It is reasoned that because the Lord Jesus does not judge our bondages but only our choices there will not be severe penalties for a lack of diligence in serving the Lord. The casting into outer darkness of the lazy servant who buried his talent teaches us that such reasoning is incorrect.

The believer who neglects his salvation will not achieve victory over the world, the lusts of his flesh, or his self-will. As a result, at the Judgment Seat of Christ he will be judged not only for his carelessness and unbelief but also for the practice of sin resulting from his negligence.

The believer who followed the Holy Spirit in putting away his sins will be blessed and rewarded because of his diligence ("Well done, good and faithful servant"), and his holy and righteous behavior will bring him eternal life. The lazy believer loses on two counts and the diligent believer gains on two counts.

Let us think about the concept that Christians need not be concerned about their appearance at the Judgment Seat of Christ because Jesus will not be concerned with their sins but with their works. How are we to be able in that Day to distinguish between sin and an evil work?

The Scripture under discussion (II Corinthians 5:10) declares that the individual being made manifest at the judgment seat will receive the things he has done in his body, whether what he has done has been good or evil (not "good or bad," as in the Authorized Version).

Let us say that an example of a sin would be adultery, while the example of an evil work would be not taking up one's cross and following the Lord. The adultery practiced by the believer will not be mentioned (Evangelicals claim) because it was taken care of on the cross. But now he is being judged only in terms of his lack of diligence in following the Lord, his dedication or lack of it.

Yet, in the twenty-fifth chapter of the Book of Matthew, the servant who buried his talent was termed "wicked," "lazy," and "unprofitable," and was condemned to outer darkness. He received the evil he had done. He was useless to the Kingdom and so he was cast into a place of uselessness. To our way of thinking, the thought of such a penalty is an occasion for trembling.

Is not using one's talent a sin or a work? Does it make any difference in our reward?

It is true also that the Christian who does not cease practicing adultery will not inherit the Kingdom of God (Galatians 5:19).

The concept that the sins of the believer can never be mentioned at the Judgment Seat of Christ is unscriptural, illogical, and produces carelessness and sin in the life of the individual who is convinced his behavior will not put him in any kind of jeopardy. This concept is not true and it is time to sound the alarm in God's holy mountain.

To be continued.