THE GREAT WHITE THRONE

The Sentence for Sins is Decided at the Great White Throne vs. 11-13

"And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works."

The Appearance of the Throne Betokens no Mercy vs. 11

"And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them."

This throne is great and white. There is no green nor any other color to relieve its awful whiteness. Nothing but the holiness of God is marked by this, a holiness which now will demand the last farthing for breach.

The judge here must be our Lord Jesus Christ. To Him alone, according to His own claims, has been committed "all judgment": "the Father judgeth no man" (John 5:22). And for this immense adjudication our Lord is perfectly fitted; for He not only has the requisite divine ability, but He alone of the Persons of the Godhead has had a personal experience of human life, being not only Son of God but also "Son of man" (John 5:27).
 The purpose of this judgment is not to determine who is to be lost or saved. This is a matter which must be settled before death. In this respect, all men are always living in a day of judgment, a time when by the grace of God personal destiny is determined by human decision, As our Lord once said, "He that believeth on him is not judged: he that believeth not hath been judged already, because he hath not believed on the name of the only begotten Son of God" (John 3:18,ASV). The purpose of final judgment is to exhibit or make known the character of the judged and award to them "according to their works."
 The subjects of this judgment are named in the passage as "the dead" (Rev. 20:12). And since they are to be judged "according to their works" (vss. 12-13), the implication points strongly to a class of people who are dead spiritually as well as physically. "By works of law shall no flesh be justified in his sight" (Rom. 3:20, ASV margin). For the saved, on the other hand, there can be no such judgment, because their judgment with reference to sin took place at Calvary. It is a very solemn fact, of course, that the believer's works must be brought into judgment for reward or loss (1 Cor. 3:12-15), but this will have taken place at some point between the Rapture of the Church and the establishment of the Millennial Kingdom; and it will have nothing to do with salvation. Furthermore, since all those saved before the Millennial Kingdom will have a part in the "first resurrection," and during the Millennium none of the saved will die, there appears to be no reason for any resurrection for saved people afterwards. If there are any of the saved in this final resurrection, nothing at all is said about their destination, whereas that of the unsaved is specifically stated (Rev. 20:15).
 The books mentioned must include at least the written Word of God and the divine record of human deeds. In the latter perhaps there will be other books; such as the book of memory; and the book of the universe where, it has been suggested by some, there could be found a physical recording of the image of every act committed and the sound of every word uttered from the beginning of the world. As to the "book of life" which appears here, this seems to be definitely set apart from the books out of which the dead are to be judged according to their works. It is not one of "the books," but "another book." Its purpose is to testify silently, by its omissions, against those who had rejected the mercy of God. Significantly, there is here no book of death, for while men are elected to salvation, and none are elected to damnation. It is their own choice, not God's that brings them at last into the place of doom.
 The outcome of this judgment is eternal perdition in the lake of fire (Rev. 20:14-15). No other destination is even mentioned in the context of the passage. If any are saved out of this judgment and ushered into heaven, strangely nothing is said about them. Such an idea seems to be excluded by the opening words of the passage: the Judge sits on a "great white throne" (Rev. 20:11). Encircling this throne there is no "rainbow" of bright hope, as in the case of the pre-Kingdom judgment throne (Rev. 4:3), bringing salvation to an innumerable multitude (Rev. 7:9-14). But the color of the final judgment throne is the ineffable whiteness of absolute holiness and justice, unrelieved by any semblance of grace. At this solemn adjudication the matter of rebellion and discord in the universe receives its final disposition in preparation for the Kingdom in which God will be "all in all."

The Awesomeness of the Face of Those who sit There is Great

Even the earth and the heavens seem to react to the presence of this one. They must flee. So far reaching and inescapable is this face that no place is found for a fleeing universe. This may mark the cataclysmic changes of 2 Peter 3:10-12.

"fled away" When the fire from heaven falls on the hosts of Gog and Magog, it will apparently burn up the earth and its atmospheric heaven as well, fulfilling the prophecy of 2 Peter 3:10. It will purge from the earth all the age-long effects of God’s curse (e.g., the fossil remains of billions of dead creatures that had perished in the great Flood and other subsequent terrestrial catastrophes). In their place will appear God’s awful throne of final judgment. See also Matthew 24:35.

The Array of Criminals is Clearly Pictured in the Text vs. 12a, 13a.

"And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God...."
"And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them....."

The entire number of the wicked dead through all time stand there. They are resurrected in the same body in which they lived. The sea and death (grave) give up the bodies of the wicked. Hades yields up the souls of all the wicked.

"the dead" The “dead” here are the unsaved dead, their bodies having been raised in the second resurrection in order to stand before God in judgment. Whether those believers who are still living in the millennial earth at this time will also be raised—along with any believers who may have died during the thousand years—is not stated, but this would be a reasonable assumption, since they also would have perished in the final holocaust if not before. In any case, their names would indeed have been “written in the book of life,” so they would not be judged with the others “according to their works.”
"according to their works" When the dead are judged according to their works, they must all be sent to hell, for “there is none righteous, no, not one” and “by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight” (Romans 3:10,20). Since they have rejected or ignored God’s infinite grace and Christ’s infinite love in dying for their sins, “there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries” (Hebrews 10:26-27). Even though “God is not willing that any should perish,” His justice demands it when they intractably have refused throughout their lives to “come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9) and to personal faith in Christ.

The Accuracy of the Judgment is Marked by the Books vs. 12b, 13b.

"....and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works."
"....and they were judged every man according to their works."

God keeps books. This means that he is absolutely accu­rate. The book of life shows that this number does not appear there and they deserve to be brought before this throne. The works recorded in the other books determine the degree. Upon the basis of the degree of wickedness, they are sentenced to punishment with the degree they deserve.

Notice there is the book of life, but no no book of death, for while men are elected to salvation, none are elected to damnation. It is their own choice, not God's that brings them at last into the place of doom.
For those who think they can work their way to heaven, God will evaluate them "according to their works" and the outcome will not be as expected.