“Be sure your sin will find you out.”

That haunting statement from Numbers 32:23 reminds us that there is no escape from sin and sin’s punishment. The consequences of sin are a shadow that cannot be shaken. We know that the sins of all Christians were paid for by Christ, their substitute. But for those who don’t trust in Christ, judgment awaits. And in Jesus’ longest prophetic sermon, known as the Olivet discourse, He includes a vivid description of how He will personally judge all of humanity.

The Judge

Christ Himself is the Judge in the events foretold in His great prophetic sermon (Matthew 24–25). This is in keeping with what He said on another occasion: “Not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son, so that all will honor the Son even as they honor the Father” (John 5:22–23). Thus, the same compassionate One who wept and pleaded with sinners to be reconciled to God will one day be their sovereign Judge.

And He will judge “with a rod of iron”; He will “shatter them like earthenware” (Psalm 2:9; Revelation 2:27; 19:15). The judgment will be fierce, pictured in Revelation 19:15 with the imagery of Christ “[treading] the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty.”

He says that He will execute judgment with a large company of angels: “The Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him” (Matthew 25:31). Several passages of Scripture teach that the angels will play an assisting role in the judgment. According to 2 Thessalonians 1:7–8, “The Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus” (emphasis added).

Matthew 24:31 says the angels “will gather together His elect from the four winds.” So believers who have died or were caught up in the Rapture will also be part of the company that returns with Christ: “Behold, the Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones, to execute judgment upon all” (Jude 14–15). “When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory” (Colossians 3:4).

Here’s an interesting fact: This passage in Matthew 25:31–46 marks the first time in any of Christ’s recorded statements that He explicitly refers to Himself as King. Throughout His ministry He had much to say about the kingdom of God; but He did not expressly feature Himself as King until He did so in this context, speaking privately to the disciples.

The title Christ most frequently applied to Himself was “Son of Man.” Even here He employs that expression, but only to say that the Son of Man will come in His glory and subsequently take His throne (Matthew 25:31). In verse 34 he calls Himself “King” for the first time on record. Moreover, He declares that when He takes His rightful place as King, His first duty will be to execute righteous judgment, and thus to determine who will have the right to enter His kingdom.

The Time

Scripture is precise about the timing of this judgment. It will take place “when the Son of Man comes in His glory” (Matthew 25:31). Everything in the account suggests that His judgment will begin at the very moment He appears (cf. Matthew 24:30–41). This accords perfectly with the prophecy about His coming in Revelation 19:11–21:

And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses. From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”

Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and he cried out with a loud voice, saying to all the birds which fly in midheaven, “Come, assemble for the great supper of God, so that you may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of commanders and the flesh of mighty men and the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them and the flesh of all men, both free men and slaves, and small and great.”

And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies assembled to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army.

And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone. And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh.

So when Christ appears, the opportunity for salvation will be gone forever. The day of mercy already spent, Christ will summarily cut off the wicked without remedy. Like the evil servant, they will be caught unawares by their Lord’s return (Matthew 25:24–30). Like the five foolish virgins, they will find the door closed and themselves locked out (Matthew 25:1–13). Like the foolish and lazy steward, they will have no legitimate plea by which to excuse themselves (Matthew 24:45–51). For them, the day of salvation is over.

Christ is returning to establish an earthly kingdom, and none but His sheep will be permitted to enter it.

The Place

How do we know Christ will be seated on an earthly throne? Everything in the context points to this. He comes to earth in glory first: “Then He will sit on His glorious throne” (Matthew 25:31, emphasis added). This marks the establishment of the earthly kingdom, emanating from Jerusalem, that is spoken of so frequently in the Old Testament messianic prophecies. This will be the fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant, given in 2 Samuel 7:12–16. He will sit “on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore” (Isaiah 9:7; cf. Zechariah 14:4, 8–9). This signifies the fulfillment of the promise the angel gave Mary: “You will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end” (Luke 1:31–33, emphasis added).

There is no good reason to interpret those promises in any sense except the literal one. Just as His ascension was literal and bodily, so shall He literally come in bodily form at His return. And since that is so, there is no valid reason to see His throne as anything but the literal reestablishment of David’s earthly kingdom. His throne will be situated in Jerusalem, and Christ will rule over all the earth, finally bringing about the literal fulfillment of all the Old Testament millennial prophecies, as well as all the promises God made to Abraham about the land of Israel and all the promises He made to David about the throne.

But before the kingdom is established, a dreadful judgment must take place. Joel wrote of it centuries before Christ:

Let the nations be aroused
And come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat,
For there I will sit to judge
All the surrounding nations.
Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe.
Come, tread, for the wine press is full;
The vats overflow, for their wickedness is great.
Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision!
For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.
The sun and moon grow dark
And the stars lose their brightness.
The Lord roars from Zion
And utters His voice from Jerusalem,
And the heavens and the earth tremble.
But the Lord is a refuge for His people
And a stronghold to the sons of Israel.
Then you will know that I am the Lord your God,
Dwelling in Zion, My holy mountain.
So Jerusalem will be holy,
And strangers will pass through it no more. (Joel 3:12–17)

Thus God Himself pledged that the sheep would be separated from the goats. And none but those who love Christ will be permitted to enter or to pass through His kingdom. Jesus picks up this very theme in the Olivet discourse and tells the disciples precisely how this judgment will occur. This is what we’ll look at next time: How exactly does Jesus mete out judgment upon the sheep and the goats?

(Adapted from The Second Coming.)