Every true Christian must appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ, but there’s more!
2 Corinthians 5:10 (AMP)
For we must all appear and be revealed as we are before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive [his pay] according to what he has done in the body, whether good or evil [considering what his purpose and motive have been, and what he has achieved, been busy with, and given himself and his attention to accomplishing].
The last part of this verse elaborates on the detail of what the believer’s judgment will consist of. First, considering what your purpose and motives have been. Second, what you have achieved and been busy with. Third, what you have given yourself and your attention to accomplishing.
The last part of this verse begs the question: What was the focus of your life? Was the focus of your life solely on you, your interests, and your agenda? Were you focused on people or were you concerned mainly with position, power, and prestige? When you look back on your life, will you discover that most of your time, talent, and treasure were spent on worldly pursuits? Or instead, will Jesus commend your faithfulness to His body – the body of Christ?
Certainly Jesus has every right to look at how we handled the gifts, opportunities, and responsibilities that God gave us while we were on the earth, but the primary consideration will be how we related to those in the body of Christ. This is the theme throughout all the Epistles, and virtually every New Testament writer exhorts us to walk in love toward our brothers and sisters in Christ. This happens, first, in the local church.
Question: What is Jesus going to judge me on? Answer: Did I express the divine nature by walking in love? Here’s why that is true: Jesus gave a new commandment (in John 13:34) – the command to “love one another as I have loved you.” Loving as Jesus loved means relying on the power of the divine nature within you to walk in love.
It is worth noting that the Epistles (New Testament letters) are all written to the body of Christ, and when they exhort us to express the divine nature, they are referring to walking in love toward our brothers and sisters in Christ. The key to doing this effectively is to rely on the divine nature within you in order to relate to those who also have the divine nature within them. How you expressed the divine nature during your life will be an important consideration when you stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ. This is one of the reasons participation in the local church is important – every believer will be judged based on how he or she related to his or her brothers and sisters in Christ.