LPBC Worship - Nov 1, 2026 - Who is your one - Pastor Chris McCombs

Personal evangelism begins with one person. Rather than becoming overwhelmed by everyone who needs Christ, believers are called to identify someone by name, pray deliberately, and look for an opportunity to share their faith. An invitation to church can be a starting point, but the goal reaches further: that person’s name written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Revelation 20 gives that concern eternal weight. Christ’s thousand-year reign, Satan’s final rebellion, and the great white throne lead toward a final judgment that no earthly court can match. A pretribulational, premillennial reading places the church’s rapture before the tribulation and understands Christ’s thousand-year reign as literal. Satan’s deception will end, death itself will be defeated, and God’s people will dwell with him in a new heaven and new earth.

The great white throne is great because its authority is unmatched and white because its judgment is pure and holy. The dead, great and small, stand before Christ. The books record their works, but religious activity, good intentions, and personal merit cannot provide an escape. The lake of fire is real, final, and permanent.

The Lamb’s book of life presents a different hope. Christ’s blood forgives sin as far as the east is from the west. Believers face Christ’s judgment for reward, not to earn a salvation already received. Freedom from condemnation does not make sin harmless; the Holy Spirit produces a desire to become more like Christ.

Jesus alone provides the escape. His finished work calls for faith, repentance, and a changed life. That grace also shapes personal evangelism: believers approach others not as judges, but as people who once walked in the same darkness. Their responsibility is to speak, love, pray, and invite, while God deals with the heart.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. One Person Gives Evangelism a Name. Concern for the lost becomes concrete when a believer identifies one person and prays for that person by name. Thirty days of Scripture-shaped prayer and a genuine invitation give that concern a practical direction. The aim is not merely an occupied seat at church, but a person coming to Christ. [43:06]
• 2. Forgiveness Reaches Beyond the Recorded Past. The contrast between the books and the Lamb’s book of life exposes the difference between depending on personal deeds and receiving Christ’s forgiveness. Sin forgiven through Christ is cast as far as the east is from the west, not held nearby for later accusation. That assurance rests on his blood rather than on a carefully improved record. [57:20]
• 3. Grace Changes the Approach to Others. Believers have no grounds for approaching an unbeliever with a spirit of superiority. They once walked in darkness too, and the grace that brought them into the light is the grace they are called to share. Personal evangelism therefore carries a serious warning without becoming an act of personal condemnation. [1:00:20]
• 4. Hard Hearts Still Need Loving Words. A person’s resistance does not remove the believer’s responsibility to speak with love. God deals with the heart, while believers can care, invite, and plainly name the hope found in Jesus. Final judgment makes that care urgent, but it does not give Christians the power to force a response. [1:06:32]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [42:16] - Identifying One Person to Reach
• [43:06] - Prayer by Name and an Invitation
• [44:51] - Revelation 20 and the Final Judgment
• [48:21] - The Rapture and Christ’s Thousand-Year Reign
• [52:05] - Satan’s Final Rebellion and Death’s Defeat
• [54:09] - The Reality of the Second Death
• [55:16] - A Right Relationship With Jesus
• [56:18] - Christ’s Judgment Seat and Forgiven Sin
• [59:09] - No Condemnation and a Changed Life
• [1:01:13] - The Books and the Lamb’s Book
• [1:04:12] - The Great White Throne’s Final Authority
• [1:07:41] - New Birth and Eternal Separation
• [1:09:22] - Jesus Is the Only Escape
• [1:11:13] - Prayer, Response, and Assurance

Bible Reading

Revelation 20:11-15
“Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and heaven 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.” [44:51]

Romans 8:1
“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” [59:30]

2 Corinthians 5:10
“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.” [56:22]

Observation questions

1. In Revelation 20:11–15, what details show that neither a person’s status nor the place of their death keeps them from standing before the throne?
2. What is recorded in the books in Revelation 20:12–13, and what determines a person’s final destination in verse 15? [47:50]
3. What distinction is made between believers facing Christ’s judgment for reward and people depending on their deeds to escape judgment? [58:01]
4. Alongside the assurance of Romans 8:1, what signs of a changed life should be present in someone who belongs to Christ? [59:41]

Interpretation questions

1. How does Revelation 20:11–15 challenge the belief that being a good person or being religious is enough to make someone right with God? [55:25]
2. How can the assurance of Romans 8:1 and the accountability described in 2 Corinthians 5:10 fit together? What difference does it make that a believer’s salvation is already received rather than earned? [58:48]
3. Why should remembering their own need for grace keep Christians from approaching an unbeliever with a sense of superiority? [01:00:42]
4. In light of the book of life in Revelation 20:15, why is inviting someone to church a starting point rather than the final goal of personal evangelism? [50:27]

Application questions

1. Who is one person you feel drawn to pray for and share your faith with? You may share only a first name. What has made it difficult to take a step toward that person? [42:16]
2. What could help you pray for that person consistently over the next thirty days? How might you use Scripture to shape those prayers rather than simply repeating the same request? [43:56]
3. When guilt about your past returns, do you tend to rely on Christ’s forgiveness or try to make up for your failures through good behavior? What would resting in his finished work look like this week? [57:26]
4. Freedom from condemnation does not make sin harmless. Is there an area where you have become comfortable with something that needs to change? What next step could you take with the Holy Spirit’s help? [01:00:02]
5. Think about your attitude toward the person you hope to reach. Where might impatience, fear, or a sense of superiority be getting in the way of love? How could remembering God’s grace toward you change your next conversation? [01:00:42]
6. God deals with the heart; believers are called to speak, love, and invite. What is one genuine step you could take this week toward someone who seems resistant, while respecting their freedom to respond? [01:06:51]