(Chap. 5:1-21)
In chapter 5, Paul continues to explain his principles of action in serving the Lord, which were being called into question by his detractors. He now discloses the inner motives of his heart in service. He speaks of three great things that motivated Him. This is brought in here because his detractors interpreted his incredible devotion to the Lord as being the evidence of a man who was mentally unstable. They were putting stories around that he was a fanatical madman that shouldn’t be taken seriously. He alludes to this accusation in verse 13 (“beside ourselves”).
In answering this, Paul shows that it was not madness, but deep devotion to Christ that motivated him. In doing so, he takes the opportunity to speak of the driving forces behind his life of devotion to the cause of Christ. These same three motives should energize all Christians to live for and to serve the Lord.
1) the Certainty of the Incredible Condition of Glory Laid up in Heaven for Us Compels Us to Live for Those Eternal Things Now
Vss. 1-9—In chapter 4 Paul had been speaking of eternal things and the possibility of losing his life as a martyr for Christ. In this chapter he goes on to say that if such a thing were to happen, he had the assurance that one day he would be glorified in a wholly transformed body that would not be affected by disease, decay, and death. He was certain about this because he had been given a revelation of truth concerning these things. Therefore, he could confidently say, “We know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” Paul knew that if he died in battle (martyrdom), there was an incredible condition of glory waiting for him. This gave him to throw his energy into the ministry.
There are two little expressions that Paul uses in verse 1 which appear many times in his epistles. They are: “we know” and “we have.” These expressions denote Christian knowledge and Christian possession, which characterize Christianity. “We know” is not the knowledge of experience, or the knowledge of tuition, but knowledge acquired by divine revelation. The apostles were given revelations by which the body of Christian knowledge was given to the Church (1 Cor. 2:10-1610But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. 11For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. 12Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. 13Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. 16For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. (1 Corinthians 2:10‑16)). “We have” refers to the special portion (blessings) that belongs to all Christians through the finished work of Christ and the indwelling presence of the Spirit of God. How thankful we should be to know what we know, and to have what we have!
Paul has previously spoken of the moral transformation that God is presently working in us (chap. 3:18), but here he speaks of a physical transformation that will take place when the Lord comes for us (chap. 5:1). Using the figure of a “house,” Paul contrasts the condition of our bodies now with what they will be in a coming day. He calls our bodies in their present condition a “tabernacle,” which is a tent (a portable dwelling), because they are a temporary lodging of the soul and spirit. Then, he speaks of our bodies when they will be glorified as “a building of God, not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” This signifies their permanent character in the glorified state. The contrast is obvious; a tent is meant to be taken down at some point in time, but a house is permanent. Paul had told the Corinthians in his first epistle that this incredible change into the glorified state would take place in "the twinkling of an eye" at the coming of the Lord—the Rapture (1 Cor. 15:23, 51-5723But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. (1 Corinthians 15:23)
51Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. 55O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? 56The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. 57But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:51‑57)). “Not made with hands” simply means, “not of this creation” (Heb. 9:1111But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; (Hebrews 9:11)). “In the heavens” does not mean that God has already made our glorified bodies and that they are sitting there in heaven vacant waiting for us to get there, but rather that heaven is our destiny, and the glorified state is of a heavenly order and character.
It is interesting that Scripture does not say that we receive “new” bodies, even though Christians often speak of it. It is rather, that our mortal bodies are “changed” into a glorified state (1 Cor. 15:5151Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, (1 Corinthians 15:51)-52; Phil. 3:2121Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself. (Philippians 3:21); Job 14:1414If a man die, shall he live again? all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come. (Job 14:14)). This glorified state is an altogether new condition, but it is not the receiving of another (or new) body. To say that a believer who dies (whose body is buried in the earth) receives a new or another body when the Lord comes, denies resurrection. Scripture indicates that the very bodies in which we have lived and moved and have had our being, will be raised again—albeit in an entirely new condition of glory. Hence, we have the certainty of the glorification of our bodies, but not necessarily the dissolution of our bodies, because “we shall not all sleep” (1 Cor. 15:5151Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, (1 Corinthians 15:51)). Some believers will be “alive” at the coming of the Lord and will be “caught up” together with them who will be raised from the dead at that time (1 Thess. 4:16-1716For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. (1 Thessalonians 4:16‑17)).
The realization of the incredible condition of glory laid up for us in heaven motivated Paul to live for the Lord and to serve Him with fervency. He said, “In this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven.” We “groan” in these mortal bodies because they are suffering from the effects of sin in the creation. The aches and pains that we experience in our bodies constantly remind us that we are not at home yet. The Lord intends that such experiences should have the effect of lessening our grasp on things here and turning our spirits homeward. Hence, in these chapters, Paul touches on two things that produce the right desire to be “clothed upon” with our glorified bodies: the things which are “eternal” which we behold by faith (chap. 4:18), and the groans we experience in our mortal bodies (chap. 5:2, 4).
The groaning here is not because the desires of the flesh cannot be fulfilled, nor is it because we have some fear or uncertainty of being accepted before God in Christ, but because the new life longs for the final (glorified) state. The body in its present state tends to depress the new life, and this can somewhat hinder the soul from the enjoyment of the glory which the new life sees and desires. While it is not wrong to groan in these bodies, it is wrong to grumble. There is no place for complaining in Christianity (Phil. 2:1414Do all things without murmurings and disputings: (Philippians 2:14); Jude 1616These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men's persons in admiration because of advantage. (Jude 16)).
Vss. 3-4—Since we will be “clothed” with glorified bodies, we have the blessed assurance that we will not be found “naked.” Naked is a term that Paul uses to denote the state of a person who is eternally lost without a covering for his or her sin.
Paul adds that we do not look to be “unclothed,” but rather to be "clothed upon." Unclothed is another term that he uses to describe the soul and spirit of the believer in the disembodied (intermediate) state of death. We do not long for that because death is not our hope. The proper Christian posture is to look for the Lord to come and change us into glorified beings. We are looking for Christ to “quicken” our “mortal bodies,” not to raise our dead bodies (Rom. 8:1111But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. (Romans 8:11)). Hence comes the often-used quip, “We are waiting for the Uppertaker, not the undertaker.”
Vss. 4-5—In the meantime, while we wait for “mortality” to be “swallowed up by life,” God has given to us “the earnest of the Spirit.” This refers to the Spirit of God dwelling in our bodies as a pledge that God is going to complete what He has already begun. The transformation process has begun in our souls and spirits (chap. 3:18), but in that day, our bodies will be transformed too. The Spirit of God dwells in us, not only to give us the assurance of reaching the glorified state, but also to give us a present enjoyment of future things. Thus, He gives us a foretaste of the heavenly things that we going dwell in for eternity, while we are still here on earth.
Vss. 6-8—This understanding gave Paul to be “always confident” in serving the Lord. The KJV says, “At home in the body ... ” but it should be translated “present in the body.” To live in our mortal bodies in their present state is not home for the believer; as mentioned already, it is a temporary state. We are strangers and pilgrims in this world, and our bodies are but a tabernacle (tent); we are not home yet. Nor does the Scripture call the intermediate state of disembodied souls and spirits with Christ, home. We often say, “So and so has gone home to be with the Lord.” We understand what is meant, but Scripture does not call that state of bliss home. Home, for the believer, is the final state when he is glorified. Those in the disembodied state are waiting for that day, as we are—but they are in a brighter “waiting room,” so to speak. When the Lord comes, we will all go home together to the Father’s house (John 14:2-32In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. (John 14:2‑3)).
In a short parenthesis (vs. 7), Paul says, “For we walk by faith, not by sight.” This simply means that he was living for eternal things now. One has to see eternal things by faith first (chap. 4:18) before he can walk in them by faith.
While to “depart and to be with Christ” (Phil. 1:2323For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better: (Philippians 1:23)) through death is not the Christian’s hope, it is an option. If God chooses that for us, we should be “willing rather to be absent from the body,” for then we would be “present with the Lord” in the disembodied state. And we know that this is “far better” than being in our mortal bodies now (Phil. 1:2323For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better: (Philippians 1:23)).
Vs. 9—The practical effect of all of this is that Paul laboured (strived) to be acceptable or agreeable to Him who called him to service. Again, the KJV renders this “accepted of Him.” This is not quite accurate, because Scripture says that we are “accepted in the beloved” (Eph. 1:66To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. (Ephesians 1:6)). We do not labour to be accepted because we already are accepted. The correct rendering should be “agreeable [or acceptable] to Him.” His point is that he laboured to be agreeable or pleasing to the Lord, and the coming condition of glory motivated him to that end. This acts as a suitable transition to Paul’s next point regarding the judgment seat of Christ.
In this passage Paul has spoken of three conditions of the believer, and one of the unbeliever. The first is our present life on earth in our mortal bodies—"present in the body." The second is the disembodied state, when the soul and spirit are departed to be with Christ—"unclothed." The third is the consummation of our salvation when our bodies are glorified at the coming of the Lord (the Rapture)—"clothed." The first state is good (if it is lived in fellowship with God), the second is better, but the third is the best. The fourth condition that he mentions ("naked") pertains purely to the unbeliever.
A summary of these terms is as follows:
“Present in the body”—life lived on earth in our present condition.
“Unclothed”—the soul and spirit of the believer disembodied in the intermediate state of bliss.
“Clothed”—the believer glorified in an entirely new state.
“Naked”—a person lost eternally without a covering for sin.
Thus, the anticipation of the coming condition of glory laid up in heaven for all the redeemed compelled Paul to live for eternal things while he was here in this world. It will do the same in every right-minded Christian. The fact that we are not in this world to stay, and that we can’t keep the temporal things that we see all around us, ought to motivate us to live for eternal things. The process of decay in these mortal bodies has already begun, and it should remind us that we are not going to be here forever—especially as the aches and pains increase with age. We don’t have long to live in this world and should pray, as Moses did, “Teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom” (Psa. 90:1212So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom. (Psalm 90:12)). Wisdom would direct us to live for eternal things now.
2) the Judgment Seat of Christ Commands Us to Use Our Lives for Eternal Things
Vss. 10-13—This leads Paul to speak of “the judgment seat of Christ,” which was another great thing that motivated him to serve the Lord. He said, “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ.” This is a reference to its widest application. “All” in this verse refers to all mankind—which includes unbelievers. He says, “Whether it be good or bad ... ” Believers will receive the “good” in the way of rewards and unbelievers will receive the “bad,” being banished from the presence of God into the lake of fire. Believers will come before the judgment seat immediately after being raptured to heaven, but unbelievers who die in their sins will be judged over a 1000 years later after the Millennium (Rev. 20:11-1511And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. 12And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. 13And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 14And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. (Revelation 20:11‑15)).
For the believer, it is the time when the Lord will review our lives and reward us for what we have done for Him. The solemn side of this session is the possibility of suffering the loss of our reward, if we have lived our lives merely for temporal things (1 Cor. 3:1515If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. (1 Corinthians 3:15)). The thought of this spurred Paul on to zealous service for the Lord. It should have the same effect on us.
Just as there are two kinds of judges in society, the Lord will judge all mankind in one or the other of these two ways. Firstly, there is a legal magistrate who is vested with authority in the judicial courts of the land. He has power to pass a sentence of judgment on a criminal and to condemn him to prison. The Lord will deal with unbelievers in this sad and solemn way (Rev. 20:11-1511And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. 12And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. 13And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 14And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. (Revelation 20:11‑15)). The believer will never face this kind of judgment because his case was settled when he received the Lord Jesus as his Saviour and rested in faith on His finished work on the cross. The Lord said, “He that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation” (John 5:2424Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. (John 5:24)). Hence, the believer has “boldness in the day of judgment” (1 John 4:1717Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. (1 John 4:17)).
Secondly, there is a judge (an umpire) at an exhibition—i.e. an art show. This kind of a judge has knowledge in a certain field of expertise to decide the merits of the objects before him. He is at the show to assess the quality and workmanship of the articles on display. Similarly, the Lord will review the believer’s life along the lines of this judge, assessing those things in our lives that were done for Him and rewarding us accordingly. The character of the whole session for believers will be: reviewing, rewarding, and consequent rejoicing.
It is significant that each time the judgment seat of Christ is mentioned in the New Testament it is viewed from a different standpoint. When we put them all together, we learn that the Lord will examine every aspect of our lives. The various areas of review are:
A question that many Christians have in regard to the judgment seat of Christ is, “Why do we have to go through it? Is it really necessary for the believer to be judged in this way?” The answer is, yes, for the Lord will not do something that isn’t necessary. There are two main reasons for this session: one has a future bearing and the other has a present bearing.