The Judgment of the Lost
READ TEXT. Emphasize 21:8.
There are many mysteries in the book of Revelation.
Many of these mysteries are interpreted in many different ways by people who believe all the Bible all the way through.
They love Jesus and they love the Word of God.
Yet, they interpret these symbols and images very differently.
But there are a few things that are very sure and do not require a lot of interpretation.
I want to mention three things in the book of Revelation that are sure and certain.
1. The Judgment of the Lost before the Great White Throne.
2. The Judgment of the Saved at the Judgment Seat of Christ
3. Heaven – our eternal home.
And today, I want us to see what happens to the lost when they stay lost.
There is an epitaph on a tombstone that reads:
"Remember, man, as you pass by;
As you are now, so once was I.
As I am now, so shall you be;
Prepare ye, then, to follow me."
But someone wrote a response:
"To follow you I'm not content
Unless I know which way you went."
So, let's look at the judgment of the lost.
Notice what Rev. 20:12 says:
" 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."
This verse reveals several things about the judgment of the lost.
And I would like to make a couple of observations at this point.
And the first thing I want you to notice is that this judgment does not determine whether or not they are lost.
That has already been determined.
This verse calls them the dead – even though they are alive (they are standing before God after all).
And it is speaking of the fact that they are dead spiritually.
1 Tim. 5:6 says,
"But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth."
You see, whether or not a person is lost or saved is determined in this life, not the next.
I. The Degree of Punishment.
The judgment of the lost is not to determine whether they will experience the place of punishment of the lost, but he degree of punishment based upon their works.
You see, there are degrees of punishment in hell.
In Matthew 10, Mark 6, and Luke 10, Jesus said that for those who mistreat the Apostles, it would be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah than for them.
That at least indicates degrees of punishment.
Jesus said it would be better for a man to have a millstone tied around his neck and be case into the depths of the sea than to cause one of His little ones to stumble into sin.[1]
So this punishment is according to works.
Also notice,
II. The Place of Punishment.
And it is here that I want to spend a few minutes.
Many people believe that hell is just figurative in the Bible; that it's not real.
But I submit to you this day that I am convinced hat hell is a real place that is described by both figurative and literal language.
And the first passage I would like you to see is Matt. 10:28:
"And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."
Now, friend, what does that mean?
That means that God has the power to cast both soul and body into hell.
Now, is hell figurative or real?
Well let's find out. Since the Bible teaches that God can cast both soul and body into hell, then let's take the pinch test.
[Take pinch test]
Now, was that a literal pinch or a figurative pinch?
It was literal, right?
How do you know it was literal? Because the only body you have is a literal body.
You see, you only have two options – a literal body or a spirit something or other that isn't real.
So you only have a literal body.
And God has the power to cast both body and soul into hell.
And since you only have a literal body, you can't cast a literal body into a metaphorical anywhere.
And people can say what they wish, but I am convinced that hell bespeaks a real place and a literal place.
And I'll tell you something else – I also believe that there is real fire there.
Now, some would say,
"Yes, hell is real, but it's described in figurative language."
And that's true to some extent.
But I believe that a real body in torment requires real and literal suffering, both of body and soul.
And Revelation speaks of the lake of fire.
You might say,
"Well, Bro. David, Revelation is filled with figurative language, cant that be figurative as well?"
Yes, it cold, but there is a specific place in Scripture that speaks of the suffering of the lost in literal language and still uses fire.
Turn, if you will, to Matthew 13:24-30 and let's read that.
This passage is the parable of the tares.
READ Matt. 13:24-30.
And it is clear that the language of this parable, as is true of all parable, is figurative.
And notice that the last figure given is that the tares are burned in the fire.
Now the beauty of this parable is that we don't have to guess about its interpretation, because Jesus interprets it for us.
READ Matt. 13:36-43.
Notice what happens here as Jesus explains the parable.
He first gives the figurative language and then tell us the literal meaning.
Figure Used Literal Meaning
Sower Son of Man
Field World
Good seed Children of God
Tares Children of the evil one
Enemy Devil
Harvest End of the world
Reapers Angels
Tares go into the fire Lost go into the fire
Notice that when Jesus goes to the literal meaning, he retains fire.
I believe that the fire is real.
Now, there's much more to hell than just fire, but that's part of it.
James 1:17 says, "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above and cometh down from the father of lights…"
Timothy McVeigh, the Oklahoma City bomber, before his execution, said "If I go to hell, I will have a lot of friends there."
No, he doesn't. Friends are one of God's good gifts.
There is no companionship and comfort in hell.
There is no security in hell.
Mt. 8 describes hell as a place of outer darkness.
No affection of any kind.
Yet all the time remembering.
In Luke 16, we have the story of the rich man and Lazarus.
The rich man was told by Abraham,
"Remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things."
In addition to that, the rich man remembered his father and brothers in Luke 16:27.
Notice also,
III. The Duration of that Punishment.
Also remember that there are two kinds of eternity.
There is that eternity that the lost will spend and the eternity that the saved will spend.
And both eternities involve a type of existence.
Death in the Bible does not mean to cease to exist.
Death in the Scriptures does not mean annihilation.
There is eternal death for the lost, and eternal life for the saved.
So, please keep in mind that by eternal death, I'm not talking about a cessation of existence.
The Bible describes for us that for those who die without Jesus, there is a place of eternal torment that goes on for ever.
Rev. 14:11 says,
"And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name."
The context of the passage of Scripture that I read a moment ago from Revelation 12 involves the appearance of eh lost before the Great White Throne.
I would also call to your attention Rev. 21:8 that says,
`"But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death."
Mark 9:44 speaks of the place where the worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched.
There are numerous descriptions of the kind of suffering that await the lost.
And I would submit to you, dear friends, that all the language in the world cannot impress upon us the awful suffering and torment that the lost endure.
But there is One who understands.
If there is anyone who understands God's condemnation on sin, He is God Himself – He is Jesus.
I want you to know that God originally created hell for the devil and his angels – not man.
But if man fails to come to Jesus in repentance and faith, he will go where the devil goes.
And God knows about His punishment on sin.
And that's why He would do anything to keep a person from going there . . . including sending His Son to die on Calvary to pay that awful price for our sin.
And the terrible suffering that the lost would pay is why we need to witness to those who are lost.
I believe that if we could pull back the veil of hell today and see the screams and the moans and the groans and the woe, I believe it would make soul winners out of every on of us.
William Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army said,
"If I had my way, I would not give any of my workers a three-year training in college, but I would put each one of you 24 hours in hell – the best training for earnest preaching you could ever have."
The suffering of the rich man in Luke 16 caused him to be concerned about the souls of his loved ones.
He was still lost, but he wanted to see hi family members saved.
Years ago I came across a poem; I do not know the author:
"Loved ones will weep o're my silent face;
Dear ones will clasp me in sad embrace.
Shadows and darkness will fill the place –
Five minutes after I die.
Faces that sorrow, I will not see;
Voices that murmur will not reach me.
But where, O where will my spirit be
Five minutes after I die?
Nought to repair the good I lack.
Fixed to the goal of my chosen track.
No room to repent, no turning back,
Five minutes after I die.
Mated for ever with my chosen throng;
Long is eternity, O, so long.
Then woe is me if my soul be wrong
Five minutes after I die."
My friends, there is a heaven to be gained;
There is a hell to be shunned and feared.
And may we ell our lost loved ones about the Lord Jesus Christ.
May we baptize our bedside in tears that our family members would be saved so that they don't have to go to that awful place.
Kathryn Booth prayed,
"Lord, I will not stand before you without all my children."
May we be so burdened for our loved ones.
May we resolve not to go to heaven alone.
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[1]Matt. 18:6.