1. The book of Revelation commences with a throne (1:4) and concludes with a throne (22:1,3).
2. All throughout the book of Revelation, we are reminded of the throne of God – there are 32 references to the throne of God in the book of Revelation.
3. Thrones often speak of judgment, and tonight I will be speaking on the subject of the great white throne judgment, as it is recorded for us in the twentieth chapter of Revelation.
4. The story is told of the great statesman Daniel Webster, who was speaking to a group of younger men and they asked him what was the greatest thought that ever crossed his mind. He quickly replied, "My accountability to God."
5. According to the Bible, man must give an account to God and every lost sinner must stand before the great white throne of God and give an account.
6. The judicial benches of this world pale in comparison to this staggering scene of the final judgment of the unsaved.
7. Thomas Carlyle, the great British historian, wrote, "What a magnificent conception is that of a last judgment. A righting of all the wrongs of the ages."
8. The writer of the book of Hebrews asks, "How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?" (Heb.2:3). Unfortunately, many have neglected God’s gracious plan of salvation – but they will not be able to escape the great white throne judgment.

I. THERE IS A THRONE UP YONDER IN HEAVEN (20:11).

1. It is "great" because it is the most awesome assize ever held and it is "white," signifying God’s purity and holiness.
2. Only the lost will stand before this throne.

1. Most of the book of Revelation, including chapter 20, is in chronological order.
2. Those who are part of "the first resurrection" (20:4,5) are saved – "But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished" (20:5).
3. "The second death hath no power" over those believers who take part in the first resurrection (20:6,14).
4. The first death refers to physical death but the second death refers to eternal torment in hell (20:14).

3. The apostle Paul wrote that the Lord Jesus Christ "shall judge the quick and the dead" (II Tim.4:1). The quick (living) have already been judged – this is the judgment of the dead.
4. God the Father has ordained that the Lord Jesus Christ be the judge at this great white throne judgment (cf. Acts 17:31; John 5:26,27).
5. In the book of Romans, 2:16, Paul writes that "God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ."
6. John writes: "from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away…" (20:11) – the awesomeness of this throne and the majesty of our Lord’s countenance are so great that even the earth and heaven must flee.
7. William Pettingill, a great Baptist preacher of a previous generation writes, "Nowhere in all literature is there such a majestic and awful description as this."
8. Sir Walter Scott writes that "the throne is not set on the earth, nor in relation to its dispensations and times. It is a scene outside of human history entirely. We have passed out of time into eternity."
9. Down here in this corrupt and crooked world, we often hear about dishonest judges and unfair trials. But there is a throne up yonder in heaven and a Judge sitting upon that throne who is absolutely true, and absolutely righteous, and absolutely pure, and absolutely holy – because He is the Son of God.

II. THERE ARE SOME BOOKS UP YONDER IN HEAVEN (20:12).

1. Who are these "dead, small and great" (20:11) that are appointed to stand before God? They are those who rejected Christ and missed out on the first resurrection (20:6). Therefore, they must take part in what our Lord called the "resurrection of damnation" (John 5:29).
2. Their bodies are brought forth from every depository that holds their dust – whether in the sea or in the earth (20:13)
3. It doesn’t matter if they were blown up or eaten by sharks – God will raise them up for their scheduled appointment at the great white throne.
4. Some people request to have their bodies cremated and their ashes scattered to the four winds (e.g. JFK Jr.) – God will raise them up for this final judgment that no lost sinner can escape.
5. God keeps books and His books are 100 % accurate. These books are not for determining who is going to heaven and who is going to hell – that has already been settled by each sinner who rejected the Gospel and turned his back on God. Their fate was sealed at their death when they left this world without faith in Christ.
6. The great evangelist D. L. Moody used to say that if a man ever invented a camera that could photograph the human heart, people would refuse to look at the pictures. But God has such a camera and every wicked sin is in his record books. God has computers that never "shut down."
7. The purpose of the books and the sentence pronounced upon the wicked is to determine the various degrees of punishment in the lake of fire. There are different degrees of punishment in hell (cf. Matt.11:20-22; Luke 12:47,48).
8. We hear very little hellfire and brimstone preaching these days and we can see the results. We have kids shooting up the public schools; we have filth all over the TV and radio; we have a sex pervert for a president, etc.
9. A.C. Dixon used to say, "If we had more preaching on hell in the pulpit, we might have less hell in the community."
10. Billy Sunday said: "You may not believe in hell now, but you’ll believe in it five minutes after you get there."
11. General Booth said: "If I had my way, I would not give any of my workers a three-years training in a college, but I would put each of them 24 hours in hell – the best training for earnest preaching you could have."
12. God is going to open all His books (Rev.20:12). God will judge every deed (Matt.10:26-28) and God will judge every word (Matt.12:36). Every sin you have ever committed is recorded in these books.
13. The "book of life" (Rev.20:12) is also up yonder in heaven. Is your name written in there? If not, you are in trouble (20:15).
14. It will be too late for warnings at the great white throne judgment.
    There was a wicked infidel named Robert Ingersoll who was friendly with a preacher named Phillips Brooks (the author of "O Little Town of Bethlehem"). There was a time when Dr. Brooks was very sick and would not see any visitors but he did allow Ingersoll to see him when he called. "I appreciate this very much," said Mr. Ingersoll, "but why do you see me when you deny yourself to all your friends?" "It’s this way," replied Phillips Brooks. "I feel confident of seeing my other friends up in heaven, but this may be my last chance to see you."
15. Maybe this is your last chance – to hear the Gospel – to repent of your sins – to get things right with God – to get saved.
16. Don’t procrastinate – come to Jesus before your heart grows cold and hard – some day it will be too late.

III. THERE IS A LITERAL, HOT, BURNING LAKE OF FIRE (20:10,14,15).

1. First, the antichrist and the false prophet are cast alive into the lake of fire (Rev.19:20). Then, after 1,000 years, the devil is cast into the lake of fire (20:10). This proves several things:

1. Contrary to popular opinion, the devil is not in hell right now (I Peter 5:8).
2. Contrary to what some of the cults teach, there is no such thing as "annihilation."
3. Contrary to what the liberals and other unbelievers teach, the fire in hell is never quenched – "and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever" (20:10; cf. 14:10,11; Mark 9:43b,44,45b,46,48).
4. Contrary to the foolish jokes we are always hearing about hell, the punishment is excruciatingly painful ("Where their worm dieth not" – Mark 9:44.,46,48; cf. Luke 16:24).
5. George Whitefield was preaching from the text, "and the door was shut" (Matt.25:10) and two young men were laughing and talking. One said to the other: "Well, what if the door be shut, another will open." Whitefield continued on by saying, "It is possible there may be some careless, trifling person here today, who may ward off the force of this serious subject by lightly thinking, `What matter if the door be shut, another will open’." The two young men were paralyzed, and looked at each other. Whitefield then proceeded, "Yes, another door will open – and I will tell you what door it will be – the door to hell!"
6. Contrary to the teachings of the R.C.C., there is no such thing as "purgatory." Neither is there any such thing as reincarnation or "second chance after death."

2. Our Lord spoke of the "everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels" (Matt.25:46) – this is it.
3. In Dante’s Inferno, it is written over the gates of hell: "Abandon hope, ye who enter here."
4. The Bible says that "death and hell were cast into the lake of fire" (20:14). Death will deliver up their physical bodies and hell will deliver up their lost souls. The wicked will have their bodies and souls reunited for this final judgment – then they will be cast into the lake of fire (20:15).
5. Some of you here today do not like to associate with perverts or dopeheads or murderers or idol-worshipers – but if you do not repent and receive Jesus Christ as your Saviour, you will spend eternity with them (21:8).
6. Imagine living in a huge apartment building and every tenant in that building was a thief, a liar, a sex maniac, a detestable pervert. And you couldn’t move out – you were stuck there for all eternity. And your neighbors played loud rock and rap "music" very loud, 24 hours a day, and the place was on fire, and there were no exits, no windows, no way to escape. There was constant weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth – the horrible screams of the damned pounding in your ears continually – hell will be worse than that, my friend.

CONCLUSION:

1. During the horrible blitzkrieg of London during World War II, after the Nazis bombed the city badly, the city was up in flames, buildings were toppling over, and babies and their mothers were screaming and crying. In the midst of all this agony and despair, an evangelist was standing in the streets of London preaching the Gospel. While he was preaching, a skeptic interrupted him and said, "Listen preacher; this is hell, this is hell!" The preacher replied: "Sir, this is not hell. And I will give you three good reasons why. One, I’m a Christian and there are no Christians in hell. Second, there is a church building right around the corner and there are no churches in hell. Third, I am preaching the Gospel – that Jesus Christ died on the cross for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead – and there is no Gospel preaching in hell." About three weeks later, that same evangelist was preaching in Hyde Park and when he gave out the invitation, the first person to come forward was that skeptic.
2. What about you? Are you saved? Are you prepared to meet God? If you repent of your sins and turn to Christ, He will save you. If not, you will have to stand before Him at the great white throne judgment. Why don’t you get right with God before it is too late?