“Welcome To The Christian Olympics”
INTRODUCTION: Did you catch any of the Olympics? I always enjoy the gymnastics, the swimming & the diving, and the boxing. The 1980 Olympics where the U.S. Hockey Team beat the Russians will always be a highlight of my Olympic memories. Did you catch any of the closing ceremonies the other night?
Whenever I watch the Olympics, I always wonder what it would be like to stand on the winner’s podium, with a gold medal around my neck, and hear the National Anthem being sung.
This morning, we are going to CONTINUE the series on “The Rapture Of The Church”. We have seen that Jesus IS coming … His coming may be soon … He’s coming quickly. There will be no second chance after the Rapture for those left behind … who have had the opportunity to be saved before the Rapture.
We have seen what’s going to take place in Heaven for those of us who have been raptured … AND … for those who have been left behind. THIS MORNING, we are going to take a look at one particular event that will happen soon after the Rapture … that you and I will be involved in. It reminded me of the Olympic games.
TURN with me to 2 Corinthians 5:6-10.
SOMEDAY, we will all have to stand before Christ and give an account of ourselves to Him. At that time, we will receive our REWARDS … our MEDALS, if you please.
1.- THE TIME – This will occur sometime after the Rapture … PROBABLY … the first thing. Remember Rev. 4:10 – “The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne …” By this time, we will have received our crowns … our rewards … our medals.
1 Cor. 4:5 – “Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.” When Jesus comes, the award ceremony will begin.
2.- THE PARTICIPANTS – See 2 Cor. 5:10 – “all”. This means EVERY CHRISTIAN … no exceptions. You made the “team” when God saved you. You WILL BE at the medal ceremony. You WILL BE judged on how you competed.
3.- THE JUDGE – 5:10 – This is the “judgment seat of CHRIST”. So often, a sermon on the “Judgment Seat Of Christ” is preached in a negative way. Scare tactics are used to give Christians a “guilt complex” … condemnation from the Judge.
This morning, I want us to see a different side of the “Judge”. Who is this “Judge”? He is no other than Jesus … our Savior … our Redeemer … the One Who loves us … died for us … took our punishment and penalty on the cross … He shed His blood, gave His life, for you … we are His BRIDE. Jesus won’t be venting His anger at the “Judgment Seat Of Christ”. He might be DISAPPOINTED … BUT … He won’t be VENGEFUL. He won’t be seeking REVENGE for how you lived your Christian life.
Let’s not look at Jesus, at the “Judgment Seat of Christ”, as One who is finally going to punish you for the way you failed Him. Let’s look at Jesus, as the One who will reward us for our Christian life.
4.- THE CRITERION – What will be judged? NOT … our SINS. Our sins were judged on the cross of Calvary. Romans 8:1 – “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus …”. We WON’T be judged for whether or not we pleased our spouse, our parents, our children, our boss, our Pastor, other Christians … or even if we pleased ourselves.
We will be judged as to how we pleased CHRIST. Look at 5:9, 14-15.
So, WHAT THEN will be judged? 5:10 - “things done in his body” … i.e., our WORKS. Rev. 22:12 – “And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” 1 Cor. 3:13 – “Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.”
What kind of works will be judged? There are too many to name, but here are just a few examples:
• How did we use the talents and Spiritual gifts that God gave us?
• Did we “redeem the time” that God gave us … and use it wisely?
• How did we spend the money that God had entrusted to us?
• How did we treat others? Matthew 10:42 – “And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.”
• How we used our tongue … to glorify God, or to criticize, condemn and gossip?
• How did we hold up under suffering? Matthew 5:11-12 – “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. [12] Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.”
• How well did you run the race? Philip. 2:16 – “Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.”
To put it in a nutshell, we will be judged on our FAITHFULNESS to Christ. 1 Cor. 4:2 – “Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.” NOW … not everyone has the same abilities … the same Spiritual gifts … the same talents … the same opportunities. An Olympic swimmer isn’t judged for how fast he ran in the hurdles. An Olympic gymnast isn’t judged for how many points he scored in the basketball game. They are judged on how well they competed with the talents and abilities that they had.
I won’t be judged for how faithful I was in holding world-wide crusades. BUT … Billy Graham might be. I won’t be judged on how faithful I was in singing solos for the glory of God. BUT … Lori might be. I won’t be judged on how faithful I was in playing the piano to give praise to God. BUT … Harriet and Joy might be. I will be judged for how faithful I was in preaching God’s Word in the opportunities that God has given me.
Not everyone has the same gifts and talents and opportunities. You & I will be judged on what we did with the gifts, talents, and opportunities that God has given us. It won’t be a COMPARISON … it will be an INDIVIDUAL judgment.
TURN to 1 Corinthians 3:6-9 … NOTICE “his own”. We aren’t competing against each other. We will be judged INDIVIDUALLY for our faithfulness to God’s calling in our life. Jesus isn’t going to COMPARE you with anyone else (Do I hear a “Hallelujah!”?).
Let’s take a look at these “works” that we will be judged for. Paul uses the illustration of BUILDING MATERIALS. After all, we as Christians, (the Church) are the “building” that the world sees here on this earth … we are the “temple of God” … AND … we are sending “building materials” on up ahead in Heaven. 3:9, 16.
Look at 1 Cor. 3:11-15. In the Olympics, some received the Gold, Silver, Bronze. Some didn’t get a medal. Some finished 4th, 5th, 16th. Some didn’t make the finals, semi-finals or quarter-finals. BUT … ALL of them competed. YET … not all got the Gold.
What will determine who gets the Gold, etc. … AND … who gets the Wood, etc.? Matthew 6:1 – “Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.”
Jesus won’t only judge our WORKS … BUT … He will also judge our ATTITUDE. He won’t only judge WHAT we did … BUT … WHY we did it.
I could pastor a church with a congregation of 10,000 people. Does that mean I will get a greater reward? NO! I could preach 50 Revivals a year. Does that mean I will get a greater reward? NO! NOT IF I’m doing it in the flesh. NOT IF I’m doing it to show people what a great preacher I am. NOT IF I’m doing it out of pride … “Look how great I am … look what I’ve done!”. We can do some GREAT THINGS for God … AND … NOT be rewarded for them … IF … they weren’t done to glorify God.
• That money you gave to the church … NO REWARD if you gave it to make yourself look good.
• That song you sang … NO REWARD if you did it to get attention or praise.
• That Sunday School Class you taught … NO REWARD if you did it because nobody else would.
• That meal you took over to a sick friend … NO REWARD if you did it to get something in return.
BUT … if you did it for the glory of God … as a ministry for Him … THEN … you will receive your reward in Heaven. ONLY that which is done for Jesus will be rewarded. Everything else will be burned up. That which is done for the praise of man will perish. That which is done to glorify God … done in His Name … will survive His fire.
Who, then, will get the Gold? Those who were FAITHFUL in doing what God has called them to do. EVERY Christian has a ministry. When God saved you, He had a plan for your life. He gave you a ministry. He had something that He wanted you to accomplish here on this earth for His glory.
• MAYBE it has to do with a ministry to your family.
• MAYBE it is a ministry to those who are suffering the way you have suffered.
• MAYBE it is a ministry to children.
• MAYBE it is a ministry of making and giving money for the Lord’s work.
• MAYBE it is a ministry of being an encourager.
• MAYBE it is a ministry of prayer.
There are 1000’s of ministries that God calls His people to. God had a particular ministry (or ministries) that He called you to. You & I will be judged for our faithfulness to His call. Philip. 2:12-13
- “Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. [13] For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” Ephes. 2:10 – “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”
5.- THE REWARDS – What are the rewards that Jesus has for us?
God will reward us according to our faithfulness to His called ministry. I could name several people here this morning, that, if Jesus should come today, will get the Gold. I can see it in your life and ministry. Others might get the Silver, or Bronze. Still others might receive some as “precious stones” … diamonds, rubies, pearls.
There are 5 CROWNS that are named in the Bible … there maybe more that aren’t mentioned. What will we do with these crowns? We won’t have them long. We won’t wear them throughout eternity like a ribbon on a military uniform. We are going to cast them at the feet of Jesus. Rev. 4:10 – “The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne …”
WHY? BECAUSE … we did it all for His glory! We got them because Jesus did it in us. We give them back to Him … BECAUSE … that’s why we did what we did … for His glory.
I won’t go into detail about the 5 CROWNS that the Bible names … only to say this:
• The Incorruptible Crown – 1 Cor. 9:25 – “And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.” This crown is given to those who don’t give up in their Christian life … who are faithful to the end.
• The Crown Of Life - James 1:12 – “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.” This crown is given to those who loved the Lord more than their own life … who died to self … AND … maybe even died as a martyr.
• The Crown Of Glory - 1 Peter 5:4 – “And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.” This crown is given to faithful Pastors, who serve the Lord faithfully where God has put them in ministry.
• The Crown Of Righteousness - 2 Tim. 4:8 – “Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.” This crown is given to those who are not ashamed of their Christian life when Jesus comes.
• The Crown Of Rejoicing - 1 Thes. 2:19 – “For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?” This crown is given to those who are were a faithful witness and testimony for Christ.
These crowns will be presented to Jesus, right after the Rapture. BUT … they will also have ETERNAL significance. 2 Tim. 2:12 – “If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us:” Our crowns … and our rewards … will determine how we will reign with Jesus for eternity.
• I don’t know that those with more rewards will get a bigger mansion.
• I don’t know that those with more rewards will be closer to the Throne.
• I don’t know that those with more rewards will be happier in Heaven.
BUT … the more rewards we have to glorify Jesus … will follow us into Heaven … AND … have eternal significance. You might say, “Well, I don’t care about all that … as long as I make it to Heaven!” You WILL … when you get there!
Let me illustrate it by this story I recently read. Years ago, a man was going to take a journey by stagecoach. He was offered a 1st, 2nd, or 3rd class ticket. He didn’t much care which ticket he had, because he knew it was going to be a long, dusty, bumpy ride, no matter where he sat in the stagecoach. So, he chose the cheaper 3rd class ticket. After a long while, the stagecoach stopped, because it got bogged down in the mud. That’s when he found out the difference in the tickets. The 1st class ticket-holders were told to stay in the coach. The 2nd class ticket-holders were told to get out and walk. The 3rd class ticket-holders were told to get out and push!
You might not care much now about rewards in Heaven. BUT … it will mean something then.
CONCLUSION:
If you are a Child of God, you’re in the stagecoach. You’ve gone to Athens to compete in the games. You’ll arrive safely in Heaven. You will stand before Jesus for the express purpose of giving Him the glory. How much glory will you have to give Him? A Gold medal … a Silver … a Bronze … some precious stones? If so, you will hear, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.”
OR … will you be ashamed that all you have to offer Him is a piece of wood … some hay … some dried grass … that will soon be burned up? Will Jesus get angry with you for the wood, hay or stubble? I don’t think so. BUT … what He may do, is look at you, eyeball to eyeball, and say, “I’ve done so much for you … I gave My life for you … I paid the price of Hell for you … I brought you here to enjoy for eternity the majesty of My home. AND … this is ALL you have to give to Me?”
When you get to Heaven … right after the Rapture … give Jesus the glory that He so richly deserves.
STAND – PRAY
#361 – “Wherever He Leads, I’ll Go”
OUTLINE FOR HANDOUT:
“Welcome To The Christian Olympics”
INTRODUCTION: 2 Corinthians 5:6-10 – The “Judgment Seat Of Christ”.
1.- THE TIME – The “Award Ceremony” begins right after the Rapture - Revelation 4:10 – 1 Corinthians 4:5.
2.- THE PARTICIPANTS – 5:10 – “all” – Every Christian.
3.- THE JUDGE – 5:10 – We are the BRIDE of Christ.
- He won’t be vengeful, seeking revenge in anger.
- He will REWARD you.
4.- THE CRITERION – NOT our sins – Romans 8:1.
- Did we please CHRIST? 5:9, 14-15.
- “things done in his body” … our WORKS – Revelation 22:12, 1 Corinthians 3:13.
- We will be judged on our FAITHFULNESS to Jesus – 1 Corinthians 4:2.
- We won’t be compared to anyone else … it will be an individual judgment according to what we did with what He has given us.
We aren’t competing with anyone else – 1 Cor. 3:6-9.
- The Church is God’s building on earth – 3:9,16.
1 Corinthians 3:11-15 – Who gets the Gold, Silver, Bronze?
- Our WORKS and ATTITUDE is judged … WHAT we did and WHY – Matthew 6:1.
- Not all good works will receive a reward … ONLY that which was done for Jesus … for His glory.
- Faithfulness in YOUR MINISTRY will be judged – Philippians 2:12-13 – Ephesians 2:10.
5.- THE REWARDS – 5 Crowns are named:
• The Incorruptible Crown – 1 Cor. 9:25 – For faithfulness.
• The Crown Of Life – James 1:12 – For loving Jesus.
• The Crown Of Glory – 1 Peter 5:4 – For faithful Pastors.
• The Crown Of Righteousness – 2 Tim. 4:8 – For those not ashamed when Jesus comes.
• The Crown Of Rejoicing – 1 Thess. 2:19 – For faithful witness and testimony.
- Our rewards will have eternal consequences – 2 Tim. 2:12
CONCLUSION:
- How much glory will you have to offer Him?
- Give Him the glory He so richly deserves.
