“So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God” (Rom. 14:12).
The Judgment Seat of Christ is one of the most underestimated, under-preached subjects in the entire Bible.
What is the Judgment Seat of Christ? It’s where all believers in Jesus will stand before Him and give an account for every action, thought, and motive we ever had as Christians.
This judgment is not to determine entrance into Heaven—that was decided on the day you put your faith in Jesus to save you. There will be a different judgment, often called the Great White Throne Judgment, that will grant entrance to Heaven to those whose names are written in the Book of Life and send those who didn’t trust in Christ for salvation to eternal separation from God in the lake of fire (Rev. 20:11–15).
But the Judgment Seat of Christ will determine the amount of rewards believers will carry with them forever in Heaven (1 Cor. 3:11–15).
This judgment will determine whether or not you’ll hear Him say: “Well done, my good and faithful servant” (Matt. 25:21).
Rewards That Never End
Don’t buy the myth that you’ll cast all your crowns before the throne of Christ. That comes from a poor interpretation of Revelation 4:8–11.
You won’t.
You’ll carry these rewards throughout eternity, and when you look at them, you’ll remember Jesus saying, “Well done.”
You’ll remember the smile on Jesus’s face when he gave them to you.
God’s rewards program has no expiration date—these heavenly rewards will be eternal symbols of your earthly faithfulness.
Don’t Miss Out!
The thought of being disqualified for these rewards (1 Cor. 9:27) terrified the apostle Paul (2 Cor. 5:10-11).
It should cause us to tremble too.
But it should also motivate us.
While waiting in a Roman prison to be beheaded, Paul excitedly penned some of his final words:
“I have fought the good fight; I have finished the race. I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing” (2 Tim. 4:7–8).
This year on November 9, during our global event Dare 2 Share LIVE, we’ll show a powerful drama about the Judgment Seat of Christ that will inspire teenagers and adults to strive for heavenly rewards.
Go to Dare2sharelive.org to sign up for more information about this global day of youth evangelism. But more than anything, choose to live your life to win that crown, to see that smile, and to hear those eternally satisfying words:
“Well done, my good and faithful servant.”
This article originally appeared on gregstier.org and is reposted here by permission.