The Bema Seat

In one paragraph

Brian walked the congregation through week two of the "Full Reward" series, focused on what the Bible calls the bema seat, the judgment that awaits Christians specifically after death. The core argument was that Christians will not escape judgment but will face a different kind than unbelievers, one that functions less like a courtroom and more like a winner's podium. Every moment of life, Brian...

Read together

1. 2 John 1 (implied, not given a precise verse) John encouraging the church to not be deceived or robbed and to receive a full reward
2. Romans 14:7-12 read aloud to establish that every knee will bow and every tongue confess, and that each person will give a personal account to God
3. 2 Corinthians 5:10 read aloud to establish that all Christians must stand before the judgment seat of Christ to receive what they deserve for deeds done in the body
4. 1 Corinthians 3:10-15 read aloud to explain that fire will test each person's work at judgment, and that work of wood, hay, or straw will be burned up while gold, silver, and jewels survive
5. Psalm 139:16 read to show that every day of a person's life was recorded in God's book before a single day had passed, tied to the idea of each person's assignment
6. Psalm 25 (no specific verse given) quoted loosely at the close, that fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and with those who fear his name he shares his secrets

Talk about it

1. Brian described two kinds of righteousness that a person might bring before God at judgment. What is the difference between them, and which one do you find yourself leaning on more than you would like to admit?
2. The sermon compared the bema seat of Christ to a winners podium rather than a courtroom. How does that shift the way you think about standing before Jesus someday, and does it make that moment feel more or less serious to you?
3. First Corinthians 3 describes two kinds of building materials, some that survive fire and some that burn up. What kinds of things in your own life do you think would fall into each category, and what makes one worth more than the other?
4. Brian said we will be judged not just on our works in general but on how well we fulfilled the specific assignment God had for us. Do you have a sense of what your assignment is, and if not, what has kept you from finding out?
5. The closing picture of worship leader John Micus showed one assignment running as a thread through every season of a person's life. Can you see a thread like that in your own life, even in seasons that did not look obviously spiritual from the outside?