When the Books are Opened | Revelation 20:7-15 | Confidence Before the Throne

In Revelation 20, John records the sobering yet hope-filled vision of the final judgment. Satan’s last rebellion ends in defeat, Death and Hades are cast into the lake of fire, and the books are opened before the throne of God.

While this passage is heavy with eternal significance, it also offers deep assurance to the believer. Our hope doesn’t rest on speculation, good works, or human effort—it rests on the finished work of Jesus Christ. When your name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, it isn’t written in pencil. It is secure forever in the righteousness of Christ.

At the close of this message, Pastor Mark reminds us that even as we come to the Lord’s Table, we do so with the confidence that this meal is a foretaste of the feast to come at the marriage supper of the Lamb.

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Thank you for joining us for this week's sermon from First Reformed Church in Edgerton, Minnesota. Each week, we dig into God's word, trusting that the Holy spirit will continue the good work of sanctification in us.

Does anyone else struggle with modern ticketing practices? When you used to go to a sporting event or a concert, you either had the ticket in your hand or you went to will call. It was pretty cut and dry. Yes, if you had will call, you maybe had a little bit of concern about whether or not your name was on the list there. But again, it was straightforward. Now, everything is through a website or an app. Even some high schools don't take cash at the door to get into a sporting event.

Now, for me, It isn't the process of getting the app installed or the tickets churches. That's not a problem for me. It's the doubt on whether I bought the tickets for the right date, the doubt on whether or not I did the process correctly, all of this. I wonder whether I'm trying to walk into a concert in Minneapolis, but I bought the tickets for Des Moines. Or whether or not I bought the right baseball game ticket. That's particularly hard because baseball games are series, right? You could pick three games between the Twins and the guardians, starting maybe at the same time of day And you got to check that tiny little date there, right? It's all up for grabs here. Now, I've done it dozens, if not hundreds of times. But I still feel great relief when they scan the ticket on my phone and they let me In theory, it should be simple. But there are several things that need to go right for us to get in, things that are happening behind the scenes.

For example, when I went to the College World Series this past summer, I went to one game, and my friend Lance had the ticket. He forwarded it to me on my phone. Well, there wasn't a good cell phone signal. I couldn't get the ticket. And I wasn't the only one, because there were a lot of people doing the no signals two-step out there, trying to get their tickets to get into the World Series. And I think what I'm talking about here is a particularly interesting problem for folks like us because we generally have to travel several hours to get to ticketed events, right?

A few weeks ago, I went to a concert in Minneapolis, and while I was standing in line with Anna, I thought, What if I accidentally messed up and bought the wrong tickets here? It's sold out. Even if it wasn't sold out, they don't take cash, probably. I drove a long ways for nothing.

Now, that feeling of curious about whether or not you'll get in, isn't all that different than some of the uncertainty people carry when they think about eternity. We wonder whether our name is really on the list, or maybe we think we did something wrong that messed up our ability to get in. We messed up the process somehow, and we don't like to admit it. But I think many Christians live with a quiet, unspoken doubt about whether or not they're really in. We're hesitant about whether or not our name is written where it needs to be.

As we finish up Revelation 20 this morning, we see that John receives a vision that removes our uncertainty and unrest. We see in this passage that there will be no glitches in the system, and we don't need to worry about whether there is a weak signal that lets us access our ticket. The books are opened before the throne God. And what has been written there reveals the destiny of every human soul.

And so as we turn to Revelation 20, we come to verse 7, and we're reminded of what we saw last week. Last week, we saw that Satan was bound for a thousand years and then was released by the command of God. And now we're seeing the result of that release. Satan deceives the nations that are at the four corners of the Earth.

This is an interesting thing to think about because regardless of the view of the millennium that someone has, we talked about those different views last week, the idea of the millennium here in Revelation 20 is the rule and the reign of God. He is in control. But this reign and rule is then followed by a period of deception. You would think that a thousand years of Christ's reign and authority would keep people from being deceived. Why would they turn against God when you have been able to know his reign and his rule? But we see here that people are still deceived despite this. It shouldn't surprise us, though. Really, it shouldn't. Our fallen, sinful hearts are rebellious. Regardless of what our eyes see, we will rebel against God.

Here we see that the deception that takes place is far and wide. We see that it goes to the four corners of the earth, and it causes God and Magog to gather for battle. Now, there has been much speculation about who God and Magog are. It's still happening today. Back during the fall of the Roman Empire, it was speculated that Gog represented the Ga'as that were overrunning the Roman territories. Then in the seventh century, it was asserted that this was Muslim armies that were invading the Holy Land. Go forward 600 more years to the 13th century. Then people speculated that it was the Mongal Khan. They were the God. They were God. Over the centuries, some have speculated that it was particular popes. It was the Turks. It was the Russian Tsar. A little bit more recent time, 19th century Brits came up with a theory that Russia was Magog. Essentially, anytime a civilization is under attack or things are changing, the country or person that is perceived to be the bad guy gets associated with God and Magog here in Revelation 20.

In my lifetime alone, I can remember multiple speculations. I think the first one I ever heard, I would have been junior high, high school age, was that this was pointing to Mikael Gorbachev in Russia or the Soviet Union. He was going to trigger the end. I'm guessing I'm not the only one who's heard these speculations. As I've said at other points in the Book of Revelation, speculation is fruitless. And on top of all, time and time again, people have been proven to be incorrect in their speculation.

You see, this whole sequence that's described here is really vague. It's not very many words. And so it lends itself very easily to people trying to fill in the blanks. But in my opinion, that causes us to miss the bigger picture. The point is not trying to guess who God and Magog are. The point is about God and what he's done in Christ. The big point here is the deception and the rebellion that takes place against Almighty God. Even after this reign of a thousand years, the rebellion against God has armies that number like the sand of the sea. That needs to be our focus here.

When we speculate and try to attach this event in revelation to something in our time or some present crisis, it can cause fear and get us off mission thinking that the end is nigh instead of focusing on going to the ends of the Earth and making disciples. That is our mission. What we need to do when we come to this description of this battle is we need to remember the big point of the Book of Revelation. That big point is comfort and hope because the Lord Jesus Christ reigns. That's the point. That's the message that is clear as we see the result of all of this lining up for battle in the following verses.

We see that these armies are two big to count. When they come upon the camp of the saints and the beloved city, we see fire coming from heaven and it consumes them. The big point is that despite the appearance that the people of God are going to be overwhelmed. What happens? God diviny protects them. And then there is the final end of the devil. At the fall, When Adam and Eve fell into sin, God made a promise that he would crush the head of the serpent. And while the serpent was defeated in the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus, we see here that he meets his final doom, and he comes to nothing in the Lake of Fire and Sulfur. And there he is tormented day and night, forever and ever for his rebellion against a Holy God.

And as I've said, in my lifetime, I've witnessed so much speculation and fear about end time events. But when we actually come to Revelation, it's simple. We complicate it way too much. Because what we see, we see that God is in control. He protects his saints. He brings his enemies to absolute and eternal ruin. That's the point.

So from this, I think there is a pretty simple and straightforward application for us today. We don't need to live in fear of what might happen in the world. In our modern times, chaos, wars, moral collapse, all these things are vividly on display. But we need to remember that none of this surprises a sovereign God. He is the sovereign God of history. An evil will always be prevalent. But remember that evil cannot deliver hope and peace. It cannot. But in contrast, God makes his promises to his people, and he keeps them. And in this vision in Revelation 20, God sends down fire from heaven to defend his people. And that same God is the God that defends you today. Evil may rage, but the promise is that one day it will finally be defeated. One day, all things will be set to right.

And as we move forward through the passage, we see that this doesn't end with the devil being finally destroyed. The scene actually becomes even more sober as we see that the great white throne appears, and before it, every soul is judged before this throne. Now, This is a pretty dramatic moment. There's a lot happening. But the amount of words to describe it are really few. The final judgment is ultimately the climatic moment of history. It's described to us in what amounts to just a few sentences.

In one sense, I think this may be one of the easier visions in revelation for us to imagine in our mind's eye. Because it's relatively straightforward, there's very little imagery that's confusing to us, like dragons with multiple horns or whatever. This is stuff that we can understand. We can imagine this. But at the At the same time, it's so expansive that we quickly realize how beyond our comprehension this moment of the final judgment is.

A great white throne And the one who is seated upon it is pretty easy to understand. It's clear-cut. We can put together in our minds an image of a throne. But when But what John sees lets us know that this is not just any throne. Not because of how the throne is described, but because of what happens in the presence of the one who is seated on it. From his presence, the Earth and the sky flee away and no place was found for them. That's an amazing image for us to try and imagine. It points us to not only how amazing Raising the one on the throne is, but it also reminds us of just how holy he is. Those things that are immovable, the earth and the sky, these immovable things scatter at the presence of God. The text here absolutely humbles us, doesn't it? If the Earth and the sky can't remain in the presence of a Holy God, If creation trembles at God and his Holiness, imagine how a human individual would feel in his presence.

In the presence of God, you can't shrug away sin or pretend you're righteous at the great white throne. There's nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. The only way to stand in that moment will be to stand in Christ, clothed in his righteousness, confident that his perfect life, his sacrificial death, and his victorious resurrection are yours because you've been united to him by grace through faith. The only safety at the great white throne is found in the truth that Jesus has already bore the judgment for us.

As we continue through this scene, we see that the dead, great and small, they're waiting to be judged. This is nearly as hard to imagine as the Earth and the sky fleeing because of just how expansive this is. A mass of people waiting to be judged beyond the limits of our vision in every direction. There they stand and books are opened. It's a record of their works. And we know how the content of those books would look. Every human is born dead in trespasses and sins, and our rebellious hearts are inclined to evil. We know what the contents of those books would be. We know what the judgment that is that would come to pass. But there's another book. There's another. A book that supersedes the other books.

The Lamb's Book of Life.

But before we talk about that, we need to see some more details here on those who are judged. In Revelation 2013, We're told that the sea gave up the dead and death and Hades gave them up. The idea here is that there is a general resurrection of the dead where all people come to the judgment seat of Christ. What we're meant to understand here is that no one is exempt. So the references here are of all the places that people thought that the dead could be found. The sea, death, Hades, all these things. The idea being expressed to us is that nobody is excluded. No one is exempt at the judgment seat of Christ.

And then in verse 14, we see that death and Hades are thrown into the Lake of Fire. As we read this, we do well to remember 1 Corinthians 15: 26, where we're told that the last enemy to be destroyed is death. Death is our enemy. Since the fall, all of humanity has been affected by the curse, and this is most evident to us in death. It separates, death destroys, and we know personally the grief that death brings.

Death is our enemy.

And here we see that not only the devil who tempted humanity into the fall is destroyed in the Lake of Fire. The enemy's death and Hades, they end up there as well. The curse and its effects have been decimated by the work of Christ. We see that this is referred to here as the second death. It is a final state of eternal torment where all those who rebel against God's reign are handed over for punishment.

This is an awful and grim reality. It is one that we don't like to talk about. In fact, it is increasingly popular to dismiss the idea of hell, to dismiss the idea of eternal punishment. But scripture doesn't let us dismiss it so easily. Because scripture speaks of eternal punishment and hell boldly and clearly. It offers us a warning. The wrath of God against sin is real. No amount of trying to explain it away is going to erase the clear teaching of scripture. This is why it's essential that we read this passage with the gravity it deserves. In doing so, we need to lean into the truth that we're reminded of in verse 15.

Those who join the devil, death, and Hades, and the Lake of Fire are those whose names are not found in the Book of Life. To be in Christ and have your name in the Lamb's Book of Life is the only way out. Our names are not put there because we've done enough good to outweigh the bad. Our names aren't found in the Book of Life because we were born into a particular family, and they aren't there because we sit in a pew more times than we don't on a Sunday morning. Our names are in the Lamb's Book of Life because we heard the word, and the Holy spirit quickened faith in our hearts to convict us of our sin and our unbelief. And then we believed by faith that Jesus lived suffered, died, rose again, and ascended to the right-hand of the Father for us.

One of the greatest questions that people have is, how can I know that I'm saved? How can I know my name will be known in heaven? How can we have confidence that our name is written in the Book of Life? How can we silence the quiet, nagging voice of uncertainty that pops up so often in our minds. Well, you don't need to speculate whether you've done enough. You don't have to worry that you missed a step or that something could still go wrong behind the scenes. The gospel eliminates those fears because it is something that is certain. It isn't dependent on you. The work of Jesus saves you, and it saves you completely. When your name is written in the Book of Life, it isn't there in pencil. Because of the work of Jesus, it's written there and it doesn't fade, and it can't be erased, and it doesn't depend on how you feel on any given day. Our confidence can't be in ourselves because we are fallen sinners who will fail. But Jesus doesn't fail. When our names are written in the Book of Life, they are there because we have been clowed in the perfect righteousness of the Jesus Christ. The Lamb's Book of Life isn't a list of those who hope to get in. It's a record of those who have been redeemed and those who will be kept until the day of Christ, those who have faith in what Jesus has done instead of what they have done or will do.

So yes, there is judgment, there is finality, there is eternal punishment But there's also assurance beyond our imagination. How about you? Where do you find your assurance? Do you hope you have eternal life because of something you've done or because you see yourself as more righteous than others? Or do you solely rest on the finished work of Jesus Christ? What is your hope? If you're resting on your own works, if you're resting on your own righteousness, I plea with you, abandon that plan. It will not work. It is futile. The only way to have confidence is to hope in Christ Jesus, our Lord.

So as we come to the Lord's table this morning, we do so not trusting in ourselves, but we come as those who are clothed in the righteousness of Christ. His broken body and his shed blood secures our place with him. And because of this, we come to this table as welcomed guests. And this meal today is a sign and a seal of his grace. The grace shown to us and assures us that this is but a foretaste of the feast to come that we will one day experience at the marriage supper of the Lamb. And so as we eat and drink, we proclaim the Lord's death for his people until he comes. So come to the table today in faith and be nourished by the one who has written your name in the Book of Life.

Amen. Let us pray. Gracious and merciful God, we thank you for the gift of your word and how it shows us your Holiness and your justice and the sure salvation that we have in Christ. We pray that you would write these truths on our hearts, silence our anxious doubts, and help us to put our trust in the Lamb who has written our names in his book. Grant that we would live without fear, to love what you love, and to walk in repentance and faith daily. Send us out from here as your faithful witnesses, witnesses, confident in Christ's finished work, and strengthen us as your people to endure until the day that he makes all things new. It's in the name of Jesus that we pray. Amen. Thank you for joining us for this week's sermon. For more information about First Reformed Church, head to our Facebook page or website, edgertonfrc.org.

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