“His presence was awesome and startling, and He was wearing a judge’s robe” (Rick Howard, This Was Your Life: preparing to meet God face to face)

Every member of the human race will appear before one of two places of judgment at the end of the age. In this final post on this series on the Judgments of God, we reflect on this important reality that is sometimes shadowy in the mind of the Christian.

Those not in covenant with Christ appear before The Great White Throne

• Revelation 20:11-15 “And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God, and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.” (Rev. 20:11-15)

In his Foundations series, Bible teacher Derek Prince observes this:

“It seems certain that the majority of those who appear before the Great White Throne will not have fulfilled the conditions for receiving God’s mercy and will therefore be condemned to the lake of fire. Nevertheless . . .in ‘The resurrection of the dead’, there will definitely be at least two categories of people before the great white throne who will escape condemnation and enter into eternal life.

The first category will consist of people such as the queen of the South and the men of Nineveh, who availed themselves of the mercy which God offered to them in one brief but decisive revelation of Himself. Scripture does not indicate how many others there may have been in the course of history who were given a similar opportunity.

The second category will consist of all those who died in faith during the millennium.

Can we anticipate that there will be others to whom God will extend mercy from His great white throne? The answer to this is locked up within the omniscience of God.”

(I have linked that devotion in its entirety below.)

The redeemed appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ

• Romans 14:10-12 – “For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. It is written: ‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before Me; every tongue will confess to God.’ So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.”
• 2 Corinthians 5:10 – “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive compensation for the things done in the body, according to what we have done, good or bad.”

An important distinction between these two thrones of judgment is that the covenanted believer will be judged not for his sins, which were dealt with at the time of repentance, but for how he lived his life. How did he spend his resources, particularly his time? How did he use the gift of his health and his talents in the pursuit of God? What were the motives and condition of his heart?

The judgment seat of Christ is the site of accountability and rewards. Consider the following passages:

“Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.” (James 1:12)

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. From now on there is laid up 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 to all who crave His appearing” (2 Timothy 4:7-8)

“I am coming soon. Hold fast to what you have, so that no one will take your crown” (Revelation 3:11)

“And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away” (1 Peter 5:4)

“Likewise, a competitor does not receive the crown unless he competes according to the rules” (2 Timothy 2:5)

“When [the Lord] comes, He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God” (1 Corinthians 4:5).

“For the Son of Man will come in His Father’s glory with His angels, and then He will repay each one according to what he has done” (Matthew 16:27).

A neglected topic

Years ago, we as a church read and did a mid-week study on the Judgment Seat of Christ and the five crowns available to Christians. This Was Your Life! Preparing to meet God face to face by Rick Howard and Jamie Lash was among the most impactful studies we experienced together as a congregation. It was the first time many of us could remember even hearing this ultra-important subject – the judgment and eternal experience of the believer, which will not be uniform, according to scripture – discussed in depth.

“We have all eternity to celebrate the victories, but only a few hours before sundown to win them,” said Amy Carmichael. In light of this, I invite you to dive deeper into what scripture says about judgment, rewards, and eternity.

Check out this excellent teaching by Marita Scholtz on “God Our Judge.”in which she highlights various scriptures and lays out what the bible says we can expect before the Judgment Seat of Christ.

Other resources and a summary of Rick Howard’s book are listed below:

https://www.derekprince.com/devotionals/c-b052-357

The Bema Seat of Christ

“…face to face with the Lord. No secret remains hidden; even the thoughts and intentions of your heart are laid bare. Do you yearn to hear Christ say, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant’? This Was Your Life! offers rare teaching on the judgment of believers and on how to get prepared.”