SEP 2

Revelation 20:11-15
Memorise Hebrews 9:27
“it is appointed unto men once to die”

WHAT IS THE GREAT WHITE THRONE?

We often hear this saying, “Crime does not pay”. And this is very true. Thieves and robbers, kidnappers and murderers, and all criminals shall not escape the long arm of the law. In Singapore, drug traffickers receive the death penalty. Other offenders are jailed and caned. If we as human beings know how to punish those who break the law, how much more God who is holy and just?

The Bible tells us that there is a final reckoning at the end of the Millennium. This will be a judgment of sinners, of the unbelievers who never repented and believed in Christ. In Revelation 20, it is called the judgment of the Great White Throne. Hebrews 9:27 says, “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment”. There is no reincarnation. There is no purgatory. There is no second chance. Every man will have to face his Creator after he dies and be judged for what he has done on earth.

Man’s Creator who is also Judge is described in Daniel 7:9-10 in vivid terms, “I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened”. This Judge is none other than the Son of God—the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, “For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son … And hath given him authority to execute judgment also” (John 5:22, 27).

What will man be judged for? He will be judged for all the sins he has committed against God and against man. No one can escape this judgment. John said in Revelation 20:2 that he saw “the dead, small and great, stand before God”. Whether tycoon or beggar, prince or pauper, everyone will have to give an account of himself to God.

Thought: “The wicked are incapable of profiting by the judgments of God” (Calvin).
Prayer: O God, I want to be saved from the judgment to come.