The Wedding and the War 4: The Judgment Seat and the Importance of Eternal Reward
Sunday, March 30, 2019
Pastor Troy Brewer, OpenDoor Church, Burleson, TX
Many in my generation of evangelicals have held dispensational eschatological chart-drawing in such derision that we have been virtually paralyzed in our study of prophecy. For two generations, perhaps, we have failed to study prophecy with anything like the rigor that it deserves. We have been so afraid of being viewed as one of those Zionist, right-wing, antichrist-sniffing, culture-denying, alarmist left-overs from the Scofield prophecy conference era that we give hardly any energy to putting the prophetic pieces together — at least not in public.
So my prophecy is that younger evangelicals who take the Bible seriously will start to feel like the paralysis of my generation was an overreaction to prophetic studies; Chris Tomlin and others will write more worship songs about the second coming; and younger scholars will not be embarrassed to write doctrinal dissertations on Daniel 9 and Matthew 24 and 2 Thessalonians 2, unintimidated by the academic scorn of futuristic possibilities.
– John Piper, April 14, 2015
WEDDING AND THE WAR 1: “I Ain’t Scared”
- Any part of your life that doesn’t have great hope is under the influence of a lie.
THE WEDDING AND THE WAR 2: Keep it positive but keep it accurate.
- The reason there is a dual nature is because there is actually a choice.
- THE PRINCIPLE OF ABOUNDING GRACE: Where sin abounds grace does much more abound.
- Abounding: growing in abundant supply
THE WEDDING AND THE WAR 3: Looking for the Day
- Revelation 3:3 – If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.
- It is clear that Jesus will not come as a “thief in the night” for watchful believers because in the very same passage, verse 4, Paul tells us,
- 1 Thessalonians 5:4 – But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief.
- John 15:15 – I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends.
- The Bible also says that Jesus was crucified so the blessing of Abraham, part of which was friendship, can be fulfilled.
The Wedding and the War 4: The Judgment Seat and the Importance of Eternal Reward
- 1 Corinthians 3:5-15 – Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. 7 So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. 8 Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor. 9 For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building. 10 According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. 11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. 14 If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.
- Fire is passion. Passion is zeal.
JUDGMENT IS NOT ALWAYS NEGATIVE
- Hebrews 9:27 – It is appointed to man to die once, then the judgment.
- Judgment is where God confronts and punishes evil.
- Eliott Ness has to make a stand against Al Capone.
- Melvin Purvis has to chase down John Dillinger.
- Frank Hammer has to rise up and deal with Bonnie and Clyde.
- Seal Team Six and Robert J. O’Neil have to take out Bin Ladin.
- Judgment is where God evaluates and rewards.
- Romans 14:10,12 – We shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ…12 Then each of us shall give account of himself to God.
JUDGMENT IS WHERE GOD REWARDS
- 2 Corinthians 5:10 – For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
- Rewards: Rewards express how Jesus feels about our love for Him in this life and about our having worked closely with Him in what He calls “precious.” Rewards are not about superiority over others.
- Matthew 16:27 – “The Son of Man will come…He will reward each according to his works.”
- Jesus remembers every small act of love, even giving someone a cup of water.
- Matthew 10:42 – “Whoever gives…only a cup of cold water…he shall by no means lose his reward.”
JUDGMENT SEAT OF CHRIST
- Paul gave us important details about our most important appointment – the Judgment Seat of Christ.
- 1 Corinthians 3:8, 11-15 – Each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor…11 No other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 If anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each one’s work will become clear…it will be revealed by fire… 14 If anyone’s work…endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved.
- Jesus called us to buy gold by developing our relationship with Him and obeying Him. We “buy gold” by making choices that express our love to Jesus through our obedience to Him (John 14:15).
- Revelation 3:18 – “I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich.”
“The fear of the Lord”
- Love what God loves. Hate what God hates.
- Be passionate about what God is passionate about.
- Celebrate what God celebrates.