The Final Judgement

“Then 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. 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. 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. Then 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.” Revelation 20:11-15

George Sweeting tells the story of how the message of the final judgement affected the unbelieving world in an unusual way:

“One of the greatest paintings of all time is Michelangelo’s The Last Judgement. The action of the painting centers on Christ as He raises His arm in a gesture of damnation. Though some elements of the painting appear unbiblical, at that time it’s message reminded people of God’s holy presence which had been forgotten in the humanism of the day.

The painting pictures the dead as they are resurrected to be judged. As hell releases its captives, the Judge of Heaven reviews their works. The entire painting reflects the despair of that generation. When the painting was unveiled, a storm of conviction fell upon the viewers. All Europe trembled as the story of the power of The Last Judgement traveled from city to city.”

Within the heart and mind of mankind is the created realization that there must be a final day of accountability. Past deeds of wickedness must be punished; kindness, generosity, and service to others must be rewarded. Why are we so concerned with justice and with criminals paying their debts to society if we don’t believe in an ultimate day of justice?

The witness of conscience and the witness of Scripture point to the reality of the final judgement.

“Do not be deceived...for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.” Galatians 6:7