Blemished Sacrifices, Part II

This week as I have continued thinking about our gifts and "sacrifices" to God, I have recalled the words of scripture from 1 Corinthians 3:11-15.  Check this out:

"For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.  Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 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.  If any man's work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward.  If any man's work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire."

There will come a day when we will stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:10) and we will be judged on our deeds of this life.  The Bible is very clear that our works will be tested by fire.  The above passage speaks of our works being made of various materials; which ones do you think will last through fire?  Certainly not wood, hay or straw!  So what does that mean?  The precious materials represent those deeds that are eternally significant and are done with the right motives.  The perishable materials represent deeds that may be "good", but have no real eternal value and/or are done with selfish motives. 

Wow.  This really makes me evaluate the things that I do and make sure that what I am doing for the Lord is really, in my heart, for the Lord.  As a musician, I can get up in church and sing the most spiritual, beautiful song without missing a note.  It could move people to tears and possibly even cause some people to worship God.  But God knows my heart, and if there are any self-glorifying motives within me during the singing of that song, I believe it will be revealed by fire on the day of judgment.  Please understand, this judgment is not for my salvation--that has already been secured.  The Judgment Seat of Christ is when rewards will be given, and I will only be rewarded for the deeds that were done for Christ alone.

You may be thinking that this is hard core, because we are all sinners and fall short.  Yes that is true, and God's grace certainly covers our sin and allows us to experience His forgiveness and mercy.  However, we must not neglect our responsibility to know and obey His Word and to "walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called" (Ephesians 4:1).   

God looks at our hearts, and our gifts to Him reveal what is in our hearts.  There may be times when what you do may seem great to people on earth, but your Creator knows your motives, and knows whether they are for your own glory or for His glory.  Only He can see into the heart, and in the end, He is the only One who matters.