Revelation 20:11, 12, 15
(All Scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated)
The featured Scripture is Revelation 20:11 and 12:
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...And anyone not found written in the
Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
The Book of Life is the listing of every person who has believed the promises of God:
- …those who have trusted Jesus Christ as Savior since His incarnation, suffering and crucifixion, death, resurrection, and ascension to glory!
- …those who have believed the promises of God before Christ’s incarnation, such as…
✡ ...Adam and Eve (see the Gem from July 27, 2021 – “My
Name is Jehovah Tsidkenu!”).
✡ ...Abraham of whom it is said in Genesis 15:5 and 6:
“Then He brought him outside and said, Look now toward
heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number
them....So shall your descendants be.’ And he believed
in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteous-
ness.”
But let’s focus on what it says in our featured Scripture: “…and books were opened….And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books…”
“…the books…” (plural): There are multiple books, perhaps a book that is a record of the life of every person who did not accept the Son of God as their Savior!
- Their names are not written in the Book of Life! They are not genuine saved believers!
- According to Revelation 20:12, the people here “…were judged according to their works…” (Revelation 20:12). Believers never gain their eternal kingdom destination by their works, but by personal faith in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ! We are told in Galatians 2:16, “…knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ…for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.”
- These ones so judged at the Great White Throne are then “…cast into the lake of fire…and burning sulphur, which is the second death.” (Revelation 20:15; 21:8).
If God keeps books recording the works of every unsaved person through the ages, if there is one book per person, there would have to be multiple billions of books! How does God do it? Does He assign guardian angels (one per person) who furiously write down every action, word, and thought that is produced by that person? I believe there is a more logical way – and it relates to the last two Gems – Stones That Listen, and Stones That Speak!
A Disclaimer: I have an inquisitive mind which I enjoy applying to various difficult biblical matters, matters on which the Word of God does not offer plain teachings. What follows are my thoughts on the records that are produced of actions, thoughts, and words of all those who reject His gracious salvation. So if you do not agree with me on the following information, that’s okay. Sometimes I don’t agree with me either!
- Every human being in every situation radiates energy, even as God radiates His glorious divinity! It is called His ‘Shekinah glory’ – the brilliance of the presence of the LORD! As Paul wrote in I Timothy 6:15 and 16, God is “…the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, [who dwells] in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and everlasting power.”
✡ In Stones That Listen, “...Joshua...set up a large
stone...and told the people, ‘...this stone...has
heard everything that the LORD has said to us. Our
God can call this stone as a witness if we ever re-
ject Him.’” (Joshua 24:26 and 27 – Contemporary
English Version).
➔ When the presence of God was with the Israel-
ites near that stone, some of that Shekinah
energy (unapproachable for mortal people)
could have been absorbed by that stone!
➔ The Israelites themselves were radiating energy
(as all living things do), which was picked up
by whatever was near to them. ‘This stone’ would
have absorbed some of that energy!
✡ In Stones That Speak, as Jesus rode into Jerusalem, He
was hailed in Messianic terms by the welcoming crowd.
We are told in Luke 20:39 and 40, “...some of the Phar-
isees called to Him from the crowd, ‘Teacher, rebuke
Your disciples.’ But He answered and said to them, ‘I
tell you that if these [people] should keep silent, the
stones would immediately cry out.’”
➔ Apparently, the inanimate stones (and other
surroundings) were absorbing the excitement,
sounds, even the images of the excited people.
Jesus, being God incarnate, could have per-
formed the miracle of tuning the stones to
‘playback’, and with the volume turned up,
those rocks and stones, apparently lifeless
objects, would project back, perhaps in a ho-
lographic way, what was happening around them!
➔ The stones would then appear to be shouting
praises to welcome Jesus: “Blessed is the King
who comes in the name of the LORD! Peace in
heaven and glory in the highest!” (Luke 19:38).
Now apply this idea to creation: Wherever human beings are, they are surrounded by part of the physical world. It might be a natural setting outside, or it might be the steel and concrete of cities. It might even be the floor, ceiling, and walls, even the furnishings of the dwelling someone lives in. As energy is radiated from a man, woman, or child, part of that energy is absorbed into the surroundings! There it remains forever! Even if the walls of a dwelling crumble into dust, the dust still retains the energy of all that went on in its presence!
All creation around us – rocks, trees, soil, grass, man-made buildings and infrastructure…
- …these are the books that are inscribed with our thoughts, words, and actions; inscribed with the energy output of a living mortal being!
- …in these are stored the record of our lives – to be accessed by the Lord at the judgment!
I don’t see the books described being written by guardian angel scribes furiously writing down every single word, deed, and thought! God is much more efficient than that! He has a built-in giant recorder – sound and video! And this recorder is so sensitive it can even pick up the thoughts of human beings! And at the Great White Throne judgment there will be full documentation of every thought, every word, and every deed of every unsaved individual! God will simply tune up the recorder and begin the play-back exactly as it happened, to be witnessed by the one being judged, as well as everyone else present! No one will be able to deny their personal recorded ‘book’!
And after the record of a person’s life is broadcast, judgment will be given! Jesus will look at that one and say, “Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil
and his angels…” (Matthew 25:41).
And that person will have to go…….into the eternal fire of hell! For who can resist the command of almighty God? As I said before, this is the fate of the person who is not a Christian! For us who have opened our hearts and minds to the Lord…
- “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus…” (Romans 8:1).
- “Their sins and their lawless deeds [God says] I will remember no more.” (Hebrews 10:17).
…that one will never have to face the Great White Throne judgment!
How does God tune up creation so it will play back the recording? I have no idea! However, if, as Jesus said, “I tell you that if these [people] should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out…,” that record will be published!
I will leave the “How does He do it?”
to our omnipotent God!
YOU…
…Make that sure decision
that leads one from death to life!