LESSONS ON HEAVEN ( PART 17) | DO OUR GOOD WORKS MATTER AFTER WE ARE BORN-AGAIN? ( PART 3 )

Pastor Christopher Choo

Lesson 3223

LESSONS ON HEAVEN ( PART 17)

DO OUR GOOD WORKS MATTER AFTER WE ARE BORN-AGAIN? ( PART 3 )

The second analogy Paul uses is the construction of a house to illustrate the judgment believers will face.

1. "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." ( 1 Cor.3:10-11 ).

2. Thus we as believers are in the process of building our own "house" ( life ). Our foundation is undisputedly our faith in Jesus Christ. But upon that foundation, our building materials can either be a life of "wood, hay, (and) straw" or a life of  "gold, silver, (and) precious stones" ( v.12 ).

3. When we stand before Christ, our lives (our houses) will be tested by fire: "each man's work will become evident; 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" ( v.13 ).

Abba Father, the primary basis of Your evaluation of our lives will be how eternally significant our lives prove to be. Will our legacy have any eternal value? In analogy, a wise builder will construct his or her life with durable materials. Every aspect of our lives judged to be of no lasting value will be consumed in the inferno of Your holiness. What endures will be rewarded e.g. a life built on glorifying You ( gold ), introducing others to Jesus Christ as our Saviour ( silver ), and demonstrating a love for God and others ( precious stones ). As Paul puts it: " If any man's work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward." ( 1 Cor.3:14 ). He added:  "If any man's work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire " ( v.15 ).

N.B. Tomorrow we shall study Paul's third analogy: judgment based on a track race. Please don't miss it!