Daily Devotional | Revelation

Resilient – A Revelation Daily Devotional – Day 43

Cedar Creek Church September 8, 2025

Day 43 – September 8

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The Great White Throne Judgment

11Then I saw a great white throne and one seated on it. Earth and heaven fled from his presence, and no place was found for them. 12I also saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life, and the dead were judged according to their works by what was written in the books. 13Then the sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them; each one was judged according to their works. 14Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. 15And anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.

In modern culture, the concept of judgment often carries a negative connotation. Many people, including some believers, misunderstand and misuse Jesus’s words in Matthew 7, “judge not, lest ye be judged.” However, judgment is an imperative for God to be just. He cannot allow His name and glory to be defamed without punishment, which is precisely what all sin, regardless of how we classify it, does. God must respond, and His response is just.

For those not under God’s grace, it is easier to dismiss passages about judgment than to unpack them. Sin pushes us toward a deadly love of self. It is easy to see how a world propped up by false self-esteem would reject the doctrine of hell or even the existence of a God who would send people there. We rationalize our sins, thinking, “Surely my sin can’t be that big of a deal; there is always someone worse than me.”

The issue, however, goes deeper than our rebellious actions. All of humanity fundamentally rebels against God because that is who we are. The message of Revelation and all of Scripture is not about behavioral modification for a better life experience. Scripture teaches that all of humanity is born spiritually dead.

No amount of activity can bring a dead person back to life. In fact, dead people are incapable of activity. What dead people need is life. This is what Jesus offers to those who place their faith in Him. The book of Revelation highlights the Lamb’s Book of Life, a book containing the names of those who will receive eternal life.

Both the saved and those doomed for eternal separation will have their actions judged. Both groups will find that their actions and inactions merit punishment rather than reward. But then there is the book, and the names inside enter eternal reward—not because of what they did or did not do, but all because of what was done for them by Christ.

The Christian faith is not a religion of works. In fact, it is not a religion at all. It is an invitation into a relationship, an eternal marriage that changes more than a last name—it changes our identity.

May this scene, revealed to John, make us followers of Jesus who do two things: First, let it awaken a desire to live on mission, proclaiming the saving power of the Gospel until all have heard and responded. While we do this, let us remain experts in the grace of God that saves and secures our eternal hope.

Pray: God, thank you for your grace. Help me to continually remind myself of it until it overflows from my life to all who need to hear and respond. Amen.