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Judgment for Christians

Rom 14:10 But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.

Most Christians have some idea of what awaits them after death. It might be a cartoonish idea of playing a harp and sitting on a cloud. However, when considering what the bible says about it (1Cor 3:10-15), it would be advisable to apply what we can know about what awaits us to our lives today.

There are two possibilities described in Paul’s letter to the Corinthians. Both speak of rewards the the Christian might expect. The first is described as gold, sliver, and precious stones. This reflects differing levels of reward for having built on the “foundation” of Jesus Christ that which abides. In contrast, wood, hay, and stubble are used to describe varying degrees of mistaken construction of the foundation of Christ. These are described as being burned up, yet the person still retains his salvation.

When considering how a Christian could come to a point so as to be so mistaken about what he was “building” that his works would be “burned up”, we might consider some of the various ways Christianity is practiced and presented today. Some see Christianity an opportunity to experience various sensations. These can be stimulated sensations in worship, the self-righteousness of both legalism and social activism, or the comfortable assurance that one has fulfilled all the requirements. These can represent a sort of consumer Christianity that is directed towards self.

Those who have an outwards direction to their view of the Christian life can also fall into a “wood, hay, and stubble” result if they, for example, give money that is not wisely spent, support that which is in error, or exhort others in error. While many can be misled into error, we each have the responsibility to question,learn, grow, and avoid error.

However, perhaps the greatest number of Christians will fall into a category not specifically mentioned, that of no rewards at all resulting from an inert Christian life. Many people inherit a Christian tradition that assures them of a rosy future based on various criteria the completion of which allows them to ignore any further application of Christianity to their life in any real way.

For those who have rewards of “gold, silver, and precious stones” consideration should be given as to how to build on the “foundation” of Christ. Many think in terms of money or labor when considering accumulating value to be given. However, a better perspective might be to consider that as we have been placed into the body of Christ and have his Spirit in us, we should walk after the Spirit and not after the flesh (Gal 5:16). This allows the Spirit to work in us to make us better people (Gal 5:22-24), and thus better able to offer service that has eternal value.

We are not given specific descriptions of the rewards we may expect, perhaps because we would be unable to understand them this side of heaven. However, Jesus describes in a parable rewards for those faithful of Israel as the rule of cities. While this might not apply directly to us, it might be indicative of greater responsibilities and opportunities to serve God.

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