In Touch Ministries

Voiceover (Male): Jesus Christ now is your Savior living on the inside of you. And now each day we live, we live as a result of His strength and His power and His wisdom. So you began a brand new life.

Dr. Charles Stanley: The tragedy is that many people who have received Jesus Christ have never been instructed. They don't know what is expected of them. They have no idea and no concept whatsoever of rewards and that there's going to be a final judgment. It is all the things we have done and failed to do that will be tested in the judgment.

Voiceover (Male): The book of Revelation gives us a glimpse of the day when all people will be judged by Jesus Christ. Does the prospect of being evaluated unnerve you a little? Today's edition of In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley, reminds believers that we have nothing to fear. Stay with us and learn more about the final exam.

Dr. Charles Stanley: You remember when you came to high school the last year and there was exams. When you finished that exam, you said, oh, I'm glad that's over with. Then you went to college and you had that last exam, you said, oh, thank God, this is over with. Then maybe you went to some further education and you finished that last exam, you said, this is it, no more.

But there is one more. It's the final exam. It's the ultimate exam that no one escapes, no one can avoid. It's that ultimate exam that I want us to talk about in this message. I want you to turn if you will to First Corinthians chapter 3.

Beginning in that fifth verse, I want to give you a little background of what's happening. The Apostle Paul planted the Corinthian church on one of his missionary journeys. He was there for about 18 months, and he planted the church, and people were saved, and then of course, others came through to speak. One of those who came through to speak was Apollos.

Apollos was a rather good speaker. So some of the people there began to compare him with Paul. It's interesting that the scripture says in the 18th chapter of Acts, while you're still holding in the First Corinthians there, Now a Jew named Apollos, an Alexandrian by birth, an eloquent man, came to Ephesus and he was mighty in the scriptures.

This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John. So, he was a very eloquent man. As a result, some of the people in Corinth said, now look, you know, Paul planted this church, we understand that, but Apollos is some kind of speaker.

So they had this little rift going between who is the best and so forth. It's from that that the Apostle Paul deals with a very, very vital issue concerning our relationship to Jesus, our accountability to Him and this whole issue of receiving rewards. So I want you to begin with me if you will, that in mind, in verse 5.

What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one. I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. So then, neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth.

Now he who plants and he who waters are one. But each will receive his own reward according to his own labor. For we are God's fellow workers, you God's field, God's building, speaking of the church there.

According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder, I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each man must be careful how he builds on it. For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

Now if any man or woman, of course, likewise. Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver or precious stones, or wood, hay, straw, each man's work will become evident. That is, it's going to be shown, declared, manifest, revealed.

For the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work. If any man's work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If any man's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.

What in the world does it mean to be, to have our works burned up, and to be saved so as by fire? We're talking about this final judgment, this final exam we're going to take. Well, first of all, I want you to notice that it is the will of God, the plan of God, that His children be rewarded. That's part of His plan.

It's interesting where it all began because if you go back to the 15th chapter of Genesis, and this is the Old Testament now for some who are not familiar, after these things, the word of the Lord came to Abraham in a vision saying, do not fear, Abraham, I'm a shield to you. Your reward shall be very great.

Now, if you turn to the 19th Psalm, and the Psalmist says here, speaking of what we would call the law of God, the Bible, he says, the law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul. The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. The commandments of the Lord are pure, enlightening the eyes and on and on he goes.

So then he says, moreover, by them, your servant is warned. In keeping them there is great reward. That is, he didn't say it's just the reward, he says great reward. So rewards are the will and purpose and plan of God for us. Then if you come to the New Testament, and you come to the sermon on the mount for example, in the fifth chapter of Matthew, listen to what happens here because he's telling us in this fifth chapter, one of the most familiar parts, blessed are those who so and so.

Then he comes down and he says in verse 10 of this fifth chapter, blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great, for in the same way they persecute the prophets which were before you.

What is this great reward? That is, if he says it's great, it must be awesome. Turn to the one chapter to the sixth chapter, and here's what you'll find. You'll find Jesus again talking about rewards. You're going to hear him say or see him saying here, rewards, full reward, no reward.

Look if you will in the sixth chapter, verse one. He says, beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them, otherwise, you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven. So, no reward. So when you give to the poor, do not sound the trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.

And he says, but when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand's doing. So that you, listen, your giving will be in secret and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. What he's simply saying is this. He says this about praying, he says it about fasting, and he says it about giving, that from God's perspective, our motive is very, very important.

If we do anything to be seen and to get the approval of man, he says, you have your full reward. Don't expect to get any when you get to heaven because you just got it. So what you and I have to remember is this. We are not doing whatever we're doing as a Christian to receive the approval of man. We want to be obedient to God.

If you're doing it for the approval and the applause of others, that's all the reward you're going to get. Then of course, Paul talks about rewards as we see here in this third chapter, and all the way to the last book of the Bible. The Bible is talking about rewards. So it's God's plan. That is, God desires. He has planned to reward us.

That is, he plans that you and I would enjoy heaven, not only because of its creation, but because God will reward us for our works here in this life. So it's very evident here now, and I want you to remember two or three things. What is not rewarded for us is salvation. That is, salvation is God's gift. We don't do anything to receive His salvation, His forgiveness of our sin, but to accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior through His death at Calvary.

So, when I hear somebody saying, and once in a while I hear somebody say something like this, well, I'm working hard and I'm laying up, I'm laying up for some good points in heaven, so when I get there, maybe he'll accept me. Totally erroneous. You can't do anything to get to heaven except accept the shed blood of Jesus Christ at Calvary as full payment of your sins, place your trust in Him and receive Him as your personal Savior. That's how you get to heaven.

That is what Paul is referring to when he talks about foundation here in this third chapter. So every single person who's saved, you and I received the gift of salvation, not of works, lest any person should boast. Now that you and I have been saved by the grace of God, what happens? Now we are to build upon this foundation, a life, listen, by our character, our conversation, our conduct, a life that is consistent with the foundation.

The foundation is the person of Jesus Christ. That is, when Jesus Christ came into your life as personal Savior, everything changed. When He forgave you, He forgave you for all the past. Does that mean that there are no consequences to the past? No, I wouldn't say that. There are some consequences to some sins in our life, but forgiven, yes, absolutely, totally forgiven.

So you began a brand new life. Jesus Christ now is your Savior, living on the inside of you. Now each day we live, we live as a result of His strength and His power and His wisdom. The tragedy is that many people who have received Jesus Christ have never been instructed. They don't know what is expected of them. They have no idea and no concept whatsoever of rewards and that there's going to be a final judgment.

They've just heard the idea that if you get saved, then you're going to heaven when you die, and so, you know, just relax. You cannot just relax. What I want you to see here is, watch this carefully, it is not the foundation that's going to be tested. That's Jesus, that's a settled issue. It is all the things we have done and failed to do that will be tested in the judgment. So, first of all, it's very evident that he desires to reward us as a result of our works, and we'll talk about what they are in just a moment.

Now, there's a second part that I want you to notice here, and it's an important part that I want to emphasize in what he said in this third chapter, First Corinthians. Look here for a moment. Now we're talking about his plan to reward us individually. Listen to what he says. Verse 6.

Paul says, I planted, I started the church. Apollos came along and watered it, he's discipling them now. But God is the one who causes the growth. So then, neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. Now, watch this. Now he who plants and he who waters are one, but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor.

He says, each one will receive a reward according to his own deeds. Those deeds are all the things that make up our life. So it's very important what you do as a child of God because God isn't going to say, let's see what you did, well, how did you compare? There's no comparison. When you and I stand before Him, it's just you and Jesus.

You say, well, now I'm going to show it to you. So hold on. There's no escape this morning. You came, you're invited. This is the word of God and I say that to make it a little easier on you because it's getting ready to get tough. You know why? Because the Christian life is serious business.

So many folks take it sort of nonchalant. Well, I've been saved and I've been baptized. So what else is there to do? Be faithful to God. True to God, honest before God, faithful to Him, trustworthy before Him, diligent for Him, because we are going to be judged for our actions, our deeds, things that we do and things that we do not do.

He makes it very clear in this passage. So, first of all, we see that he desires to reward us, that's his plan, and that he desires to reward us individually, that is, not corporately but individually. Now, the third thing I want us to notice is this what he says, and that is it's his plan.

His plan to reward us according to what we build on this foundation. Now remember that when you trusted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, personally and spiritually, that's your foundation, because past is past, you've been saved. Now, from the moment you were saved, you have the foundation of Jesus Christ.

Now, if you drive around Atlanta a little bit, and you see all of these high-rises going up, I mean, whether they're businesses or whether it's condos or apartments, whatever it might be. I mean, they go up 30 floors, 40, whatever it might be. If you'll notice, if you've gotten close enough, that before they do that, they build this big hole in the ground, and it's full of steel and this and concrete and all the rest.

You know what they're doing? They're building something that'll hold up all that they're going to stack on top of it. A lot of people do not realize how important that foundation is. And how important it is now, as a child of God, what you place on it. That's what he's saying. He says, for example, he says, one plants, other waters, both working together.

Be careful what you build and how you build on that foundation. Now, I can remember, I had only been in seminary two weeks, and the president spoke, and I remember one thing he said, Dr. Williams. But at chapel that morning, he's talking about new students and so forth, and here's what he said. He said, don't forget this.

If you're going to build something, you have to have a firm foundation. He said, listen. If you're only going to build a chicken coop, you don't need much foundation. But if you're going to build something worthy, that'll last, you need a firm foundation. The only thing I remember he said, but I remember that while I was there, I was to build a foundation theologically, and in my life and my relationship to God, so that when I got out of seminary, I would have a theological foundation upon which to build and to grow in my life.

The moment you trusted Jesus Christ as your Savior, you have the foundation. The question is, what are you building on it? Are you building on that foundation the kind of character, conversation, conduct, works in your life that are consistent with the foundation? You wouldn't go out here and build a foundation that's 25 or 30 feet deep, full of steel and concrete, if you're only going to build a one-story bungalow on it.

God has placed in your life and my life an eternal foundation. That foundation will never be tested, never be tried. It's God's eternal foundation, your life and my life. What you and I are responsible for is the kind of structure we're building on it. The foundation will stand for eternity. But what are you building on that?

If you'll notice now what he says, and this is the important part I want you to get here. Listen to what he says. He says, now no man can lay any other foundation than is laid, which is Christ. Then he says in verse 12, now if any man or woman builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each person's work will become evident. For the day will show it, it'll be revealed with fire, fire itself will test the quality of each person's work.

If any man's work which he's built upon it remains, he'll receive a reward, but if it's lost, it burns up, you lose reward, but you won't lose your salvation. Now, here's the issue. What makes up gold, silver and precious stones? What kind of life is that? Because you see, watch this, what he says is, you and I are building on this eternal structure, something that fits one of those two categories.

The gold, silver, and precious stones, fire just purifies them. That's who He is. He's the examiner, the purifier, and the rewarder. That's who Jesus is. Examines, purifies, and rewards.

Voiceover (Male): Thanks for listening to In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley. On the day God judges humanity, He'll reward every believer for his or her faithfulness. Commit your life to Him and one day He'll reward your trust. Dr. Stanley's message titled The Final Exam concludes on Monday. The Bible gives us the promise of eternity and clear direction on how to live a life that's honoring to the Lord right now. Learn about those things and more at intouch.org. Click the link to today on radio to hear this message again, and that's where you can order a copy of today's complete message. The title is The Final Exam, or order Dr. Stanley's teaching set titled Countdown to Judgment. That's at intouch.org. You can also call or text 1-800-INTOUCH. If you prefer to write, our address is In Touch, P.O. Box 7900, Atlanta, Georgia, 30357. Not believing a fact does nothing to change it. And the Bible says that we will all face judgment after death. Today's moment with Charles Stanley is coming up.

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Voiceover (Male): You're listening to In Touch. Following death, everyone has an appointment with God. What does it take to be ready for that meeting? Here's a moment with Charles Stanley.

Dr. Charles Stanley: At the judgment seat of Christ, God will reward all believers for their actions. But if you're not a Christian, then this judgment is not where you're headed. Your appointment in eternity involves condemnation and eternal separation from God.

Now you may think, well, I don't believe all of that. What you believe doesn't change the fact that you will stand before God one day. I'm very much aware that people today do not want to talk about judgment. They don't want to talk about the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. They don't want to talk about any of that because they want to talk about pleasure and love and things being just the way they want to be.

But you have to remember this. This is God's Word, and here's what He says in Hebrews 9:27. It is appointed unto man once to die and after this, the judgment. That's the word of God. Now the truth is, when? And the second thing is, are you ready? When are you going to die? Nobody knows that.

The question is, are you ready? You can know that. One of the very important passages in the Bible concerning our being ready is found in Luke chapter 12, 16 through 21. It's simply the story of a man who had great possessions. He had so many possessions, and his barns were so full, he said, I'm going to tear them all down and build larger ones.

So his whole life was consumed in the things that pleased him and gave him material security. Then the scripture says, he said, I will say to my soul, soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come. Take your ease, eat, drink, and be merry. That's the attitude a lot of people have. But here's what I want you to remember.

But God said to him, you fool, this very night your soul is required of you, and now who will own what you have prepared? You see, life is more than possessions and pleasure. Life is to be lived in obedience to Almighty God. Let me remind you of what God says.

That is, how do you prepare to meet the Lord? You say, well, by doing good things. No, he says, not by works of righteousness which we've done, but according to His mercy he saved us. And he says in Ephesians chapter 2, again, it's not by works, but by God's grace. Now listen carefully. Jesus Christ came into this world, the Son of God. Lived his life of about 33 years.

He didn't live it just to be a teacher and a healer. He lived it in order to go to the cross and die as a substitute for you and me. He is a vicarious, listen, all-sufficient substitute. That is, He came into the world. The Bible says the Lamb of God slain before the foundation of the world, the mind of God. He came in order to die for our sins.

You say, well, why did He have to die? Because someone had to pay the price for your sins and mine. Either we pay the price of eternal separation from God, or we accept God's substitute, who is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. When He died on the cross, He paid your sin debt and mine in full. That becomes applicable in your life and mine when we are willing to say, Lord Jesus, I do believe that you're the Son of God.

I do believe that your death on the cross paid my sin debt in full. I do believe that now I can be made acceptable in the eyes of God, not because I'm good, but because He paid my penalty.

Voiceover (Male): You can be accepted by God and begin a relationship with Him today by receiving His forgiveness through faith in Jesus Christ. To learn more, visit intouch.org. If today's program fueled your excitement about Jesus, tell someone and then share your story with us too. Next week on In Touch, one day God will reward Christians based on their faithfulness to what He called them to do. Hear more about what the judgment will be like for believers when you join us Monday for In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley. This program is a presentation of In Touch Ministries, Atlanta, Georgia, and remains on this station through the grace of God and your faithful prayers and gifts.