The Gift of Forgiveness | Revelation 20:11-21:4

• Sermon Transcript

  Good morning. Well, you made it the last day of 2023. So Happy New Year to you. And this morning when I stepped on the scales, I saw a number that I did not recognize. And so tomorrow, January 1, I am resolved to go out and buy a set of skills that works. So I guess the batteries run down or something I don't know. But it's clearly wrong. Seriously, though, I earned every pound. And if you know what I'm talking about, you did to earn it all. We earned everything that we got this year, except for the grace of God. We did not earn that. We're looking today at a passage that talks about what we earn on the day, on the Judgment Day, on the day where Jesus stand, and judge every person for what they've done. The only reason we as believers do not earn punishment is because Jesus is forgiveness given to us His grace, because he's forgiven us, we receive a wonderful, eternal life, which is why forgiveness is a gift, which we're talking about today. Revelation chapter 20. So we finished our reading plan, our chronological plan this year that I've been preaching through, starting in verse 11. Then I saw a great white throne, and in him who was seated on it, from His presence, Earth, and sky floodway. And no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small standing before the throne and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it. Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them. And they were judged each one of them according to what they had done. Then death and Hades were thrown to 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. Chapter 21 verse one, then I saw a new heaven and new earth, for the first heaven, and the first earth had passed away. And the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven, from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people. And God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more. Neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away. Heavenly Father, we thank you for that promise. We thank you for the end of the year, where the next day gives us hope gives us a natural time to to start things and new new patterns, new lifestyle, new behaviors. The Lord is also one day closer to being with you forever. And a place with no pain, with no morning with no crying. A place where you'll be in a place where those who know you and love you and I have faith in you will be as well. Lord, take this passes. They encouraged us with it. But I pray that my words are accurate reflection of your heart that you fill me with your Spirit and preaching, and that those in here today receive your word with gladness. When we ask these things in Jesus name, Amen. I want to give you today three realities, that the gift of forgiveness allows us three realities, the gift of God's forgiveness allows us the first actually concerns those who are not forgiven. Not everyone will be forgiven, because number one, unbelievers will be judged by their works. Unbelievers will be judged by their works, verse 11. Then I saw a great white throne, and him who was seated on it. And from his presence, earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. This word for great means that it is larger than life, this throne. And John uses this size dimension to underscore this is perhaps where this is the not perhaps the the most important judgment to ever happen. Why is the throne white, white, symbolizes purity and holiness symbolizes victory. And God has chosen Jesus to to judge humanity. And he sits awaiting the judgment on this throne. And during this day of judgment, the earth itself will undergo a complete change. The old order will disappear to give a place to a new order. But in this moment, every person who has ever lived or die, will be judged by Jesus. Look at Second Timothy four says, Paul writing, the pastor Timothy says, I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who was to judge the living and the dead, in by his appearing in his kingdom, preach the Word. In other words, because this imminent judgment will take place. Timothy, you have to preach the Word. Preach the word. Why? Because people need to know that a judgment is coming. They need to know what Jesus has done. So preach the Word, in season and out of season. Preach the word, Timothy, when you feel like it. And when you don't preach the word when it's easy. And when it's hard. Preach the word because of this judgment. X 1042. And he commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that he is the one appointed by God, to be judge of the living and the dead. preachers are commanded to proclaim to people that Jesus is the one who was appointed to judge all people, Jesus and no one else. John writes, then in verse 12, of Revelation, I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. So John has his vision. For he sees all people who've died standing before this throne of God, whether they were important by the world standards, or unimportant doesn't matter. They're all judged. Every person's book was open. And every person will have a book where their lives had been recorded. You will, and I will, everyone will. Everything we've done, and we're judged by what's written in the books, as you read through this, that seems like a very scary, scary thought, amen. A very frightening thought. But beside every person's book, there will be the Book of Life, which we'll look at in a minute. But we see that every person will be judged by what is written in their book. This is consistent with what Daniel said, and Daniel 710, the court said and judgment and the books were opened. Second Corinthians 510 talks about this four must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done from the body, whether good or evil and Believers will all be judged and deemed guilty of their sins. But there actually be degrees of punishment, if you will. Luke 12 says this, and that servant who knew his masters will but did not get ready or act according to His will, we receive a severe beating, but the one who did not know and did well deserved a beating will receive a light beating. This degree of punishment is not based on wickedness. It's based on the knowledge and access to the gospel. Those who have heard it over and over and over again, Jesus makes very clear that judgment day and they've rejected it makes it very clear that the judgment day will be worse for them. And for those who've never heard, who have slightly heard, and attorney was meditating on the scriptures one day, and he came to this conclusion that he decided to cancel all the debts that his clients had, that owed him money for more than six months. He just felt like he was going to cancel them. So he, he drafted a letter, explaining his decision, wrote it out, gave its biblical basis, and he sent 17 debt canceling letters via certified mail. And one by one, the letters were returned by the Postal Service unsigned. And some undelivered. Perhaps a couple had moved away, though not likely. But 16 of the 17 letters came back to him, because the clients refused to open the envelopes and sign for fear that the attorney was suing them for their debts. I saw the name of the lawyer in the mail and they said This can't be good. Because they knew they owed money. But if they had just opened the letter, they would have seen in red, the good news, amen. Bad or the love benevolence of that lawyers heart. He sent him a letter, all you got to do is sign in there fear and guilt cannot bear to open that letter cannot bear to imagine the fact that someone would be benevolent and good enough to cancel their debt. Well, that's someone is God, Amen. We have a letter. We gotta get into people. I'm so thankful to hear what our church has done this year. And when Colby was compiling those numbers, and everything is thankful to hear that that's just a drop in a massive bucket. And we need to do it. I'm glad we did it. And we need to continue. Because these are lives that are forever changed. But we need more people to have access to that letter. And then when they get it, we need to urge them to open it and to tell them that they have a good God that is ready to cancel their death. Let's look back at verse 13. And Revelation, it says that he in the sea gave up the dead who were in Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them. And they were judged. Each one of them according to what they had done. And death and Hades were thrown to the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. Those who are judged by their works, will be found guilty of course. And this lake of fire is the place where we're wicked people are forever separated from the living God who will eternally suffer the torments of hell. And when death and Hades are both thrown into the lake of fire. They they the authority they exercise has ended there will be no more death it's been destroyed. And Hades which is the place where unbelievers go to wait foul judgment. Both of these entities are no longer needed, they are destroyed. And that we see that these unbelievers will be judged by what is written in their books. And no one's book is good enough to save him. So that's the first reality. The second one is this. The believers will be judged by their faith, judged by their faith. Their faith in God not their works. But my faith. Verse 50. If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. See the book of life is saves. What's in the book of life is what matters. Those relying on their own works and their own books will be thrown into this like a fire regarding heaven. Revelation 2127 says this, but nothing unclean will ever enter it nor anyone who does what is the testable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb's Book of Life, believers will be judged, but they'll be judged based not on what they've done, but on what Jesus has done. That's how we're judged. That's how we are acquitted. That's how we are deemed innocent. Now, believers will also have a judgment to evaluate and give various degrees of reward. But it's not a judgment that leads us to fear. Look at John 524. Truly, truly I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but he has passed from death to life, because of Christ, we are simply judged, we're deemed innocent, and then we're rewarded, because there's no condemnation in Christ, and He has forgiven all of our sins, never to bring them up again. Look at Romans eight one. There is there for now some condemnation. Oh, no, that's not what it says was the thing, no condemnation. For those who are in Christ Jesus, Micah 719, you will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea sea, if you've been fishing, you know, this, if something goes into the sea is gone. You're not getting it back. Amen. If you lose it, you might possibly get somebody's old boot or something, right? That's more of a cartoon meme. But when something's in the sea, it's gone. Forever. You're not getting it back. Someone asked the elderly Christian lady, ma'am, does the devil ever trouble you about past sins? She said, Yes. And the person said, Well, what do you do? What do you do when the devil keeps bringing up past sins? And she said, Oh, I just tell him to go east. Well, what do you do if he comes back? Well, I tell him to go west. And when he comes back from the West, what do you do then? She said, I just keep him going from east to west and east to west. Look at Psalm 103 12. As far as the east is from the west, so far to see remove our transgressions from us, amen. You just keep going east to west east to west. Isaiah 4325. I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake. And I will not remember your sins. This is the thing about Christianity that's so hard for us to understand about forgiveness, because we forgive people, but often we don't really forget doing, God does. He forgives and he forgets, I will not remember them anymore. You'll be walking with Jesus and you try to bring up that sin. Hey, Jesus, man, I don't know what you're talking about. doesn't remember them. But for believers, it's important to know that there will be degrees of reward for doing the righteous acts of Jesus. Look at First Corinthians three. Now, if anyone builds on the foundation, with gold, silver, precious stones would a strong each one's work will become manifest for the day I will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire and the fire will test what sort of work each is done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive her award. Finland's work is burned up he will suffer loss that he himself will be saved, as only through fire, some of us are getting to heaven by the skin of our teeth. But we still get there. And some of us in heaven will have the rewards based on what we've done. So that deathbed confession of faith, that thief on the cross, last minute confession, their sins are forgiven as well. But they get there. And there's no really reward to enjoy, and to worship the Lord with for the believer, he's been faithful. For years and years and years. There's rewards in heaven. And we're meant to enjoy them. And we're meant to worship Jesus with them. That's why they're given to us. There's no jealousy in heaven. Because that sin, we will have true happiness in heaven. Because we will be truly delighting in rejoicing in God. So these temporal things that cause us to envy others or be jealous will not exist. We will believers will be rewarded in heaven will be judged by our faith just by our faith and finally number three believers will be comforted by their savior, believers to be comforted by their Savior when we walk with Jesus and He judges the world as we're reading him revelation, he's not just gonna pat us on the back and you know, just in personally welcome us. We're going to be comforted by him. Give verse one. Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The first heaven in the first part that passed away in the sea was no more God is going to be making new Heaven and new Earth that we're living. In I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride would prepare for her husband. Beautiful. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man, amen. He's no longer away from us. He's with us. He God will dwell with them. And they will be his people. And God himself will be with them as their god later in the book. It says there's no temple because there's no need for temple. There's no need for sacrifices because Jesus is our sacrifice, and it's him we're going to worship in the New Jerusalem. And verse for He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Every tear gentle John Dave was crying the other day. I don't know if it was warranted or not, but he was crying. And I wiped a little tear off his cheek and comforted him as only a father can. As only our heavenly Father can. Amen. No more tears. No more death, verse for no more mourning for people. Because there's no more death. No more crying. No more pain. Because all these things have passed away. Amen. This is our future. When Jesus returns, you will be comforted. In large part because you've been forgiven. A little bugger said to me this week. Dad, do you forgive me? Because he tells me he doesn't forgive me all the time. We're working on working on that. I said of course I forgive you. Yes. And you comforted when you're forgiven. Before we close out this year, put a bow on 2023 before you go out in the street and shoot fireworks like a bunch of rednecks. Tonight, not gonna say that because I am one for you go out and do that. Is there someone in your life before tomorrow before the new year starts? Just someone in your life that you need to forgive. Tomorrow isn't the New Year. Tomorrow's the year to make those resolutions? The day to do so to make those resolutions to buy those new scales. There's someone in your life that you realize today. I haven't forgiven I haven't forgotten. Today should be the day before you put that bow on 2023 Before you turn the page to turn the calendar. Tomorrow's the beginning of the new year. Let's leave that pain. And let's leave those thoughts in 2023. Amen. Let's just leave it back here. Tomorrow when we wake up, let's commit to forgive because Christ forgave us. Heavenly Father, we thank you so much for what you've done for us in Christ Jesus. Lord, there's one in here today. It's never placed their faith in you that today that would be the day of their salvation, that today that they they would they would come to you Lord and say forgiving my sins and you will forgive them of their sins amazingly. They'll place Have faith in you and there'll be saved so that day on the Day of Judgment, they have a wonderful reward waiting for them. Everything they've ever done or will do, they will not be will not be held against them. But in the book of life will be your name. And they will receive the reward for that Father. Father, maybe there's one here today is struggling with forgiving someone in their life. It eats at them and comes up from time to time and they have so much anger and pain and maybe it's warranted maybe this person hurt them in such a way that seems unforgivable. Lord, I pray that they would have the courage to trust you today. The courage to give that over to you that sin because that sin lower will be dealt with that person's sin. We dealt with either on the cross through Jesus or in hell for eternity, that it'll be dealt with. They would give that to you father, and they would enter 2020 for a forgiving person. We love you. We ask these things in your name. Amen.