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Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – Passing Inspection

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For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. —2 Corinthians 5:10

If you have been involved in a building project, then you know your project must pass a final inspection. Sometimes you pass. And sometimes you don’t pass and have to fix whatever it was that fell short of the inspector’s requirements.

The apostle Paul describes a future inspection for believers in 2 Corinthians 5:10: “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” The word “bad” in the original language means “evil of another kind.” It also could be translated “good for nothingness” or “worthlessness.”

Paul was speaking of Christians who have been saved by the grace of God and have put their faith in Jesus. But they have lived lives that largely have been wasted.

We are all building on a foundation, and that foundation should be Christ. The building materials we use are important. A paraphrase of 1 Corinthians 3:10–15 puts it this way:

Take particular care in picking out your building materials. Eventually there is going to be an inspection. If you use cheap or inferior materials, you’ll be found out. The inspection will be thorough and rigorous. You won’t get by with a thing. If your work passes inspection, fine; if it doesn’t, your part of the building will be torn out and started over. But you won’t be torn out; you’ll survive—but just barely.

One day we will stand before God, and He will look at the materials we used. Some of us will pass. Others will hear Him say, in effect, “You are in. I love you. But you didn’t really pass inspection. You could have done more.”

Will the life you are building pass inspection?

Alistair Begg

Alistair Begg – Citizens of Heaven

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Alistair Begg

Fellow citizens with the saints.  Ephesians 2:19

What is meant by our being citizens in heaven? It means that we are under heaven’s government. Christ, the King of Heaven, reigns in our hearts; our daily prayer is, “Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”1 The proclamations issued from the throne of glory are freely received by us: The decrees of the Great King we cheerfully obey.

Then as citizens of the New Jerusalem, we share heaven’s honors. The glory that belongs to beatified saints belongs to us, for we are already sons of God, already princes of the blood imperial; already we wear the spotless robe of Jesus’ righteousness; already we have angels for our servants, saints for our companions, Christ for our Brother, God for our Father, and a crown of immortality for our reward. We share the honors of citizenship, for we have come to the general assembly and the Church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven.

As citizens, we have common rights to all the property of heaven. Ours are its gates of pearl and walls of chrysolite, ours the azure light of the city that needs no candle nor light of the sun, ours the river of the water of life and the twelve kinds of fruit that grow on the trees planted on its banks; there is nothing in heaven that does not belong to us. “The present or the future”2-all is ours.

Also as citizens of heaven we enjoy its delights. Do they rejoice in heaven over sinners that repent-prodigals who have returned? So do we. Do they chant the glories of triumphant grace? We do the same. Do they cast their crowns at Jesus’ feet? Such honors we have we cast there too. Are they charmed with His smile? It is just as sweet to us who live below. Do they look forward, waiting for His second advent? We also look and long for His appearing. If, then, we are citizens of heaven, let our walk and actions be consistent with our high dignity.

1 – Matthew 6:10

2 – 1 Corinthians 3:22

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Campus Crusade for Christ; Bill Bright – All Is Ours

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“So don’t be proud of following the wise men of this world. For God has already given you everything you need. He has given you Paul and Apollos and Peter as your helpers. He has given you the whole world to use, and life and even death are your servants. He has given you all of the present and all of the future. All are yours, and you belong to Christ, and Christ is God’s (1 Corinthians 3:21-23).

A famous scholar and statesman called me aside to offer his counsel. “As the head of a great worldwide Christian student movement,” he said, “you should be more scholarly, more of a philosopher. Your approach is too simple. Your critics and even some of your friends feel that your writings and your speaking should be more profound as befits one of your stature and position.” He continued in this vein for some time. I heard him out, prayerfully asking God to give me the wisdom to respond.

When he finished I said to him, “There was a time when I wanted to impress people with my intellect, my learning. I spent many years in graduate school including two theological seminaries where I had the privilege of sitting at the feet of some of the most learned theologians of our time.”

I confessed to him that there was a period in my student life when I became intoxicated with learning and could have spent the rest of my life in the ivory tower. Then it occurred to me in a very definite, dramatic way that one of the reasons the Christian message was not better understood by every Christian and the reason the Christian church was making such little impact upon a worldly society was that many theologians, and consequently their students, pastors and missionaries, had complicated the good news of God’s love and forgiveness. I reminded my friend that Jesus, the greatest teacher of all, taught in such a way that the masses, largely illiterate and unlearned, heard Him gladly. I went on to explain that I had made a concerted effort all through my ministry to try to communicate clearly by eliminating big words and philosophical and theological jargon, the kind of “Christianese” that does not communicate except to those who are familiar with the usage.

This famous scholar seemed to understand for the first time the importance of following the example of our Lord and other great teachers through the centuries who sought to communicate clearly to the masses.

Bible Reading: I Corinthians 3:16-20

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Remembering that God has given me everything I need, I will look to Him to guide my steps and enable me to live the supernatural life. I will also keep the message simple as I communicate the good news of God’s love in Christ.

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Greg Laurie – Nothing to Show

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“I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take away your crown.” —Revelation 3:11

Did you know that it is possible to have a saved soul and a lost life? A saved soul means that you are saved because you believe in Jesus and not because of the works you do. You have turned from your sin and put your faith in Christ. And God has a plan for your life: He wants you to serve Him.

But a lot of Christians don’t do that much for the Lord, though they should. And this means they have a lost life. The Bible says that we will stand before God one day, and our work will be tested to see what sort it is (see 1 Corinthians 3:12–14). If it is built on the wrong foundation, then it will be burned up, but our soul will be saved.

Jesus said, “I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take away your crown” (Revelation 3:11). Hold fast. Hang on. Don’t let go. Don’t relax your grip. If you do, you could lose your crown.

The crown is a symbol of rewards that are awaiting Christians. To lose your crown means to lose your reward. The Bible speaks of a crown that God gives for our faithfulness to Him (see Revelation 3:11). First Thessalonians 2:19 mentions a crown of rejoicing, which would appear to be a crown for winning souls. Then, in 2 Timothy 4:8, there is a crown of righteousness. James 1:12 speaks of a crown of life for enduring temptation and persevering under trial.

These are the rewards God will give to each of us. But how sad it will be for those who stand before Him on that day and have nothing to show for the life that was given to them.

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A Lesson from the Sower – Greg Laurie

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So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase —1 Corinthians 3:7

The parable of the sower is an illustration Jesus used that shows different reactions to the gospel message. In this story, a sower goes out and sows seed, and it falls on four different types of soil. Today, we might go and prepare the ground, carefully put in the seed, and use an irrigation system and all kinds of sophisticated hardware to help us get the job done well. But back then, it was a little more primitive.

Basically, the sower would reach into his sack with his hand and then throw out the seed . . . to the left . . . to the right . . . forward . . . backward. And wherever the seed went, it went. Some of it fell on good ground, some of it fell on rocky ground, and some of it fell along the roadside and so forth. Finally, some fell and was very productive. The actual act of plowing was done later, and then the sower would harvest whatever kind of crop he had.

The same could be said of so-called crusade evangelism, or proclamation evangelism. At Harvest Ministries, we throw out the seed in a stadium. We throw it out over the Internet. Then we throw it out over the radio. And so the seed gets thrown out further and further and further, but it is God who ultimately does the work of conversion. Jesus said, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him . . .” (John 6:44).

Some people are critical of this type of evangelism. But my question is, why wouldn’t we want to reach as many people as possible, using every form of media available? Our job is to reach as many as we can.

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Planting Seeds – Greg Laurie

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I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow. It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow—1 Corinthians 3:6–7

We don’t read of anyone in Scripture actually sharing the gospel with Saul (who later became the apostle Paul). But God used a number of people to prepare his heart to receive it.

As far back as I can remember in my life, no one ever sat me down and said, “Greg, here is how you can come into a relationship with Jesus Christ.”

I would hang out at the Balboa Fun Zone in Newport Beach and lean up against walls, trying to look tough and cool. I would watch Christians hand out religious materials and engage people in conversation, and I would be saying in my heart, Please talk to me. But they would never talk to me—they just offered me their tracts.

I shoved those tracts into my pocket and never threw one of them away. I had a drawer at home designated for religious material, and I deposited everything that was handed to me into that drawer. Every now and then, I pulled out the drawer, dumped it on my bed, and read through the material, trying to make sense of it all. What I needed was someone to show me the way.

Then one day, I eavesdropped on a Bible study that was being held on the lawn of my high school campus. And that is when I first heard the gospel and became a Christian.

Looking back, there were different people who helped get me ready for that moment. My grandparents were Christians and took me to church. I had the influence of an aunt and uncle who were strong Christians. Even watching Billy Graham on television with my grandparents was one of the many seeds that were sown in my life.

You see, we all have a part to play in God’s kingdom. We all can do something.

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