Is the Bema Seat Reserved for Christians or Unbelievers in the End Times?
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What Is the Bema Seat in the Bible?
Millions of viewers watched this year’s Olympics and were amazed at the feats achieved by the bronze, silver, and most notably gold medal winners. The medal ceremony models a practice begun by the ancient Greeks, who instituted the Olympics in the eighth century B.C. A judge sat at what they called the Bema Seat at a respective race’s finish line. It was that judge who determined the winner and gave him an award immediately after the completion of the race.
In the Bible, The Bema Seat is the title given the Judgment Seat of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:10, Romans 14:10). The judgment of each Christian is not a determination of who will enter heaven, because the Bible says we are forgiven at the moment of salvation (Psalm 103:10-12). Those judged at the Bema Seat are believers in the Lord, but the Bible says God will reward believers based upon their actions done for Him (Psalm 62:12). This truth parallels what James says in his epistle (James 2:14-26), for faith without works is dead. We respond to our Lord in faith because He imputed His righteousness to us (Romans 1:17). We will receive rewards based upon what we did with our lives as ambassadors for Christ (Matthew 16:27, 1 Corinthians 3:10, 12, 13).
Scholars are divided regarding the timetable for the Bema Seat. While it is sure we will be judged in heaven, the timing could be (a) immediately after one dies, (b) when one is resurrected, (Hebrews 9:27), or (c) after the tribulation mentioned in Scripture (Matthew 24:29, Mark 13:24, Revelation 7:14). The Bible speaks of a seven-year tribulation, where its second half corresponds to the time of Jacob’s trouble (Jeremiah 30:7). After that horrific time—some say—believers will stand before Christ at His Bema (Judgment) Seat.
Why Is it Called Bema Seat?
Paul’s use of sports metaphors is prevalent throughout his letters (Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, and Philemon), and he used language and images with which his audience could relate. Just as Jesus used many agricultural metaphors to help His audiences understand His greater truths (John 6:35, John 15:1-5), so too did Paul (Galatians 5:22-23), yet he added sports imagery for those who observed and perhaps even took part in the Greek Olympic games, held in Olympia (1 Corinthians 9:24, 1 Timothy 6:12, 2 Timothy 4:7). I would add Hebrews 12:1, even though we do not have a clear picture of who authored the book.
The term, Bema Seat, is taken from the Greek word for judgment, bēma. We refer to it as the Bema Seat because it is a fathomable picture of how Jesus is set above us as He renders judgment to His church.
The Apostle Paul wrote the two definitive passages referring to the Bema Seat (2 Corinthians 5:10, and Romans 14:10, 12), and he comprehended and illuminated Jesus as Judge. Jesus is the One who is “standing at the finish line,” judging what every believer does. Yes, Christians are saved from God’s wrath (Romans 5:9), but we are still capable of evil while in this body of flesh (All of Colossians 3 admonishes Christians to “seek the things that are above”). Even Paul wrestles with his sinful nature (Romans 7:19).
The ancient Olympic victors received no medals. Instead, they received crowns made from olive leaves taken from what the Greeks considered the sacred tree at Olympia. The participant who finished in first place received a crown, as he personified the Greek concept of arête (excellence). Coming second or third gained nothing for a contestant.
With respect to all these things, we will—after death on earth or after Jesus removes His church from the world (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)—stand (if we are able to stand before our holy Lord) and receive rewards for how we lived as Christians. In Christ—as His—we are all victors (2 Corinthians 2:14-17), and throughout the world—wherever believers are found—we spread the fragrance of Jesus!
Are There Two Judgments in the Bible?
Yes, the two judgments in the Bible are the Bema Seat for believers (those who love and follow Jesus as Lord), and the Great White Throne Judgment, for those who do not believe in (trust) Jesus Christ.
The Bema Seat
We, as Christians, need not fear condemnation (Romans 8:1). Therefore, as we stand before Jesus at the Bema Seat, He will expose us to our core and all our works done for Him while we lived here on earth. We will be rewarded (1 Corinthians 3:11-15, Ephesians 6:8) according to His justice, for only He knows who we, in essence, are (1 Samuel 16:7, John 2:24-25). Works done without pure motives will burn as wood, hay, and straw (1 Corinthians 3:12-15). Christ will mete out His judgments with justice as only our perfect Lord can (Revelation 16:5-7). Jesus judges the living and the dead (2 Timothy 4:1), and God has given Him the right to judge (John 5:27).
The Great White Throne Judgment
It will be brilliant—dazzling. The Lord God Almighty’s glory will emanate from His Great White Throne as He renders judgment on the whole of history’s unsaved people. A person’s works speak of his heart’s standing before God, and each will be judged at the Great White Throne (Romans 2:6-10, 13, 16).
At both judgments, the very core of each person who stands before the Lord God will be exposed. Nothing will be hidden. Nothing can hide. On the Day of God’s and the Lamb’s wrath, people great and small will try to hide (Revelation 6:15-17), yet to no avail.
Who Will Be Judged at the White Throne Judgment?
Revelation 20:12-13 says unbelievers from every age will stand before the Lord God at the Great White Throne Judgment. In Matthew 25:31-46, Jesus sets the parameters of the judgment. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate “one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.” The righteous who will enter eternity as part of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ are to His right. To those on His left, Jesus says, “Depart from Me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” John 3:36 says, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” Romans 1:18 and Romans 2:5, 8 speak of the wrath to come for all who are unrighteous and who do not trust Jesus as Lord and Savior. Those people are the goats—the ones who will receive condemnation due to them.
The timing of the Great White Throne Judgment is, according to the Bible, after the 1000-year period when Satan will be bound in the pit, so as not to deceive the nations (Revelation 20:2-3). When he is released and consequently battles the Lord, he is thrown into the “lake of fire and sulfur… and will be tormented day and night forever and ever” (Revelation 20:9-10).
After that, the dead, “great and small” will stand before the throne, and according to what is written in the books, according to what they had done, “And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:13).
An Olympic judge tries not to show any sort of favoritism. If he did, that would sully the prize. Sadly, it is impossible for a human being to remain unbiased. But God shows no partiality (Romans 2:11, Colossians 3:25), and we can trust His perfect righteousness. This is something everyone must realize when meditating upon His Word. The eternal matter is what we choose to do with Jesus. If we accept Him as Lord and Savior, we are the sheep of His pasture are sealed by the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13), and saved from God’s wrath (John 3:16-17, Romans 5:9, 2 Thessalonians 2:10, Titus 3:5). Hallelujah!
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