Rewards and
Judgment. Revelation 22:12-21
One thing that separates
Christianity from all world religions is the fact that it alone emphasizes that
salvation is based not on human behavior or deeds but on the work of Christ on the
cross. Every other world religion—Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, any kind of new
age sort of religion, or whatever it is—has a basic assumption that man can be
good enough to enter in to whatever the eternal state is that that religious
system is offering. What separates Christianity is the belief that man cannot
do anything himself that will gain the merit or favor of God, and that the
merit or favor of God is given freely to man based on God’s own love. And for
that reason God sent Jesus Christ to come as a human being so that He could die
in our place and pay the penalty for sin and on the basis of what he has done
we could be saved. It is not based on works. So Christianity is distinct from
other religions and there is this emphasis in Scripture that salvation is based
on grace.
Some might say that if God is
going to freely give salvation then there is no motivation to live a moral
life, to live a life of righteousness, to serve God: you are just given
salvation and can just go live however you wish to live. This is referred to
sometimes as antinomianism—no real law or absolutes—or sometimes licentiousness
which means taking advantage of God’s grace and not recognizing that with the
free gift comes responsibility to utilize that gift. The giving and retention
of the gift is not based on works, so that if one is irresponsible with it one
just loses the benefit of the blessing of the gift. It is as if someone gave us
a new car and instead of reading the owner’s manual we just enjoyed the fact
that we had this brand new car, drove it around knowing enough to put gasoline
in it, but not having any idea of how to maintain it. When it came time to have
the oil changed or any of the other maintenance factors we just never did it.
Eventually the engine would seize up and stop and it wouldn’t be any good to
us, but we would still own it and it would still be ours. It would be possible
to repair it so that once again it would be useful and valuable to us, but we
could again neglect it and eventually have it be of no use to us. That would be
analogous to somebody who receives the free gift of salvation but then they
refuse to learn anything about God, the spiritual life, or about how to live
the Christian life, they don’t read their Bible—the Manual—and the result is that
they end up coming to a screeching halt in terms of their spiritual life. They
are still saved but that spiritual life has no meaning or value to them, and
that is the distinction between Biblical Christianity and all other world
religions.
The answer to the antinomian
charge, going back to the early church, is that there are two aspects that have
to be kept separate though they are related. One is salvation and the other is
the spiritual life and spiritual growth. Salvation is a free gift whereas the
spiritual life and spiritual growth are based on following and implementing the
various mandates, commandments and prohibitions that are given in God’s Word.
As we come to the close of
Revelation we have to be reminded, as this section does, that these two issues
are of vital importance to us. Salvation is a free gift, we are reminded, but
on the other had there are rewards and rewards are earned through obedience.
Rewards are distributed on the basis of the individual believer’s personal
spiritual growth and the way he has handled his spiritual life. Rewards are the
motivation for continuing in the spiritual life. In the conclusion of
Revelation we see John returning to his present time and the message of the
conclusion is addressed initially to his contemporaries, and then by extension
and application to Christians down through the centuries since that time. The
emphasis in Revelation 22:12-17 is on reward, not on salvation.
Revelation 22:11 NASB “Let the
one who does wrong, still do wrong; and the one who is filthy, still be filthy;
and let the one who is righteous, still practice righteousness; and the one who
is holy, still keep himself holy.” This
is addressing believers and the emphasis is on individual responsibility and
that if one is going to take a certain course of action then to continue in
that course of action. “Let the one who does wrong, still
do wrong…” This is the word adikeo
[a)dikew]. It is found
in 1 John 1:9;
In Revelation 22 we are reminded of the
distinction that is given in verse 17—do we want a spiritual life? Do we want
to be saved and have a relationship with God? It is freely given and we accept
it like any gift without doing anything for it. But there is a distinction between
that which is free and the rewards. Revelation
Paul states in Romans 4:4 NASB
“Now to the one who works [does something to merit God’s favor], his wage is
not credited as a favor [grace], but as what is due.” He makes it clear that
there is a contrast between what is earned and what is given. What is given is
grace; what is earned is works. These are two distinct concepts that must be
emphasized.
2 Corinthians 5:10 NASB “For we
must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be
recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether
good or bad.” This emphasizes the fact that as Christians we look forward to a
judgment that is referred to as the judgment seat of Christ. It takes place
after the Rapture of the church and is the evaluation of believers at the end
of the church age for future rewards, privileges, position, responsibilities in
the coming kingdom.
This is
spelled out in more detail in 1 Corinthians 3:10 NASB “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. [11] For no man
can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
[12] Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious
stones, wood, hay, straw, [13] 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. [14] If any man’s work which he has built
on it remains, he will receive a reward. [15] If any man’s
work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as
through fire.”
None of us can look at out lives and
discern that which has eternal value and that which has only temporal value. We
don’t have the omniscience that God has to be able to evaluate all of the
variables and all of the circumstances and situations that any of us run into.
Revelation
The next
two verses express this. This is the same contrast that we found in Revelation
21:7, 8 where there was a positive statement made in verse 7 and a negative in
verse 8: “He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and
he will be My son. {8] But for
the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons
and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part {will be} in the lake
that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” It is not talking
about salvation there; it is talking about the granting of rewards to one group
and the destruction of non-distributed awards to the other group. Revelation
So we have this contrast between those who
are obedient and those who are not. And because the obedient are overcomers they have the right to the tree of life. That is
found in Revelation 2:7 in the letter to
Revelation
When we look at what is taught here we see
some interesting things that we have already studied many times. In verse 14 those
who are obedient, the overcomers, have access to the
tree of life. Revelation 2:7, in the letter to the church at Ephesus NASB
“…To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the
Paradise of God.” So the overcomers are going to have
access to this privileged inner area of the New Jerusalem which is near the
throne of God, and this is where the tree of life is located. It is described in
Revelation 22:2, 12 in the description of the New Jerusalem. NASB
“in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree
of life, bearing twelve {kinds of} fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and
the leaves of the tree were for the healing [health] of the nations…. Behold, I
am coming quickly, and My reward {is} with Me, to
render to every man according to what he has done.” The Gentiles will be
outside of the city, they will come in and this has value to them. Those who
are the failures in the spiritual life of the church age don’t have access, they don’t come into the city. Revelation
looking at verse 15 and seeing the list of
five or six different sins there—sorcery, sexual immorality, murderers, idolaters,
and whoever loves and practices a lie—it is a list that is similar to many
other passages that we find in the New Testament. None of these lists are
exclusive and give us all of the sins, they just give
a sample, a representation. When we put them all together none of us escape in
terms of committing these sins. We all do and will, and will continue to commit
many of these sins until the day we die. Does that mean we are not going to
have access, that there is no hope? No, that is why we have to have the grace
privilege of 1 John 1:9. It is not a license to sin but it is a grace recovery
method so that we recover from any sin that we commit.
1
Corinthians 6:9-11 gives us a similar list NASB “Or do you not know
that the unrighteous will not inherit the
Ephesians
5:5 NASB “For this you know with certainty, that no immoral or
impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the
kingdom of Christ and God.”
Galatians
5:19-21 NASB “Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are:
immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife,
jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying,
drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as
I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the
kingdom of God.”
In
conclusion what we see is that a) the judgment of all unsaved takes place at
the great white throne judgment in Revelation
When we put
all of this and put it into context in the Scriptures we realize, first of all,
that all sin was paid for by Christ on the cross. Colossians 2:13, 14 NASB
“When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision
of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our
transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of
decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the
way, having nailed it to the cross.” It is completely eradicated at the cross. So
sin isn’t the issue; spiritual growth is the issue. No spiritual growth; no
rewards. Those who are not walking by the Spirit are walking by the sin nature
and all that they can produce are these sins that are listed in these various
passages. Because they are living on the basis of the sin nature there is no
production.
All sin was
paid for by Christ on the cross, but once saved the believer can live in
spiritual uncleanness for the rest of his life. When he is living in a state of
being out of fellowship he is going to produce various sins, there is no other
option.
In the Old
Testament the focus was on ritual cleanliness through physical washing. But
that was simply to be a picture of an internal reality of being spiritually
cleansed. That is why David confessed his sin to God. He is ritually cleansed
through the rituals at the temple but he is spiritually cleansed only when he
confesses his sin to God—Psalm 51. There has always been this emphasis on
cleansing from sin after salvation.
The overcomer is the believer who is confessing sin, growing
spiritually, claiming promises and trusting God, and he is learning and
applying the Word. Whenever he fails he confesses sin and is moving forward. We
all go through stages and times when we are out of fellowship, in fellowship
and out of fellowship, but over the course of our lives there is production and
that is the basis for rewards. Overcomers receive
various rewards and privileges in the eternal state which are denied those who
have no production. 1 Corinthians 3:15.
That brings
us to the closing of Revelation. In verse 16 we have Jesus’ statement of His
identity and His authority. Revelation
Isaiah 9:7 NASB
“There will be no end to the increase of {His} government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it
and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts
will accomplish this.” So this is the focal point of the phrase “the offspring
and root of Jesse.” He is identifying Himself with the Old Testament prophesies
of the Messiah. The phrase “the bright and morning star” is related to Jesus as
the one who is the true light and has come into the world. John 1:9 NASB
“There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man.” Cf.
Malachi 4:2.
As we come
to the end there is a reiteration again of the freeness of salvation and the
importance of obedience for rewards. Emphasizing the freeness
of salvation: Revelation
Revelation
Revelation
Revelation