Pastor Robert Morris - Where and How - Bring A Friend

all right if you want to turn to first Corinthians three and revelation 20 our flip to it or you can follow along on you version my notes you're on you version now and you can actually make notes in there if you won't so 1st Corinthians 3 is one of the scriptures will be in you know will will have about 27 scriptures and revelation 20 later in the message then we're in a series called eternity your choice and I want to emphasize to you that it is your choice where you spend eternity God gave you a free will we talked about that last weekend he's not going to override your will before you get saved or by the way after you get saved even after you come to Christ you have a choice as whether you're gonna live for Christ or not or continue down the wrong lifestyle so the other thing I want you to know is as I say it is your choice and we talked about that last week in whosoever will this weekend I want to talk about where and how in other words where you spend eternity is your choice and how you spend eternity is your choice now we're saved by grace and grace alone but there are a whole bunch of scriptures own being judged for our works in the Bible so how do you marry the two many believers think well once you get saved then your works are judged anymore but please hear me your works are still judged but you're not saved by your works you're saved by grace so I'm gonna show you today how to marry those two things in order to understand this you have to understand two words and those words are point number one point number one you have to understand belief and behavior belief and behavior your belief determines where you spend eternity your belief determines where you spend eternity your behavior determines how you spend eternity and I'm going to show you there are degrees of punishment in hell for unbelievers because God is a just God and he's gonna judge righteously and there are degrees or levels of responsibility in heaven for believers if you remember jesus said to one he shall say you be ruler over five cities to another said you be ruler over ten cities and jimmy preached a great series on heaven in july but do you realize they're gonna be cities in heaven where does i'll be floating around on clouds they're gonna be cities and by the way someone's gonna get to be the mayor and it's gonna be different than here on earth you know where they pay you $6 everybody's mad at you for not favoring their street you know it's gonna be different streets are already paid there and there's no sin nature so there are levels of responsibility in heaven depending upon how you live how much responsibility you take on earth would you be dependent upon the responsibility you have in heaven so but I want to establish this is the whole thing of grace and works works our behavior matters whether you're lost are saved every person unbelievers and believers will be judged by their works but your salvation is by grace alone your belief determines where you spend eternity I'm used to remind you of this scripture Ephesians 2:8 and 9 for by grace you have been saved through faith and that not of yourselves not of yourselves you responded to God's faith but it's Grace it is the gift and a gift is free because it's already been paid for him and someone paid for the gift but to you it's free that is the gift of God not of works lest anyone should boast I love the phrase lest anyone should boast no one in heaven is going to be saying I got myself here everyone is going to realize this is grace that I got here that's the grace of God I was lost had no intention of coming to Christ was going my own way and God by His grace intervened and I responded in faith and accepted his free gift you follow me so but there are all these scriptures so we're saved by grace but they're all these scriptures own works and being judged by our works let me show you just a few will get first Corinthian three in a little while Ecclesiastes 12 verse 14 for God will bring every work well you know I don't do this often but would you mind just saying the word every okay how many is every okay let's keep going every work into judgment including every secret thing whether good or evil revelation 20:13 the sea gave up the dead who were in it and death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them and they were judged each would you mind saying the word each each one according to his works now you might say well that's talking about unbelievers well let me show you one stone about believers first Peter 1:17 and if you call on the father okay let me just see by hands every campus how many of you call on the father can I see your hands okay so this is to you if you call on the father who without partiality judges according to each one's work conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear in awe in reverence of God here's Jesus's own words Matthew 16:27 for the Son of Man will come in the glory of his father with his angels and then he will reward each would you mind saying each again according to his works revelation 22:12 this is also Jesus speaking if it's in the book of Revelation is for him speaking of John on the island Patmos this is in read in your Bible this is the last chapter in the Bible and behold I am coming quickly and my reward is with me to give to every one according to his work okay are you and every are you in each and he said according to his work what I'm telling you as it matters how you live now let me say it again your belief determines where you spend eternity your behavior determines how you spend eternity now all of us don't have perfect behavior I mean we're all we're all still make mistakes on this earth so don't get too hung up on perfect behavior because you'll never get there but let me say something your belief though determines your behavior so there are people who say they believe in Jesus but they've never lived for him please hear me I don't think you really believe I really don't because when you believe the Bible says God gives you a new heart and you have a desire to turn from sin and to turn to God you have a desire to follow God you don't want to do those things I'm not saying that you never fall but you don't want to you want to go a different way if you still want to go do those things there's something wrong with your heart hasn't been changed your belief determines your behavior this guy said pastor I believe in tithing I just don't do it so I decided I would just kind of respond in kind I said I understand I believe in bathing I just don't do it now I do babe okay but I was just joking with it because it's ridiculous if you believe something you do it so if you really believe that if you tie God opens the windows of heaven over your family and rebukes the Devourer for your sake they can you do it you just do it but if you don't do it it's because you don't believe what the Bible says that's that's clear so our belief determines our behaviors okay so now I want to show you the believers judgment and the unbelievers judgment and many people don't realize why there are two judgments if you're already if it's already determine whether you're going to heaven or hell by your belief because that the believers judgment everybody's a believer at the unbelievers judgment everybody's an unbeliever so you say well either so why is there judgment because your works are being judged at each judgment so point number two is the judgment seat of Christ the judgment seat of Christ this is the believers judgment let me show you some scriptures first Corinthians 2nd Corinthians 5:10 for we must all would you mind saying the word all we must all this is written to believers now we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ that each another as you say it just say to your mind the each one may receive the things done in the body in other words when you're on this earth according to what he has done whether good or bad now let me clarify something we're not judged for our sins because Jesus already took our judgment but we're our judge for our works and we will according the Bible either receive a reward or lose a reward because of how we did it okay so we'll talk about that moment Romans 14:10 but why do you judge your brother or why do you show contempt for your brother for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ first Corinthians three this is I told you to turn there if you want to verse 10 we're gonna read five verses according to the grace of God which was given to me this is Paul speaking as a wise masterbuilder I have laid the foundation and another builds on it now he's actually referring to you or to the Corinthian church here that he wrote to our two believers but let each one each believer take heed how he builds on it because these are people who've gotten saved I accepted Christ for no other foundation can any one lay than that which is laid which is Jesus Christ so the foundation is Jesus people have accepted Jesus but watch that you can build with two different types categories of materials temporal or eternal now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold silver precious stones those would go through the fire but watch these three wood hay straw those would be burned up temporal each one's work will become clear for the day it's capitalized because it's referring to the Judgment Day or the second coming either way either way will declare it because it will be revealed by fire and the fire will test each one's word of what sort it is if anyone's work which he has built on it earth he will receive a reward receive a reward if anyone's work is burned he will suffer loss he loses the reward watch but he himself this is Grace will be saved yet so as through fire let me give you a little bit of information of the this passage right first Corinthians is the second letter that Paul wrote to the Corinthian church first Corinthians is the second letter second Corinthians is the third letter so you say well where's the first letter I don't know I think it went something like this I think God saw it said yeah that's not getting in the Bible you know try that try it again so but we know 1st Corinthians is the second letter because 6 chapters begin with these words now concerning and either talks and then when it begins in chapter 7 he says now concerning the things you wrote to me in other words he wrote them a letter then they wrote him back with questions he said I'm saying and he's in his in 1st Corinthians he says now concerning now concerning in other words and he says very clearly now concerning the things you wrote to me and starts in chapter 7 and there are 2 and 7 1 in 8 1 in 12 and 2 and 16 ok now concerning and and one place he actually says in my earlier epistle and an epistle is not the life of an apostle okay an epistle is a letter so in my earlier ladder so we know this is the second letter okay but he's addressing some things because they're beginning to say well you know I got saved by Apollo's and Mike so my foundation is Apollo's and your foundation is Paul and he says no the foundation is Jesus it doesn't matter who led you to Christ the foundation is Jesus but now you have a choice that's my whole burden in this series is you have a choice you have a choice whether to accept Christ you have a choice whether you're gonna live for Christ or not so you have a choice he says now I'm telling you you have a choice because even though you have Jesus Christ is your foundation you can do some things that are going to last for all eternity and you'll be rewarded and you can do some things in your life that'll be burned up yet by grace you'll be saved but you don't have any rewards in heaven you don't have anything to show for your life here on this earth okay so here's Jesus now saying the exact same thing almost Matthew chapter 6 this is in the Sermon on the Mount Matthew 6 verse 1 take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men watch to be seen by them okay stop just for a moment many many people have said any time you do something charitable it needs to be anonymous that's that's fine and they say if it's not anonymous you lose your award no no it's a matter of your heart notice he said don't do your deeds your charitable deeds to be seen see that's what he was addressing what's your motive so it's okay if you do something and other people know about it because God knows your heart I remember joking years ago Steve Doolin my friend gave something and then they made a big deal out of it you know and he was like I guess I lost my reward in heaven and he and I were both young in the Lord we didn't know any better you know it's time but he didn't lose his reward because he didn't do it to be seen Oh y'all follow me even though the church made a big deal of his gift you know but he didn't do it to be seen so if you if you don't do it to be seen you're gonna get rewarded that's what he's saying all right so don't do your charitable deeds before men to be seen by them otherwise you have no reward if that's your motive from your Father in heaven therefore when you do a charitable deed do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets that they may have glory from them for men assuredly I say to you they have their reward in other words it's a tip for reward it's only on this earth but when you do a terrible deed do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing that your charitable deed may be in secret and your father your father who sees in secret will himself I love the himself's in the New Testament just read the himself when he talks about the father oh geez or the Holy Spirit will himself reward you openly okay let me tell you what you just read that you might have missed you are going to get to meet the father one day personally personally that's pretty cool in other words the father is it just gonna you know there be like a billion people or two billion or whatever it is and the father is gonna walk out stick what he probably won't like that you know you think about okay I so but the father's gonna it's not going to be like this he's not gonna walk out to like billions of people that are believers and say y'all done good and then you know walk by you know they're a that was the father Joel all see the father you know know and of course you know someone in the back will say what do you say and the guy say something like this I think he said they need more would know the father himself will reward you openly in front of everyone else what motivation to live a godly life and to serve our Lord on this earth because we're gonna receive rewards let me show you a scripture that their puzzles some unless you understand about that our works matter okay first John chapter 2 verse 28 and now little children this has written to believers abide in him obviously unbelievers could not abide in him abide in him that when he appears we may have confidence watch this that believers and not be ashamed before him at his coming that's pretty strong how would a believer be ashamed I can tell you how believer be shade because he's not living for Jesus he's not laying his life down he might realize I wasted my life I could have helped other people I couldn't live for Jesus but I live for myself even though I did believe that Jesus was the son of God and I walked with God some I never really fully gave him everything and they would be ashamed that he's coming so it matters how you live I remember when I was growing up I went to this baseball camp one summer for like a week or something I think I stayed at home but we've know during the day and to this camp thing and I I just I just goofed off the whole week i this just kind of the way I was growing up I didn't get saved you know until I was 19 so I just goofed off and I played pranks on people and I started to tell you some of the pranks that I played but I thought no that might give the young people ideas so but one of the pranks I'll just say involved firecrackers and a delayed fuse so I just saw them go to say okay but I goofed off all week and then the last week we had this kind of banquet thing the last night and we walked in and against this wall were these tables and if they were just lying with trophies and I remember thinking y'all didn't tell me that there were trophies if you'd told me there were trophies I wouldn't go off all week not a one one of those trophies see many believers might think I didn't know there were rewards but none of you can think that because I'm telling you and the father himself is handing them out so you need to understand belief in behavior the judgment seat of Christ and here's the third point the great white throne judgment the great white throne judgment is for all unbelievers now I want to show you feel logically why we call this the great white throne judgment all right Revelation chapter 20 verse 11 then I saw a great white throne you see there's is great white throne so we call it's a great white throne judgment II not making fun of the Bible just you know let's just solve theologians come up with let's call it the great white through okay then I saw a great white throne and him who said on it from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away and there was found no place for them and I saw the dead small and great standing before God now watch carefully watch the tense tenses of these two words and books plural so more than one books were opened and another book singular was open which is the book of life and the dead were judged watch this according to their works by the things were written in the books I tells you right there what was written in the books works the sea gave up the dead who were in it and death and Hades deliver up the dead who were in them and they were judged each one according to his works okay so it's real clear to see it's that the book is the book of life and the book if you don't know what the book has it has names and if your name is written in the book of life you go to heaven if it's not you don't go to heaven and how all of us would say I don't want my name written in the book of life it's great accept Jesus Christ as your Savior whosoever will you can accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and your names written in the book of life but then there are books plural because there is more than just names it's works and you're judged at the great white throne judgment by the works by that what's written in the books it's very important to understand this so am i saying then that there are degrees of punishment in hell yes I am in the same way that there are levels of responsibility in heaven so let me ask you a question because God's a righteous judge a man a believer a believer will a believer who is saved but doesn't tie doesn't witness does it serve doesn't really do anything to build the kingdom on this earth well he received the same rewards as the believer who tithes loves serves wins people to Christ what he was say received the same rewards no of course not then we wouldn't have a righteous God say he gives to each according to his works I don't follow this it's really easy he gives to each according to his works that's God but we're saved by grace okay so I asked you about believers that's all about unbelievers with well an unbeliever an unbelieving man let's say who is he's a he's a good guy I mean he doesn't do all these big huge sinful things but he just obstinately and defiantly says I'm not gonna give my life to Jesus Christ I don't believe in religion I'm an atheist or an agnostic and people share everything he says no I'm a self-made man religions are crutch I don't need Jesus okay so he goes to hell he's gonna go to hell that Christ but where he received the same punishment as ought Adolphe Hitler no and off Hitler killed six million Jews and gods are just God and that off Hitler will be recompense repaid for the beads he did that's a just God now you might say well you mean the believer just gets off scot-free how can God how's that just it's simple because God repaid Jesus Christ for all of your sins Jesus stood your sins on the cross [Applause] if you believe cause if you're sitting there thinking well that's not fair it is fair because you can accept Jesus it's completely just you can accept Jesus Christ so let me show you degrees of judgment degrees of torment for those who don't accept Christ all right in Jesus's own words Matthew 11 verse 21 woe to you crazy this is a city what do you bethsaida for if the mighty works remember these words mighty works we'll come back to him which were done in you had been done in tyre and Sidon they would have repented mister Jesus talking and he could never lie they would have repented in other words my father and I in the Holy Spirit we know all hearts we know who's gonna repent who's not they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes but I say to you it will be watch these two words more tolerable more tolerable more lenient is what this means in the Greece in the Greek or less suffering it'll be more lenient it'll be less suffering for tyre and sidon in the day of judgment then for you you'll see Jesus said that if it's all the same for unbelievers and how could it be more tolerable for these than for these and you Capernaum who are exalted to heaven will be brought down to Hades for if the mighty works remember we got to figure out what mighty works he's talking about which we're done in you had been done in Sodom this is amazing do you remember Sodom and Gomorrah everyone remembers Sodom and Gomorrah jesus said if they've been done in Sodom watch watch what Jesus said it would have remained until this day in other words my father and I would not have destroyed it right because they would have repented that's the implication but I say to you it shall be more tolerable for land of Sodom in the Day of Judgment than for you you see that by the way that's what's most shocking scriptures I've ever seen okay so he said if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom they would have repented and he song - conferred all right so any talks to Qurayza and that's ADA so these three cities make up the evangelical triangles what the theology we call these okay the Evangelic all triangle why because Jesus did most of his miracles most of his mighty works in these three cities now this isn't us as theologians just supposing that's must be what he meant we show you the scripture I saved it I started at verse 21 we're gonna back up look at verse 20 then he began to rebuke the cities in which most of his mighty works had been done so so that's just not someone's opinion that's the Bible most of his works were done in Capernaum and then Carre's it and then Bethsaida so it forms a little triangle so it's not an equilateral triangle it horns a triangle let me just say it this way you've heard of the Bermuda Triangle and it's easy to get lost in the Bermuda Triangle Jesus is saying it would have been easy to get saved in the Evangelic 'el triangle and here's what he's saying if the mighty works have been done which he did what Jesus did here's what he's saying I came into your city and did miracles and preached the gospel and you didn't repent you you heard me and saw me and then repent and I'm telling you if I had gone to Sodom they would have repented therefore your judgment is gonna be more strict than their judgment all right are y'all following me pretty clear in Scripture let me show you another scripture Romans 2 verse 5 but in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart this means not repentant you are Treasury up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous it's a righteous judgment of God in other words I'm going to judge righteously but he said let me tell you what you're doing you are treasuring up for yourself wrath by the way do you remember what he told believers treasure up store up for yourself treasure for yourself in other words he's saying you're gonna need it in heaven we don't need it because our asphalt as gold we don't need your treasure but when you get to heaven you're gonna need your treasure you realize some of you aren't gonna have any money when you get to heaven because you put more in your IRA than your IRA your eternal retirement account I love the the story of a rich man that died in the someone asked the pastor you know how much he left the pastor said all he left the same amount that everybody leaves he left all of it you don't carry any of what you have on this earth to heaven but you can send it on ahead and Jesus actually said you better send it on ahead cuz you're gonna need it when you get there because there are cities we're gonna do business in heaven it's pretty it's pretty amazing but in the same way that believers can store up treasure unbelievers can store up wrath because God comes to him over and over and over again and they refuse Jesus Christ so this is all through Scripture by the way that's a tough scripture will some believers will some believers don't know if you ever thought about this but will some believers receive a stricter judgment yes and let me tell you one that you know that will receive a stricter judgment I will and I think about this all the time now for my salvation but for what I teach James 3 verse 1 my brethren let not many of you become teachers knowing that we shall receive of what a stricter judgment I hopefully not are you thinking you know I was think about volunteering to be a teacher so I told you about I went to the baseball baseball camp and had I known they you know that they were given rewards I would have done something differently okay let me tell you kind of on the other side of that spectrum - so when I was a kid I hung out at the skating rink yeah Hey y'all are laughing but how many of you hung out the skating rink say look at all the old people okay so I hung that's where I thought we that's all we had okay that's all we had so you know so I um I got skater II so my father took me by the way my parents are actually here my parents have moved to this area they're seated right there so they move this area and it's coming today we're taking know asking them questions about me growing up that's BC before Christ under the blood okay all right so so my father took me to the skating rink us 13 years old or something you know 12 13 14 I don't know that's about when I started kind of going astray he knew that I was starting to hang out with the wrong crowd so he drops me off then he circles back around sneaks into that dark skating rink and sets in the corner and watches me all night so when he picks me up he says to me did you uh smoke any cigarettes tonight I said no sir I said I was around people smoke so you probably smell it on me but but I didn't smoke so he said well I drove around snuck in and watch you and I saw you smoke a cigarette I said I remember now I [Music] remember I tried one but I didn't like it that I didn't like he said I watched you smoke two cigarettes yep I remember it now I hear it's jogging my memory I remember there another time they kind of dared me you know how you've told me to you know not run away from a fight stand up and you know and so they were calling me a coward and all and so that was the only reason though that that I did I smoked two tonight he said I watched you smoke seven and then he punished me for every cigarette US moved and for lying if I had known that the father was watching me are you hearing me according to the Bible the father is watching and he's gonna reward and he's going to punish but now listen to me two judgments here's the great news you get to choose which judgment you attend whatever person is going to be judged but you get to choose whether you attend the judgment seat of Christ as a believer or you attend the great white throne judgment as an unbeliever and you're sentenced to return it to in hell I want you to bow your heads and close your eyes now won't you just take a moment like we do every weekend and just say holy spirit what are you saying to me through this message and I know God's will speak to all of us I know many believers here are thinking you know I really do want to live for God and love and serve and give and things like that and you can make that commitment with the Lord but I'm really concerned about every person that maybe you're a guest here you've been coming for a little while or maybe even coming for a long time but you're really not sure if you died you'd go to heaven you believe in Jesus but it might just be in your mind and you really haven't committed your life to him given your heart to him I'm asking you to do that today and you can do it right now right where you're seated and if you're feeling drawn right now to do this you're being drawn by the Holy Spirit you won't know why because he doesn't want you at the great white throne judgment he wants you to accept the free gift of Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior but you need to do it in your heart it doesn't matter if you grew up in a Christian home or you walk down the aisle when you were kid or if you were baptized as a baby you personally need to make an adult decision that you're gonna follow Jesus Christ you're gonna turn your will over to Jesus you have a will and you can choose whether you you're gonna believe and follow Jesus or not so I'm asking you to do it right you know I'll help you I'll just lead you to prayer if that's you at every campus just in your heart you don't do it out loud just in your heart would you just say dear God there's in your heart please forgive me telling that for all of my sins and I receive Jesus as my Lord and that's my Savior thank you Jesus for saving me today now no one's looking around but if you prayed that prayer at every campus and you really meant business with God would you just put your hand up way way up I put it way up high well you ought to be proud of this don't be ashamed of this one put it way up high thank you and put your hands down by me let me just just listen to me we're gonna have one more worship song there were many many hands that went up I'm asking you to do something it's very very important in just a moment we have a time where if anyone needs prayer they can come for anyone I'm asking you to come to one of the leaders at the front of whichever campus you're kidding and say I gave my life to Lord today it's very important it's very important you confess it with your mouth just one person at least make a public stand for Jesus nail this down this settles eternity for you don't just raise your hand in church and like your secret disciple don't do just make up your mind I'm going no matter what I'm nailing it down today I'm tired of doubting I want to go to heaven I want to be at the judgment seat of Christ not the great life throne judgment and then if you need prayer for any area you come as well because sometimes when believers come forward for prayer then those that have accepted Christ they feel the confidence to focus they're not the only one so if you need prayer for any reason at all as soon as we stand up you just stand up and step out and come and if you prayed that prayer and gave your life the Lord please just stand up just step out and come you don't see other people coming and tell the person down here I prayed that prayer with Pastor I gave my life to Jesus today Lord thank you and I pray that every person who prayed that prayer and every person needs prayer in any way we'll have the courage to come today in Jesus name Amen

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Keywords: gatewaypeople, Gateway, Gateway Church, Robert Morris, Pastor Robert, Savior, Dallas, Southlake, Texas, Jesus, Sermon, salvation, christ, Love, Where and How, Bring A Friend

Id: Atu8DmDU2cI

Length: 37min 26sec (2246 seconds)

Published: Mon Nov 12 2018