So, it has been with great intention that we have decided to get back into our first love -- a dedicated time each morning of deep study and relationship with our Father and Jesus. We have renewed our spirits to the fire that burned in us when He first called us to His service. Holy Spirit is quickened and the power and authority in our walk begins to flow again. And over the next few posts I'd like to share some Godly feedback that we've received, with the hope that it will exhort and encourage you to grow in your own relationship with the Godhead through the Word.
The first confirmation my spirit has received is centered around God's Judgment -- even of the Body of Christ, and what that looks like. I have long been aware that the modern Church is focused on God's Grace and has relegated God's Judgment to the Old Testament. "After all", say the seminaries who have taught recent generations of pastors, "the rebellious Israelites didn't have the New Covenant and weren't covered by the Blood of Jesus, so, in their sin, they experienced God's righteous judgment".
Never mind the reality that our rebellion and unrighteousness matches anything they did, and that our God is the same today as He was yesterday, which means we deserve and will receive His judgment as well. But we are unwilling to discern that God's Character has not changed, instead choosing to receive only what tickles our ears and feels more comfortable in our minds and hearts. Have we forgotten Hebrews 4:12? Do we not remember that the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, separating soul [mind, emotions, and will] from spirit; joints and marrow; and discerning the intentions of the heart? Both God's Grace and His Judgment are just as relevant today as it was to the early Israelites. To ignore His Judgment is to act foolishly. Let us consider the first of God's pronounced Biblical Judgments that we can expect as we near Christ's return...
Bema Seat Judgment. First, let's establish that this is what is considered the Judgment seat of Christ. The word Bema in Greek means "raised up" and refers to the official seat of a judge that has been raised up. We can see it referred to in Matthew 27:19, when Jesus is taken to Pilate to be judged. Scripture says, "while he [Pilate] was seated on the judgment bench, his wife sent him a message, saying, Have nothing to do with that just and upright man, for I have had a painful experience today because of a dream I had of Him". The Bema seat is in view in Acts when Herod, Gallio, and Festus occupy it, as well.
So, in 2 Corinthians 5:10, we see the official judgment seat of Christ and how it will play an important part in our life: "For we must all appear and be revealed as we are before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive [his pay] according to what he has done in the body, whether good or evil [considering what his purpose and motive have been, and what he has achieved, been busy with, and given himself and his attention to accomplishing]".
So, I want to establish right now that the Bema seat of Christ is for Believers only! It is not a question of Salvation! If you are standing at the Bema seat of Christ, your salvation is not in question. As Believers, we will all have received the promise that our sins are forgiven and He will remember them no more. The Bema seat is a judgment seat, where a Believer's life and works [since becoming a Christian] will be weighed and tested by fire. Our lives will be brought before the Lord in the light of that refiner's fire, and we will receive the rewards that have been stored up for us in Heaven, IF we are found worthy to receive them. I want you to reflect on this sober pronouncement and meditate on what the Scripture reveals on this matter ...
In 1 Corinthians 3:10-15, Paul puts forth the argument that like a skillful architect and master builder, he has carried out his assignment from the Lord to lay a foundation upon which a man can build his life, i.e., his faith and obedience to Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the Anointed One. Paul teaches, " But let each man be careful how he builds upon it, for no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is [already] laid, which is Jesus Christ. But if anyone builds upon the Foundation, whether it be with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw ... the work of each one will become openly known (shown for what it is); for the day [of Christ] will disclose and declare it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test and critically appraise the character and worth of the work each person has done.
If the work which any person has built on this Foundation [any product of his efforts whatever] survives the test, he will get his reward. But if any person's work is burned up [under the test], he will suffer the loss of it all, [losing his reward that was stored up for him], though he himself will be saved, but only as [one who has passed] through fire".
In other words, all Believers have an inheritance awaiting them at the coming of Christ. We will receive those rewards and crowns based on what we did with our Christian life; what fruit did we produce for the Kingdom of God after we received our free gift of Salvation? Jesus will test what we have built on the foundation of our faith. Will it be burned up as hay or straw, leaving no trace of our works for the Kingdom? Or will they be found still intact as gold and silver survive a refiner's fire? HEAR ME! Your salvation is not threatened! And I am not talking about works for your salvation! There are no works you can do for that free gift! These are the works we long to do to expand the Kingdom Christ left in our care when He ascended to Heaven. Even if one loses his inheritance [for lack of works that glorify Christ], he cannot lose his salvation!
Paul is speaking of the rewards and crowns for our faithfulness to Christ; what will be entrusted to us in Heaven as we are chosen to rule and reign with Him. I believe some of the areas of judgment will include how we treated others; how we employed our God-given abilities and assignments; how we used our money and spent our time; how we ran the particular race that God has chosen for us, and how many souls did we witness to and win for Christ? You see, Christ's gift of Salvation [and what it cost Him] is deserving of our efforts to continue His work on the earth to show His Glory and Majesty. We aren't to accept our salvation and then do nothing. We are made in His image with the assignment to represent Him and His Nature in this dark world. That means we "Go" and we "Do" as He did!
And that is why Mark and I consistently say we want to hear Jesus say, "Well done, good and faithful servant", when we stand before Him. And I do not believe it is prideful to say that we want to receive all the inheritance stored up for us -- and we want you to receive your rewards and crowns, too! And as we stand before our Holy and Righteous Lord, we will be so grateful for what He has done in our lives, that we will be eager to lay everything we've received at His feet, to honor and glorify Him! So, while it is a sobering thought to consider the Bema Seat Judgment, set your heart and spirit on bearing fruit for Him and His Kingdom, and look forward to seeing what is left in the midst of that fire of judgment!
Next post: the Great White Throne Judgment
Romans 14:10-12. Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God, for it is written, "As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God". So then each of will give an account of himself to God.
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