The Word "BEMA" is often mentioned
in place of the word "judgment." Hence, the "Bema Seat of Christ." "Bema" is simply the Greek word meaning "place of judgment." When Jesus
stood in Herod's court in judgment, the Bible uses the same Greek word "bema." It was a trial. When Paul stood trial before king Agrippa, the same word
for judgment is used again. The Judgment Seat of Christ will NOT
be a family reunion or social event, nor will it be a pleasant experience for
MANY believers. It will be a JUDGMENT, with Jesus Christ sitting in the
Judge's seat.
Though no believer will be in danger of being sentenced to
Hell, many will suffer great loss and the wrath of God. King David
was a believer, yet he feared God's wrath. Psalm 38:1..."O LORD,
rebuke me not in thy wrath: neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure." Some believers really make God's blood boil. Though we won't be tried in
criminal court at the Great White Throne of Judgment, we will all
certainly be held accountable in civil court at the Judgment Seat of Christ. Romans 14:12, "So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God."
In 1934 Dr. John R. Rice
(1895-1980) launched THE SWORD OF THE
LORD, which, by the time of his death, had become the largest independent
religious weekly in the world, with subscribers in every state of the Union
and more than 100 foreign countries. Thousands of preachers read it
regularly, and it undoubtedly had the greatest impact upon the
fundamentalist movement of any publication in the 20th century.
The following lengthy quote is
from the faithful man of God, Dr. John R. Rice, from chapter 4 of the book,
“WHEN A CHRISTIAN SINS.” The chapter is titled, “THE
CHRISTIAN'S HAPPINESS IN HEAVEN DEPENDS ON HOW HE LIVED ON EARTH”
...
"AGAIN
LET ME SAY that I do not encourage sin. No one must treat sin lightly.
We are not soon done with the disaster of sin. The Christian who sins
will suffer for it in this life. He will suffer for it in the life to
come.
Some people suppose that
every sinner who goes to Heaven will have the same joy and happiness.
But that is not true. In Revelation 20, we find that sinners who go to
hell are judged, every man according to his works, according to the
things written down in God's Books. The torment of unsaved people in
hell will differ, each one according to his opportunity and according to
his sin.
Likewise, the Bible makes it
abundantly clear that not all Christians will enjoy the same position
and have the same honor and responsibility and blessing in heaven. It is
true that each one who trusts in Christ has the same salvation and goes
to the same heaven. But beyond salvation there will be rewards for
Christians according to their service, and Christians must give an
account for their sins. Let no Christian think that he is getting by
with his worldliness, his sin, his disobedience, his carelessness about
soul-winning.
THE CHRISTIAN MUST MEET HIS
DEEDS, GOOD AND BAD, AT CHRIST'S JUDGMENT SEAT
Read with me the shocking
passage of Scripture in 2nd Corinthians 5:9-10:
'Wherefore we labour,
that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him. For we
must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one
may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath
done, whether it be good or bad.'
Here we know why Paul worked
so hard, why he endured such persecution, gave up home, family, good
name, ease, honors, in order to win souls. He was labouring to be
acceptable to Jesus Christ! He knew that he would one day meet the
Saviour and longed to have Jesus say to him, 'well done, good and
faithful servant' (Mt 25:23). Paul says, 'For we must all appear before
the judgment seat of Christ' (2nd Co 5:10a). Do not confuse this with
the final judgment of the unsaved as described in Revelation 20. Do not
confuse this with the judgment of the Gentile world as described in
Matthew 25:31-46. Here is a judgment, in heaven, of Christians only.
After we are already caught up to meet the Lord in the air, after we
have resurrected bodies, after we see the Saviour, then 'we must all
appear before the judgment seat of Christ.'
And what occurs at this
judgment seat of Christ?
'that every one may
receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done,
whether it be good or bad' (2 Co 5:10b).
Do not explain away the
plain statements of the Scriptures. The Christian is still to come face
to face with his past. I know that the Christian has his sins forgiven
as far as the destiny of his soul is concerned. It is true that all his
sins are laid on Jesus and paid for on the cross. But God is still
against sin. And up in heaven no Christian will think it did not matter
that he sinned. Every Christian will find how horrible are the results
of his sins. He will face what he has done, whether it be good or bad.
I do not wonder that, in the
next verse, Paul says, 'Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we
persuade man' (2 CO 5:11). Paul knew that it would be a terrifying thing
for Christians, born again, and even in glorified bodies, to stand up
before Jesus Christ and give an account of the deeds done in the body
both good and bad. In my sermon on 'Tears in Heaven' in the book And
God Remembered, I have discussed the tears of Christians when they
face their sins in heaven. And I hope you will read it.
God may forgive sins, but
there are some of the results of sin that will never be undone...”
SOURCE: “WHEN A CHRISTIAN
SINS,” John R. Rice; chapter 4, pgs. 60-62; copyright 1954, Sword
Of The Lord Publishers; ISBN: 0-87398-911-2
Praying For One
Another For Mercy At The Judgment
There's an amazing little truth
tucked away in 2nd Timothy 1:16-18, The Lord give mercy unto the house of
Onesiphorus; for he oft refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain: But,
when he was in Rome, he sought me out very diligently, and found me.
The Lord grant unto him that he may find mercy of the Lord in
that day: and in how many things he ministered unto me at
Ephesus, thou knowest very well.” Amen! I had never noticed this
Scripture before until recently in 2012. The Bible says that Paul prayed for
God to show mercy on his friend at the Judgment Seat Of Christ, because
Onesiphorus helped him when he needed it the most. Evidently Paul was in
some kind of legal trouble in Asia, because Paul mentions “my chain.”
Paul said they despaired even of
life while in Asia, but Jesus Christ resurrects the dead.
The Foundation
Verses
The House Built Upon It
"For other
foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now
if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood,
hay, stubble; Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall
declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every
man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide which he hath built
thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burned,
he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire" —1st
Corinthians 3:11-15
It's important to keep in mind here
that the Apostle Paul is writing to the believers at the church of Corinth. The Bible's not talking about the fool who built his house upon the sand as in
Matthew 7:26-27. This passage of Scripture is speaking to those who
already have a sure foundation, which is Jesus Christ. The Word of God
proclaims that Jesus Christ is the ONLY true Foundation. The foolish man
in Matthew 7:26-27 represents the unsaved man who fails to place His trust in
Christ for salvation. His destruction is imminent. However, 1st
Corinthians 3:11-15 is speaking to the man who has already placed his faith in
Christ, he is a born-again believer; however, he is foolishly building upon
the foundation with shabby and unreliable materials. In other words, only
that which we do for Christ will last.
Let me illustrate. Matthew
7:26-27 is likened to a man who decides to build his house in a low-lying
flood zone or on the muddy slope of a mountain side. He's taking great
risks, and foolish one's I might add. I've always wondered why people
keep building homes in areas that they know are prone to flooding, forest
fires, mud slides, et cetera. People often spend extravagantly on their home,
but they have NO sure foundation. I've seen mansions on the news go
sliding down the side of a mountain from excessive rains. “And the rain
descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that
house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it” (Matthew 7:27). This pictures
the unsaved person who builds their faith upon self-righteousness works.
Notice that they are building a home, but it is not built upon the
foundation of faith in Jesus Christ.
Now the man in 1st Corinthians
3:11-15 is likened to a man who builds a solid concrete foundation in a stable
land area, but then he uses inferior materials and poor design to build the
house. He uses flammable materials, not thinking about potential loss
from fire. He employs cheap and unskilled labor to assemble the home. He is penny wise, and dollar foolish. He has a solid foundation,
but decides to use straw instead of concrete to build the house. Surely
you remember the story of the three little pigs? I've oftentimes seen
wooden homes that have burned to the ground replaced with concrete homes. It just makes better sense to build with concrete and brick. Most
Christians are building their spiritual houses out of straw and mud. In areas
which are prone to hurricanes or typhoons, wise people build their homes out
of concrete. Thousands of wooden homes are often destroyed during tropical storms.
So we have two types of homeowners
here: the man who has a solid house, but a shabby foundation (this pictures
the unsaved man); and then the man
who has a shabby house, but a solid foundation (this pictures the worldly
believer who does nothing for God).
Don't Point Fingers
(because there's 3 fingers pointing back at you)
No one is going to fool God on
Judgment Day. Proverb 24:12, “If thou sayest, Behold, we knew it not;
doth not he that pondereth the heart consider it? and he that keepeth thy
soul, doth not he know it? and shall not he render to every man according to
his works?” God knows who is sincere and who is not. There won't be any
need for juries in Heaven, because the eyes of Lord are upon the evil and
the good. God is omniscient (knowing all). God ponders (i.e., thinks at
length and in depth) upon our every thought. God ponders the thoughts of all
estimated 6,800,000,000 people on the arth, as only God can do. This is why
Jesus warned in Matthew 12:36 that God will hold men accountable even for
the very words they speak. No one is going to escape God's judgment. All
evil and good will be accounted for. The best part is that no one will be
able to deceive God, nor lie up a storm, for God knows all.
I've always thought of Proverb
24:16 as being directed to the righteous, but it's not. This is the
Scripture that says a righteous man falleth seven times and riseth up again.
Most people don't read the verse before... Proverb 24:15-16, “Lay not
wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous; spoil not
his resting place: For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again:
but the wicked shall fall into mischief.” That is very interesting. God
is warning the unrighteous man not to condemn nor assassinate the character
of an imperfect Christian, because even the best of Christians falter
continually. The number 7 represents God's number for perfection. Thus, 7
here refers to a person who fails and fails and fails at living right; but
they get back up and sincerely keep trying to get it right.
In other words, a righteous person
falters while they're climbing up the ladder; but they keep climbing anyway.
The wicked don't even get on the ladder because they don't care. All they do
is criticize and condemn the man who keeps falling and slipping on the rungs
of the ladder. God says in Proverb 24:15 to leave the man on the ladder
alone, because at least he's trying to stay on the ladder.
Note that this has absolutely
nothing to do with salvation. Eternal life is a free gift from God, paid in
full by Jesus Christ with His precious literal blood (1st Peter 1:18,19). We
live right because WE ARE saved; not to get saved. As Christians, all
we can do is purpose in our heart to live right (Daniel 1:8), memorize
Scriptures that we might not sin against God (Psalm 119:11), pray that we
enter not into temptation (Matthew 26:41), and put on the whole armour of
God (Ephesians 6:13-18). If we do these things, then we can be victorious
over sin at any given time; however, we won't always do these things because
we are sinful by nature as human beings (Jeremiah 17:9).
Proverb 24:29, Say not, I
will do so to him as he hath done to me: I will render to the man according
to his work.” We must let God sort our enemies out. God will sort 'em
out! God pondereth the hearts of all men and women, and knows every minute
detail. If justice is due, then God will avenge us as He hath promised in
1st Thessalonians 4:6 (and vise versa). The important thing is to keep
serving God and place our enemies into God's hands. This is what God wants
us to do (Romans 14:10). Matthew 7:2, “For with what judgment ye judge,
ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to
you again.”
Building A Shabby House
The second man in the above
illustration represents MOST believers, they are building a shabby house upon
a solid foundation. There are six items mentioned in 1st Corinthians
3:12: gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, and stubble. In my
opinion, the first three items refer to the riches of this life (the pursuit
of a career, the desire to buy things, the desire to travel, own a home, buy a
car, hobbies, materialism, et cetera). The second three items in my opinion refer
to the temporal pleasures of this life (eating, drinking, marriage, etc).
The wise and knowledgeable believer realizes that all these things will amount
to nothing when we enter Heaven. ONLY that which we do for Jesus' sake or the
gospel's will matter then. Consider carefully the words of Mark 4:18-19, "And
these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word, And the
cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other
things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful." Sadly,
this Scripture describes 95% of all born-again believers today. Here's
some shabby and weak building materials:
The Love of Money
I've known many believers who sold-out for a career, selling
Amway, selling A.L. Williams
life insurance, or some other dead-end pursuit. When it comes to
money, many professed Christians are no different than the wicked heathen. I hate to say it, but I don't place ANY confidence in people anymore just
because they profess to be a Christian. I've seen too many Christians
get all excited when they thought they were about to make lots of money, but
couldn't have cared less about soul winning.
I once had a boss (Mike) who
professed to be a Christian. He became very involved with Prepaid
Legal Services (a scam). He was so excited and wanted to share
information about it with me. He asked me to watch some videos in his
office, gave me fliers to read, and did his best to sucker me into the
business. I had more sense than that and told him I wasn't interested. After about a month of watching Mike's excitement, determination, and the
gleam in his eyes over making money, I was really frustrated. I was
frustrated that so many professed Christians get hog wild excited about
making filthy lucre (which we can't take with us), but they don't even have
a twitch of enthusiasm when it comes to sharing the Gospel with others (which will last
for eternity).
I remember Mike drove all the way to Oklahoma for a big
nationwide Prepaid Legal Services pep-rally. All they did at the
meeting was listen to one member after another brag about all the money they
are making. Although they strongly deny it's a pyramid scam, it functions
just the same. The more people you recruit to sell, the more money you
make. I never saw Mike more happy then when he came back
from that meeting in Oklahoma with dollar signs flashing in his eyes. Oh, if
only believers today would get just as excited over winning lost souls to
Jesus.
I don't ever want money to mean
that much to me. I could sell all kinds of things on this website if I
wanted to, but I never will. I don't sell anything. I do this
for God. I don't care if people like my website or not, it's for God. I am leery of Christian websites that hound you on every page to buy
something. I have a problem with that kind of Christianity. Making money is a very deceitful trap which too many believers have become
ensnared into (1st Timothy 6:8-10). Such covetous and greedy believers
will give account to God one day at the Judgment Seat of Christ.
Selfish and Worldly Interests
Luke 21:34 states, "And take heed
to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting,
and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you
unawares." Oh how many Christians are asleep at the wheel during this
present dark hour! It's repulsive to see professed born again
"Christians" twanging their worldly guitars, making money from their worldly
arts, and yet never publicly telling anyone how to be saved. I know of
several musicians who profess themselves to be "Christian," but all they do
is twang their worldly pedal steel guitar music all across America.
They yoke together with unbelievers. They drink the devil's alcohol.
They are surrounded by improperly dressed women. They use their
God-given talents to draw people into the nightclubs and bars to drink case
after case of booze, where the name of God is cursed. Is this what
Jesus meant when He told us to bare our cross? - Mark 8:34, "...Whosoever
will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow
me." When do these people live for God? They don't!
They're lives are filled with "Me, Myself, and I." Of course, they
make their little charitable contributions so they can feel good about
themselves and impress their friends. Listen friend, God doesn't want
your pocketbook...He wants you!
Amy Grant has influenced millions
of young people for Satan by leading them into worldly music and never
presenting the gospel to them.
Please read
Amy Grant-Exposed! (Amy says,
"I’m a singer, not a preacher...I’M
NOT LOOKING TO CONVERT ANYBODY").
These will be some of the woefully ashamed believers at the Judgment Seat
of Christ.
Wrong Priorities
There are many hardworking and
generous Christian people in this world doing all sorts of charitable
things, but it all means absolutely nothing if the people you are helping go
to Hell without Christ as their Saviour. I recently heard on the news
that Donald Trump and "All" detergent company are going to be raising
millions of dollars for the Salvation Army. That's nice, but
what about God? The Salvation Army has become more army than
salvation. The world is filled with professed "Christian" charities
that carry no cross, preach no Gospel, and do nothing for God. Don't
the leaders at the Salvation Army understand? The world is
going to Hell without Christ!!! All Christ-rejecters WILL burn in Hell
one day according to John 3:18, 2nd Thessalonians 1:8,9 and Revelation 20:15. Why isn't the "Salvation" Army
preaching the Gospel anymore?
I triple-dog dare you to go to ANY
of their websites and show me where they appeal to anyone to come to
Christ for salvation. They've been choked by the cares and riches of
this world. What good is it to give a cup of hot-chocolate to a
thirsty fireman if you don't share the Gospel with him? It is tragic! Show me ANY
Salvation Army website where they give a clear Gospel
presentation. In fact, here's the
official National Headquarters'
Salvation Army website.
There's NOTHING concerning the Gospel even
mentioned. Look in their "beliefs" menu and you'll find absolutely
nothing concerning the Gospel. What a shame! They are unfaithful
servants! William Booth is brokenhearted saddened up in
Heaven. The Salvation Army fat cats will have to give account to
God for their failure to win souls on Judgment Day. The Salvation Army can testify before God how
they helped so many people in this lifetime, while allowing the very same
people to go into eternal damnation without ever hearing the Gospel
preached.
Every believer has a solid
foundation in Jesus Christ (We are going to Heaven and nothing can alter that
fact). However, if we build upon that foundation with worldliness and
shallow pursuits, we will suffer great loss at the Judgment Seat of Christ. Only
that which we do in Jesus' name and for the Gospel will be rewarded.
Hurting Others
"That no
man go beyond and defraud his brother in any
matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such,
as we also have forewarned you and testified." —1st Thessalonians 4:6
We are warned from God's Word about
defrauding one another. The Greek meaning of the word "defraud" in 1st
Thessalonians 4:6 is "to take advantage of; to make a gain." We are NOT to
take advantage of anyone. A person who makes a promise and breaks it has
defrauded his neighbor (every human being is our neighbor). A man who commits
adultery with a married woman has defrauded that woman's husband (and
vise-versa). A person who lies, cheats or reneges on a business agreement has
defrauded someone(s). A man who mistreats his wife and children has defrauded
them. Notice that God warns us not to defraud anyone, "...IN ANY MATTER..." This includes ALL types of wrong doing. Notice the phrase
"...go beyond..."
We could read this as "That no man
cross the line and defraud another
person." There is a definite line between right and wrong! They're
might be a fine line between faith and foolishness, but there is a definite
line between right and wrong. We know when we are doing wrong! People
like to pretend that they are innocent, but they know in their conniving
hearts what they have done. They can try to live in denial, but God will
repay (punish) them in His own time and way. "Dearly beloved, avenge
not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written,
Vengeance is mine; I will repay,
saith the Lord" (Romans 12:19). This is a
promise from God—He WILL REPAY! God's integrity is at stake here, He
must right ALL wrongs. The Greek word for "repay" means "to punish." If someone has wronged you, there MUST be restitution.
God will execute justice.
When we trust Jesus Christ as our
Savior, we are forgiven of ALL our sins (past, present and future). Psalm
103:12, "As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our
transgressions from us." Yet, the sin itself must be judged. The damages that our sin causes cannot be ignored. It would be injustice
for God to allow anyone to get away with anything (Galatians 6:7). Just
because Jesus forgives your sins doesn't mean that the guy you cheated is out
of luck. God has to make that wrong right if you don't. Now Jesus
died upon the cross to pay for our sins so we could be free, but the Lord has
to right our wrongs as well.
A good example of injustice is the
U.S. government. The blatant injustices committed by our entrusted
leaders are appalling. On Bill Clinton's last day in office as President
of the U.S., he pardoned an unprecedented 200 criminals. Trillions of
dollars are missing from the Defense Department's budget. No weapons-of-mass-destruction were ever found in Iraq, yet American troops
have killed over
1,200,000 innocent Iraqis in a war which was only supposed to remove Saddam from
power. Our nation's borders have deliberately remained wide open for
years. The criminals of Enron never went to prison. Where
is justice? This is exactly what Jesus was talking about in Matthew
24:12, "And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold." "Iniquity" means "injustice."
Doesn't it make you mad that the
government gets away with so much evil and there's hardly anything we can do
about it? Sure it does! Read the book, Mugged By The State. Do you think God is going to allow them to get away
with that? No! Now if some of those evil people get saved, they will be
forgiven. God will accept them as they are to be saved. But the
damage caused by their sins must be reconciled. If they don't reconcile
with their victims, then God will have to do it for them. That is
justice!
Let me illustrate. Let's say
you're an immature believer and you cheat me. I trust you to do
something agreed upon, but you knife me in the back instead. You steal
$5,000 from me. You are stubborn and refuse to pay me back. There
was nothing in writing, so I have no recourse. Besides, I am not
supposed to take you to court before heathen judges (1st Corinthians 6:1-7). You could care less, and my family is out $5,000. In addition, you
didn't live up to your end of the agreement and so I have to pay someone else
to do what I paid you to do. So now my loss is actually $10,000. My family is out $10,000!
Do you think you won't have to give
account for your evil in Heaven? Jesus shed His blood to pay for your
sins so you wouldn't have to burn in Hell, but the sins you commit still have
to be accounted for (Romans 14:12). Listen to the wise words of Dr. John
R. Rice:
"At the judgment seat of Christ God's anger is not
expressed against any individual who has thoroughly repented of his sins,
confessed them and forsaken them. But God's judgment on the sin itself
may continue where there is no judgment against the individual as such. It seems to me that we need to make a distinction between the proper anger and
wrath of God against one who goes on unrepentant in sin, and God's proper wise
judgment against the sin itself even when the sinner has been reconciled
completely and forgiven." —Dr. John R. Rice, from the excellent book Dr.
Rice, Here's My Question.
The TRUTH is that God has to balance
the scales of injustice. By the way, it doesn't matter whether your
saved or not, all the sins you commit have to be dealt with. The
difference is that as a believer, you have a Great Lawyer, Jesus Christ. "My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if
any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous"
(1st John 2:1). If you're not saved, you're on your own on Judgment Day. Just as in
today's world, you're unfortunate and unwise to go into court without an
experienced lawyer. God promises to punish those who have hurt others.
Romans 12:19 and 1st
Thessalonians 4:6 CLEARLY warn us that God will AVENGE anyone who has been
defrauded or hurt in any way. Remember, the soul of a saved person is
forever secure and nothing can jeopardize that; however, our rewards and happiness in
Heaven will directly depend upon the life we
live here on earth. There will be tears in Heaven. At the end of the Millennium, all tears will finally
be wiped away from believers eyes and the former things will be forgotten
(Revelation 21:4).
“Motives” NOT mentioned
in Bible
"But what think
ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go
work to day in my vineyard. He answered and said, I will not: but
afterward he repented, and went. And he came to the second, and said
likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not. Whether of
them twain did the will of his father? They say unto him, The first. Jesus
saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go
into the kingdom of God before you." —Matthew 21:28-31
The son with the bad attitude went
into the field and pleased the father. The son with the good attitude
didn't go. Jesus said that many who are first shall be last, and last
first. It's not the religious elite who do nothing for God who will be
rewarded in Heaven, but the unsung heroes who do their best to win lost
sinners to Jesus Christ. Nowhere in the Word of God are we told that we
have to have the right motives to serve the Lord. God's not looking for
special ops forces, he's looking for willing combatants, soldiers of Jesus
Christ.
The TRUTH is
that God will reward us for every little thing we do for Jesus' sake and the
Gospels. Also, the Word of God declares that God will hold us accountable for
every idle word spoken (Matthew 12:36). No one is going to get
away with any sin. And likewise for the Christian, no good deed done in
Jesus' name will go unrewarded. The Bible promises us in Mark 10:29-30, "And Jesus answered and said, Verily I
say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters,
or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the
gospel's, But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses,
and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with
persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life." I see nothing
mentioned about "motives." The truth is that God will reward us for
everything we do for Jesus. Our labors are never in vain for the Lord. 1st
Corinthians 15:58, "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast,
unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know
that your labour is not in vain in the Lord."
Matthew 10:42 reads "And whosoever
shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in
the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his
reward." Wow! Even if I do something for a disciple of Christ, I
will still be rewarded. If I promote the sermons of a Gospel preacher, I
will be rewarded. If I help someone who is serving God, I will be
rewarded. If I give to a Gospel missionary, I will be rewarded. So
even if your motive is only to help a friend, if that friend is serving God
you will be rewarded. Even if our motives are selfish, God will reward
us if we are furthering the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We've got ministries
all across America with the right motives, but the wrong priorities (like the
Salvation Army). I'd rather cheer for the guy with the selfish motives
who's out preaching the Gospel on a street corner! Souls are dying!
Is God Less Righteous?
Do not think for one moment that God
will allow anyone to have a flippant, "So what if I don't get any
rewards," attitude. I have teens of my own. Sometimes I have to
scold them for not cleaning the house. I usually start by taking
away a privilege such as the internet. If that doesn't seem to matter to them, then I
take away another privilege such as going outside to play. Whatever it takes to break their bad
spirit is what I give them. If they give me "the attitude," then
I ground them and take away all their privileges for a set time. Now do you think God is any less just to deal
with our wrongs?
Do you think God is going to allow any of His children
to have a careless attitude about the people they have hurt? Do you
think that God is going to just pass out rewards like Santa Claus and not say
anything about the people you have wronged? About the tears YOU CAUSED? About your stiffnecked pride? No sir, there will be many tears in
Heaven. No matter what my children do, they are still my children;
however, they need to be chastised when they do wrong because I love them. Likewise, Jesus will
chastise believers at the Judgment Seat of
Christ in Fatherly love. All
wrongs will be righted.
Thankfully, God gives us the
chance to make things right here on earth, to avoid embarrassment and
chastisement at The Judgment Seat of Christ. 1st Corinthians 11:31, "For
if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged." This means going
to the person(s) we have wronged, apologizing, and giving them back the
money we took from them, or restoring to them what they lost because of our
sin. We must seek reconciliation with anyone whom we've defrauded or hurt.
And likewise, those who have hurt and cheated us are required by God to
reconcile and pay us back; otherwise God will deal with them harshly on
Judgment Day.
Hebrews 12:6 teaches us that God
chastises His children. This very fact alone should remove any question
in your mind as to whether or not God will harshly judge believers at the Judgment Seat of Christ. Not every believer will be dealt with
harshly, but the tyrants and bullies most certainly will. Do you think
Jesus will go gentle on the saved husband who has brutally beat his frail wife
repeatedly for decades? Do you think Jesus will go easy on those saved
fathers who have been ruthless towards their children? EACH individual
will be judged according to their unique circumstances and works.
Everything will be taken into account. Nothing is hidden from the eyes
of the Lord (Proverb 15:3). A clear distinction needs to be made between
the punishment of the unsaved at the Great White Throne of Judgment,
and the chastisement of God's children at the Judgment Seat of Christ.
The unsaved will be punished, as guilty criminals being sent to prison. In contrast; God's children will be judged, likened to a stern father taking
the necessary measures (tough love) to do what needs to be done to be fair,
but also to resolve the matter. All disputes must be resolved. There's a lot of believers angry at a lot
of believers. God cannot just look the other way or tell us to "let it
go," nor does He expect us to. It is proper and Biblical to request
for God to avenge us of those who defraud or hurt us. All wrongs must be righted.
Crawling At The Feet Of
Jesus
"But why dost
thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we
shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written,
As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall
confess to God. So then every one of us shall give account of himself to
God." —Romans 14:10-12
We need not be angry or bitter
towards those immature believers who have hurt us, their day of judgment WILL
come or else the Word of God is a lie. Galatians 6:7 declares that God
will not be mocked—a man will reap that which he sows! Notice that
Romans 14:10 speaks of "standing" before Christ in judgment, and then the very
next verse speaks of being on our "knees," crying out in confession to God. Then the next verse says we will give account. If you've ever been into
a courtroom, then you KNOW that the utmost in respect is demanded for the
Judge. You don't dare speak or show even the slightest disrespect for
the judge or else you'll face charges of contempt. Do you think it will
be anything less in God's court? Do you think Jesus will be nice to some
"tough guy" in His presence? Oh listen friend, you'll see the meanest
and toughest tyrant falling down upon their hands and knees in tears begging
for mercy, and Jesus will show them the same kind of mercy they showed their
victims... none.
Matthew 25:24-30 is a parable
concerning the unsaved, but it reveals a principle concerning God's
judgment... much of our judgment will be based upon our own attitudes. God will not deal harshly with those believers who have made restitution to
their victims and repented of their sins. However, the Word of God
clearly teaches that we must make things right with those whom we have
defrauded or hurt before we can be right with God. "Therefore if thou
bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath
ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way;
first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift." (Matthew
5:23-24).
Can a person be saved before making reconciliation with those
whom they have hurt? Yes, of course! This is because salvation is
of God and not man. Can a child of God be right with God without making
reconciliation with those whom they have hurt? No! This is because
reconciliation is our responsibility. If you do not make things right
down here, then God will have to make them right up there, but you won't like
the consequences. Why should someone have to wait a lifetime to be
avenged of your evils?
"Our
salvation was settled by our acceptance of Jesus, but now we are to be judged
for our works and service. Paul tells us that every one of us shall give
an account of himself to God. No Christian will escape; therefore, the
apostle reminds us that we are not to waste our time judging our brethren, for
the time of their judgment is coming when they must stand before the judgment
seat of Christ." —Dr. Lee Roberson,
Chapter 2,
Some Golden Daybreak.
For those believers who refuse to
right their wrongs now, the Judgment Seat of Christ will be a very
UN-pleasant experience. The same holds true for those believers who live
worldly lives, refuse to take up their cross, and never do anything to reach
lost sinners with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Such believers with face
THE TERROR OF THE LORD (2nd Corinthians 5:11).
Please notice in the above Scripture
the phrase, “whether it be good OR BAD.” Many believers have the
ignorant belief that Jesus will simply reward us for the good we do in life,
but not mention the bad. This misconception comes from a misunderstanding
about Biblical justice. “Justice” is often symbolized
by a scale. Before we were saved, our sins weighed down heavily upon one
end of the scale and we were found guilty. The Word of God indicts (brings
formal charges against) mankind (Romans 3:19). Jeremiah 17:10, “I the
LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to
his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.” 