we will all stand before the bema judgment seat of christ

For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. Paul likens our Christian service to erecting a building:Įach one should build with care.

Did we neglect our opportunities to serve the Lord? If so, we will suffer loss of reward. What did we do with the resources God gave us? How faithful were we? Were we yielded to the Spirit, seeking to honor Christ and further His work in the world? If so, we will have reward (see Matthew 10:41–42). It will be a time of examination and a time of reward. So, believers are secure in Christ, but they still must appear before the judgment seat of Christ. Jesus said, “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life” (John 5:24, emphasis added). All our sins are forgiven, and there is “no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). The judgment seat of Christ does not determine our salvation that matter was settled by Christ’s sacrifice on our behalf (1 John 2:2) and our faith in Him (John 3:16). Believers will appear before the judgment seat of Christ. Appearing before the Great White Throne will be unbelievers. That will be the final judgment of the wicked prior to their being cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:11–15). The judgment seat of Christ is different from the Great White Throne Judgment. As Jesus taught in His parable, the king is going to return, at which time he will require an account from his servants (Luke 19:11–26). The warning is to Christians, not unbelievers. This is the plain teaching of Scripture: “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” (2 Corinthians 5:10). The judgment seat of Christ involves a time in the future when believers will give an account of themselves to Christ. We will all stand some day before the judgment seat of Christ. Only the Lord Jesus is qualified, and all judgment has been entrusted to Him (John 5:22). None of us are qualified to be the Judge. So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God” (Romans 14:10b–12, ESV).

Is your goal to serve yourself - or to serve Christ? Make sure of your commitment to Him, and then put Him first in everything you do.Scripture gives us a reason not to judge one another: “For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. Come and share your master’s happiness!” (Matthew 25:23). Our greatest reward, however, will be to hear Him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant…. The Bible doesn’t explain in detail what those rewards may be - but it reminds us that we are still accountable to Him for how we live. Why, then, must we still stand before God some day, even as believers? The reason is so God can reward us for what we have done for Him. As the Bible says, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). We deserved God’s judgment, for we were guilty of breaking His law - but Christ took all our sins upon Himself, and He endured the judgment that we deserved. This is why we don’t need to fear God’s judgment once we have committed our lives to Christ, for now we’ve been cleansed of all our sins. He forgave us all our sins” (Colossians 2:13). The Bible says, “God made you alive with Christ. One of the Bible’s greatest truths is that when Jesus Christ died on the cross all our sins were transferred to Him, and as we put our faith and trust in Him we are forgiven - freely and fully.

We will all stand before the bema judgment seat of christ