The Lake of Fire

A fundamental principle of Western jurisprudence is that the judge and the jury should be impartial. When judges and juries do not limit their deliberations to the evidence before them but show favoritism to one side or the other, justice cannot be done. This principle of impartiality comes at least partly from the Christian foundations of Western civilization, for the Bible regularly warns judges that they are not to be partial to the rich or to the poor; rather, they must judge according to the law and not their feelings toward the parties (Lev. 19:15). In this fallen world, sadly, this ideal of an impartial judge is not always realized.

If we desire an impartial judge to deal with us on this side of heaven, how much more do we want the judge who appoints us to eternal reward or eternal punishment to be just? Thankfully, we know that our Creator is the perfect Judge, dealing only with the facts of the case. Paul tells us that “God shows no partiality” (Rom. 2:11).

Although we know that God must be impartial, recognizing that He is impartial is also a fearful thing for those outside Christ Jesus. God will give “glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good” (v. 10). No one besides Christ actually fulfills that condition (3:9–20). “None is righteous, no, not one” (v. 10). Thus, our only hope on the day of judgment before our impartial Judge is to have the righteousness of Christ imputed to us (vv. 21–26; 2 Cor. 5:21). Only the works of Christ put on our account can result in the verdict of “deserving of eternal life.” If we rely on our own works, we will hear the verdict “deserving of eternal death.”

Eternal punishment is the fearful reality for everyone who never trusts in Christ alone because such individuals will not have the righteousness of Christ to cover them. Such people will be cast into the lake of fire and suffer eternal judgment by fire (Rev. 20:7–15). Yet not everyone will receive the same degree of punishment. Everyone found outside Jesus will be cast into hell, but those who have had more light and rejected it will suffer more than those who have had less light. The more that one knows about the law of God, Christ and His gospel, and so on, the greater his punishment will be for not responding to God in faith, repentance, and obedience (Luke 12:47–48). God is just and will give everyone in hell exactly what they deserve.