Any Thoughts On Judgment Seat of Christ?
Question : Do you have any thoughts about the Judgment seat of Christ? Shalom!
Answer : Judgment seat of Christ is something unique to all believers of the New Testament age only. This is told by Apostle Paul in 2 Cor 5:10 where he says, "For we must all appear before the judgment seat [i.e. Bema.Gr] of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad." As apostle Paul is using the word "we" to plurally indicate those of us who believe, it is only for the believers.
It is sometimes called as "Bema seat of Christ" or even just "Bema judgment of Christ" because the Greek word for "judgment seat" in the original text is "bema" which means "a step, a pace or a raised step". Bema was used to denote a raised place or platform, reached by steps, originally that at Athens in the Pnyx Hill, where the place of assembly was present; also from which the platform orations were made. The Pnyx is a hill in central Athens, the capital of Greece. The Pnyx is a small, rocky hill surrounded by parkland, with a large flat platform of eroded stone set into its side, and by steps carved on its slope. It was the meeting place of one of the world's earliest known democratic legislatures, the Athenian ekklesia (assembly), and the flat stone platform was the bema, the "stepping stone" or speakers' platform. It is a place where equal speech, equality under the law, equality of vote and equal opportunity to assume political office was practiced by the highest office.
The citizens of this great city were allowed to gather together for this event in which legislative things regarding the equal right of every citizen is evaluated, debated and matters of policy is put in to place.
From this we can say that Judgment seat of Christ is a place where the motives of all believers will be evaluated under the perfect law of God and will be shown to them individually and before every person present over there, not to bring shame to any believer but to declare the perfect righteousness of God in Christ and to appreciate the believers who have stood for the cause of Christ (1 Cor 4:5). Each believer will individually stand before the judgment seat of Christ and shall give account of himself to God (Rom 14:10, 13). The reward for each things done in the body will be given to all believers. This reward will be power, authority or rulership and glory inherited from the kingdom of God which has been prepared individually for them by Father God even from the foundation of the world (Matt 24:45-47; 25:21, 23, 34; 6:13, c; Luke 12:43-44; 22:29-30). No believer will ever be judged for sin because Jesus has been substitutionally judged by God on behalf of every sin commited by them in their lives (Heb 9:27-28).
All the works of believers will go through rigorous testing and evaluation as valuables like gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay and straw goes through fire to check whether it will withstand or will be burnt and revealed of its true character (1 Cor 3:11-14). Those people whose work withstands through God's perfect judgment will receive a reward of power, rulership and glory.
Power over the spirit world of angels will be given to believers as it is given already over the evil spirits (Luke 10:19; Heb 1:14; 1 Cor 6:2, 3), authority and rulership will be given over the nations of natural people during the Millenum rule with Jesus on earth and authority over spiritual people in the New Heaven and New Earth during the time of eternity, after the White Throne judgment will be over at the end of the Millenum rule with Jesus (Luke 19:17, 19; Rev 21:24, 26-27; 20:11-15). Finally glory reward of honor can be earned by all believers according to the spiritual works done in their body (Rev 3:11). Each beliver have the ability to earn up to five glory crowns, 1) Imperishable Crown for those who fight and win against our sin nature and self progressively (1 Cor 9:24-25). 2) Crown of rejoicing for all soul winners (1 Thess 2:19-20; Phil 4:1). 3) Crown of righteousness to all who eagerly have loved His appearing by prayer and purity in their respective generations (2 Tim 4:8; Luke 21:36; 1 John 3:2-3). 4) Crown of life to those who endure specific temptation that God allows and overcome it because of their love for God over self, world and its lust, even to the end of its appointed time (James 1:12; Rev 2:10; 1 Cor 10:13; 1 John 2:15-17). 5) Crown of glory to all the over-seers, undershepherd and the elders who faithfully took care of the believers who were entrusted to them and suffered for Christ's sake in the hands of all beasts of the evil one in order to save the sheeps from being destroyed (1 Peter 5:4; 2 Tim 4:17-18; 1 Cor 15:32). These elders are not just the fivefold ministers but all the believers who have grown in to the spiritual capacity to guide others who are new to faith in Christ (Eph 4:11, 12, 13-16; Rom 12:6-8; 1 Cor 12:27-31).
The word of God will be the fire which will test all the life works of all believers and the motives with which they have done it for God in the name of Jesus Christ as His disciple (Jer 23:29; John 12:48; Matt 10:40-42). The one gurantee that all believer can have in this judgment is that though all their religious works gets burned in the fire of God's judgment, yet they themselves will be saved through the judgment (1 Cor 3:15). Praise the Lord!
The judgment seat of Christ will be a tribunal held "in His Parousia," i.e., His presence with His saints after His return to receive them to Himself (John 14:3). This coming of Christ for the saints and appearing in the air to take all believers back to heaven to be with Him in His Presence is called as secret coming of the Lord or the rapture (1 The 4:13-18; 1:10; 2 The 1:5-9, 10). This judgment seat of Christ will take place in heaven after the rapture of the Church in to His Presence, where His marriage with the Church will take place (Rev 19:7-8). Just at the starting time of the marriage, the adornment of the bride will take place during which the bridegroom will reward the Church [i.e. each individual believer] for its fidelity during the time of the betrothal while living in the world (James 1:26-27; 1 Peter 1:19; 2 Cor 1:2-3). Live a life pleasing to the Lord and for His Glory alone, you will never have regrets during eterntiy because of the reward of power, authority and glory that you will have received from the Lord. Praise the Lord!
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