Escatolology - Lesson 4
The Millennium of Revelation 20 - part 2
by Pastor Bob Burridge ©2005
Fast Link Index:
The Characteristics of the Millennium: Revelation 20:4
Is this the Golden Age?
Two Kinds of Resurrection: Revelation 20:4-6
God's Final Judgment: Revelation 20:7-15
The Characteristics of the Millennium
One of the most evident features of the Millennium is that it's a time
when Messiah reigns in a special way as mentioned at the end of verse 4.
Revelation 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was
given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because
of the testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had
not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark upon
their forehead and upon their hand; and they came to life and reigned with
Christ for a thousand years.
This era started at the first coming of Jesus long ago. In our last study we
looked at the various passages where Jesus explained that "the kingdom has come
upon you."
This is a period of gospel freedom
Also in our last study, we saw that this is a time when Satan is bound so that
during the Millennium he is unable to hold the Gentiles in blindness. Since he
is unable to deceive them as a whole, many are taken from him and transformed
into redeemed citizens of God's kingdom.
The Apostles were no longer limited in their ministry of comfort to the Jews only
and were able to bring God's message of Salvation to the Gentiles as well (Acts 13:46). In
Romans 11 the Gentiles are brought in as the branches of the wild olive tree
are grafted into the good olive tree which is spiritual Israel, the church.
Our liberty to bring the Gospel to people of every nation and heritage
is only a blessing to us as messengers when we exercise that liberty
to actually persist in our witness to all who are lost.
In 2 Timothy 2:24-26 Paul writes,
"the Lord's bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all,
able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those
who are in opposition; if perhaps God may grant them repentance
leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their
senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held
captive by him to do his will."
Biblical evangelism is God's way of extending His kingdom to all the elect.
This period of history is an exciting one. Those who take part in the kingdom
work will share in its joy. Those who sit by idly, abandon the Lord and do not
obey him. He said, "if you love me, you will keep my commandments." The idle
also cast doubt into their own hearts where there should be assurance and hope.
Since we don't know which of the people we meet will be touched by grace and come
to the Lord through faith, we are expected to tell the gospel to all we can, to
Jews and Gentiles alike. This is how we obey God's mandate for this era of Satan's
bondage.
The Canons of Dort are the primary statement historically of what we call the
Five Points of Calvinism. There, in the 2nd head of doctrine, article 5,
it expressed the importance of evangelism in this gospel age;
".. the promise of the gospel is that whosoever believes in Christ crucified shall
not perish, but have eternal life. This promise, together with the command to repent
and believe, ought to be declared and published to all nations, and to all persons
promiscuously and without distinction, to whom God out of His good pleasure sends
the gospel."
Is this millennium the Golden Age mentioned by the prophets?
The prophets of the Old Testament spoke of a future time of God's special blessing.
It was sometimes likened to a "kingdom" (Zech. 9), but was never called a "millennium".
The identity of the times to which each golden age prophesy refers needs to be decided
for each text.
There are several possibilities to consider when we come to those passages.
The specific reference may be to one of these times:
1. the time of Israel's restoration after its captivity
2. the time of the presence of Jesus Christ during his life on earth
3. the age of the church with its direct ministrations of the Holy Spirit
4. the perfect age where glorified believers are with their Lord after the judgment
Before we dare insert another era after the church age and before the final state of glory
we would have to rule out each of the other possibilites for interpreting the so-called
Golden Age prophesies. And we should keep in mind that the only perfect age is the
one after the final judgment when sin is no longer free to show itself among God's people,
or to exercise itself in defiance of the Creator.
We also need to remember that the Millennium of Revelation 20 is only limited in one
specific way as to the liberty of Satan: He is not able during that time to decieve the
Gentiles. It says nothing about sin being restricted.
It would go beyond the scope of this study to present a full analysis of each of the
Golden Age passages in Scripture. But It will help to briefly summarize a few of the
classic passages often cited.
The 70th Week of Daniel 9:24-27 describes a time where there is an end to sin, atonement is
made, there is a beginning of a righteousness which never ends, Messiah is cut off, and
the city and sanctuary are destroyed.
The traditional interpretation is that this refers to the time of Christ and the church
age. There are several references to this passage in Matthew 24 where Jesus describes the
situation as it was at the founding of the New Testament church replacing the Levitical
system. There Jesus also warns of the judgment of Jerusalem for the corruption of the Jews
at that time. The temple and the city were destroyed by Rome in 70 AD.
Isaiah 65:17 talks about a "New heavens and new earth". (See also Isaiah 66:22, 2 Peter 3,
Revelation 21.) To what era does this description belong?
The passage includes many expressions which need cautious interpretation. It mentions that the
wolf and lamb will graze together, the lion will eat straw like the ox, and dust will be
the serpent's food.
Some take this passage in an extremely literal way. They see it as a time where God makes drastic
physical and biological changes in specific animals. He redesigns the entire digestive
systems, nutritional demands and bio-chemistry of the animal kingdom. It imagines that
the lions are to be nourished by straw instead of being carnivores. The bio-chemical processes in the lion,
or the chemistry of the straw would have to be changed. It's teeth would be redesigned to chew vegitation
rather than to eat meat. This would make these animals something other than what we know as lions,
and different from what they were created to be. There is no doubt that God certainly could do all that.
But such a wide-ranging miracle isn't the point of the Isaiah passage, and isn't required by the words and
grammar used by Isaiah.
The traditional interpretations of this passage sees it as either a reference to the eternal state or to
the spiritual peace found in the church of Jesus Christ. The terms used in this chapter are well
established biblical symbols that teach spiritual truths which are explained in the New Testament. The
transformation made by the Gospel of Christ can turn former enemies into brothers in Christ. Those who
once made war and were hostile to one another, become a united body of believers who will dwell together
in peace for all eternity.
The same imagery is used in Isaiah 11 where it is usually understood as referring to the first coming of
Jesus Christ as a branch from the stem of Jesse. The first 10 verses are either directly quoted or alluded
to at least 18 times in the New Testament and applied directly to the life of Jesus Christ on earth, or to
conditions in this age of the church.
This passage (Isaiah 65) is quoted in 2 Peter 3:12-14 where it tells us that the elements will melt with
great heat, and there will be a new heaven and a new earth. It's hard to see confirmation here that there
will be a time more like heaven than the church age, but not as perfect yet as heaven will actually be.
There is little here to support the view that there is a future golden age after the church age yet before
the final consummation. There is even less that would connect this with the Millennium described in
Revelation 20.
Golden Age prophesies are often hard to interpret with full certainty because they focus more on the
promises of God and the encouragement he gives to his covenant people than on trying to spell out the
exact historic details of the ages to come. But these passages don't demand that we insert an age of
semi-perfection on earth after the era of the church but before the final judgment. No such age is directly
mentioned in the Bible. Each prophesy fits well into one of the 4 periods of blessing listed above.
There are Two Kinds of Resurrection in Revelation 20
The two types of resurrection mentioned in this chapter correspond with the two kinds of death described
in Scripture. The basic meaning of death in the Bible is separation. In physical death there
is a separation of the soul from the body. In spiritual death there is a separation of the person from God.
In terms of the history of the unfolding of God's plan there are two stages of the manifesting of death.
1. The first death is the present separation experienced during this life.
From the time of Adam's sin this phase of death has ruled the lives of all humans.
Because of our inherited guilt and disobedient hearts we live in spiritual separation from God.
Ordinarily this reaches its completion in physical death. The body dies and the soul is separated from it.
This is part of the curse of spritual death (Genesis 3:19).
Genesis 2:17 "the day that you eat from it you shall surely die."
Romans 6:23 "the wages of sin is death"
Ephesians 2:1 "you were dead in your trespasses and sins"
:5 "we were dead in our transgressions"
2. The second death is the yet to begin eternal separation from God which occurs at the final
judgment as described in Revelation 20:14-15, "death and Hades were thrown into the lake of
fire. This is the second death, the Lake of Fire. and if anyone's name was not found written in the book of
life, he was thrown into the lake of fire."
Corresponding to these deaths there are two kinds of resurrection in scripture.
The word that appears in the original text of the New Testament is the Greek word anastasis.
It combines the prefix ana (which means "up" or "again") with the root word stasis (which
means "existence, standing, rise, uprising"). The resulting word means "to stand up" "to exist again" or
"to rise again." It is an un-doing of the separation of death. In physicial resurrection a body and soul
separated in death are rejoined. In spiritual resurrection a person separated from God by sin is
brought back into fellowship with him.
1. The first resurrection is the kind that is taking place during this time of the first death.
It's when those who are spiritually dead and alienated from God become spiritually alive again in Christ.
They are re-united to fellowship with God when the offense that separates them is removed by grace.
Ephesians 2: Those born-again are called "raised up" to life.
1. you were dead in your trespasses and sins
5. when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ
(by grace you have been saved)
6. and raised us up with Him and seated us with Him in the heavenly places,
in Christ Jesus
Colossians 2:12-13
".. you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.
and when you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive
together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions"
1 John 3:14
"We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren."
As these verses show, the Bible regularly speaks of this rebirth of the soul as being raised up (resurrected)
from death to life. This is the spiritual resurrection experienced by those redeemed in this era
from Eden until the final judgment.
To avoid confusion with the great resurrection at the return of Jesus Christ, John added the word first.
So here in Revelation 20, before he speaks of the final resurrection, he wanted his readers to know that
something must come first. The person must be born-again if he is to escape the second death in the
great resurrection.
In his gospel (John 3:3) John recorded the words of Jesus,
"Unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God" .
There is no biblical reason to invent some otherwise unrevealed physical resurrection to understand
what he means by "first resurrection". In 20:6 John clarifies exactly what kind of resurrection this is.
"Over these the second death has no power".
2. The great resurrection at the end of this age is never actually called a "second" resurrection
as if there are two events of the same kind. There is only one final resurrection to judgment in Scripture.
Some have held to a theory of two physical resurrections and two judgments which are separated by a 1000 year,
Jewish, millennial kingdom on earth which is very different from what we have described so far.
Most will openly admit that the only evidence for this view is this one verse in Revelation 20 which uses
the word "first" to describe the resurrection that ensures deliverance from eternal condemnation at the
final judgment.
The overwhelming testimony of Christian scholars, past and present, is that there is but one resurrection
to judgment. The saved are raised to eternal glory, and the unsaved to eternal punishment.
The Westminster Confession (32:2) speaks of "all the dead" being raised at the last day to be "united with
their souls forever". Similarly the Nicene and Apostle's Creeds, speak of "The Resurrection" followed by the
life everlasting. They do not speak of more than one physical resurrection.
There is strong Scriptural support for there being only one resurrection of the wicked and of the righteous
at the end of this age.
Daniel 12:2
Those written in the book of life will be rescued. "Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will
awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt."
Acts 24:15 "... there shall certainly be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked."
In John 5 Jesus Himself said,
:24 "he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment,
but has passed out of death into life."
:28-29 "... an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs shall hear His voice, and shall come forth;
those who did the good deeds, to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection
of judgment."
Hebrews 9:27 "It is appointed for men to die once, and after this comes judgment"
Nothing in any of these texts even hints at a long age of 1000 years which separates two resurrections and
two judgments.
Who lives and reigns with Christ?
Revelation 20:4-6
4. And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw
the souls of those who had been beheaded because of the testimony of Jesus and because of the word
of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark upon
their forehead and upon their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
5. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. This is the
first resurrection.
6. Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second
death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand
years.
This passage lists several qualities about those who are ruling with Christ during this millennial
period. First we should note that he sees souls. They are the souls of those beheaded
because of their testimony for Jesus and God's word. They had not worshiped the beast or his image and
had not received his mark. They came to life (evidently from some type of death) to reign with Christ.
They were partakers of the first resurrection and therefore the second death has no power over them.
First, it says that these reigning souls had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and God's word.
The focus of John's observation here is toward what is going on in heaven. Therefore he sees souls.
When he says they were "beheaded" we need to keep in mind that this doesn't always mean literally
someone who has had his head cut off. The term had come to be used very generally of any martyrs
who had been killed in any violent way. James Moffatt's Expositors Greek Testament says that the term
beheaded as used here simply means "executed". We have examples in literature where the same
word was used to describe those thrown to lions, burned as torches by Nero, and so forth.
There was a great concern among believers at that time. If Christ had established his kingdom as he
and the Apostles seemed to teach, then have the martyrs missed out on the glory of this time when
Satan is no longer able to keep the Nations in spiritual blindness? when Jesus reigns over his church
in glory? John's vision assures them that this is not the case. The departed martyrs also reign with
Jesus Christ in glory as their souls rest in his presence. They are very much a part of this
glorious Messianic Kingdom.
These reigning saints are also those who did not receive the mark of the beast on their foreheads and hands.
This has caused a lot of speculation on the part of those who take all this to be yet future. They
imagine a fulfillment of the beast which results in the literal marking of his followers with a physical
brand of some kind.
To understand this biblical terminology we have to trace what the Scriptures say about how people are
marked on their hands and forehead throughout Scripture. John is using a well established figure of
speech, not something new to the readers of the Revelation.
The true child of God is marked out as a member of God's covenant by his thoughts and deeds as
explained in the early book of the Covenant, Deuteronomy.
There in 6:4-9 it teaches us about what the commandments of God are to the covenant children.
It says in verse 8, "bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on
your forehead."
This means that God's word must bind our hand (where it directs what we do), and it should be on our
foreheads (where it directs our thoughts and minds).
The Pharisees had turned this figurative meaning into something physically literal. They actually
tied straps around their hands and hung leather pouches over their forehead with the commandments
written on them. But that's not what God meant in Deuteronomy 6. It wasn't meant to be just a
physical mark or sign. It was supposed to be a spiritual presence of God's moral and religious principles
to guard and guide their thoughts and actions. Many who wore the leather straps lacked obedience to
what they represented. The word of God must bind us and produces evidences in our lives.
(See also Proverbs 3:5-6; 4:23; 6:20-23; 7:3.) This is the mark the Christian. Jesus said,
"If you love me you will keep my commandments" (John 14:15).
The mark of those who follow after the beast (who is contrary to the ways of God)
likewise bear a similar mark to show where their loyalties lie. Their hands are quick to do evil and
violate God's law. Their minds are ruled by thoughts of immorality, greed and ungodliness. The sign isn't
a mere outward physical mark. It's the evidence every unbeliever already bears in his thoughts and deeds
showing that he does not belong to God through faith in Christ.
It's tragic that some who fret about literal tattoos and laser codes, may already bear the mark of the
beast on their minds and hands. Only the Christian, indewelt by the Spirit and in love with God's word,
avoids bearing the mark of the beast. His thoughts are captive to Christ through his word, and his
deeds are being sanctified daily as he grows in grace to conform to what pleases God.
So then, who are the "rest of the dead" mentioned in Revelation 20:5?
They are the ones who did not come to life until the 1000 years were completed.
Their resurrection is a re-union of body and soul to judgment, since they did not take part in the
first resurrection, the spiritual re-union of the sinner with God during this life.
After the kingdom age there will be a "rising again" of the rest, meaning the unbelievers who are not
born again. Without having taken part in the first, spiritual resurrection, they are condemned
to the second death when they are resurrected to judgment. They are cast into the everlasting fire (20:14).
This does not mean that believers only reign in heaven with Christ if they were martyrs.
While the attention of John in this vision was on those in heaven who had been executed for their faith,
we also know that believers reign and serve as priests of God during this church age when Messiah reigns
over his kingdom on earth. We also know that all departed saints are now with Christ, not only those
who were killed for their testimony.
Christians are said to reign on earth as priests with Christ in this church age
1 Peter 2:9 "you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation"
Revelation 1:6 "He has made us to be a kingdom, priests ..."
Revelation 5:9-10 "... Thou wast slain, and didst purchase for God with Thy blood men
from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. And Thou hast made them to be a kingdom and priests
to our God; and they will reign upon the earth."
Romans 16:20 "the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet"
This means that the Roman Christians were being used by God in his work of crushing Satan.
We can be with Christ while we remain on earth. Enoch walked with God while he lived on earth (Genesis 5:22).
This doesn't imply a physical presence in heaven with Christ. We are with him spiritually and he is with us
in his all present being.
This exact language is used in speaking of the rule of believers with Christ during this era.
Believers reign during the "regeneration", the "kingdom"
Matthew 19:28 "you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit
on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel."
Luke 22:30 "you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and you will sit on thrones
judging the twelve tribes of Israel"
In both cases the situation is the same. Believers who follow Christ are said to sit on thrones with
some type of authority by which they judge the covenant nation. Matthew calls it "the regeneration"
(when you are born again), and Luke calls it "the kingdom".
The setting of this promise is clear. Now, during this time while Christ sits at the right hand of the
Father, during this age of regeneration, believers sit on thrones in the Messianic Kingdom.
Judgment is given to these believers. But it is always God alone in the person of Jesus who judges at
the final judgment (see Psalm 72:2; 96:13 and Isaiah 2:4; 42:4). The Bible speaks of the saints judging
the world in this age, not in the final judgment.
Daniel 7:22 "Until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given to the saints
of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom"
1 Corinthians 6:2,3 tells us that Christians shall judge the world, and shall judge angels.
Paul's reasoning is that if God calls his church to make judgments in large matters, like judging the
world and angels, then why should the members of the church run to unbelievers to settle their lesser
disputes?
But Scripture shows that humans do not stand in eternal judgment over any creature.
God alone is the final judge of the eternal destiny of men and angels.
The idea of judgment is often confused by our modern understanding of it. We live under a culture that
divides the courts from the other branches of government. Those who make our laws, enforce them, and
lead in our defense are not the ones who sit as judges in our courts.
In biblical times, these duties were usually combined in the same office. For example, the Elders, both
of ancient Israel and of the church, ruled, lead, taught and made legal judgements for God's people.
When God raised up Judges after Joshuah's conquest of Canaan, they were military leaders rather than
judges in courts of law. This is the context in which the writers of the Bible speak of humans judging
the world.
To judge the world and the angels doesn't mean to decide their eternal fate.
We are not going to help God make his decisions. The decisions are already made eternally.
There is no uncertainty remaining for us to decide as if we were court judges.
A judgment is made whenever a person looks at the facts of a situation, compares it with some general
standard, then decides whether the standard is being complied with or not. We make judgments about things
every day, but not to decide guilt or punishments.
On the final Judgment Day, we will stand with Christ as those united to him by redemption. God will display
the truth about all persons, then pronounce his sentence. He already knew eternally how each person will
measure up. It's not that in the Judgment he has to make a decision. When we judge the world and angels
with Christ in that day, it's when we see God's evidence, and witness his pronouncements, and recognize that
it's a perfectly just and fair judgment. The saints will judge by fully concurring with the wisdom of God.
There's also a very real sense in which we judge the world now. We reign with Christ in this life because
we know and apply God's word. We use that word to correct wrongs in society around us as much as we can
as the salt of the earth, and to explain God's truths both inside and outside the church as the light of
the world. In this sense we expand the fact of God's Kingship as judges appointed to these duties.
Since God calls us to this important duty as Judges to apply his word daily, and even to concur with his
dealings toward the world and angels in the last day, why would the bickering Corinthian Christians prefer
to go to the Roman courts? There is no justification for taking a brother to the civil courts over common
every-day issues. They should be taking responsibility for peace and fairness in their own spiritual family.
The judgment of the saints and of this world is not merely a one time event reserved for the end of
the age. in John 12:31 Jesus said, "Now judgment is upon this world, now the ruler of this
world shall be cast out."
Believers bring the world into judgment by proclaiming the gospel. Some will believe. Dead souls will be
raised to life through faith in the promises of God which we preach. Others will reject the gospel we
proclaim. The word of God soundly condemns them to the second death.
The Reformer Martin Luther wrote, "the gospel shall not only be judge over flesh
and blood, nay, not only over some of Satan's angels or devils, but over the prince himself, who has the
whole world mightily in his hands."
Revelation 20:4 focuses on the departed, martyred saints, their souls in heaven. It doesn't say that this
is the only reign of saints. John offers great hope to those who had lost family and friends in the
persecutions. But they should rest with confidence that these too reign with Christ, sit on thrones,
and are called priests (see 20:6).
God's Final Judgment
The judgment of God will one day fall in awesome finality. The words of Revelation 20:7-15
describe a great confrontation that will take place at the end of this age.
7 And when the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison,
8 and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog
and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the sand of the seashore.
9 And they came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the
beloved city, and fire came down from heaven and devoured them.
10 And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast
and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
11 And I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven
fled away, and no place was found for them.
12 And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened;
and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things
which were written in the books, according to their deeds.
13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were
in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds.
14 And death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.
15 And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
The moment of the final judgment ends in what is called Satan's Little Season. He will be released
from his prison (see notes on verse 3) and will be enabled once more to deceive the nations (verse 8).
There has been much speculation about the meaning of Gog and Magog in this passage. There is much good
exegetical material on this and it goes beyond the purpose of this syllabus. It is sufficient to comment
that the words are not introduced here for the first time in the Bible. They come from Ezekiel 38 and 39.
It speaks of the Son of Man setting his face toward Gog of the land of Magog.
Dr. William Hendriksen explains that this is a reference to the Selucids (particularly Antiochus Epiphanes)
and their kingdom which was located in Syria and extended beyond the Tigris and north over Mesheck and Tubal
(districts of Asia Minor). The reference is probably brought into the Revelation to remind Israel of this
past great oppression of God's people and how the Lord has always delivered them. Often nations of the past are
mentioned in Scripture to represent the continuing historical battle between the forces of evil and God's
kingdom. When God overcomes such odds, the unexpected victory is a clear evidence of the Soverign power of
God acting in judgment.
There will be in that end time a gathering of the armies of evil for war. They boldly come upon
"the breadth" of the earth (verse 9) and surrounded the camp of the saints, and the beloved city Jerusalem,
Zion, the city of God. This city is often used as a spiritual symbol for the the church in this present age
(See Hebrews 12:22-24 and Galatians 4:25-26).
But the battle ends in a most sudden, unexpected and final manner. God's wrath is poured out as fire
falls from heaven. The enemy is defeated without a single act of violence being recorded.
At the close of this era, all who have ever lived will stand before God's judgment seat.
As God's word tells us throughout:
Hebrews 9:27 "it is appointed for men to die once after this comes judgment"
John 5:28-29 "an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs shall hear His voice,
and shall come forth; those who did the good deeds, to a resurrection of life, those who committed the
evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment."
It tells us in verse 12 that all will be judged according to their deeds. This can be confusing if isolated
from all we're taught in Scripture about the grounds for our eternal salvation.
As our earlier studies have shown conclusively, no one descended from Adam could be judged to be righteous
on the basis of his own works.
Romans 3:23 "all have sinned and come short of the glory of God"
Galatians 2:16 "by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified"
It's only by the works of Christ that believers are made righteous in God's sight.
In John 14:6 Jesus said, "no one comes to the Father, but by me"
When speaking about the life and work of Jesus Christ Paul wrote in Romans 5:19
"through the obedience of the One (Jesus), the many will be made righteous"
Our good deeds only come about after we are enabled to do them by God's grace in applying the
finished work of Christ to our lives.
Romans 6:18 "freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness"
1 John 2:3 "by this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His
commandments."
The deeds of our lives stand as evidence of true faith and regeneration in Christ. Those who have
done things truly pleasing to the Lord will stand in the judgment because it is proof that they
have been redeemed, transformed by grace and restored to fellowship with God.
Jesus said in John 14:35 "by this all men will know that you are My disciples,
if you have love for one another" and in John 14:15 he said,
"if you love Me, you will keep My commandments."
John later wrote in 1 John 2:4, "the one who says, 'I have come to know Him'
and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him."
As this chapter ends, we see that evil is punished, and those who have been justified by a true
saving faith in Christ are rewarded.
The fallen and unredeemed will be cast into eternal perdition. These are the ones who have not
been redeemed by Christ. They did not have His righteousness imputed to them and were therefore
not able to stand in the judgment.
Horrible offense demands horrible suffering. Daniel 12:2 says, "many of those who
sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace
and everlasting contempt." As tragic as it seems to us who also deserve eternal damnation,
their punishment will be filled with infinite and unending agony, 2 Thessalonians 1:9
"these will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the
Lord and from the glory of His power"
Hell is not a place where the wicked are free from the presence of God. Psalm 139:7-12 assures us
that God is in all places always. Part of the agony will be to bear total separation from
fellowship with God, while knowing with devastating certainty that they bear his wrath in his
watchful presence. The words of Hebrews 12:29 are a chilling warning to the one who refuses to
bow humbly before the God who made them. It tells us that "our God is a consuming fire."
But the righteous will be blessed forever! There will be a purging, a renewing of the universe
as described in 2 Peter 3:12-13 "the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the
elements will melt with intense heat, but according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and
a new earth, in which righteousness dwells"
In Revelation 21:1-5 we are told more about the new heavens, new earth, new Jerusalem, and how all things
are made new.
For now all lies in wait for that glorious day. In Romans 8 we read the words of Paul,
19. "creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God"
21. "creation itself also will be set free"
Those in Christ, who possess his righteousness, are blessed forever.
They will know blessing beyond imagination for all of eternity.
For a discussion about the souls of the departed in the intermediate state before the final
judgment, see the article by this same author in commenting about the line in the Apostles Creed which
reads, He Descended Into Hell.
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