REVELATION 20:11-15
LESSON 2
Part D
10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone,
where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night
for ever and ever.
11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the
earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened:
and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged
out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up
the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
TRUE BELIEVERS HAVE INCREDIBLE COVERAGE
WE have Christ as OUR GARMENT, OUR ADVOCATE and OUR RELATIVE:
1. CHRIST AS OUR GARMENT! V. 5a “He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in
white raiment; Romans 13:14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision
for the flesh, to [fulfill] the lusts [thereof].
* Clothed in white They shall walk with Me in white: for they are worthy (3:4)
* WHITE REPRESENTS CELEBRATION LIFE: Ancients stood for celebration – Ecc. 9:8
* WHITE REPRESENTS CONQUEST LIFE: In ancient days stood for conquest – Roman white
robes of triumph, so Jesus always leads us in triumph 2 Cor 2.
* WHITE REPRESENTS CLEANSING: In all times for cleansing – Rev. 19:7, 17:14
righteousness white/blood, justified, Christian righteousness
* WHITE REPRESENTS CELESTIAL LIFE: “White” is always the color of Heaven.
The redeemed of the Great Tribulation are seen wearing robes washed white in
the blood of the Lamb (7:14). Then there follows the white cloud (14:14); the
white horse (19:11); the white horses (19:14), and finally the great white
throne (20:11).
Jesus, thy blood and righteousness
My beauty are my glorious dress:
‘Midst flaming worlds, in these array’d,
With joy shall I lift up my head.
Bold shall I stand in thy great day,
For who ought to my charge shall lay?
Fully absolved through these I am–
From sin and fear, from guilt and shame
The holy, meek, unspotted Lamb,
Who from the Father’s bosom came–
Who died for me, e’en me t’atone–
Now for my Lord and God I own.
Lord, I believe they precious blood–
Which at the mercy seat of God,
Forever doth for sinners plead–
For me, e’en for my soul, was shed.
Lord, I believe we’re sinners more
Than sands upon the ocean shore,
Thou hast for all, a ransom paid,
For all a full atonement made.
2. CHRIST AS OUR ADVOCATE! v. 5b “He that overcometh, and I will not
blot out his name out of the Book of Life,
Hebrews 7:24-25 But this [man],
because He continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. 25 Wherefore
He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him,
seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them.
* Kept in the book = Saved. Can you lose salvation? No, it clearly says
no! In Sardis the King could blot your name out if he did not like you.
But not in Kingdom of God.
3. CHRIST AS OUR RELATIVE! v. 5c but I will confess his name before My
Father and before His angels. Romans 8:17 And if children, then heirs;
heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with
[him], that we may be also glorified together.
* Confessed: Think of it! To be taken by the hand by the Lord Jesus,
to be led up past the marshaled ranks of the angels, up along the golden
boulevards of glory, up past the cherubim and the seraphim, up, up to the
Throne of God Himself and to hear the Lord Jesus call you by your name and
present you in person as His well beloved!
* Then to hear the Father say, “Bring the best robe and put it on him.”
Think of it, a robe of white, bright as the day, pure as the light!
When the Lord Jesus was transfigured on the mount, something happened
not only to His countenance, something happened also to His clothes.
His raiment became white as the light. What a reward for faithfulness,
to have a robe like that draped around the shoulders and to be invited
to walk the shining ways of glory in light transfigured clothes.
Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
WHAT’S THE RIGHT RESPONSE TO CHRIST’S MESSAGE?
1. God hates profession without possession. Beware of pretenders.
Are you pretending?
2. God doesn’t approve of just maintenance. It’s life and growth
and fruit or nothing! Are you growing?
3. God wants to see you: Watching out- Washed in white- written in
eternity – waiting to have Him call your name.
A SUMMARY OF ETERNAL PUNISHMENT IN HELL
1. IT IS THE PLACE OF ETERNAL, UNENDING PAIN, MISERY AND TORTURE –
A darkness so impenetrable in the countless ages of eternity that
none of the lost will ever see light or relief – no wonder they
are wailing, howling and gnashing teeth.
2. IT IS THE PLACE WHERE BODY AND SOUL ARE TORMENTED.
John 5:28
28 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are
in the graves shall hear his voice,
All will be
raised, both saved and lost Dan. 12:22 And many of them that sleep in the
dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame
and everlasting contempt.
– some to bless –
the rest to horror. The worm dieth not.
Mark 9:48 – Eating the conscience and the flesh?
Never consumed by the hellish worms that feed upon them and never die.
3. HELL IS THE PLACE WHERE THERE ARE LEVELS OR DEGREES OF TORMENT –
All face intense and unending pain. Some will face far greater.
* HEBREWS 10:28-29 – Says the writer of Hebrews. “How much severer
punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot
the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant
by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?”
(Heb. 10:28-29). Those who willfully reject Jesus Christ and trample,
as it were, on the sacrifice He made for them with His own blood will
receive much greater punishment than those who had only the light of
the Old Covenant. And on the day of judgment it will be more tolerable
for the pagan materialistic cities of Tyre, Sidon, and Sodom than for
the Jewish cities of Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum-who not only
had the light of the Old Covenant but the opportunity to see and hear
the Son of God in person and to witness His miraculous works
(Matt. 11:22-23).
22 But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon
at the day of judgment, than for you.
23 And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought
down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had
been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.
* In the parable of the slaves who awaited their master’s return from
the wedding feast, Jesus explains that “that slave who knew his master’s
will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, shall receive
many lashes, but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy
of flogging, will receive but few” (Luke 12:47-48).
* “Hell will have such severe degrees,” writes John Gretna, “that a sinner,
were he able, would give the whole world, if his sins could be one less.”
4. FOURTH, THE TORMENT OF HELL WILL BE EVERLASTING. Nothing will be so
horrible about Hell as its endlessness. Jesus uses the same word to describe
the duration of Hell as the duration of Heaven: “These will go away into
eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life” (Matt. 25:46).
People in Hell will experience the absence of hope.
THE INESCABLE RESULTS OF OUR CHOICES
HELL IS INDESCRIBABLY HORRIBLE
Let me just call off the words used to describe this place – so
unimaginable we would doubt its existence had not Christ spoken
more of it than any prophet or apostle.
More than Heaven – Christ spoke of Hell – more than love, Christ
spoke of eternal destruction – more than the church to come Christ
Jesus warned of God’s wrath and judgment and Hell.
How does our Lord portray this place to avoid at all costs?
1. Destruction (Mt. 7:13) –
2. Eternal Fire (Luke 16:28) –
3. Howling & gnashing of teeth (Mt. 22:13; 25:30) –
4. Place of the cursed (Matt. 7:23) –
5. Unquenchable fire (Matt. 3:12) –
6. Furnace and place of horror (Mt. 13:42, 50) –
7. Prison pit or abyss (Matt. 5:25) –
8. Pain and eternal torment (Matt. 25:46) –
9. Guilt like an undying worm (Mark 9:48) –
10. Fire that never goes out (Matt. 25:41, Mark 9:43) –
11. Wailing that never ends Matthew 8:12 “But the sons of the
kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping
and gnashing of teeth.”
* CONDEMNED TO GOD’S JUST DESTRUCTION (Matthew 21:41 They said to Him,
“He will destroy those wicked men miserably, and lease his vineyard to
other vinedressers who will render to him the fruits in their seasons.”) –
* ENDURING GOD’S GRINDING WRATH (Matthew 21:44 “And whoever falls on
this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him
to powder.”) –
* UNDER GOD’S SENTENCE OF HELL (Matthew 23:33 “Serpents, brood of vipers!
How can you escape the condemnation of hell?) –
* FACING GOD’S ETERNAL PUNISHMENT (Matthew 25:46 “And these will go away
into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”).
And, that’s just one gospel in which Christ describes Hell vividly over
forty-two times!
Is it real? Yes. Is it awful? Yes. Must it be avoided at all costs?
Yes! How impassioned were puritan writer, John Bunyan’s warnings.
(In Hell) thou shalt have none but a company of damned souls with an
innumerable company of devils to keep company with thee. While thou
art in this world, the very thought of the devil’s appearing to thee
makes thy flesh to tremble and thine hair ready to stand upright on
thy head. But oh, what wilt thou do when not only the supposition
of the devil’s appearing but the real society of all the devils of
Hell will be with thee—howling, roaring and screeching in such a
hideous manner that thou wilt be even at thy wit’s end and ready
to run stark mad again for anguish and torment. If after ten thousand
years, an end should come, there would be comfort. But here is thy
misery: here thou must be forever. When thou seest what an innumerable
company of howling devils thou art amongst, thou shalt think this again
– this is my portion forever. When thou hast been in Hell so many thousand
years as there are stars in the firmament or drops in the sea or sands on
the seashore, yet thou hast to lie there forever. Oh, this one word—ever—how
will it torment thy soul. (New Cyclopedia of Prose Illustrations, ed. Elon
Foster (New York: T. Y. Crowell, 1977, p.450).
“Only one life to live and soon is past
Only what’s done for Christ will last!”
Hoping to make the time I have left count for the glory of God.
REVELATION 20:11-15 LESSON 2 Part D