Look there in Revelation chapter 21 and verse 27 very quickly. And there shall in no wise enter into it talking about this holy city, the heaven, anything that be followed, neither whatsoever work of abomination or make it a lie, but they which are written in the lambs book of life. See, going to heaven, going to the holy city, living forever, never has anything to do with how you lived. It’s, was your name written in the Lamb’s book of life?

The only way your name is written in the Lamb’s book of life is when you were born into God’s family. When you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior, you were born into God’s family and you’re Now his child forever, and now God is going to reward every Christian according to his works after he’s been saved. The lost man is going to receive various degrees of punishment. Look there in verse 14 of chapter 20. And death and hell with body and soul.

Remember the book of Matthew in chapter 10? It says, fear him which is able to take body and soul and cast it into hell. Well that’s who he is, and that’s the power that he has. And whether anybody likes it or don’t like it, think he was right or un right, he has the power to do it. And he said, this is what he’s going to do. If I was a lost man and I knew this and I could see this and I can understand it, you know what I’d do?

If I thought I had any sense at all I’d get saved I’d get saved I would believe that Christ died and paid for my sins So I could have eternal life and go to heaven when I died so that I wouldn’t have to go to hell That’s a good reason for getting saved. I had a man tell me one time with that you got saved for the wrong motive I said don’t tell me He said you ought to get saved because you love God.

I said I didn’t love God didn’t know God I Got saved for one reason I didn’t want to go to hell and I thought that was a pretty good reason And afterwards I kind of fell in love with him, but not before. Look what he says there in verse 14. And death and hail were cast into the lake of higher. This is the second death. Remember there in chapter 20, he’s also talking about over there in verse 5 and 6 about the first resurrection.

The second death of the second resurrection hath no power. they have no authority, no rights, no privilege, nothing. And they are cast into the lake of fire. That’s the second death. So those who have not trusted Christ’s Savior will die twice. Once they died when they were separated from their body. That’s physical death. That’s the first death. Second death is when you’re separated from God’s Spirit, for all eternity. You don’t want that when I look in verse 15 and whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

So the question is very simple. Is your name recorded in the book of life? Is your name recorded in the book of life? Look there in Revelation chapter 13 in verse 8. It makes this statement and all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. So that shows you that not everybody’s name is in that book. But the question is, is yours?

Is your name in the Lamb’s book of life? Do you know you have eternal life and that you’re going to heaven when you die? If you have not trusted Christ as your Savior, you’re lost. And if you’re lost, you’re going to stand at the great white throne judgment. And once you stand there, you are automatically condemned. You have no hope. Look up here. This hen represents you and me and this wall represents sin. We all have sin upon us.

God loves us, but he hates our sin. Everybody sins. Everybody is condemned. But God loves us. And he says for us to pay for that sin, eternal separation from him, but he wants us to have eternal life and to go to heaven. To go to heaven we have to be perfect, as righteous as God and none of us are. And by our works we can never be good enough, so that’s why we needed a Savior. You cannot earn your way to heaven.

This hen represents Jesus Christ, God in a flesh. into the world because he loves us, hates our sin because our sin separates us from him. So Christ took all of our sins, paid for them on the cross and came back from the dead. And he said that if we will believe that he did it for us, it put the payment to our account. We go to heaven on what he did for us. I don’t earn it, I didn’t deserve it, but I sure will accept it.

The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Let’s pray shall he? You’ve been listening to Bibleline, a teaching ministry of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida with Dr. Ralph Arnold. We pray that you are blessed by today’s message. If you have enjoyed our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ, you can reach Bibleline and pledge your support to keep us on the air in your area by dialing toll-free 1-800-576-3771. That’s 1-800-576-3771. To listen to today’s message again or to obtain a free download of any of our Bible line programs, just go to our homepage at BibleLineMinistries.org and click on the Radio Broadcast link.

If you are in the area, we welcome you to visit us. The address for Calvary Community Church is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. Our Sunday morning services begin at 10-30 and at 6 o’clock on Sunday evening. Live broadcast of our services may be seen by clicking on the Calvary Community Church link at BibleLineMinistries.org. Thanks for joining us on Bibleline and now a closing thought from Pastor Arnold. Friend, one day it will happen. The trumpet will sound, and we will be changed.

Caught up to meet the Lord in the air. So live today and every day, believing that the Lord is coming soon and just keep looking up.