In his sermon on 'The Great White Throne,' Scott Brown delves into Revelation 20:11-15, highlighting the profound implications of the final judgment. He emphasizes the inevitability of all individuals facing judgment before the Great White Throne, where their deeds will be evaluated through opened books, including the Book of Life. The sermon contrasts the eternal destinies of believers and non-believers, underscoring the warnings provided by Jesus Christ about hell, which He discussed more than heaven. Brown explains the first resurrection as a spiritual awakening for believers and the second death as eternal separation for non-believers. He stresses the necessity of preaching about hell to prevent complacency and the importance of recognizing the Great White Throne as both a throne of judgment and grace. The sermon concludes with a call for individuals to ride the waves of grace, preparing for their ultimate encounter with God, who promises comfort and strength to believers.

Please open your Bibles to Revelation 20. I'll be reading verses 11 through 15. This is the inerrant, all-sufficient, sweeter than honey word of God. Revelation 20 verse 11. 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 and books were opened and another book was 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 the dead who were in it, and death and Hades delivered up the death, 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.

Let's pray. Oh Lord, we thank you for the warnings and the encouragements that you give us along the way in this life to remind us the way things really are. And so I pray that you would give us such a sense of it today, that your son would be glorified, that the power of the resurrection would be seen again in this congregation. Lord, come and equip the saints and send the devil to flight, Amen. Please be seated.

As we arrive here in Revelation 20 verse 11, we could not be before a more sobering section of the Word of God. It often strikes me that often I live, you know, one of the pastors of your church lives in a different world the week and maybe the weeks before the preaching and of course I've lived in the world of the great white throne. I've lived in the world of everlasting torments and suffering for those who did not believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. But I've also lived in the implications of the book of life and that throne from which the rivers of the water of life flow. So it's been quite a contemplation this week.

So in these verses, John is helping us see the final judgment at the end of the age. We will all appear before the throne of God to be held accountable for everything done in this life. This is a topic that the Lord Jesus Christ spoke of more than any other writer. He spoke more of hell than heaven, which is so striking. He made it clear that on that day, that there would either be sheep or goats in Matthew 25, good fish or bad fish in Matthew 13, wheat or tares in Matthew 13, Good branches or withered branches in John 15, good trees or bad trees in Matthew 7.

This is the reality that Jesus brings. He's warning us of an inevitability. He's warning us of something that will happen in time. And it will happen to every person who's ever been born from the beginning of the world to the end of the world. Now, we've been in the first verses of Revelation 20.

These are the most controversial and hard to understand verses in the Bible. If you were here for my last message, you already know that I believe that the millennium is the church age where Satan is constrained. But frankly, if you've been here through this series, it probably has occurred to you, my goal in preaching through Revelation is not to make us experts in pre-millennialism and post-millennialism or all millennialism. But my goal really is to focus on the glory and the majesty of Jesus Christ in all this dramatic imagery that's been set before us. To behold the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.

These are the things that John saw and the Lord wants us to see. So it's pictorial theology, it's doctrine in pictures. Now if you'd like to become an expert on pre-millennialism, post-millennialism, or all millennialism, I would encourage you to do such thing. It's a very valuable study because it takes you all across the Word of God. Now, I haven't really found any of the views absolutely airtight.

There seems to be, to me, something that falls off the table, something that is inconsistent, something that might seem contradictory to another view. When you're trying to harmonize it, questions are left unanswered to me. And I found that I just can't fit it all together in my head. And I think my head must be smaller than many. But this I do know, that this is a revelation of Jesus Christ.

I'm really grateful too for the confession, the Baptist Confession of 1689, because the Baptist Confession doesn't take a position. The Baptist Confession focuses on what is absolutely clear, and that is that Jesus Christ is coming back to judge the living and the dead, and there's a great white throne, and that's the subject that we have in front of us. And the clarity of this chapter is so remarkable. God is dealing with Satan, and he's also dealing with the people that he has redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. So you have an outline in front of you.

There are three parts to what I'd like for us to focus on. First of all, the throne, the throne itself. Then secondly, the people before the throne, that's verses 12 and 13. And then finally, the lake of fire in verses 14 and 15. Now of course the throne is a major theme in Revelation.

We've just been reciting a section in Revelation 22 where out of the throne flow rivers of water of life, but of the 62 times that the throne is mentioned in the New Testament, 47 of them are in this book, right here, it's a major theme. And they are always mentioned as heavenly thrones. We've been before these thrones before, we've seen the happinesses, the unquenchable happiness of those who are before the throne, those who've died and are before the throne now in heaven, our brethren who've perished in the way, they are experiencing the glory of that throne even today. But God will judge everyone who has ever lived. And it's disturbing to read about the lake of fire here in this passage, the torments.

And at the same time, it's not something that the church should avoid. It's not something that preachers should avoid. There should be a clear doctrine of hell existing in the hearts of the people in the church. I hope it exists here. Even though it's disturbing, we're actually commanded to deal with it.

Peter tells Cornelius that the Lord commands us to preach about the final judgment in Acts 10 42 and he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he that it is he who was ordained by God to be judge of the living and the dead. Paul told Timothy in 2 Timothy 4, a very similar thing, that we are charged before God, the one who will judge the living and the dead to preach the word. So this is a very relevant and appropriate and required subject. Ezekiel talks about watchmen who don't sound the trumpet when there's danger in Ezekiel 33. When the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes away any person, any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at the watchman's hand.

So it's dangerous not to preach on the doctrine of hell because there's accountability if you don't. There are many roads that lead to hell. Morality is the most popular way to hell. Reasonableness, balance, kindness is one of the most popular ways that people comfort themselves that they're not going to hell but the Bible makes it very clear there's really only one way and it is it is through the shed blood of Jesus Christ there's no righteousness of man no kindness no reasonableness no religion no morality at all that qualifies anyone for heaven So the words that are here are meant to activate our conscience and to startle us To shake us. It's It's very common a person can sit in church for years and never be startled, never be shaken.

It just goes right over their heads. But it's also very common that there is a day when they are startled and they're stopped in their tracks and their mouths are stopped and they and they realize there's got to be a time when they stop questioning and this is that time. I pray that that's the time here to it'd be a time when there would be a great interruption in someone's life here looking at this matter of the great white throne. The problem with those who delay, who put it off to tomorrow, who think that there's a greater joy to be had, they want to hold on to something. They want to hold on to some pleasure or some thought.

I read a story a long time ago of a pirate. He was a pirate captain and he was the captain of his ship and it was taken over by the authorities and there he was but he had he had his gold around his belt strapped around his waist and he was getting ready to be arrested by the authorities but instead of getting arrested he he went overboard and his gold took him to the bottom. He just couldn't let go of his gold. And that's true of those who delay. They just don't wanna let go of some treasure, nothing, frankly.

So people often, they linger, and they don't feel the weight of sin and They don't feel the loss to their souls. I'm not having the Holy Spirit and forgiveness of sin. They're dull to the scriptures. They're dull to the singing. They're dull to the authority of God.

They don't sense the judgment of God. If that's you today, I'm talking to you about the great white throne. So for any who are lingering, I hope you see the majesty and the power and the inescapability of Jesus Christ. So the throne here assumes what is called in this passage, in this chapter, the first resurrection and the second death. We've encountered those terms here.

The first resurrection is experienced by those who die in the Lord. This is a spiritual resurrection of the soul, not of the body. A person dies and their soul is resurrected to be with the Lord just like the thief on the cross Jesus said today you will be with me in paradise. That's the first resurrection. It's a spiritual resurrection when our spirits depart from our bodies and transported immediately into the presence of God.

The soul of the person who is not a follower of Jesus Christ is immediately transported to a state of torment that precedes the everlasting judgment, the final judgment, the great white throne. So you have the souls of believers alive today before God experiencing the joys of heaven and you have the souls of those who did not believe and they exist today and they're experiencing the first phase of their torment before their final resurrection where their bodies are joined with their spirits. Their spirits are separated from their bodies now, but they will come and be united, reunited. Your body will be reunited with your soul At the great white throne of judgment and that brings us to the second death The second death is when you die physically everybody experiences the first death That's coming But the second death Unbelievers only unbelievers will experience Our confession speaks of it so clearly. The bodies of those who have died return to dust and undergo destruction.

Your body goes into a grave or an ocean or a fire and and it's consumed but their souls neither dine or sleep because they have an immortal character I'm just quoting from the confession immediately they return to God who gave them. And the souls of the righteous are then made perfect in holiness and they're received into paradise. And they are with Christ and behold, the face of God in light and glory while they wait for the full redemption of their bodies. The souls of the wicked are thrown into hell where they remain in torment and utter darkness reserved for the judgment day of the great day. So there's this intermediate state that all souls exist.

One is the state of paradise, the other is the state of torment, until the great white throne judgment. Now, what will the Christian experience at the great white throne? That's a very important question. For the Christian, it will be like a throne of grace. Because if they've died, they've already experienced life before the throne of God.

Remember chapter four and five and seven? All these scenes of the throne of God, the pictures of the saints, the martyrs, they're there. And What are they doing? They can't help themselves but rejoice. They're saying, holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty.

Lord, you are so good, we can't get over how wonderful you are. Well, they've already experienced that before the Great White Throne. They know. I don't know what it'll be like for those who are alive on the earth, those few alive on the earth because I think there'll be so many more who've already died. Those who are resurrected on that last day of the Lord, how will they feel?

Will they feel differently? Well they know that there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. They know that. They know Romans 8. What shall we say then to these things?

If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own son but delivered him up for us all. How shall he not with him also freely give us all things? That's what that's what the believers will think when they are raised who shall bring a charge against God's elect It is God who justifies who is he who condemns it is Christ who died and furthermore is also risen Who is even at the right hand of God who makes intercession for us who shall separate us? From the from the love of Christ this will be a day of terror for believers This will be a day of terror for believers.

This will be a day of rejoicing. God does not exercise wrath on his own. Praise the Lord. And when you see his face, it's one of my favorite phrases in Revelation, and we shall see his face. And will his face be a scowl upon his blood-bought children?

No. No. His blood bought children? No, no. Paul told that local church in Rome about it in Romans 11, verse 22.

Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God. On those who fell, severity. But toward you, goodness. If you continue in his goodness, otherwise you will also be cut off. So the Christian will experience this great white throne in a very particular way, but it's a great white throne.

Those three words are critical in understanding it. It's a great throne. The word that John uses here is the word mega. You know, megaton, megalodon, megabyte, megastar, something absolutely massive, more massive than massive. That's, it's imposing, it's dominating, it's looming.

Nothing else can be seen. Nothing else matters before this throne. Whatever mattered before you as an unbeliever, before this throne, nothing will matter. There will be only one single thing that matters nothing that you're concerned about today will matter before that throne there are no other jurisdictions there are no other considerations there there are no exits there's nothing to learn there's no more to ponder there's no time to think it over, there's nothing else to say. It's a great throne, it's absolutely dominating, nothing else will matter.

And frankly, nothing else should matter today. Every day, that throne, to be before the throne of grace as a believer, to fly to the throne of grace and believe in Jesus Christ and be saved for the unbeliever. It's not only a great throne, it's a white throne. It's a throne of absolute purity. It's a throne of supreme holiness.

It's a throne of absolute goodness and beauty. The problem with that throne for the unbeliever is the unbeliever is not washed. The unbeliever is not clean. So it poses a great problem, a white throne does, for a person who's not washed in the blood of the Lamb. All mankind is stained with sin.

Stained with original sin, and stained with particular sins because of it. There are two kinds of sinfulness. Original and acted. Those are the two kinds of sins. And we learn in Romans 2, 16 that the secrets of the heart are exposed at that throne.

For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light, Luke 8, 17. It's a throne where God's grace is magnified. It's a perfect, pure holiness, reflective of Jesus Christ, but it exposes the uncleanness. All unbelievers know their uncleanness they know it today they know it every minute of the day. But for the believer it's a testimony of the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ.

Before the white throne, you're dressed in fine linen, clean and white. Before the throne are those whose sins are a scarlet and they are now white as snow. They've been given a white stone and they've been given a new name. That's Revelation 2 17. The appearance before the throne will happen suddenly.

You won't be able to anticipate it. You can't expect it. It'll be all of a sudden. And Matthew 24 says, for as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. And then the Son of Man will appear in heaven and all the tribes of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man those are the unbelievers Coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory and he will send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet and they will gather together his elect from the four winds from one end of heaven to another and all all those souls and bodies will be united together before God and at that time God will separate the sheep from the goats.

Malachi 3.5 says, and I will come near you for judgment. I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against the perjurers. It'll be a very shocking surprise. I've walked through several graveyards in New England where the Puritans are buried, And you'll find very interesting testimonies of the suddenness of the judgment of God on the gravestones. And these gravestones have different imagery than you find on gravestones today.

On some you'll find an hourglass with wings, saying the time is fleeting, time is passing. Believe before the time, That's with the hourglass and the wings. And you have the skull and the crossbones to remind you that that's where you're going to end up. You know, the pirates, you know, used that, but the Puritans used it as well to say that the time is coming when your body will be in the grave and a grave is a testimony to that. These images on these gravestones meant were meant to speak of the frailty of life.

To call everyone to repent before the silver cord is broken, as Solomon said. Before the golden bowl is crushed. Because time is not on your side. Time is on God's side. He controls time.

It's a throne of exclusive authority. It's a throne of inflexible justice. It's a throne without partiality. It's a throne of absolute righteousness. It is a throne.

God has ordained for this day. Psalm 7-11, God is a just judge, and God is angry with the wicked every day. It's a day fixed by God, Acts 17, 31. God has fixed a day when he will judge the world in righteousness. In Jeremiah 4, 14, we learn that the wicked are judged for their thoughts, not just their deeds.

In Isaiah 66, 3, we learn that the wicked are judged for their thoughts, not just their deeds. In Isaiah 66, three, we learn that the wicked are judged for what they delighted in. They did not delight in holy and pure things. They delighted in impure. What you delight in tells this whole story of your life.

Even if they've done good works They will be like Simon Simon Magnus your heart is not right Or like jay who who did everything God told him to do on paper. He went out and did the deeds He said God says you did all that was in my heart but not with your heart You know some I've read some who compared this throne with the other thrones in Revelation. In Revelation 4, you have a rainbow, you know, you have the crystal sea, the saints standing on it rejoicing. But in this, in this throne, there's no rainbow, there's no singing, there's no more thundering, there's no more lightning to warn. Thunder and lightning is a warning in scripture.

It's the warning of a subpoena that's going to be issued. Whenever there's thunder and lightning, pay attention. Well, everybody does. Just this last week, there was a lot of thunder and lightning. And I was in a car with somebody and there was lightning and every time it happened, the other person said, Did you see that?

Did you see that? That's what we do. Look at that lightning bolt. Oh, I missed it. Well, I saw it.

Well, it's a warning. Every time you hear thunder and lightning, be warned. Be warned of the great white throne of judgment because there won't be any more lightning and thunder at the great white throne the warnings have all already gone out there will be no more warnings there will be no sermons there will be no Bible there will be nothing and it will be over. You know, for anyone who's delaying, who cannot say that they believe, how many times have you been warned already in this world by your parents reading the Bible to you? So many have had faithful parents who read the Bible to them, who took them to church, who even, you know, they listened to sermons.

But yet, it just didn't faze them. They just couldn't confess that Jesus Christ is their Lord. You know, Jonathan Edwards, when he was in his teens, he wrote over 60 resolutions for his life and resolution 55, he said in his resolution that he wanted to live every day as if he had already seen the great white throne, as if he had already seen the glories of heaven. He's already seen like the story of the rich man in Lazarus. He'd already seen the terrors of hell.

He wanted to live as if he had already seen it every day. In Romans 1, 18, we learn that no one will have an excuse before that throne. No one will have an excuse before that throne. For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth and unrighteousness. Oh yes, say oh I'm just thinking it over.

No, you're suppressing the truth and unrighteousness. Because that which may, that for what may be known of God is manifest in them. For God has shown it to them. 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 Because Although they knew God they did not glorify him as God nor were thankful But became futile in their thoughts and their foolish hearts were darkened therefore you are inexcusable Oh, man The For the person who's on the fence, he doesn't need more information. He's already been given enough.

He's seen the heavens. He's seen the beauty of the world. He's seen a manifestation of the glory of God in almost every place that he looks. From a tree to a door, to a river, to rain, everything. Everything points to God some element of his glory and so there's no excuse at all there's no reason to keep thinking There's no reason to keep considering to wonder if you're ready And Who's on the throne?

It's the Lord Jesus Christ himself the light of the world the Lamb of God the bread of life The resurrection and the Life. This is the throne of the Lord Jesus. Now, it's very interesting, in some texts, you see the Father on the throne in Romans 14. In Matthew 24, it's Jesus Christ on the on the throne and this it's Jesus Christ on the throne How can God and Jesus Christ be on the throne at the same time? Because God is Father Son and Holy Spirit This This is the presence of the Holy Trinity.

The Lord Jesus, God has given judgment to the Son in John 522, for the Father judges no one but has committed all judgment to the Son. Notice Christ is sitting, he's sitting on the throne. He judges in complete serenity. He's unruffled. He's settled.

In Psalm 2 we learn, he who sits in heaven laughs. In Psalm 37 verses 12 and 13, the wicked plots against the just and gnashes at him with his teeth. The Lord laughs at him. Why? For he sees his day coming.

And the world is altered. Notice these words, from whose face the earth and heaven fled away and there was no place, there was found no place for them. God is unraveling the world. He's making a new heaven and a new earth. The old will pass away.

The skies are rolled up as a scroll, there'll be a great meltdown and a recreation. And let's turn to the people before the throne, verses 12 and 13. I saw the dead, verse 12a. I saw the dead, the small and great standing before God. All people, small and great, rich and poor, young and old, children before the throne, yes, children, yes, little children, every person who's ever been born, even an infant before the throne of God.

Children will be judged just the way adults are judged. It was very clear in the Gospels that children could love the Lord Jesus. It's so good for a child to love Jesus. Are you a child today? Do you love the Lord Jesus?

Do you want to follow him? Do you want to be his lamb? Do you want to obey him? Because children will be judged. You know when you're when you're little you you think only the big people will be judged but that isn't really true and so you delay.

It doesn't seem very serious You don't seem like you're in danger when you're nine years old But you're just as much in danger as the hardened criminal before God You for you children whose life is sweet in your home. I hope it's sweet. I hope it's like a little piece of heaven in your home. If it's sweet, God is giving you a foretaste of heaven, which will be sweeter than anything you've ever experienced in the world. I know for many of you children life is good, isn't it?

It'll be so much better in heaven. But God has given you time today, even if you're little. If you're four or six or 10 or 12 or 16, you will be before that throne. And your only hope will be the mercy of God. What about infants before the throne?

Even infants will be before the throne of God. Well, here's what we know about God. His judgments are true and righteous altogether. He knows all things. He's compassionate.

He's tender-hearted. This is what we know about God. The Lord knows all things. The Lord knows all things. God will do right by every child who stands before Him because God is good and God is love.

And he will do exactly what is right for every infant that appears before him. That's why Jesus said, let the children come. Let the children come to me. All of God's attributes will be exercised before the infants and all the young people and all the old people. And then books are opened.

Books are opened. And books were opened, and another book was 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. So you have two kinds of books. You have the books, and then you have another book, the book of life.

Now you can do a great study on this idea of the books of God. It's very interesting. My understanding of this is that the books, the books here, are records of all of the deeds of all of the people who lived in the world. Everything you've ever done, your life story, it's a chronicle of your life. It's like the movie of your life.

It's recorded in heaven. God forbid that we would play those movies here today for any of us. But it's the footage of what we did during our time in the world. Everything we have ever done has been recorded. People are afraid today that you know somebody's going to track their footsteps on the internet.

Oh forget that, God's already tracked it. Far better. God will render to every man according to his deeds, Romans 2 6. Even a child is known by his doings, Proverbs 20 verse 11. Now, in Revelation 13 there's a mention of those names who were not written in the book of life.

All who dwell on the earth will worship Him whose names have not been written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess. Even the unbelievers will say, you are Lord. They will hate him but they will say he is Lord. Not the same way that you say he's Lord.

You say it tenderly. You say Jesus is my Lord. He's my shepherd. That's not how the wicked respond to him. But they will worship him.

But this book, the book of life, it tells who will inherit everlasting life. Your names, if you're a believer, are in this book now. And in Revelation 21 verse 27, we're told that those experiencing light and joy in the temple of God are the ones written in the Lamb's Book of Life. The Lamb's Book of Life. Now, every name in the two books are the names of the guilty.

The unbelievers are guilty, but the believers are also guilty. They're guilty of their sin. The names of all the books are the guilty, but those in the book of life have been cleared because their sins have been forgiven. And when was it paid for? What's the date stamp before the foundation of the world?

And then the dead are judged, 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. So some died at sea and their bodies will be reconstituted, body and body and soul will be before the throne You know what happened what happens if you were if you were consumed in a fire God will reconstitute your body. Well, he created the world. He could probably reconstitute your body But the dead gave up the the sea gave up the dead there the the bodies of those who died at sea will come before the throne. And they're judged for their works, verse 13.

And they were judged each according to his works. This is the second time it's mentioned that you're judged by your works. And but we know that salvation is not by works, but salvation produces works. There's no salvation without works. Faith without works is dead.

And then the lake of fire, verse 14 and 15, the lake of fire. 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. What's death in Hades? It's quite likely that death in Hades is that state of being in the intermediate state where the wicked are experiencing torment, and the souls of the damned are alive.

So it seems that God throws the intermediate state into the lake of fire. And in verse 15, anyone not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. You know, if you look at the doctrine of hell, there are particular things that the Bible teaches about hell. It's a place of self-consciousness. It's a place of torment.

It's a place of outer darkness. It's a place of gnashing teeth It's so astounding It's so heartbreakingly heavy To read about the eternal state of the wicked God God desires to get rid of wickedness. He desires to get rid of abuse. He desires to get rid of murderous things. He desired, if there was no lake of fire, then it would be as if God was saying everything is okay and it's not okay.

He's saying it's not okay. It's not okay to lie and steal and kill and commit adultery. It's not okay. It's so harmful. It's so heartbreaking and God is going to put an end to all those heartbreaking things.

In Malachi 20, in Matthew 25, we learn that it's a prepared fire. Matthew 25 41. Then he will also say to those on the left hand you cursed into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels there's the torment of outer darkness in Matthew 8 verse 12 So for the believer at the throne of judgment, I want to just say two things, because there's a lot to say, but I want to give you two things. It's a time of rejoicing. It's a throne of rejoicing.

You know, reading the Psalms this week, It was very interesting, I ran into several Psalms, particularly Psalm 96 and 98. And they both start out and end the same way. Oh, sing to the Lord a new song. Sing to the Lord all the earth. Sing to the Lord, bless his name.

Proclaim the good news of his salvation from day to day declare his glory among the nations his wonder among the peoples why for the Lord for he is coming he is coming to judge the earth he shall judge the world with righteousness and the peoples with truth it'll be a time of rejoicing just like the psalmist second it'll be a time of admiration. You will admire him so much. You will be so pleased with him. You will be unquenchably admiring him When the Lord Jesus is second Thessalonians 1 verses 9 and 10 when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in Flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power.

When he comes, now we turn to the believers, to be glorified in his saints and to be admired among all those who believe. He will be so admired. You'll be so thankful for him. And what is this throne designed for, for the believer? Two things.

Not only will the believer experience the things I just mentioned, but it's actually designed to do something for the believer who's still alive, that would be us. First, it's for comfort. To comfort believers, 1st Thessalonians 4, 16, and 17. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.

And thus we shall always be with the Lord." And then he says, therefore, comfort one another with these words. That's what we, these words are meant to be for comfort. Second, not only comfort, they're meant to strengthen. These words are meant to strengthen a church, even a local church. They were meant to strengthen the local church in Corinth to make us immovable.

1 Corinthians 15, 52. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye at the last trumpet, for the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised incorruptible and we shall be changed and then in verse 58 he says therefore my beloved brethren be steadfast immovable always abounding in the work of the Lord knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord." These words are really meant to comfort a church and to strengthen a church and to help a church have such greater resolve to walk every day as if they had already been to heaven. They'd already seen the judgment of the wicked. They'd already seen the glories and the happinesses of heaven as Jonathan Edwards did. God's grace holds for the believer at that great white throne.

Christ bore all the suffering for our sins. He paid a ransom price for our iniquities. He was bruised for our iniquities. He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities.

The chastisement of our peace was upon him, and by his stripes we are healed." Next year I'm going to do a conference called the Chief End of Man. The Chief End of Man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. And I was corresponding with one of the speakers at this conference last week, last Thursday night. It was Joel Beeke. He said, I'm in Bali and I'm preaching, you know, like 30 times over the next two weeks.

And I told him that Bali, you know, had become really the surfing capital of the world. He probably ought to go out and try to do that the next day. I said, I know this because I grew up in Southern California in surf culture, so I know this. And he replied, I'll be surfing the waves of grace. And that's what I pray for all of us, constantly riding the waves of grace all the way to the end, looking for our glorious redemption, understanding what's really going to happen to us.

Ride the waves of grace, ride them, ride them every day, ride them today, ride them as we have a fellowship meal, ride them throughout the afternoon, ride them when you go to work in the morning, ride the waves of grace, because this throne is not only a great white throne of judgment, it's a throne of grace for all those who love God and are called according to his purpose. Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep those things which are written in it. Would you pray with me? Father, these things are so remarkable, beautiful and terrifying at the same moment. But Lord, we acknowledge the grace of your Son and what kindness he has brought to us in forgiving us of all of our sins, to set us before your throne in white robes with a white stone and a new name, cleansed, clean and white.

Lord, I so pray that anyone who's delaying would delay no longer. Today would be the last day of the delay. Amen. Amen.