A Daring Faith in a Cowardly WorldSample

Your Name in the Book of Life

Those whose names are written in the Book of Life will be at the judgment seat of Christ, also called the bema seat. This bema seat is only for the children of God, the believers. It is a judgment of rewards for a job well done, a place for granting privileges, titles, and crowns.

Those whose names are not in the Book of Life will be at a different judgment seat, called the great white throne. It is a judgment of condemnation. Everyone brought before this throne is there only to determine their punishment’s extent. They will all be separated from the love of the Creator forever. They will all spend eternity in the lake of fire, though Scripture seems to indicate that parts of it are worse than others since their condemnation is judged beyond the fact that they aren’t in the Book of Life but are judged by other books based on their works (Revelation 20:11–15).

“But the cowards, unbelievers, vile, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars—their share will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death” (Revelation 21:8).

If you’re reading this and wondering whether your name is in the Book of Life, it’s first helpful to look at how you know it isn’t. Revelation 21:8 gives a list of eight sins. If they typify a person’s life, he will have a share in the lake of fire. Since salvation (being rescued from the lake of fire) comes from grace alone and not by works, this verse says that anyone whose life typifies these sins never believed in Jesus.

It isn’t saying anyone who has committed these sins cannot be saved; it is saying those who unrepentantly have a lifestyle of them are not saved. God’s grace is sufficient to cover every sin. David’s affair with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband are well-known to anyone who has read the Bible. Their son Solomon had a thousand wives, most of whom worshiped foreign gods. Yet both kings, guilty of adultery, murder, and idolatry, wrote scripture. In Acts 8:9–24, Simon practiced sorcery but is pronounced a believer and baptized. Aaron, the first priest, practiced idolatry when he worshiped the golden calf. All these people are clearly in heaven.

It is appropriate for us to examine ourselves to ensure we are walking in the faith and truly children of God (2 Corinthians 13:5; 2 Peter 1:10). Everyone whose name is written in the Book of Life has the Holy Spirit’s indwelling and, therefore can’t commit these eight sins without being convicted by the Holy Spirit.

Upon committing such sins, believers are convicted and repent; unbelievers insist this is how God created them, shrug their shoulders, or feel bad but don’t truly repent. A believer is convicted even when she’s the only one who knows of the sin because her heart breaks at offending her Father in heaven. The unbeliever is primarily concerned about whether someone knows what he did.

This passage reiterates what we saw earlier, that people tend to become their sin. God judges people by giving them what they want. As they persist in their sin, He turns them over to a corrupted mind (Romans 1:26–31). They get all they want of it without God to convict them. Those who unrepentantly commit cowardly acts enough times become cowards; those who commit sexual perversion long enough without repenting become perverts.

When they insist this is who they are, they’re right. They justify their sin by saying, “God made me this way.” God didn’t make them that way, sin did, and they chose sin over God. Believers walking in sin are never abandoned by God and never stop being convicted of their wrongdoing. So, confident in God’s boundless grace and His promise to wipe away all sins from the one who believes.

God’s grace can cover all, but it doesn’t. He has put a condition on His grace. By His decree, the King has said that His grace covers those who believe in Him, and it doesn’t cover those who reject Him (John 3:18). If you ask, what about those who never heard of Him, who couldn’t accept or reject, he answers that all are accountable because God has made His nature plain to all (Romans 1:19–20). Does this mean people can come to saving knowledge with no one to tell them the good news? It sounds like it, though Paul asks in the same book (in Romans 10:14) how can they hear without a preacher. We don’t know how this works exactly, but we know He told us to go to the ends of the earth to make disciples for Him, telling the good news of His love to those who don’t know and helping those who do to become holy sons and daughters.

Father works tirelessly in this life to grow us and change us more into the likeness of His perfect Son. We assume it is only to make us better in this life, but this school of life reaches beyond just this temporal time and is molding a foundation for who we will be for eternity. We want to be like the man who sold everything he had to buy the perfect pearl (Matthew 13:45–46). Giving all now result in great blessing for all eternity for those whose names are in the Book of Life.

Respond

Is your name in the Lamb’s book of life? Describe your salvation experience.

If unsure, who in your circle of friends and family can help you know Jesus.

Prayer

Lord and Savior, show me someone today who needs to hear about You, who needs to know You.