JUDGED BUT NOT CONDEMNED

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If you confess Jesus as Lord and believe that He died and God raised Him for the dead, you are saved and so you have passed from death into life. You are no longer doomed to a Godless eternity, you are a child of God, you belong to the family of God, you are His very own and He has sealed you with His very own Spirit.

The Word of God repeatedly reaffirms this truth, if you believe in Jesus, you are no longer facing condemnation; you are now declared righteous and separated unto God. The Word of God also solemnly warns that those who do not believe in Jesus are under condemnation already and therefore are in danger of eternal damnation, may the love of God compel us with a sense of urgency to preach the Good News to everyone, wherever we are and however we can.  

¹⁸ Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. – John 3:18 NIV

¹Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, - Romans 8:1 NIV

Now, while it’s true that those who are in Christ will not be condemned to hell, we will however stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ. The Lord Jesus in all His glory, majesty and splendor will sit on His Throne to judge and reward us for what we did with the grace that He so lavishly bestowed on us. If found faithful and obedient we'll be rewarded, if not we won't. The importance of what you do with what God has entrusted to you cannot be overemphasized.   

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. – 2 Corinthians 5:10 NIV

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You see, Jesus Christ our Lord is totally, completely, absolutely righteous, so He will judge righteously for He knows and sees all things. If you were called and gifted for one thing but decided to pursue something else, you will be judged for that and trust me, His judgment won’t be in your favor. Each one of us will give an account of what we did or didn't do (whichever the case may be), the Apostle Paul reminds us:

¹² So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God. – Romans 14:12 NIV    

By the grace of God, let us endeavor to fulfill our destinies in Christ. Let us love one another intentionally, fervently and continually:

¹¹ For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. ¹² If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, ¹³ their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. ¹⁴ If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. ¹⁵ If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames. – I Corinthians 3:11 – 15 NIV

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So beloved, we will be judged and rewarded, but we will not be condemned for we have already passed from death to life.

Our God is so good, I mean first He comes and gives His life to save us, then when we believe in Him and what He has done, He recreates our spirits and joins us to Himself, He dwells in us by His Spirit, He blesses us with His gifts and callings and empowers us by His grace to live for Him and to touch others with His power and love.. and when we obey Him, we end up being rewarded, what a sweet deal!

Thank you Jesus!