One of the things that the Progressives want is a new earth. They care less about heaven, and not at all about the cost of getting there. They are seeking a new Jerusalem, perhaps in England’s slag heaps. They want to make people better. But they do not want judgment.

I see many in the church who are thirsty, and who want to have the tears removed from their eyes, who want no mourning, or crying or pain. But many of them ignore judgment.

But judgment will come. There will be an audit, a closing of the books. For the new heaven and new earth will contain only those who are righteous.

Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

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. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son. But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

(Revelation 20:11-21:8 ESV)

Now it gets messy. For among those who will get as their portion the second death lie all of us. For if we are not a murderer or sexually immoral, we lie. If we are not faithless, we worship things or ideologies, which is idolatry, and if we are not detestable, we are neo-pagans.

And we will all be held to account. This is one reason that the Reformed say that it is God’s doing that we are saved: for our natural tendencies are towards sexual immorality, lying, hatred (which is murder) and unfaithfulness if it gives us advantage.

My concern is that no one wants to hear about the state of humanity. We are capable of art, great and less great (I like one photo on the cafe wall: the rest I could safely leave alone) but we are also capable of debauchery, and great evil. We cannot pay a fine sufficient to cover what we have done.

And without that realization, the gospel makes no sense. In Christ we will be able to live with God, and death will be no more. Without Christ, the presence of God will annihilate us.

For at the end of days, there will be true justice, not the ersatz version that our society considers progressive.