Romans 14:10 But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you regard your brother with contempt? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God. 11For it is written, "As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall give praise to God."12 So then each one of us shall give account of himself to God.

2 Corinthians 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.

1 Corinthians 3:10 According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building upon it. But let each man be careful how he builds upon it. 11 For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12Now if any man builds upon the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each man's work will become evident; for the day will show it, because it is to be revealed with fire; and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work. 14 If any man's work which he has built upon it remains, he shall receive a reward. 15If any man's work is burned up, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as through fire. 16Do you not know that you are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 17 If any man destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are.

Introduction: As we come to the second part of this series on the study of the believer's future rewards, we jump from the salvation experience to what will happen in the future when we have to stand before the Lord and give an account for how we lived the Christian life - This is called the Judgement Seat of Christ, or sometimes referred to by its Greek name, Bema. As we saw last week there is much more to God's plan of salvation than just saving us and getting us to heaven, but the sanctification process that falls between salvation (justification) and our arrival in heaven (glorification) will have a direct impact on the quality of our eternity with the Lord. The living out of our faith is just as important as the "saving" aspect. So the question that we need to ask ourselves is are you ready to appear at the Judgment Seat of Christ?

I. It's Certainty (Rom.14:10-12).
1. It is a judgment not based upon our standards (v.10a).

A. The weaker brother does not have to defend the actions of the strong (LBC).

B. The stronger brother does not have to defend the action of those who are weak in their faith (LBC).

Transition: Paul now explains why this fact is true. . .

2. It is a judgement that all believers will face (vv.10b-12).

A. The certainty of all believers appearing at the Judgment seat of Christ (vv.10b-11).

1) The true judge is God, and his time for judging is coming, making man's judgment not only premature but also a usurpation of God's role (v.10b: EBCNT).

A) The work of Christians is to serve the Lord, not to usurp His Lordship by self-righteously judging fellow believers (MacArthur).

B) Our concern, rather, should be for being judged ourselves by the Lord (MacArthur).

2) "the judgment seat of God."

A) This is same as the judgment seat of Christ (1 Cor.3:13-15).

(1) Some manuscripts have Christ, while others have God (KJV = Christ).

(2) bema, {bay'-ma: n, dat, neut, sg}); an elevated platform ascended by steps, (a) a judicial bench, tribunal, judge's seat (MT 27.19); (b) as a seat for a king or high official rostrum, throne (AC 12.21).

3) "we shall. . .stand before," ("paristemi" {par-is'-tay-mee: v, indic, fut, mid, 1per, pl}); come before, approach, stand before (v.10b).

4) Paul quotes from Isaiah 49:18 and 45:23 to strengthen the certainty of this event (v.11: LBC).

B. The certainty of all believers works being judged (v.12).

1) "shall give," ("didomi" {did'-o-mee: v, indic, fut, act, 3per, pl}); to give, hand over, present.

2) "account," ("logos" {log'-os: n. acc, m, sg}): of speech, a word, statement, account, reckoning.

Transition: Now lets look at this more in detail. . .

II. Its Timing And Purpose (2 Cor.5:10; 1Cor.3:10-15).
1. It's a future judgment for believers only (2 Cor.5:10a).

A. This is a judgement that all believers must face.

1) It's for ALL believers.

- "all," ("pas" {pas: adj, acc, m, pl}; each, every, any, all, the whole.

2) It is compulsory (mandatory) for every believer.

- "must," ("dei" {die: v, indic, pres, act, 3 per, sg}); it is necessary, one must, one has to, one must (i.e., this is expressing the compulsion to do something).

B. This is not the great white throne judgment of nonbelievers that takes place at the END OF THE MILLENNIAL KINGDOM (Rev.20:11-15).

C. This is a judgement of BELIEVERS ONLY, and it's NOT DEALING WITH SALVATION (Past tense - Justification).

1) The believer's salvation is secure, if not then God is a liar.

A) John 10:28-30, "and I give eternal life to them, and they shall never [double negative in the Greek, this is emphatic] perish; and no one shall snatch [Indicative Mood: implying certainty and reality that no one can]them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch [Indicative Mood: implying certainty and reality that no one can]them out of the Father's hand. I and the Father are one."

B) Romans 8:28-39, "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the first-born among many brethren; and whom He predestined, these He also called; and whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies; who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, 'For Thy sake we are being put to death all day long; We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.' But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

C) Ephesians 4:30, "And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption."

- you have a tamper proof seal!

D) Jude 1:24, "Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy,"

E) Hebrews 7:24-25, "but He, on the other hand, because He abides forever, holds His priesthood permanently. Hence, also, He is able to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them."

2) If anyone tells you that no man can remove you from the Savior's hand, accept yourself; then ask them to raise someone from the dead, or to calm the next storm that comes along.

A) Or tell them you'll give them some serious consideration after they resurrect themselves three days after they die.

B) They are not greater than God, nor can they in their sinful-fleshly body make God let go of them.

C) I think that I'll take God's Word over that of another person any day!

Transition: Now lets look at the purpose of the Judgement Seat of Christ. . .

2. It's purpose (2 Cor.5:10b; 1 Cor.3:10-15).

A. To determine the quality not quantity of works (2 Cor.5:10b).

1) Each believer will personally stand in front the Lord.

A) "appear," ("phaneroo" {fan-er-o'-o: v, inf, aor, pass}); to make manifest, become known or shown in true character, be revealed.

B) "before," ("emprosthen" {em'-pros-then: prep, gen}); in front or before, in the presence of, of being face to face with someone.

2) Each believer will be recompensed for their good or bad deeds (more on this later in 1 Cor.3:12-15).

A) "each one," ("ekastos" {hek'-as-tos: adj, pron, nom, m, sg}); each one, every one.

B) "recompensed," ("komizo" {kom-id'-zo: v, subj, aor, mid, 3 per, sg}); receive back, fetch, obtain, receive that which is due.

C) "according to," ("pros" {pros: prep, acc}); according to, with regard to, with reference to, as concerns.

D) "what he has done," ("prasso" {pras'-so: v, indic, aor, act, 3 per, sg}); done, committed, practice, deeds, does.

E) "good," ("agathos" {ag-ath-os': adj, adv}); good, beneficial, worthy, what is good or right.

F) "bad," ("phaulos" {fow'-los: adj, adv}); worthless, bad, evil, in a worthless way, of no account, of the things done in the body (i.e., flesh).

B. To encourage us to be fruitful (1 Cor.3:10-11).

1) Paul uses the metaphor of building (v.9b) and tells the Corinthians that by God's grace he was made a master builder who laid the foundation for the church at Corinth.

A) The term "master builder" comes from the Greek word "architekton" where we get our word "architect."

B) In Paul's day it carried the idea of an architect and general contractor.

C) Notice that it doesn't say that Paul is the foundation, but that he laid the foundation by the grace of God (i.e., the gospel message).

D) For any ministry to function correctly, we must first acknowledge that it is God's ministry and not ours.

2) The term "builds upon it" in the Greek is in the present active indicative, which stresses continual action.

A) Not only are we to be careful of what we use to build on the foundation with, but this points out that the Christian life and ministry are continually building the Lord's church.

B) Paul also warns them that every believer must be careful what they teach or do that builds upon this foundation that is already laid.

3) Knowing that Jesus Christ is the foundation of the church should encourage every believer to be careful with to use only the best of their abilities and gifts to minister.

A) We wouldn't want a contractor to use poor materials to build our houses.

B) Likewise as believers we are encouraged to give our best because of who it is for.

C. To determine the value of our works (1 Cor.3:12-13).

1) Paul now directs the Corinthian's attention to the fact that there are different types of  materials that a Christian can use to build on the foundation that has been already laid.

A) We must keep in mind what Paul is primarily addressing teachers and preachers, and their material is either God's Word (gold, silver, and precious stones) or teachings based upon human wisdom (wood, hay, and stubble).

B) It can also be argued that Paul is speaking both about teachers and workers because verses 15 and 17 speak of works and people.

2) Indestructible Materials: Gold, Silver, Precious stones (v.12a).

A) High quality materials: speaks of quality and durability.

B) Represents faithfulness (response-giving our best).

3) Destructible Materials: Wood, Hay, Stubble (v.12b).

A) Low quality materials: speaks of shoddiness and temporary.

B) Represents unfaithfulness (response-giving the least or leftovers).

4) Now Paul tells us that, "every man's" work (material) will be put to the test to see what it is made of (v.13).

A) This verse makes it clear that God is keeping a record of what we are teaching or doing in His name.

- Every Christian will give an account of what they did or didn't do while on this earth.

B) Not only will our works be tested, but they will be made "manifest," or be plainly seen for what they are.

- We might be able to fool others, but not God.

C) The word "fire" is used in reference to a fire that tries and purifies the precious metals by burning away the impurities.

(1) It's not talking about the false Doctrine of Purgatory where some claim that the Christian is purified (pays the price for their sins) for a period of time before being allowed into heaven, but Paul is speaking of our works or teachings being sorted through to see what is worthy and what is not.

(2) Nor is Paul speaking about a Christian's salvation here being in danger, but the MATERIALS they use in serving the Lord.

D. To reward good works (1 Cor.3:14).

1) Rewards will be given for faithfulness.

2) The word "remains" speaks of the enduring character of stewardship, and Paul used the indicative mood to show the certainty and reality of this future event.

3) He also tells us that those who work remains after being tested by fire "shall receive a reward."

A) Again, Paul uses the indicative mood to show the certainty and reality of receiving a reward for those whose work is worthy of reward.

B) Again, the reward that Paul is speaking of is not salvation, Paul made this clear in Ephesians 2:8-9, that salvation is by God's grace and not our works.

C) The rewards are probably those which the Bible mentions such as crowns, verbal praise etc., - we will go into this more detail over the next few weeks.

- We may not be sure of what type of reward that we may receive, but the point is there will be a reward for those who are faithful.

E. To remind us of the consequences of poor works (1 Cor.3:15).

1) Rewards lost because of unfaithfulness.

2) Their work "is burned up," or "destroyed by fire."

A) There will be nothing of worth left after the Lord tests it.

B) Paul again used the indicative mood to stress the certainty and reality of this happening.

3) While those whose work is built with shoddy material may suffer loss, in that their efforts have come to not, they still have the assurance that they themselves will be saved.

A) Paul makes it clear in this verse that it is our "works" that are being tested and may be lost, and not our salvation.

B) Paul stresses the certainty of the believers salvation when he used the indicative mood when he said, "but he himself shall be saved."

(1) He didn't say that "maybe" they would be saved, but that they "shall be saved."

(2) Since our salvation is based upon the finished work of Jesus Christ, and not upon our works, we cannot lose what we cannot earn.

(3) The term "so as through fire" isn't implying that "he just barely made it through the fire."

(A) The Greek is implying and clarifying "he is delivered EVEN while going through fire!"

(B) This fire is testing his experiential works but doesn't effect his position in Christ.

Truths To Ponder:
1. The certainty of the believer's judgment - there are no loop holes.

2. These passages stress the importance of having the right attitude towards others and for checking our motives for
     why we do things.

3. These passages also stress the importance of not having the "I've got my ticket to heaven and I'm just waiting for
     the ride" mentality.

- What we give in service to the Lord, will be rewarded by the Lord and will have a direct impact upon the quality of our eternity.

EBCNT - Zondervan's, Expositor's Bible Commentary, New Testament.
LBC - Liberty Bible Commentary on the New Testament.
MacArthur - John MacArthur's New Testament Commentaries.
 

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