On judgment day, when the Son is on His great white throne, all nations before Him, and the books are opened, what then?

Matthew 25:31-33 NIV
[31] “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. [32] All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. [33] He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.”

First, the nations…

What will Jesus do with my nation? Sheep or goats? Does my nation fulfil all the criteria for being “sheep”?

Sheep belong to Him; He bought them with His own blood. He knows them and they know Him.

John 10:14 NIV
[14] “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me…”

Why are the sheep sheep? They entered the sheepfold through the door, the Good Shepherd. They follow Him. He gives them eternal life. They will never perish. No one will snatch them from Him or out of His Father’s hand.

In the main, South Africa as a nation falls far short of these requirements. We are not sheep. Why are we not sheep? As a nation, it’s everyone for himself. Governed by greedy and self-interested, power hungry, corrupt, and godless politicians, the fight for survival unleashes in the main, the worst that is in us.

Who are the goats? Every nation that does not qualify to be “sheep” is “goat”. Goats are all set aside for judgment. What comes next?

In this process, there is no safety in numbers. Every “sheep” and every “goat” nation must be scrutinised. Every sheep and every goat in every nation will be tested, to receive either reward or punishment.

Revelation 20:11-12, 15 NLT
[11] “And I saw a great white throne and the one sitting on it. The earth and sky fled from his presence, but they found no place to hide. [12] I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books…
[15] And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire.”

Though God’s judgement will fall on every nation, like Lot from Sodom, He will preserve everyone who belongs to Him. Jesus promised that they will never perish.

The Lamb’s Book of Life has an indelible record of the names of every “sheep” belonging to the Shepherd.

Let’s examine the criteria. First, Jesus is the judge.

John 5:21-23 NLT
[21] “For just as the Father gives life to those he raises from the dead, so the Son gives life to anyone he wants. [22] In addition, the Father judges no one. Instead, he has given the Son absolute authority to judge, [23] so that everyone will honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Anyone who does not honor the Son is certainly not honoring the Father who sent him.”

Jesus’ judgment is based on the objective standard of His Word, by which He condemns or acquits.

John 12:47-49 NIV
[47] “If anyone hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge that person. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. [48] There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; the very words I have spoken will condemn them at the last day. [49] For I did not speak on my own, but the Father who sent me commanded me to say all that I have spoken.”

The Father judges by one standard.

John 3:16-18 NIV
[16] “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. [17] For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. [18] Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands CONDEMNED ALREADY because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”

Why, then does the Bible say that God will examine our deeds?

Revelation 20:12 NIV
[12] “And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.”

Matthew 25:34-36, 40 NIV
[34]“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. [35] For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, [36] I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’…”

Revelation 19:7-8 NIV
[7] Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. [8] Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” (Fine linen stands for the RIGHTEOUS ACTS of God’s holy people). “

… L[40] “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’”

All sin is the fruit of unbelief. “Good works” are the response of faith in Jesus.

John 15:5, 10 NIV
[5] “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing…
[10] If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.”

What we do, then, reveals what is in our hearts.

We must never be fooled into believing that all people are intrinsically good. The Bible declares judgment on all people because the human race is rotten at the core.

Jeremiah 17:9 NIV
[9]”The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”

Even the Apostle Paul concluded…

Romans 7:18 NIV
[18] “For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.”

Sin is both universal and incurable.

Romans 3:23 NIV
[23] “…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

Only those who, by faith, receive the gift of righteousness through the mercy of God will escape God’s judgement and share in the blessing of eternal life.

John 5:24 NIV
[24] “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.”

For those who reject God’s mercy and choose their own way, the outcome is…well, what then?

John 3:18 NIV
[18]”Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”

This statement is neither intolerance nor hate speech. This declaration is both the sober truth and the greatest of all offers of mercy. How can a warning and a promise ever be anything else?