Our final, and perhaps most decisive in many ways, look at eternal judgment, is through the eyes of the apostle John. We met him in his Gospel earlier, but I decided to save the rest of his writings for the closing of New Testament thought, as that has been the role assigned to him by the Spirit and the church through the ages. Jesus' final word about the wrath to come, and a chilling one it is, is through John.

As we indicated earlier, it is quite possible to be known as a man of love and a man of judgment. The two are not exclusive after all, and if it be so in this human, why is it not also possible in the One in Whose image he was made?

God is love. And God is a consuming fire. No contradiction.

I John 3:6, 8, 14; 5:12, 19. John continues the exclusive tendencies of Scripture. It is hard for us to hear talk such as this in a culture of "acceptance" and "tolerance" and "non-discrimination." But the fact is that those who continue in their sin, whatever their label may be, have never seen or known Jesus Christ.

Further, sinning people are from the devil. Those who do not practice righteousness are simply not from God. Ditto, those who do not love their brothers in Christ.

John says that there are people of death and people of life. That those who are in darkness and filled with hate are murderers, and do not have eternal life in them. Period.

He goes on to indicate that anyone who has the Son has life. No Son, no life. And his most obvious division of the two peoples and their destinies: "We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one."

Where in the world can one work into the seamless theology of John that somehow, somewhere, in a different age, these two groups shall be one, and will be forever in God's favor?

Revelation. Here is a book like no other. Many want to downplay the prophetic nature of the book and its dire warnings of doom for the lost by saying, as it says in its first words, "The revelation of Jesus Christ."

This is first and foremost a revealing of Jesus. Though we might argue that the meaning here is that all that is to follow comes to us under the auspices of Jesus Christ, for the moment let us accept the notion that the book is a revealing of the very person and nature of our Lord Jesus.

Then what an awesome uncovering is this! Jesus, with swords coming out of His mouth. Jesus, holding the keys of death and hell. Jesus, with eyes as a flame of fire. Jesus, who is holy and true. Jesus, a Lamb indeed, but one filled with the wrath of God. Jesus, who stops the rain, brings humongous earthquakes, showers of hail. Jesus, wielder of the sharp sickle with which He reaps the earth. Jesus, Who treads the winepress of Almighty God, causing an unprecedented bloodbath. Jesus, who allows the sun to scorch unrepentant man. Jesus, Who destroys the commercial and religious interests of mankind in one fell swoop of His anger. Jesus, Who strikes the nations with an un-healable blow, and rules them Himself with a rod of iron. Jesus, Who casts His enemies into a lake of fire. Jesus, who judges living and dead in a world-wide judgment.

Look again, and you will see the One we have come to love and in Whom we rest. A gentle Jesus Who wipes away tears, encourages, invites.

These two revelations of the Lord demand that there are two groups of people to Whom Jesus is responding. The same theme we have seen throughout Scripture is even more evident here. There is no universal salvation. There is universal justice.

Revelation 6:10. See here the God of vengeance.

Revelation 6:16, 11:18. The God of wrath.

Revelation 7:14. The persecuted are welcomed home. Do you imagine that their persecutors will be greeted in the same way?

Revelation 9:20. Here, mankind has been given many rude awakenings. No repentance. Can a man truly be saved forever who does not repent here?

Revelation 14:9-13. Surely the antichrist (beast) shall be sent to torment. But here we learn that anyone who receives his mark shall be tormented with fire and brimstone. The smoke of that torment ascends forever. They have no rest... ever.

That's what it says. No comment needed, except to note the stark contrast for that other group: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on, that they may rest from their labors..."

Two groups.

Revelation 15-16. The consummation of God's wrath in a series of unbearable judgments. Yet we are told elsewhere that God has not appointed us to wrath.

Revelation 17-18. The harlot Babylon is judged. Yet God's people, who by the way are still on earth, are told to come out of her. No lingering in Babylon. There is a cursed people. There is a blessed people. They do not mix.

Revelation 19: 17 ff. The utter judgment of all at the return of Jesus. The supper of flesh given to the animals.

Revelation 20:12-15. Somehow "Death" and the grave, that is, the home of departed spirits, are all cast into the Lake of Fire. And into that lake are thrown anyone whose name is not found in the Book of Life. There is some confusion about what is "the Book of Life", and what is the "Book of Life of the Lamb." No matter. It is clear that records are being kept. From those records it will be gleaned that all men sinned, but that some men had their sins paid for by the blood of the Lamb. Those who have no such payment added to their account will go the Lake of Fire.

Again, what could be more clear?

Revelation 22:19. Possible for people to be lost? Why, even the third last verse of the Holy Bible makes it abundantly clear that it is possible. Those who in any way corrupt the plain teaching of Scripture by adding or subtracting its words shall find that the plagues they did not accept as real will be very real indeed, and the automatic spot they thought they had in the Heavenly Home has been assigned to someone else.