Biblical Success - Running Our Race - Our Ultimate TestSample

Let’s connect some more dots. Our free gift of salvation in Christ comes with an element of accountability. It relates to how we use it, how we perceive life on earth as followers of Christ, and what we do as a result.

Works do not save us, but we are saved to do works, good works that God has prepared for us to do in Christ. We each have a “platform” for doing “good works," and we build on the platform with our works. Our platform is established at our new birth. It is the combination of our gifts, talents, education, relationships, location, and opportunity that combine to provide our context for life and our circle of influence for Christ. It is utilized during the time between our new birth and our physical death.

Sometime after we finish the race set before us, our works will be evaluated at the Bema or Judgment Seat of Christ. Scripture uses the metaphor of testing by fire to judge the quality of our works. Some works are compared to gold, silver, and precious gems, and some to wood, hay, or stubble. Some will be burned away, and some will last. Those that pass through the fire of His judgment will produce rewards; those that burn away will mean we suffer loss. Not a loss of our salvation but a loss of rewards that might have been gained.

The Bema Judgment has nothing to do with our settled and sure salvation. The consequences of our accounting will be measured as rewards or losses that are not defined precisely in scripture, but Who creates and judges them and awards them is Jesus, and they will be ours for eternity.

The quality of our works will be judged by Jesus personally and based on His standards. The standard shared in II Cor 5:10 is “What he has (we have) done in the Body whether good or bad.” What will Jesus judge to be “good”? In Romans 14:10, we are told, “for each of us will give an account of himself (herself) to God.” It will be personal, just us and Jesus.

My concept is that it will be similar to a proper performance review. It will not condemn (Romans 8:1) but will be perfectly honest. Many things that are very important in terms of the values that the world esteems will have no value at all at The Bema. Works are what we do and are driven by how we think and what we believe. All “good works” for us will be found in the context of Ephesians 2:10. Our “good works” will be done in obedience to the Spirit of Christ within us. Just a few samples from the Word follow. Let’s talk after we r