Judgment And Rewards | Christians Are Not Judged, And There is Only ONE Reward

The Bible talks about judgment and it talks about a reward. Here we discover that believers are not judged for sin, and there is only one reward. Jesus.

Are we all going to be judged?

Are we all going to be judged?

What about Rewards? Do we get hooked up for doing more good?

2 Corinthians 5:10 For we must ALL appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

What are the wages of sin?

If we received what was DUE us, what would that be?

So maybe we’ve misunderstood this verse

In context, Paul is not saying ALL HUMANS will be at this judgment and reward ceremony.

He’s saying we will ALL appear before Christ. Christians we be paid back for what we believed/good deeds (inherit the Kingdom -1 reward), and unbelievers judged for their deeds (hell)

The word REWARDS does NOT exist in the bible

We will get/inherit 1 reward.

JESUS

Now, instead of looking at one verse, let’s look at other verses about judgment and rewards and see how they line up and agree with each other.

John 3:18

He who believes in Him is not judged;

he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

Revelation 20 (the great white throne)

 Revelation 21

Notice two groups with two DIFFERENT outcomes

As we read these verse, you need to decide:

Which Group do I belong to?

Revelation 20:11

11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.

Revelation 20:12

12 And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the DEAD were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.

Who was judged here? Believers or unbelievers?

(vs 13-15 tells us they were then thrown into the lake of fire)

Revelation 21

NOTE: A new Chapter, addressing a new group.

Notice the first word is THEN (in other words NEXT, after that..)

Revelation 21:1

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.

This is AFTER the judgment in chapter 20, and now he’s referring to us!

Revelation 21:2

2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.

He’s talking to us.

Revelation 21:3-4

3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, 4 and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”

Not a single word of judgment. All we hear is good stuff!

Matthew 25

Jesus talks about SHEEP and GOATS-which are you?

Matthew 25:31-32 “But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. 32 ALL the nations will be gathered before Him;

There’s that word ALL again. Just like we saw in 2 Cor

Look what he does FIRST

and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats;

Again, decided which one you are in these two groups.

Matthew 25:33

and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left.

Note where the sheep (Christians sit. On the right)

Matthew 25:34

 “Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

NO Judgement. None at all.

Note what they inherit. The KINGDOM. That’s the REWARD!

Reward and inheritance are one and the same

Now for the group on the LEFT

Matthew 25:41

 ““Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels; .

THIS GROUP was addressed separately, and only they were judged.

Vs 41 These will go away into eternal punishment (judgement), but the righteous into eternal life (reward-singular).”

Parable of Vineyard Workers

Matthew 20

 Several men have been hired. Some worked a lot, some just a little. Now it is time to get paid.

Parable of Vineyard Workers

Matthew 20

8 “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last group to the first.’

So if you’re at the back of the line and worked the MOST, you think you’re about to get hooked up.

9 When those hired about the eleventh hour came, each one received a denarius. 10 When those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; but each of them also received a denarius.

Hmmm, no hook-up for those that TRIED harder and had more works???

11 When they received it, they grumbled at the landowner, 12 saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.’ 

In other words, we all get the same reward. JESUS!

13 But he answered and said to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? 14 Take what is yours and go, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. 15 Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?’

Jesus had a conversion with a Pharisee who had a question for Him. A rather sarcastic question.

[John 6:28] Therefore they said to Him, “What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?

Notice, the Pharisee uses the PLURAL works. Watch how Jesus answers and what He does with his grammar.

[John 6:29] Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the WORK of God, that you BELIEVE in Him whom He has sent.”

Author: Mike Cynar

Mike Cynar was raised in a church setting where he frequently noticed that many attendees would eventually drift away. The church labeled these individuals as ‘back sliders’ or ‘fake Christians’ just looking for ‘fire insurance’. However, Mike realized the issue was rarely with these individuals but instead with the church’s message itself. The teachings heavily emphasized behavior improvement and one’s flaws, with only a fleeting mention of one’s identity in Christ. It felt as though every sermon was tailored to the church of Corinth, who as we know or committing sins that even unbelievers don’t partake in. This trend was noticeable not just in one denomination, but across Baptist, Catholic, Pentecostal, and many other churches. Upon understanding the true essence of the gospel – that our righteousness comes from Jesus’ actions, not our own – Mike was inspired to liberate believers from lifeless sermons and reconnect them with the genuine teachings of Jesus. He believes that one can nurture a vibrant and growing bond with Jesus, unhindered by rigid religious practices. And thus, “Jesus Without Religion” was born.

It turns out that it is grace that leads to repentance. And if our heart is to get others to walk in the Spirit and live a godly life, then the best approach is not a beat down sermon, but rather to remind other that it is only when we understand our true identity in Christ that we will live it out. Yes, it’s true, if you’re convinced that God thinks you’re a dirty sinner, you will ultimately continue a lifestyle that mirrors that view, but if you truly believe that even on your worst day, you are called holy, sanctified, justified, and will be presented blameless in the end, well, it turns out this is the secret to living out on the outside what has been worked in to the inside.

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