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Yesterday we established that believers will be judged. After all, 1 Peter 1:17 is written to believers when Peter says, “And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile.” Make no mistake, there is a Judgment Day coming for the people of God.

But how will Christians be judged? Paul is very helpful here in 1 Corinthians 3:12-15—Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— (13) each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. (14) If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. (15) If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.

John Piper explains it like this.[i] God has a file on every person (the “books” of Revelation 20:12). All you’ve ever done or said is recorded there with a grade (from “A” to “F”). When you stand before the judgment seat of Christ, God will open the file and lay out the tests with their grades. He will pull out all the “F’s” and put them in a pile. Then he will take all the “D’s” and “C’s” and pull the good parts of the test out and place them with the “A’s”, then put the bad with the “F’s.” Then he will take all the “B’s” and “A’s” and pull the bad parts out of them and put them in the “F” pile, and put all the good parts in the “A” pile.

Then he will open another file (“the book of life”) and find your name, because you are in Christ through faith. Behind your name will be a wood-stick match made from the cross of Jesus. He will take the match, light it, and set the “F” pile, with all your failures and deficiencies, on fire and burn them up. They will not condemn you, and they will not reward you.

Then he will hold up the entire “A” pile and declare, “By this your life bears witness to the grace of my Father, the worth of my blood, and the fruit of my Spirit. These bear witness that your life is eternal. And according to these you will have your rewards. Enter into the everlasting joy of your Master.”

Christian, you do not need to fear your eternal destiny on Judgment Day. Because of the cross that is unshakably secure. But what will you have to show for your life? If your greatest dread is God’s frown and your greatest delight is His smile, then you will pursue holiness because you know that God is your impartial judge.

 

  [i] Adapted from John Piper, How Believers Will Be Judged, Solid Joys: A Daily Devotional With John Piper (Desiring God, January 10), https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/how-believers-will-be-judged.