printhians chapter five second Corinthians chapter five or just one verse and over to first Corinthians second Corinthians five and verse ten for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ that everyone may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. Now back to First Corinthians, where we've been studying. First Corinthians chapter three. And verse nine. First Corinthians three and nine. For we are laborers together with God. Ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's builder. According to the grace of God which is given unto me as a wise master builder, I have laid the foundation and another builder thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereon. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation, gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, and stubble, 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. If any man's work abide which he hath built upon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss, but he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire. Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defiles the temple of God, him shall God destroy, for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are? Now tonight we want to speak on the subject of the judgment seat of Christ. In order to get it clear that our two foundations being spoken of here, the one is the foundation upon which the whole church is built, and the Lord Jesus laid that foundation. He laid the foundation at Calvary by his death and resurrection. And the whole church is built upon that one foundation. Other foundation can no man lay, say that which is laid, which is Christ Jesus. No human being had anything to do with building or laying the foundation upon which the church rests. Christ did that work. But now he comes into Corinth. He's speaking about a foundation that he laid. The Apostle Paul, he says, as a wise master builder, he says, I have laid a foundation. He's talking about the church in Corinth. He went in there as a pioneer, and he laid the foundation of a local church. And wherever there's a church, according to Scripture, been planted, It has been built on a foundation according to the Scripture, and Jesus Christ is to be the foundation of any church gathering. You'll have nothing to build on unless Jesus Christ is the foundation of a local church, and Paul, by winning souls to Christ and getting those souls together, and gathered together as a fellowship in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, there you have the foundation for a future work. And he's pointing out that those who follow him, they build upon that foundation, and he warns them about building the same material that's in the foundation is to go into the superstructure. I will say more about that a little later on. There are a number of texts relative to the judgment seat of Christ. I'm going to give them to you. If you want them, I'll just quote them and you can jot them down. One over Matthew chapter twelve and thirty-six, he says. But I say unto you that every idle word that men shall seek, they shall give accounts of often the day of judgment. And also you have in Romans chapter ten, Romans fourteen and ten, but why dost thou judge thy brother? For why dost thou set it not thy brother, for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. And over in Ephesians six and eight, knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether it be good bond or free. Now there are the Scriptures giving us the fact of a judgment seat of Christ. When will this judgment take place? The Bible gives us a number of Scripture as to when the judgment seat of Christ will be in session. We have one in Matthew, sixteen, twenty seven, for the Son of Man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and then he shall reward every man according to his work. You know that the word reward is salvation is not a reward. Salvation is a free gift. But he's coming, and when he does come, this is his rapture, he's going to come and reward every man, those who are born again, according to their work, how they've lived and what they've done after they were saved. And we also have another scripture, and this is in Second Timothy, for, henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord the righteous judge shall give me at that day, And not to me only, but unto all them also that loved his appearance. Now the Apostle Paul was saved under Damascus Road, given us in Acts chapter nine. No one questions Paul converses. That when he was saved, and he tells us several times in the Acts, that was when he became a child of God. But from that moment on, He lived for Christ. His motto was, for me to live for Christ. And the Apostle Paul is going to be rewarded in the judgment of the great, not the judgment on the seat of Christ. He'll be rewarded for what he did and how he lived after his conversion. And it refers to that in the text we have just read in Second Timothy, four. Then again in Revelation twenty through twelve, and behold, I come quickly. and my reward is with me to give every man according as his work shall be. Now you hear in these texts clearly that the judgment seat of Christ will take place when Jesus Christ comes and catches the church all who are born again up to be with himself. Then the judgment seat of Christ will be in the setting. Why... What are you going to have? Why this judgment speaks? What's it for? Because there's a purpose. It's not to say so. That's done here on earth. Here's a judgment that takes place in heaven. And it's not the great white bone judgment. The great white bone judgment takes place at the end of the millennium. And only unsaved people will be at the judgment of the great white bone. Only unsaved people. No sinners will be at the judgment seat of Christ. Only children of God, those born again, will be at the judgment seat of Christ. It's going to be in heaven. And no sinner can enter there. And so the judgment seat of Christ in heaven will be for Christians only. And rewards will be given there for how Christians have lived after they were saved. At the great white throne, at the end of the millennium, That's the great white bone. And everyone from pain unto them who has died without Christ, who without the knowledge of the living God, will be sentent and consigned to the eternal abode. No sinner at the judgment seat of Christ, no saint at the great white bone. At least a thousand years separate these two events. So I trust that fear in your mind. You notice in this judgment seat of Christ, it's a case of reviewing and rewarding. The Lord is going to review our lives after our conversion, until he comes or till death takes us away. He's going to review our lives and reward that which he approved. Salvation is a free gift. Rewards are earned. You can't earn salvation. Salvation is a free gift. The foundation that Jesus Christ laid is free. He laid that foundation. No man can work for that. It's laid. All you have to do to be saved is step on that foundation. The foundation that he laid when he suffered dead and died and rose again, he tells you that in Matthew Blessed out thou, Simon, Bar-Jone, of flesh, and blood hath not revealed this unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And upon this rock, this foundation, I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. How safe and secure is the church, its foundation, and all who are on that foundation. You get on that foundation by faith in Christ. Once you're on that foundation, you're a Christian. faith and secure forever. Now says God builds. Build. And up to us the build. After we're saved, because what we're building is going to be brought into the view of the judgment sheet of Christ. And what is according to the word of God and pleasing to God he will reward. Otherwise there'll be no reward. This is very clearly taught in your Bible. salvation, forgiveness of sins, peace with God, eternal life. These things are not earned. You can't earn them. They're given to you. All your works before your fate are filthy rags in the sight of God. But these things are gifts. God gives you these things when you accept Jesus Christ. They are undeserved, unmerited, a free gift. By grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is a gift of God, not a work. Now works are the main thing at the judgment seat of Christ, the works of the Christians. That's what's going to be rewarded. Before you're saved, your works don't amount to a thing. After you're saved, they amount the whole lot. That's how you're going to be rewarded at the judgment seat of Christ. And so we're saved by grace. without work. And it's not what we are. Our salvation is the gift of God. Now, this is very clear. It's very plain. I trust you taking that in. Eternal life is a gift. But you also read about life as a crown, the crown of life that train us all away. Salvation, eternal life, as a gift. You get that. You take it free. The gift of God is eternal life. If you take that, and you have eternal life, but when it comes to the crown of life, you've got to earn that. The crown of life that pain is not awake. Righteousness is a gift. We read about the gifts of righteousness. The moment we receive the Lord Jesus, we have divine righteousness. And Christ is made unto us wisdom righteousness. I am made righteous before God. The moment I accept Jesus Christ, I am saved. My name goes down in the Lamb's book of righteousness. But the Bible speaks of a crown of righteousness. That crown will be worn by those after their salvation may live for Christ. They'll win the crown of righteousness. Glory is a gift. The Lord Jesus said in John seventeen, the glory which thou has given me, I have given them. So glory is a gift, free, without money, without Christ, which you read about the crown of glory. And so in all these three instances, life is a free gift, but there's a crown of life to be won. The one is at the beginning of the race, the other is at the end. If you go to these Olympic Games, you've got to qualify. You don't get out on that course. And when you accept Jesus Christ, you're qualified for the race. The rewards were given at the end, life to begin with, and a crown of life to end with depends on how you've run the race. Righteousness is given you at the beginning, and the crown of righteousness is at the end. That's what Paul was referring to in Second Timothy four. There you have the crown of righteousness, and also glory the moment we accept Christ, We have a foretaste of coming glory, but the crown of glory is at the end of the lake. It will be given at the coming again of the Lord Jesus Christ. Salvation is a present possession, something I possess here and now, without a doubt. It's mine. But rewards are a future, are something that's future and are attained when Jesus Christ comes. Now these are very clear and I must rehab them firmly in our minds. I can't say right now I have the crown of life. I don't. No one could say in this life I have the crown of righteousness. I don't. The crown streaks of reigning. No, we have salvation here and now we'll have the crown or the prizes at the end of the race and that'll be when the Lord Jesus comes and he'll come bringing his rewards over. No teaching for the Christian is more important than this week. This was the controlling factor in Paul's life. He lived the disinanticipation and expectation that is the judgment seat of Christ. He sent all his effort, all his energy in that one direction. What am I going to have at the judgment seat of Christ? After my life... is over. I fought a good fight. I finished my course. I kept the faith. He said that after his many years of serving the Lord, Ted fought. It has laid up for me a crown of righteousness that the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me in that day, not till Paul's head gold from his body on the block. Not till then, and he was pressed into the presence of God. He awaits that day when all of the deans are together, in that day when the crowns, the prizes, the rewards will be handed up. Why are we there? And who will be there? And what are the results? I wonder if you can say, I'm going to be there. And if you're born again Christian, you can. Say it with all your heart, I'm going to be there. I'm saved by His grace. I'm kept by His mighty power. And He'll give me the energy day after day. He'll be the source of my strength to serve Him. And later on we get through the judgment seat of Christ. We'll show you what we're going to do with all the crowns we win at this session, at this tribunal. And it's a wonderful story. It's a searching story. We all must appear, it says, in fact, sent in five, ten, we must all appear. No Christian to the answer. Every Christian is going to be at the judgment of Jesus Christ, when your life will be sister. And God will test every word, every thought, every deed. The fire of his presence will be the criticizing factors. Everything is going into the balance. What has glorified God? What has pleased him? What's been done accordingly? Good. We'll meet with his approval. That will be the gold, the silver, the precious gold. Then you'll be rewarded accordingly. And you'll have your reward in that coming blessed day. Be sad to be there and glory won't. Wasted your life. You threw it away. That's a sad thing about seeing old people get saved. Saved in the early days, only lived a few years, or appointing someone to Christ on their deathbed in a hospital, what I've done many times. Thank God their soul was saved, but their life was lost. They didn't do anything for Christ. They didn't have the time. They stretched their life for themselves, for the world, and for the devil. Right at the end, the Lord in His grace saved, yet the soul saved, but the life was lost. Nothing to be rewarded for at the judgment seat of Christ. You think of this judgment seat, some people, especially because of the English words, the judgment seat of Christ, they think this is some tribunal where sentences are going to be pronounced upon guilty people. a seen of retribution, punishment. No. There's nothing like that here at the judgment seat of Christ. All at this judgment are seen in heaven with their glorified body. That's where it is. All at this judgment are seen in heaven in their glorified body. And sin is not going to be brought up there. And this is a comforting thought. Some people talk. I've heard that men talk about it before. They get into an argument. The sparks flew and everything else. Well, we'll settle it at the judgment seat of Christ. It won't do any such thing. Sin is not going to be brought into God's heaven in any fashion or form. At heaven, at the judgment seat of Christ, what you've done in fellowship with God, you'll be rewarded for. And what you didn't do in fellowship with God, or when you're out of fellowship with God, is law. It's law. Some say, well, I think that there'll be some things we'll have to confess there, but if we didn't confess on earth, no. If you're living in unconfessed sin now, you're out of fellowship with the Lord. And as long as you're at the fellowship with the Lord, you're not pleasing God, and that'll be a block. That'll be an empty space in your life when you come at the judgment seat of Christ. It's a total blank. No reward. You read that in the eleventh of Hebrews, the children of Israel, nothing is said from the time they crossed over and the walls of Jericho fell. Nothing is said from the time they were into the land. until into the desert, until they cross over Jordan, forty years of unbelief. In those one or two verses in Hebrew, a blank of forty years in the history of Israel, nothing is recorded in that chapter of faith because in Hebrews it's faith in action, it's faith working, and that kind of faith that's going to be rewarded at the judgment seat of Christ. And here is a blank Here's a statement of forty years that Israel was out of fellowship with God wandering in the wilderness in unbelief. And not a word is said about that forty years in Israel. To think of a person being saved and out of fellowship with God for a whole year, some for a lifetime. They didn't do one thing to glorify the Lord. Great faithful to God to be faithful. in his grace to pay the one who trusted Christ, but then for that person to live for himself, a backslider, out of fellowship with the Lord, when he gets to that judgment seat of Christ, would pay stubble, all to be burned. We'll have a lot to say about that. The six things. broken off at the judgment seat of Christ, gold, silver, precious stone, wood, hay, stubble. And although we mention six things, there are really only two. One that is consumable and one that is not. The gold, the silver, the precious stone is indestructible. All the wood, hay, and stubble is destructible. So at the great white gold, it'll either be that which is for God, indestructible. That shall reward forever. On the other hand, what wasn't done to the glory of God is destructible. It's consumed. But God says, you shall be saved so as by fire your works have been burned up. Jesus' solemnly. She's blank, so that the day out of fellowship with God, it's gone. Whatever you did during that day that was out of fellowship with the Lord, it's gone. Nothing should be rewarded for in that coming day. How sad this is. All our sins were punished until that God flotted them out. Those sins not going to come up at the judgment seat of Christ. A lot of people think sin will. No, no. sin will not come up there. All our sins, those of us who were saved, God, as I blotted them out to be remembered against and no more forever, I passed them into the depths of the sea, they're gone. I don't worry about it. I'm not worrying about it. What I'm concerned about now is not going to heaven. I'm just as sure of being there as I'm sure of standing here, according to the Bible, That's what the Bible says when I believe it. But I'm interested in and concerned about that judgment seat of Christ when I as a Christian stand before my Lord and my life is renewed, and he's going to search the refiner's fire. He's going to search in my life and see what I did by faith to glorify him, not to glorify myself. but the glory by him on what stands the pest of the fire of his presence, the gold, the silver, the precious gold, he will reward. And what was wood, hay, and silt was gone. It may be all right here. Man may see something in your life. What does God still see? And what will abide his presence in that coming day? This passage over in Second Corinthians five, the very word there, the judgment seat of Christ in the original, the word is Abima, D-E-M-A. And this gives a proper explanation of the judgment seat of Christ. This word, the Abima, was very familiar with the Corinthians and were taking up the Corinthian assistance. Because outside Corinth, there was a great big Olympic stadium. a huge affair. And in that stadium where athletes from all over Greece come together occasionally, there they get into a contest, one with the other. Well, inside that huge stadium there was a platform. And it was above the spectators, the other spectators around there. And on this platform there were seated a lot of notable people. and men of high estate, men who were high up in the government and so on. Some were citizens of high honor, celebrities, and there they sat. They were a select group, and they sat upon that platform, and they looked down upon the James. And that was called the Bima. Now the judge, he went down on the field while these James were in process, that he might get a close view of each athlete to see that he followed the rules, and that was one thing they were strict about in those recent games, those Olympic games. Every athlete had to run according to the rules. A man may be the fastest runner. He may break the tape first, but somewhere in that race he stepped over a white line. onto another competitor's path, he's disqualified. No pride for him. Another runner, he may be second in speed, but he hit an opponent with his elbow as he went by, disqualified. The man who came in without breaking a rule, and he was first to break, or he may be the third to break the line, but he ran according to the rules. He was a victim. God has given up his Bible, and here are the rules. And God says, I want you to run according to the rules, and will only be rewarded in the measure we run according to the rules laid down in God's word. And so this judge is down on the field, is watching each athlete as he bends all his energy to be the first to cross the winner's line. And the victor, he's taken by the judge up to the beam up. And one of those citizens or one of those people keeps the stake is selected. What does he do? He takes that cross below Oatley and he hands it to the victor. All he puts it at the ground, either on his forehead, around his neck. He received the prize. He ran. He came in first. He ran according to the rule. Put there were others down there, and they didn't win. They didn't win. They didn't get a prize. The soldiers were going to run according to the rule that are going to win. And God wants you and me to run at the race according to the rules. That is the Bema. That's what it's referring to. It's not a question of people being punished with the Bema there in reference to those of Lindsay James. Those who ran and those who won, who will fade the word, they are the ones that are going to be rewarded at the judgment seat of Christ. There will be undoubtedly differences as to Christ. I believe that. You take a huge chandelier, and I've seen some big ones in my life, but if you look at it, it looks like one mass of light balls. Now, some light balls may only be twenty-five watts. Some may be a hundred. Some may be a hundred and fifty. But they're so located that you can't see a big hundred and fifty water at two hundred with... outshining all the rest. No, it's one grand display of light. And the little Bob only twenty-five watts, that's all its capacity. And he's given it all he's got. Another one's got a capacity of hundred watts, another hundred and fifty. But you see, the whole thing is one vast display of light and billions. All Christians have the same capacity. Some have a small capacity. Others have been given more gifts and more abilities, greater capacity. To whom much is given, much is received. Much is to receive. And who much is given? And the more responsibility a man has, the more he's got to give an account to God for. If God is given a man ten talents, he'll be held responsible for ten. If God gives a man five talents, he'll be held responsible for five. God gives the man one, he'll be responsible to one. So we have different gifts and different responsibilities. But when at the judgment seat of Christ every Christian gets whatever reward he's going to get, it will be one final blaze and display of glory to the Lord Jesus Christ. But not only did he give us the life that starts the race with, he gave us the strength to run us. That's why another lace than four we get to the end of the judgment seat of Christ. They pass their crowns at his feet. Here are all the crowns that they won. Cast at the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ. After all, he gets all the gold. He saved my precious soul. After I was saved, I let him have what I possess, a body, a mind, any talent I possess. He gave me the strength to use what I have, but up to me to study the rules of the game, and see that I run according to the rules. But in that day, all that I am able to win, as a Christian, at the end of the races, well done, thou good and faithful, sir, and casting my crown at his feet, after all the Lord gives all the credit. Nothing left for man to glory in. We owe everything to Christ. What hath thou that thou hast not received? And if thou hast received it, why do you glory in us? A man has a gift. A woman has a gift. She arrived at glory in that gift and exalt herself because of it. She received it. God gave it to her, or gave it to him. Well, if thou hast received it, why use glory in it? Glory in the one who gave it to you, and who gave you strength and ability to use it. That's the point. He's going to reward us for our faithful, and letting him use it, instead of turning ourselves over to some of this wicked world, and spend our time here making a big, fat living, and getting wealthy, instead of going in for greater riches, witnesses of God which are in Christ Jesus. Well, these are some of the things in connection with the judgment sheet of Christ. But how wonderful it is, you know, in that day when the rape of the Shomran, the Lord the righteous judge, says Paul, forgive me in that day. He's a righteous judge. He sees if he holds the slightest infraction of the rule. He sees, a foul. something done just qualifies. We've got to run according to the rules of the race and the game. Those are remarkable things in this verse nine of First Thessalonians three. Verse nine, for we are laborers together with God. Ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's children. That's a lovely verse. We are laborers together with God. Here you have the community idea of serving the Lord. It's not a one-man soul. Playing hockey years ago, sometimes we had a player that he wasn't a team man. He was kind of a loner, a selfish player. He had an opportunity to pass to another player who had a better opportunity to score the groove. Here he's posted right outside the open net. This man comes down instead of passing to that man so he has an open net. No, I want to score this groove. And he shoots and the puck is blocked. That's Celtic. If there's anything the trainer bore down on in the dressing room. Don't be Celtic. Play the game as a team. Never mind if you score to the other fellow scores, you want to win. That's the frame of mind. Every child of God should be in. It is a team effort. I play my game and you play yours. But let's play together as a team, if not as one man ever. A ball team is composed of nine men. I don't care who and how good the pitch it is. He may have the picture in the kitchen, but he needs seven other men behind. So without those seven other men, he's going to lose some game. All those men are important. And so it is all of us here that are in the world. We're workers together with God. Suppose, for instance, and I might give you a verse in that connection. It's over in Luke five, if you want to read it sometime, five and ten. And so was also James and John, the sons of Jebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not, from henceforth thou shalt catch men. Well, this is a mockery of that word partners. In the original, it's the very same with what you've got over in first John seven, that if we walk in the light that he is in the light we have fellowship, Or partnership, one with the other, and the blood of Jesus Christ his son cleansed us from all sin. Fifth word, partnership. The Lord says now here, James and John, your partner, the Simon here, in your fishing business. Now he says, I want you to catch men, catch those who be partners in that too. Partnership. God is the owner of the business. We're partners in the business. Isn't that nice? Work this together with God. For instance, here's a poor clerk, and he's summoned from his desk up to the front harvest of some, maybe a Rothschild or Rockefeller Foundation. And he's informed there that he's going to be taken into partnership in the corporation. Equal partnership. Well, he's down on the stand. Well, that's what he's told in his testimony. succinct, are being made apart on equal status with all other men and women. Friends, that is to be despised in comparison to be a partner with God in eternal life. To be in partnership with men in big business making money may seem wonderful and attractive. Far better that he without a dime in this world as far as wealth is concerned to be a boxer in the greatest business on earth, with the father, son, and both the workers together and withdraw. Would that man worry overnight as a bill for liability next morning? Thirty-five million got to be paid. Is he losing his treatment? No, why? This foundation, that keynote, we've got plenty of money to pay that thirty-five million. If you owe five thousand dollars, you'd pay three cents a week, and you had to pay it some more. But if you were a millionaire, you wouldn't worry about five thousand dollars. And the Christian, oh, too, the Christian has liability as a Christian. But remember, in our assets, we're in business with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, your heirs of God and joint heirs of our Lord Jesus Christ, your imposterity. And I'm going to have liability, responsibility, that I'm not going to worry about. I'll tell my father about it. We're all in the family. And we're all sure alike. Isn't that wonderful? Yes, we're workers together with God. This is a key message, and God wants every one of us to get in the race and to give all that we've got, energy, strength, time, and talent. In that day, we'll share a life. In this world, sometimes one man sticks out like a sore thumb. But in that day, like a team, this one makes this contribution, but small, another one makes this contribution, but this. One has to call upon God for thousands, while another calls upon him for a day and food. But in that day, we will all be there, and each one will save his reward. And in that day it will make the simple contribution toward that huge chandelier, one blaze of glory will come from the faithful saints of God to be cast at the feet of our Lord Jesus Christ. I wonder if we're tending all our energies in the direction of the end of the race. If you're not a Christian, you're not in the race of Saul. You haven't started. You're not even on the foundation. Step on that foundation tonight. Have Christ beneath the feet of your soul. And then get in the race. Get into the game. And start millions of money. Its precious soul. And spiritual value. That we're in for. May you be rich. In spiritual freedom. Shall we pray. Our Father in heaven. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. We come into thy presence. We ask thy blessing upon thy words. How faithful thou art to thy beloved people, and art us save us for nothing, and then pay us for everything we do for thee afterwards. O God, we praise thee. Blessed be thy word to all our hearts, and save energy at the night. Who known on earth today, we ask them in his worthy name. Amen.