On the day of Christ the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort
it is |
Paul wrote
to the saints of |
Now I will
expound briefly these Bible verses. |
According
to what Luke says in the book of the Acts of the apostles, after Paul had
been at |
Now the
true ministers of Christ do not preach themselves but Christ Jesus the Lord,
they preach the Good News of peace exhorting people to repent of their sins
and believe in our Lord Jesus Christ in order to receive the remission of
their sins. When they preach Christ where Christ was not known, they are
diligent to lay Christ Jesus as the foundation and then they build on it;
that’s why all the churches of the saints are built on the same foundation,
that is, Jesus Christ, the chief cornerstone, elect, precious to us who have
believed in Him. Therefore the foundation of each |
Let us
speak now of the ministers of the Gospel, who do not dare to lay any other
foundation than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. As you know, the
ministers of the Gospel preach Christ and Him crucified, the remission of
sins by faith in His name, and water baptism in the name of the Father and of
the Son and of the Holy Spirit. However, as you know, not all the ministers
of the Gospel teach the same thing about certain topics. At this point someone
will ask: ‘Which ministers of the Gospel are right and which are wrong? That
is to say, ‘Which ministers are building on the foundation gold, silver and
precious stones? And which ministers are building on the foundation wood, hay
and straw?’ Certainly, not all of them are right, for not all of them teach
the same thing concerning those topics. Those who are building wood, hay and straw
on the foundation are those whose teachings are inconsistent with the Word of
God, and thus these ministers are laboring in vain when they teach these
wrong doctrines of theirs. |
Let me give
you some examples to show you how some labor in vain teaching the believers
certain things. |
As for the
doctrine of the baptism with the Holy Spirit, some preachers and teachers
(who do not set aside the grace of God for they preach the Word of faith) say
that one is baptized with the Holy Spirit when he believes in the Lord, while
others say that one receives the baptism with the Holy Spirit when he is
baptized in water, however all of them say that when one is baptized with the
Holy Spirit he does not begin to speak with other tongues. Therefore all of
these preachers and teachers have this in common: they teach a baptism with
the Holy Spirit which is not accompanied by speaking in tongues. Now, these
preachers and teachers teach falsely with regard to the baptism with the Holy
Spirit, because the Scriptures very clearly teach (and the facts confirm
this) that when one is baptized with the Holy Spirit (that is to say, when
one is filled with the Holy Spirit, or when one receives the Holy Spirit) he
begins to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gives him utterance. The
following Bible verses teach what I have just said: “And they were all filled
with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit
gave them utterance” (Acts 2:4); “While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy
Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. And they of the circumcision
which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on
the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. For they heard
them speak with tongues, and magnify God” (Acts |
However,
the fact is that even among those who preach the Word of faith and teach that
when one is baptized with the Holy Spirit he begins to speak with other
tongues, there are some who do not teach the same thing on the same topic,
and sometimes they teach personal opinions which set aside the Word of God. I
am going to give you some examples. |
Some
preachers teach that the commandment concerning the veil (that is, the
commandment according to which a woman must cover her head with a veil when
she prays or prophesies) applied only to the women of the church of Corinth;
they give many absurd arguments and many believers believe them for they
think that since these preachers and teachers are well known and speak to
many people they must be right!!! I say to you this: these people are
building straw on the foundation, therefore they labor in vain teaching that
doctrine because on the day of Christ the straw they are building on it will
be burned by the fire of God. This teaching of theirs is of no value, that is
to say, it is not one of those precious things which are worth building on
the foundation, for the Scripture says: “The woman ought to have a symbol of
authority on her head, because of the angels” (1 Corinthians 11:10 – NKJV).
Now, is man the head of the woman and thus she must be subject to male
authority? Yes, he is. Are the angels watching all those who are in Christ?
Yes, they are. So the woman must cover her head with a veil (the symbol or
sign of authority) when she prays or prophesies in order not to dishonor her
head. The fact that this commandment is written only in one of the epistles
of Paul does not nullify this commandment because according to what Paul
wrote in the same epistle he commanded women to cover their head with a veil
in the other churches also, for he said about certain things he wrote only to
the Corinthians: “And so I ordain in all the churches” (1 Corinthians 7:17 –
NKJV). Therefore the fact that those things were written only to the
Corinthians does not mean that he taught them only to the Corinthians. In
addition to this, Paul said about the veil: “But If anyone seems to be
contentious, we have no such custom, nor do the churches of God” (1 Corinthians
|
Some pastors
say that the following words of Peter: “Your beauty should not come from
outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and
fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading
beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight”
(1 Peter 3:3-4 – NIV), are addressed only to the married women whose husbands
are not believers, for they need to win their husbands to Christ by their
chaste conduct!! These people also are building straw on the foundation, for
they do not divide the Word of truth rightly. For they quote the words of
Peter: “Wives, likewise, be submissive to your own husbands, that even if
some do not obey the word, they, without a word, may be won by the conduct of
their wives, when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear” (1
Peter 3:1-2 – NKJV) to support their doctrine, but they forget the following
things. First of all, the fact that Peter said “… that even if some do not
obey the word”, means that the commandment “your beauty should not come from
outward adornment” was given to both wives whose husbands are not believers
and wives whose husbands are believers, for what Peter means when he says
‘that even if some do not obey the word’ is this: ‘so that, if any of them do
not obey the word …’, therefore if all those wives whose husbands are not
believers are submissive to their unbelieving husbands and they adorn themselves
in modest apparel, they will win them to Christ by their chaste conduct.
Secondly, they forget that immediately after Peter says: “For in this manner,
in former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves,
being submissive to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him
lord, whose daughters you are if you do good and are not afraid with any
terror” (1 Peter 3:5-6 – NKJV). Now, as far as I know, Sarah did not have a
husband who did not obey the word, and thus the reason
why she did not wear expensive clothes nor did she braid her hair nor did she
wear gold jewelry was not that she might win her husband! I know that Sarah
was not dressed like the corrupt women because she was a holy woman who
feared God and trusted in God, and her husband also trusted in God and feared
God (when God tested Abraham, he offered his only begotten son). Beloved, do
not build on the foundation the straw which is being built by these people;
the commandment of Peter concerning the outward adornment of women is
confirmed by Paul and it is addressed to all women who are in Christ, that is
to say, to all the unmarried women, to all the married women and to all
widows. |
Also those
who teach that a pastor is also a prophet for he speaks of the things to come
which are written in the Word of God are building straw on the foundation,
for a pastor is also a prophet if he possesses the gift of prophecy and some
gifts of revelation. |
Also those
who teach that when one speaks with other tongues in the church he speaks
edification and exhortation and comfort to men, whereas when one speaks with
other tongues privately (that is, when he is alone in his bedroom, etc) he
speaks to God, are building straw on the foundation because Paul made no difference
between the two things; there is not one hint in the Scriptures that things
are as these believers teach. Paul said: “He who speaks in a tongue does not
speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit
he speaks mysteries” (1 Corinthians 14:2 - NKJV), therefore even when a
believer speaks with other tongues in the church he speaks to God. It follows
then that even the interpretation of tongues is addressed to God (a prayer, a
song, a thanksgiving) and not to men, for it does not change the direction of
the original utterance when the saints are gathered together as a church |
I have
given you the above mentioned examples to show you that what is inconsistent
with the truth is straw and on that day it will be burned and he who has
built it will suffer loss. On that day the Lord will separate by the fire
what is precious from what is of no value, only what is precious will stand
for what is of no value will be burned. When the fire tests each one’s work, he
who has built upon the foundation gold, silver and precious stones, will
suffer no loss because his work will endure and he will be rewarded for his
labour; on the contrary, he who has built upon the foundation wood, hay and
straw, will see the wood, the hay and the straw dissolve and his work will
not be rewarded, and thus it will prove vain. Paul wrote: “He will suffer
loss” (1 Corinthians |
But on
that day will be burnt not only the untrue teachings but also the wrong
judgements we have passed on things or people because we judged according to
appearance or because we judged by the hearing of our ears, as well as jokes,
buffooneries, dishonest things, and useless works. You see, brothers, when we
talk or do something we labor in a certain measure because our body does
something, however we must take heed to our conduct because on that day we
will have to give account for it to God; and remember that we will be
rewarded for the right things we have said and done and not for the bad
things we have said or done. It can’t be otherwise. Do you think that God
will reward a Christian for the false teachings he has taught or for the
wrongs he has done or for the jokes he has told to His people or for the
pleasures of life to which he has given over? I don’t think so, for God is
just. Furthermore, if God rewarded Christians even for the useless things
they say or do, we would not be encouraged to serve the Lord with a pure
conscience or to take heed to ourselves. |
On the
earth some people are rewarded by other people for many useless and perverse
things they have done or said; haughty people, perverse people, prostitutes, and
unjust people get trophies, money, and riches as a reward for their evil
works, as if they had done good works. However, we should not be surprised by
that because Solomon said long ago: “There is something else meaningless that
occurs on earth: …. wicked men who get what the righteous deserve” (Ecclesiastes
|
Let me
explain to you now what gold, silver and precious stones represent. They
represent all the things which are of value in the sight of God. |
Every
sound doctrine as well as every sound word are
things of value, for they are helpful for building others up according to
their needs, therefore believers will be rewarded for these things on that
day. In the Psalms it is written: “The words of the Lord are pure words, like
silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times” (Psalm 12:6 –
NKJV); therefore, since the Word of God is like pure silver, he who uses it
to edify the Church of God (teaching it, or speaking it to uphold the weak, to
comfort the fainthearted, and to warn the unruly) will be rewarded. God has
given us the right material which is to be built on the foundation, so let us
build it on the foundation for our own good and for the good of the |
Good works
(that is, alms, visits paid to the widows and to the orphans and to those who
are in prison for the Gospel, and any other kind of good works) are precious
things which are built on the foundation and God will reward us for them, for
it is written that “he who sows righteousness will have a sure reward” (Proverbs
11:18 – NKJV). Yes, brothers, on that day we will be rewarded for our labor
of love; this thought comforts us and fills us with joy in the midst of this
world full of unrighteousness and hypocrisy. |
Paul said:
“For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, that each one
may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether
good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10 – NIV). Brothers, one day all of us will
appear before the judgement seat of Christ because each one of us must
receive what is due him for all the things said or done while in the body. So
let us abound in the work of God honestly and sincerely, doing nothing out of
selfish ambition or vain conceit, for on that day the Lord will reveal even
the counsels of our hearts, thus He will reveal even the reasons why we have
spoken and acted in a way rather than in another way. What will happen on
that day then? It will happen that many classifications made by men will be upset
because many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first
and everybody will see what each one has built on the foundation. God will
show no partiality, the fire will test the quality of our work; vanity will
be burnt, truth will be rewarded; those who humble themselves will be
exalted, but those who exalt themselves will be humbled; I am convinced that
on that day we will see things which we have never imagined because on the
earth we tend to look at things according to the outward appearance and to
judge according to appearance or by the hearing of our ears; while in heaven
God will judge no one according to the outward appearance. |
Even if a
person lives with another person and sees him very often, he can know him
only in part, while God knows all the things done and said by that person
during all his life. That’s why we will do well to wait for the
classifications made by God and we should not trust the classifications that
men make according to their understanding or to the outward appearance. Only
on that day will we know many bad works, many hypocrisies, many falsehood,
many lies which are told by many believers and covered skilfully for fear of
being discovered or put to shame; only on that day will we know many good things
said and done by many believers in secret in order not to be seen by men nor
to have glory from men. |
Beloved,
all the things we are doing will be brought to light, for Paul says that the
Lord will “bring to light what is hidden in darkness” (1 Corinthians 4:5 –
NIV), whether precious things or useless things; we will not be able to keep
anything secret any longer because God will bring to light all our works,
words and thoughts before all. This must lead us to perfect our holiness not
in word or in tongue but in deed and in truth every day. On the one hand this
discourages us from speaking and doing all kinds of evil things, but on the
other hand it encourages us to do and speak as many good things as possible
while we are in this tent. |
I conclude
by saying this: the day is coming on which we will have to depart from the
body, and thus we will not be able to do or say any good thing on the earth any
longer; God commands us to do good works and to speak the truth, let us obey
Him. Let us do what He commands, and let us abound more and more in the work
of the Lord. Let us be zealous for good works, for if we stand fast in the
faith and keep the works of Christ until the end, we will surely be rewarded
for our good works. We will not lose what we have worked for, but we will be
rewarded fully. To the One who will reward us in justice (His justice is very
high) be the glory now and forevermore. Amen. |