1501 County Road 3Barberville, Florida 32105-0125
386-749-3218
Pastor Jesse Roland
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1501 County Road 3 Barberville, Florida 32105-0125 386-749-3218 Pastor Jesse Roland |
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1 Corinthians 3:11-17 11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; 13 Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. 14 If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. 15 If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. 16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are. After the rapture all the saints will be with Jesus in the air. Just exactly where we do not know... it could be in the air or in heaven... but we will then face Jesus at the Judgement Seat of Christ. All will face judgement one day but only the Christian will face Jesus at the Judgement Seat. 2 Corinthians 5:10 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. 1. Salvation By Grace is the Foundation Some believe that they will have to wait until they stand before Jesus to find out if they are saved. Some think that saints and sinners will all stand before Him and He will determine who is saved and who is not then. I submit to you that salvation is determined right here on this earth. The judgement that Paul writes about here is a judgement that takes place before Christ that is not about salvation or sins but about our work for Him. We are judged as sinners at Calvary. Jesus died for the sins of all who will come to Him. He takes our place and our punishment. His blood satisfies God’s divine wrath concerning sin. The blood is enough for God. All who put their faith in the work of Christ for their sins will have Christ’s righteousness imparted to them and it will be as if they never sinned. Romans 8:1 1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus If you let Jesus be the sacrifice for your sins by your faith in the Blood then you will never face your sins again. John 5:24 24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. The sinners judgement has already taken place but we will also be judged as servants at the Judgement Seat. There will be no question of sins at the judgement seat of Christ. If sin is still an issue when someone dies or if the rapture occurs first then they will not be at the Judgement Seat of Christ. The sinner will appear before the Great White Throne Judgement that takes place after the Millennial Reign of Christ. This judgement will be one that results in the second death. The Greek word translated “judgement seat” is the Greek word “bema.” It was not the bench that a judge sat to pass sentence on a criminal but it was the seat upon which the judge at an athletic contest would sit to distribute prizes to winners of those contests. This is where good works come in. This is what Jesus will judge. It will be our works. His work was to save us and our work is to serve Him. 2. The Judgement of Jesus Is By Fire Romans 14:10 10 But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at naught thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. All will stand before the only Man who ever lived that is qualified to judge other men. We have no qualifications to judge another and when we do we do it unfairly and with partiality. We often miss many factors and issues and we are self-centered when we judge. May God forgive us for presuming to do what only He can do. His judgment will be like fire that penetrates and reveals every man’s works. Jesus will be fair, impartial and His judgment will be final. He will be altogether righteous and true in His judgement. He will know everything that we have ever done or did not do for Him. He will know the true motive behind all that we did. Jesus will be fair, impartial and His judgment will be final. He will be altogether righteous and true in His judgement. 3. Two Kinds of Christian Works One builds with eternal materials while the other builds with materials that will pass away. One will receive reward while the other losses all their works and is saved only by fire. Take note that this judgement has nothing to do with salvation. This is a judgement of works or service. A person may lose out on rewards but still make it in to that eternal future with Christ. There are two kinds of materials. If you build with material that fire can’t destroy they will abide. Gold, silver and precious stones are representative of divine things. These are works that grow from the divine nature within us. The other material is that which can be burned up or temporal things. These are works that Jesus will not reward. Wood, hay and stubble are grown and represent works from the efforts of man (flesh). These are works that are from motives other than for the glory of Christ. Many just want to be seen. These are works that are done because of self-centeredness or out of obligation. What are your reasons for serving Christ? What is your motive? Is it to be seen of men? Do you desire the applause and the approval of men? 4. The Christian is Rewarded For His Service The Bible speaks of four crowns that we will receive for our service to Christ: ●Incorruptible crown is for faithful service (1 Cor 9:25-27) ●Crown of Righteousness is for those who love His appearing (2 Tim 4:8) ●Crown of glory is for faithful preachers (1 Pet 5:2-4) ●Crown of life is for those who remain faithful under testing (Rev. 2:10 ; James 1:12) Matthew 25:21 21 His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
2 Timothy 2:12 12 If we suffer, we shall also reign with him:
Revelation 5:10 10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth. 5. Three Ways To Prepare For Judgement A. Be a Worker For Christ Titus 2:14 14 Jesus gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
Matthew 5:16 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. The Kingdom is in need of workers. The world around us is filled with the sighing, crying and dying. We have the keys of the Kingdom and we have been given the task of taking this Gospel to every creature and discipling those who come. There is much to be done. Are you building on the foundation of Christ? What kind of life are you building on that foundation? What are you doing for His Kingdom? What about souls? What about His church? What kind of church would this church be if every member were like me? Do you give to help His cause go forth? Do you help those in need around you? Woman scrubbing floors (“I’m not doing this for my boss... I’m doing this for Jesus”). Woman at nursing home (“Where have you been”). B. Be Faithful To Christ You and I have been given life. We have been given salvation. We have been given resources and time. On our pilgrimage on earth let us be good stewards of what has been entrusted to us by God. God doesn’t require success. He does require faithfulness. We need to be faithful to our church... Bible study... prayer... as we all need to grow spiritually. The building of a life that will be rewarded is not going happen without our active participation. C. Be Holy in Christ 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are. "As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God" (1 Pet. 4:10). In her book, Today's Good Word, Ethel B. Sutton tells of a young British soldier who was blinded in battle. He was an accomplished musician and spent much of his time in the hospital playing the piano for the wounded. He always put his heart into his playing, hoping the music would encourage the men. One day when he finished a number, someone clapped energetically. The soldier asked, "Who are you?" He was astonished when the man replied, "I am your king!" The king had come to encourage those who had been wounded for their country. Without realizing it, this young man had been using his talent to entertain the king. Peter says, "Each has received a gift." It may not seem like much when compared with what others may possess, but utilize it "in serving one another." When it is used, we may be sure there is always an audience of at least one--our Lord. Do what you can. You may not get much attention. You may not win an award--you may not be mentioned in the bulletin, but God notices it. |