The “Judgement Seat of Christ” is a public judgment in Heaven of the works that you did while on earth in the name of Jesus. It is not a judgment on sin because sin was already dealt with at the cross. If you are saved then all your sins have already been wiped away and forgiven. The Judgment Seat of Christ is every believers unavoidable destination. Believing Christians, one day either by your death or by rapture, YOU will stand before the Lord Jesus Christ at the Judgment Seat. YOUR works for Him will be tried in the fire. YOU will receive rewards based on whichever of YOUR works make it through the fire.
“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade others. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience.” (2 Corinthians 5:10-11)
If TODAY was your last day on earth, are you ready to meet Jesus and test your works? The Bible teaches that there is but one requirement for salvation, and it has nothing to do with anything you ever did or ever will do outside of trusting Christ. It has to do with what Jesus did on the cross. Paul and Silas are in the jail at Philippi, and are sprung out of their prison cell by a great earthquake sent from God Almighty. The jail keeper wakes up from his sleep, sees all the doors wide open, and presumes that all the prisoners that he was charged with have escaped. That would mean instant death at the hands of his superiors. He draws out his sword and is just about to kill himself when Paul cries out “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!” (Acts 16:28) “The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” (Acts 16:29-31)
Jesus on the cross said “It Is Finished”, and with those words He spoke more layers of meaning and spiritual power than ever eternity itself can reveal. Jesus’ death on the cross paid the eternal penalty for the sins of the entire world. His great sacrifice is ALL sufficient. His shed blood provide grace for anyone and everyone who would, by faith, accept His sacrifice as payment for their sins before a holy and righteous God.
And that payment covers every sin you ever did in your past, the sins you will commit today, and the ones you have yet to commit in the future. There are no works attached to salvation, it is all of Jesus. Either you believe it or you don’t, you either accept it or reject it. But if you reject it, then His payment is not applied to your account, and then it is you who must pay for your own sins. People who wind up paying for their own sins go to hell.
That covers how you get saved, now let us look at how you stay saved. There are those who teach that while Jesus did a great work on the cross to obtain our salvation, it is we who are required to keep our salvation by a combination of faith and good works. And not sinning. Jesus did His part, and now we must do our part of “enduring to the end” is how the story goes. Not only does this pernicious teaching fly in the face of what the bible teaches, it also steals “Glory from God”. Jesus said in John 10:27-30 “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”
To become unsaved one must first find a way to get out of the very hand of God Himself, and Jesus is promising us that this cannot be done by anyone. The Lord knows that for some of us who are weak in the faith, His promises need reinforcement. So He then gave us this to ponder: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:35-39)
Now let’s take a trip to the Judgement Seat of Christ. “For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building. By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames. ” (1 Corinthians 3:9-15)
The unsaved of the world will appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, mentioned in Revelation 20: “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.” (Revelation 20:11-12)
If some of the works you did in His name where really for your benefit, then they are placed into the “wood, hay and stubble” category. If you here on earth throw wood, hay and stubble – all combustible materials – into a fire, what happens? They burn up and are never seen again. There are people who enter into the ministry because it can be financially lucrative. We have all seen televangelists who fly in airplanes, drive Rolls Royce’s, live in gigantic mansions and “fare sumptuously” on the revenues that their great religious empires provide for them. One would have to imagine that most of the works associated with this type of “Christianity” would fall into the wood, hay and stubble category. This is not to say that these people are not saved, only they and God know that. But works done in Jesus name that really served to enrich you will not make it through the fire of the Judgment Seat.
And so it shall be for anyone – young, old, man, woman, child – who truly decides to serve the Lord the best they can with the gifts that God has given them. Their works for the Lord will be counted at the Judgment Seat as “gold, silver and precious stones” that when cast into the fire, will only come out the other side shinier and more precious than when they went in. Everyone, all the way down to the little child who hands someone a religious tract because they want to see them know Jesus and get saved will all have rewards at the Judgment Seat of Christ.
These rewards are given us as “crowns”, and there are 5 crowns the Bible mentions – the Crown of Life (James 1:12; Revelation 2:10), the Crown of Glory ( 1 Peter 5:1-4), the Crown of Rejoicing (1 Thessalonians 2:19-20), the Crown of Righteousness (2 Timothy 4:1-8), and the Crown Incorruptible (1 Corinthians 9:24-27). The Bible says that when we receive these crowns that we will then thrown them at the feet of He who is worthy. “the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.” (Revelation 4:10-11)
What reward will you have at the Judgement Seat of Christ? No matter how big your problems seem to you right now, and I am sure that there are many reading this who have pressing issues and lots of worry, let me assure you that one day the things and cares of this life will all be gone. In an instant. And you will find yourself standing before the One who redeemed you, Jesus Christ. “Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13-14)
There is still time to get something done for Jesus, still time to add gold, silver and precious stones to your account. Get your eyes off of the temporary and on to the eternal weight of glory. Have you been saved, have you been redeemed? Then take the gifts and talents that the Lord has given you for His glory, and use them now while time remains. The race is almost over, and the time for reckoning will begin soon. Do something for Jesus. Do it now.
China - in His image 