When we read this passage of the Bible, we should turn to ourselves and reflect on ourselves. My brother, my sister, whenever you find yourself feeling justifiably angry about someone’s sin, be very careful! Yes, we need to speak out against sin, but we must do so in a spirit of humility, because the sins we notice most clearly in others may have taken deep root in us and that we are committing the same sins in a more socially acceptable forms, but being the descendants of Adam, pointing the finger at others or external circumstances is so natural. Let me clarify this: a gossipers may be critical of those who gossip about them, and in doing so, they also are gossiping! That’s why the Bible says “You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things” (verse 2).
In fact, it seems that many Christians assume that the grace we have in Christ allows us to do whatever we want… And that only unbelievers will be judged. Yes, unbelievers will be judged at the Great White Throne Judgment (Revelation 20:11-15) because the Bible says everyone at the Great White Throne is an unbeliever who has rejected Christ in life and is therefore already doomed to the lake of fire, because all their thoughts, words and actions will be judged against God’s perfect standard and found wanting. There will be no reward for them, only eternal condemnation and punishment, “because by the works of the law no one will be justified” (Galatians 2:16).
Yet, the Lord Jesus will judge the decisions we make as Christians. And, every believer will stand at the Judgment Seat of Christ (Romans 14:10-12) to give an account of himself or herself. This judgment does not determine salvation, which is by faith alone (Ephesians 2:8-9), but rather this will be the time when believers must give an account of their lives in service to Christ. Let’s not joke with the name of CHRIST. Calling yourself a Christian comes with greater responsibility and the day will come when our dedicated spiritual service to glorify God and build the church will be disclosed and our “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” (1 Corinthians 3:13). Yes, my friend, this is the time you will be rewarded based on your good works: how faithfully you served Christ (1 Corinthians 9:4-27), how well you obeyed the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20), how victorious you were over sin (Romans 6:1-4), how well you controlled your tongues (James 3:1-9), etc. We all will have to give an account for our actions to CHRIST, because we are CHRISTIANS, to show our true position in Christ. Stay blessed in Jesus’ name.
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