1 Corinthians 3:14-15

If the servant of the Lord has made a lasting contribution to the building of the church by emphasizing some aspect of the gospel, he or she will receive a reward. If someone has not because he or she has pursued human "wisdom," that person will not, though he or she will retain his or her salvation. Paul likened the unfaithful servant to a man pulled to safety through the flames of his burning house (cf. Matthew 25:14-30; Luke 19:11-27). The context identifies those who suffer loss as being Christians who seek to build the church with materials that fail to withstand God’s assessment. They do not refer to all carnal Christians (1 Corinthians 3:1-4), though carnal Christians may fail to make lasting contributions to the church. [Note: Cf. Carson, pp. 79-80.] Malachi 3:2-3 may have been in Paul’s mind when he wrote 1 Corinthians 3:15. [Note: John Proctor, "Fire in God’s House: Influence of Malachi 3 in the NT," Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 36:1 (March 1993):9-14.] However, Malachi predicted a future cleansing of Israel whereas Paul spoke of a future testing of Christians.

The rewards in view seem to be opportunities to glorify God by serving Him (cf. Matthew 25:14-30; Luke 19:11-27). The Christian will have greater or lesser opportunities to do so during the Millennium and forever after in proportion to his or her faithfulness on earth now. [Note: See Wall, pp. 112-21, for an explanation of the negative judgment at the bema.]

The New Testament writers spoke of these rewards symbolically as crowns elsewhere (cf. 1 Corinthians 9:25; Philippians 4:1; 1 Thessalonians 2:19; 2 Timothy 4:8; James 1:12; 1 Peter 5:4; Revelation 2:10; Revelation 3:11). It is perfectly proper to serve Christ to gain a crown that we may one day lay at the feet of our Savior (cf. Matthew 6:20). The crown is a symbol of a life of faithful service that we performed out of gratitude for His grace to us (cf. Revelation 4:4; Revelation 4:10). If the idea of serving God for a reward makes you uncomfortable, may I suggest that you read again the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7)? There Jesus repeatedly appealed to His hearers to follow His teaching with the prospect of receiving an eternal reward for doing so. Scripture appeals to us on many levels to serve the Lord. Certainly love for Him should be our primary motivation. However the biblical writers also urged believers to serve the Lord out of love for other people, the fear of the Lord, the prospect of having to give an account of our lives to Him at the judgment seat, and for other reasons. [Note: For a helpful introduction to the study of the Christian’s rewards, see Wall, or Zane C. Hodges, Grace in Eclipse.]

The testing in view here provides no support for the unbiblical doctrine of purgatory. It is the believer’s works that God subjects to the fires of testing, not the believer personally. God applies the fire to determine the quality of the works, not to purify the believer.

"[The] whole subject of rewards for the believer is one, I am afraid, rarely thought of by the ordinary Christian, or even the average student of the Scriptures. But it is both a joyous and solemn theme and should serve as a potent incentive for holiness of life." [Note: Wilbur Smith, "Inheritance and Reward in Heaven," Eternity, March 1977, p. 79.]

"The Bible describes the judgment seat of Christ for one main purpose: to affect the way we think and live-to motivate us to anticipate with joy His return and to live our lives to please Him, not worrying about the way others treat us or what they may think about us. . . .

"Though not the only motivating factor, I am convinced that the doctrine of the judgment seat (bema) is meant to be one of the major scriptural motivations for godly living." [Note: Wall, pp. 19, 21.]

"It is unfortunately possible for people to attempt to build the church out of every imaginable human system predicated on merely worldly wisdom, be it philosophy, ’pop’ psychology, managerial techniques, relational ’good feelings,’ or what have you. But at the final judgment, all such building (and perhaps countless other forms, where systems have become more important than the gospel itself) will be shown for what it is: something merely human, with no character of Christ or his gospel in it." [Note: Fee, The First . . ., p. 145.]