Romans 14:10-12 says, “For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat…so then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.”

2 Corinthians 5:10 tells us, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”

The judgment seat of Christ is also known as the believers’ judgment. This judgment is different from the white throne judgment described in Revelations 20:11-15 which is a judgment of eternal condemnation. The believer’s judgment is also known as the ‘Bema’ judgment in Greek.

God would not judge sin at the judgment seat of Christ but rather believers shall be rewarded by God for how we lived our lives as it relates to our Christian walk and service. Yes, as the Bible says, we will have to give an account of ourselves.

At the judgment seat of Christ, believers are going to be rewarded based on how faithfully they served Christ (1 Corinthians 9:4-27; 2 Timothy 2:5); such as how well we obeyed the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20), how victorious we were over sin (Romans 6:1-4), and how well we controlled our tongues (James 3:1-9). The Bible speaks of believers receiving crowns for different things based on how faithfully they served Christ (1 Corinthians 9:4-27; 2 Timothy 2:5). The various crowns are described in 2 Timothy 2:5, 2 Timothy 4:8, James 1:12, 1 Peter 5:4, and Revelation 2:10. James 1:12 is a good summary of how we should think about the judgment seat of Christ.