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| A Mosaic commemorating the Bema likely used by the Apostle Paul at the Berea synogogue around 50 A.D. |
In the previous post, we saw that the Bema Judgment seat of Christ reminds us to
prepare ourselves. First we should not mettle in matters that don’t matter. Instead, have liberty.
b.
Secondly we should not judgmentally disdain others or have
contempt for others. Instead, have unity. (Rom. 14:12-13)
If you look again in Romans 14:12-13,
You will see that we should not disdain or have contempt or hurt other
believers.
“12 So
then each of us shall give account of himself to God. 13 Therefore
let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a
stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way.”
It is clear that Paul is talking about brothers and sisters in Christ only who will stand before Christ’s BEMA, giving an account not of what others have done or what others haven’t done, but what we have done and why we have done them.
The Bema seat calls us to prepare ourselves
by seeking Christ, by following Christ, by obeying Christ, by loving Christ and
loving others whom he has saved. There are certain things that we have to agree
on as the essentials.
1) The Bible is literally true. If you start to pick and choose what to believe and not believe about what the Bible clearly teaches, then we cannot have unity. How else would we know what Christ taught if it were not for the inspired, inerrant, infallible Word of God. If we agree that the Bible is true, that really takes care of the following, but let's see what else unifies us in Christ and keeps us together.
2) The deity of Christ. If Jesus was not God, then his death, however noble, would be the death of another mere mortal man. From the beginning, we see that Christ was "God with us" or Emmanuel, the name of Christ as first announced in Matthew 1:23. If anyone does not agree that Christ was and is God incarnate, there really is no unity.
3) The Christ is the only way of salvation, and that there is no other way to heaven. This too was from the beginning, as seen in Matthew 1:21:
This is the gospel and Paul said if anyone preaches a different gospel, he and his message is to be accursed (see Galatians 1).
The early disciples said in Acts 4:12 that there is no other name by which we can be saved.
Acts 10:42-43 says that Christ will judge the living (Christians at the Bema Seat) and the dead (the unsaved at the Great White Throne Judgment Seat).
4) The bodily resurrection of Jesus is not debatable among true Christians. If anyone does not believe that Christ was literally risen from the dead, we cannot have unity. Paul explains the gospel as simply as possible in 1 Corinthians 15:3-7 and then says the following in verses 13-19.
1) The Bible is literally true. If you start to pick and choose what to believe and not believe about what the Bible clearly teaches, then we cannot have unity. How else would we know what Christ taught if it were not for the inspired, inerrant, infallible Word of God. If we agree that the Bible is true, that really takes care of the following, but let's see what else unifies us in Christ and keeps us together.
2) The deity of Christ. If Jesus was not God, then his death, however noble, would be the death of another mere mortal man. From the beginning, we see that Christ was "God with us" or Emmanuel, the name of Christ as first announced in Matthew 1:23. If anyone does not agree that Christ was and is God incarnate, there really is no unity.
3) The Christ is the only way of salvation, and that there is no other way to heaven. This too was from the beginning, as seen in Matthew 1:21:
Jesus even prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane that if there was any other way, to let the cup of death pass, but God's will was done and Christ was crucified.
“And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.”
This is the gospel and Paul said if anyone preaches a different gospel, he and his message is to be accursed (see Galatians 1).
The early disciples said in Acts 4:12 that there is no other name by which we can be saved.
Acts 10:42-43 says that Christ will judge the living (Christians at the Bema Seat) and the dead (the unsaved at the Great White Throne Judgment Seat).
42 And He commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it is He who was ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead. 43 To Him all the prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins.”
4) The bodily resurrection of Jesus is not debatable among true Christians. If anyone does not believe that Christ was literally risen from the dead, we cannot have unity. Paul explains the gospel as simply as possible in 1 Corinthians 15:3-7 and then says the following in verses 13-19.
13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen. 14 And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty. 15 Yes, and we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, whom He did not raise up—if in fact the dead do not rise. 16 For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen. 17 And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! 18 Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable.
So while we are not to judge others in the non-essential matters that don't matter, there are some matters that do matter. There are more "essentials" of unity than the four above, but we will go forward from here.
In Romans 14:4, just above that, look, “Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.”
In Romans 14:4, just above that, look, “Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.”
Now before you applaud that and shout amen, the point is that God through Christ will judge you and Christ will judge me. He will not judge by what is politically correct or what the 21st century American society says.
NO.
He will judge us by the same standard: the inspired, infallible, inerrant, unchanging, never fading, ever-living and ever-convicting word of God, the Bible.
The BEMA seat of Christ reminds us to
prepare ourselves to stand before God by faith in Jesus alone, but we will be
judged by Christ according to our works for our rewards. Therefore we should
have liberty and have unity.
c.
Don’t judgmentally destroy others who are weaker because you consider
yourself spiritually superior. Instead, have charity. (Rom. 14:15)
My favorite Billy Graham quote came to me after his death.
It is God’s place to judge,
it is the Holy Spirit’s place to convict,
and it is our place to love.
We should prepare ourselves in liberty,
we should prepare ourselves in unity and the Bema Judgment of Christ
should prepare ourselves in charity. By Charity I mean “In love.” it is the Holy Spirit’s place to convict,
and it is our place to love.
Again in your Bibles, Romans 14 of is likely divided into two parts, the Law of Liberty and the Law of Love. My three subpoints that we need to prepare ourselves is an homage to a quote attributed to St. Augustine, “In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty, in all things, charity. “ ”
Notice what Jesus said in Luke 6:35.
Luke 6:35 says, “But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for
nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the
Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.” If Jesus said we are
to love our enemies for our reward, that even God is kind to the unthankful and
evil, how much more should we love those fellow believers who are weak, who may
stumble by our liberty and lack of unity.
Tomorrow we will see how to prioritize our "building" materials of our works wisely.
