Something I frequently say is that this life is simply a temporary stop on the bus ride to eternity. Nobody on this earth gets out of here alive. If you are reading this, you have a one hundred percent chance of dying someday.
Now, I know the above statement is not what most would consider pleasant. That’s not a saying you would put on a coffee mug or a motto you would repeat when in need of inspiration. It is, however, the truth. Ignoring it will do no better at preventing it than ignoring April 15 will at keeping you from paying your taxes. One way or another, the government is getting its money, and one way or another, everyone will die.
Furthermore, after death, everyone will move on to their eternal judgement, whether it is good or bad. We have all heard the term “judgement day” before, so much so that perhaps it can feel like a myth or start to lose its meaning. With that said, eternal judgement is very real. Some of the book of Revelation’s final chapters explain in-depth what will happen on this day of eternal judgement. Let’s learn more about it.
Great White Throne Judgement
Revelation is a book written by John the Apostle, in which God shares with him various details about what will happen in the end-times. It culminates in John learning what will happen to both those who are and are not in Christ.
The people whose names are not written in the Book of Life must stand before the great white throne to be judged.
11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.
Revelation 20:11-12
There is a key detail here that is important to point out before continuing. It is right there in the second half of verse eleven. Read it over again.
The earth and the heavens try to flee from God’s presence…but there is no place to go. No place to hide. There is no escaping the judgement to come. The guilty, all throughout biblical history, have attempted to flee from God. Adam hid behind a bush. Jonah stowed away on a boat. Well, this time there will be no hiding. Everything will be brought to light. Every deed of the unbeliever will be weighed against God’s perfect law, and the blood of Jesus will not be there to cover them—they rejected it.
The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done.
Revelation 20:13
This passage grows more sobering the more we read. You may find yourself wondering what “death and hades” are. It is the place those who are not in Christ go to after they die in order to await final judgement. It is not hell, although there do appear some similarities (you may remember the story of the rich man in Luke 16:14-31 who goes there and desperately yearns for a single drop of water on his tongue).
As for the sea that gave up its dead, this could refer to those who rebelled against Christ during his thousand-year-reign. At any rate, we see here everyone who rejected Christ’s free gift of salvation, whether alive or dead, here to receive eternal judgement for their sins.
Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. 15 Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.
Revelation 20:14-15
The entirety of those who rebelled, after they stand before the great white throne to be judged, is now thrown into the lake of fire, where they will remain for eternity. The lake of fire, or the second death, is what we call “hell.” It is the place of eternal separation from God, the fitting punishment for sinning against our holy and just Creator.
This is just one of two possible eternal destinies. We will now explore the other one.
Judgement Seat of Christ
In these passages, the apostle Paul is telling the Church about the experience of the believer on the day of judgement, which differs wildly from that of the unbeliever.
Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
2 Corinthians 5:9-10
Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; 11 for it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.” 12 So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.
Romans 14:10-12
When believers stand before the judgement seat of Christ, they are not judged for every individual sin they committed, and the wrath of God will not be upon them. This is solely due to the loving sacrifice of Jesus Christ, who took the punishment we deserved and reconciled us to God.
Rather, believers will be judged on how well they lived their life in service to Christ and expanding the Kingdom of God. Did we make the most of our discipling opportunities? Did we model Christ effectively to those around us? Did we support others in the body of Christ? Did we utilize our gifting the way God commanded us to?
After appearing before the judgement seat of Christ, it will be time to enjoy our glorious inheritance. Just read!
Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
Revelation 21:1-4
There are no words that can describe the joy of the believer’s eternal destiny accurately. The new heaven and new earth are the inheritance of every follower of Christ, and they are eternal community with God.
Have you ever worried if it’s going to be boring in heaven? Perhaps you picture sitting on a cloud all day singing boring hymns for billions upon billions of years, with everything you loved about your old life gone? Worry no longer! The new heaven and the new earth are not like that. They are everything you loved about the old heaven and earth but better! They offer renewal, not an unrecognizable change.
Heaven won’t be this misty, ethereal realm. It will come down to earth. It will be all that we held dear minus the curse of sin. As Pastor Anthony says: “creation’s beauties will be heightened, its pleasures strengthened, and our limitations lifted.”
We will walk in our new and glorious bodies, free from sorrow and disease and sin, and we will serve!
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.
Revelation 22:1-3
His “servants will serve him.” That’s us. Work was part of God’s original creation. Adam and Eve worked in the garden even before the Original Sin. It will be part of the new creation, too. We don’t know exactly what it will be, but we can be assured it will be work each individual can thrive in and find fulfilling—tailored to our unique gifting and abilities.
In short, we will spend eternity abundantly serving, glorifying, and enjoying God in the beautiful new heaven and new earth, free from death and sin forever.
7 Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. 8 But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”
Revelation 21:7-8
What Now?
Choose and Teach Life
A famous and powerful passage from Deuteronomy 30:15-20 is brought to mind. In this book, God has reminded the Israelites of all he has commanded them and retold them the story of how he delivered them from captivity. After this, almost as if to summarize everything he has talked about, he tells them that he has set before them blessing and curse…life and death. Therefore, they should choose life! Our situation is much the same today. Upon reading the whole Bible and ending with Revelation, we can come to the conclusion that God has set before us life and death, blessing and curse. Which are we going to choose? Furthermore, which pathway are we going to lead others down? We know what happens to those who reject Christ. There is not utility in telling somebody their shoes look nice while they are on their way to walking off a cliff.
We have been given a sphere of influence—people we may invest in and disciple. Pray about these people and pray for opportunities to develop a spiritual relationship with them.
Look to What Is Better
In the midst of life’s pain and dysfunction, and in the midst of our struggle with sin, we can sometimes forget what it is we are working for. It is interesting how quick we are to forget our purpose and the glorious inheritance that awaits us as believers. As you walk through your darkest valleys, never forget the eternity of joy and fulfillment at the other end of the tunnel. We have a hope that never dies from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who saw fit to die for us that we might have life with Him forever. There is no greater joy than this.