(updated 11/04/2024) THIS ARTICLE IS STILL IN THE PROCESS OF BEING COMPOSED.
Hello gentle reader,
In the writings of the The Humbled Teacher, it will likely be noticed that a Bema seat judgment event is never mentioned. In case the reader is unfamiliar with this possible event, here is a quick breakdown. It basically says that the righteous are to be judged by the Lord for the bestowing of rewards at what is referred to as the “Bema seat of Christ” prior to Christ’s 1,000-year reign on Earth. It then follows that everyone else will be judged after those 1,000-years at the Great White Throne for the assigning of punishment.
This author suspects that an all-inclusive judgment with both rewards and punishment can only take place after the last moment of accountability has passed. This phrase will be defined shortly, but is indicated by the Lord in the following verse:
♥ For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter shall pass from the Law, until all is accomplished! (Matthew 5:18 NASB)
The Lord is telling us that every part of the Law, down to the smallest detail, is 100% in effect until everything the Lord wants done is completed. This requirement by the Lord, is continuously in effect until Heaven and Earth pass away. We don’t have to guess when Heaven and Earth pass away; the Bible tells us they pass just before the White Throne judgment commences:
♥ 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. (Revelation 20:11 KJV emphasis mine)
In case there is any doubt whether the first Earth and first Heaven are still around, the Bible provides a confirmation. The first verse after the completion of the White Throne judgment makes it clear they are gone:
♥ Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. (Revelation 21:1 ESV emphasis mine)
The last moment of accountability occurs when everything the Lord wants done is completed and will be just before Heaven and Earth are passed away (removed) in preparation for the White Throne judgment. Only after the last moment of accountability will the Law be suspended. This is what the Lord is telling us in Matthew 5:18.
Since the Earth is removed from existence, there will no longer be life on it. Any monitoring and recording by heavenly authorities will have ceased. It seems there will be no further accountability of its former inhabitants until the White Throne judgment has concluded.
Once the last moment of accountability has passed and Heaven and Earth are removed, the White Throne judgment can occur and will be the final summation of one’s entire life upon the Earth. This summation will include (but is not limited to) all of one’s works and deeds, the influences upon others during and after one’s life, whether one is recorded in the Book of Life, and if any ‘exceptions’ were committed (see Never Forgiveness).
Do you wonder why the influences upon others during and after one’s lifetime are important? The impact of a person’s positive and/or negative works can extend beyond their lifetime to influence many lives thru multiples of generations. Consider the writings of the Apostle Paul. His letters to the early churches are some of the most well-known in the world and continue to influence millions of lives every day.
It seems doubtful that a final judgment of the righteous occurs before the Millennial Reign. Why? During that 1,000-years many human lives are still to be born, lived, and reckoned — up to the last moment of accountability. Who are the children born to during that time? They are from the human survivors all over the Earth after the battle at Armageddon is over and God’s wrath has concluded. That’s right, children will be coming from the survivors, not the resurrected saints. Is this contrary to what you have heard before? Consider the response of Jesus to the Sadducees when they asked about the resurrection and the woman married to seven brothers:
♥ For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven. (Matthew 22:30 KJV)
Since the resurrected saints are to be like angels, they may not be physically equipped for copulation. Any attempt by the saints of the 1st resurrection to engage in sexual activity during the Millennial Reign of Christ would likely be considered fornication – that is, sin. The angels of Jude 1:6 were punished for their sin by being bound in everlasting chains under darkness. Likewise, the resurrected saints could face similar punishment for attempting sexual sin. Hence, we expect the saints to maintain righteous obedience to the Lord during the Millennial Reign era. Therefore, children born during the Millennial Reign will be from the human survivors mentioned previously.
Over the 1,000-years of Christ’s Millennial Reign, we know the human population count will increase massively. After Satan is loosed at the end in Revelation 20:7, the Earth’s population is described in Revelation 20:8 as “…the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.” Undoubtedly, some will be righteous Christians that are recorded in the Lamb’s Book of Life also expecting of their rewards. Will they be told, “Sorry, the rewards ceremony was before your time”?
The point here is that all those who survive and continue living into the Millennial Reign and all those who are born during that same 1,000-years must necessarily be part of a judgment that takes into consideration everything for everyone. This judgment must necessarily span time from the moment the first human walked the Earth and continue through the time of the Millennial Reign till the last moment of accountability has passed. This will be the all-inclusive White Throne judgment. Of course, there will be exceptions.
Two obvious exceptions to the White Throne judgment are the Beast and False Prophet. They will not be at the White Throne judgment since they receive a ‘battlefield’ judgment straight to the Lake of Fire before the Millennial Reign of Christ.
Everything proposed here all sounds good and reasonable, but here is the reality. Most Christians have been told that rewards are associated with ‘who-rules-what’ and with which crown(s) during that coming 1,000-years on Earth. But that is only 1,000-years and then the Earth is removed. After that is the White Throne judgment, followed by the appearing of the new Earth and new Heaven, and then New Jerusalem is revealed. Following the reveal, all humanity enters eternity! Some are eternally bound in the Lake of Fire while others are forever restricted to Outer Darkness. The righteous are eternally granted entry to New Jerusalem and eternity is far, far longer than a meager 1,000-years.
That New Jerusalem could easily contain all the cities of our planet with vast amounts of volume left over. Recall that New Jerusalem comes down from Heaven (Rev. 21:2) which indicates it is capable of space travel and, apparently, inter-dimensional travel. Such travel in an endlessly vast universe is unknown to humankind. It is probable that the real rewards are granted at or after the White Throne judgment to the righteous “sheep” (Mat. 25:31-46). Those rewards could be of a spectacular nature to the righteous as they prepare for life within the New Jerusalem where it is always well-lit and the Tree of Life is found that imparts immortality. Perhaps such a life will be an eternal adventure aboard the *USS* New Jerusalem as it treks among the stars with the Creator and his righteous faithful.
The Humbled Teacher
(The author was born in the 60’s and watched Star Trek “to infinity and beyond.” This may have slightly influenced the end wording. 😊)