Lesson for October 16, 2024
The Rapture to the Eternal State
Lesson 3
The Judgment Seat of Christ
Romans 14:12, “So then each one of us will give an account to God.”
There is coming a time when every believer will stand before Jesus Christ to be evaluated. This evaluation is not based on our sins. It is based, instead, on our response to God’s plan for us to learn and apply His Word and to grow spiritually.
The Judgment Seat of Christ is for believers only and takes place sometime shortly after the Rapture of the Church. At the Rapture, all believers from the Church Age (living or dead) will meet Jesus Christ in the air to receive a glorified body like Christ’s. Their glorified bodies will be fully conscious, fully recognizable, and with increased knowledge. And they will then be led in a processional to Heaven. Then there will be a time of celebration, when we worship and praise our Savior. (I Corinthians 4:5; 15:51-54; I Thessalonians 4:13-18; Philippians 3:21)
Scripture tells us that Christ has already departed to prepare a dwelling place for us as His bride (as we will be called in Heaven). But before the Lord can reveal all that will be ours for all of eternity, we must be evaluated at the Judgment Seat of Christ. It is during our evaluation that we will also be rewarded for executing the Christian Way of Life. (John 14:1-3; II Corinthians 5:8-10; Romans 14:11-12)
Most of us, as believers in Christ, will never receive recognition in this life for our accomplishments, but I assure you that this will not be the case in eternity. There is going to be great inequality in the eternal state for believers. It is only our fulfillment of God’s plan under the power and guidance of God the Holy Spirit (divine production) that will be rewardable in eternity, not our human good works. All divine production is a matter of God’s grace and is never based on human works. The questions are going to be something like this: “Did you tap into God’s system?” or “Did you go it alone?” I Corinthians 9:24-25, “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win.Everyone who competes in the games, exercises self-control in all things. So, they do it to obtain a perishable wreath, but we, an imperishable.”
God’s plan for your life is simple; fulfilling it is also simple. It becomes difficult only when we fail to use all that God has given us and instead begin to manufacture our own problems by rejecting truth. The days in which we live are uncertain and the national scene is unstable at best. Yet those believers who choose to live the Christian Way of Life can remain stabilized, confident, and faithful in time of pressure, including national disaster.
You have an eternal destiny that has been secured by your faith in Christ and can be realized now by your consistent study and application of God’s Word (Bible doctrine). Only with Bible doctrine in your soul that has been converted into wisdom, through application, will you be able to put everything in life into its proper perspective. (Matthew 11:28-30; James 1:1-12; II Timothy 1:12)
So, how are you going to meet your Savior? Will you have fulfilled the mandates of Scripture to advance to spiritual maturity, which has led you into a life of purpose? Or will you make it into Heaven “by the skin of your teeth,” having failed to advance in your Christian life, which has led you to a life of misery and failure? At the Judgment Seat of Christ, it will be too late to do anything about your failure; the time to do something about your Christian life is now, today!
You must take the initiative and begin and/or continue to study and apply God’s Word, if you want to hear, “Well done thou good and faithful servant.” Upon hearing this from Jesus Christ, rewards beyond anything you can imagine will be yours for all eternity. (Matthew 25:21; James 1:25)
For every believer, there are only two choices after salvation: 1) fulfill God’s plan, for your life or 2) fulfill your own plan and play into Satan’s hand. The first will result in what the Bible calls gold, silver, and precious stones, representing divine production on earth. The second will result in what the Bible calls wood, hay, and straw, representing human production on earth. Both will be judged (represented by fire) at the Judgment Seat. When gold, silver, and precious stones are subjected to fire, it only purifies them more and enhances their value. When wood, hay and straw are subjected to fire they are burned up. It is, therefore, only divine production that survives the Judgment Seat of Christ and that is rewardable.
I Corinthians 3:13-15, “Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw, each one’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 one’s work. If anyone’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet only so as through fire.
Divine production is good of lasting value done by a believer when they are filled with the Holy Spirit. Divine production is a result of spiritual growth and a function of God’s grace in the life of believers and all the honor and glory belong to God. As a matter of fact, God’s Word indicates that these rewards will be placed at the feet of Christ, as a testimony to the fact that He alone deserves all of the honor. (Revelation 4:10-11)
The production of human good contributes nothing to your spiritual life. Human good can be a distraction, if allowed to be a substitute for your spiritual life. Going to church, giving money, praying, witnessing, and fellowshipping with other Christians can be either divine production or human good, depending upon the motivation. Divine production is not your spiritual life, it is the result of your spiritual life. And you do not have a spiritual life apart from the knowledge and application of God’s Word. NO BIBLE DOCTRINE, NO RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD, NO TRUE LOVE FOR GOD! (John 4:24; Romans 12:1-2; II Timothy 2:15; 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:12; II Peter 3:18)
The Judgment Seat of Christ is a serious matter, not to be taken lightly. As a believer, you cannot lose your salvation, and you will be happy for all eternity, whether you live your spiritual life or not. But what a tragic waste of a life and what a tremendous loss of rewards. But most tragic of all is when you stand face-to-face with Jesus Christ and have to explain to Him why you failed to glorify Him while you were here on earth. It is time to get serious about Bible doctrine!
II Timothy 2:15, “Study to show yourself approved before God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the Word of Truth.”