Inheriting vs. Entering the Kingdom: A Theological Perspective

Christians will enter the kingdom, but rewards and inheritance vary based on faithfulness and obedience.

### Inheriting vs. Entering the Kingdom: A Free Grace Perspective
* 🏰 All Christians will enter the Kingdom of God, receiving **glorified bodies** to **rule and reign with Christ**.
* 📊 However, not all Christians will inherit the Kingdom at the same level or degree, as inheritance is predicated upon **reward**.
* 🎖 The Bema Seat judgment (2 Corinthians 5:9-10) is where believers will be evaluated and rewarded based on their **works**.
* 🌟 This ties into the concept of the **Overcomer in Revelation**, where only those who **overcome will be given the right to rule with Christ**.
* 🔥 There are different views on the severity of the Bema Seat judgment: **loss of reward**, **punitive damage**, or **Kingdom exclusion**.
* 📚 Reformed theology tends to spiritualize the Millennial Kingdom, which can impact their view of the **Bema Seat judgment**.
* 🤔 There is a lack of understanding in some circles about the **significance and potential emotions tied to the Bema Seat judgment**.
* 🔗 The differentiation between **entering** and **inheriting the Kingdom** is a key aspect of soteriology in the Free Grace movement.

So, is there a difference between inheriting the kingdom and entering the kingdom? Because I think that has to play with how we look at soteriology. So, it seems to me within the free Grace movement in general, there's an agreement that when you become a Christian, you have eternal life, and we believe in eternal security. So, every Christian will enter into the kingdom of God. That means Christians will have a glorified body, a resurrected body, to rule and reign with Christ in the Kingdom. So, all Christians will enter it. Now, the question is, well, what about inheriting it? That's different. That is predicated upon reward. So, all Christians enter, but not all Christians inherit at the same level or the same degree. Or if you have a cup, you can get an eight-ounce cup, a 12-ounce cup, a big guzzler, or a Dixie cup, fill them to the top. They're all full, 100% full, but they all have a different capacity.

all Christians will be happy and ruling with Christ, but we will all have a different capacity. I think this may be what Peter gets at in 1 Peter 1:11 when he says, If you practice these things, you will have an abundant entrance into the kingdom of God. Abundant entrance. Now, everybody will enter, but some will have an abundant entrance. I take it that is the idea of inheriting more. This would lead us then into bema seat theology, where at the bema seat (1 Corinthians 5 or 2 Corinthians 5:9-10, Romans 14, and then other places), we will stand before the Lord. He will evaluate our life, and He will reward us and then give us a role in the Kingdom. This would be tied into Revelation 2 and 3 in the concept of the Overcomer. To those who overcome, they will be given a reward to rule with my heavenly Father. In Revelation 2:26, Jesus was faithful.

if we're faithful, we'll be given the right to rule with him, but that's only to those who overcome and are faithful. Not all Christians overcome, not all Christians are faithful, not every Christian became a martyr and died for their faith. There were plenty of cowards, right? Paul talks about those who will stand before the Lord, and all of their works are burned up, all even if that's a literary device, all right, and yet they will be saved, so as Through Fire. Now, there's three passages in Ephesians, Galatians, and First Corinthians 6 that talk about where Paul, same author, talking to a Christian audience, exhorting the audience, and telling them that those who practice such Behavior shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Now, if you're reformed, you say, Aha, if a person who says they're a Christian practices these sins, that proves they're not a Christian and they go to hell. Arminian theology would say, No, no, there's a real Christian, but now they're practicing those sins.

they lose their eternal life, and they go to hell. But then the free Grace side says, No, no, there's a real believer, but he's really sinning, and he won't come away from it. And at the bema seat, he will forfeit his reward. He will not inherit the Kingdom as a Christian in a glorified body to serve Jesus. So, that's the typical way we look at that inheritance and entrance differential. Now, I like how you put that. I definitely believe that there's this misunderstanding as far as what the Judgment seat of Christ is actually going to be like. So, when people hear, Oh, you know, we're going to have a loss of rewards, you're gonna have a loss of rewards, you might even hear from Jesus Christ at the Judgment seat of Christ, You know, you wicked servant, you know, because you didn't serve properly. But they don't think that's enough, and I

think a lot of people have this misunderstanding on how much regret there will be at that judgment seat of Christ when an unfaithful Christian loses all those rewards. And so, I don't want to say that a Christian is going to live with condemnation forever, by no means do I want to say that. But would you agree with me that there's this lack of understanding, the amount of importance of that judgment seat and how emotions will be tied into it? Do you know what I mean? I think there is a lack of understanding for that because we tend to think, Oh no, there's no more tears, right? That's true, but not then, thank you, that's not true. Then that's true after the millennial Kingdom. So, when you're looking at the bema seat, some people say the law, the sadness is simply the loss of reward, but you keep all the rewards you get, but you lose some, okay? Others hold to what's called punitive damage. There's not only loss of reward.

there is punishment for your evil. The third group is what's called Kingdom exclusion. If your sins are so great, you're excluded from living in the Kingdom. Although you will live out in eternity, you're still redeemed, you're still saved, but your punishment is not being able to participate at all in the Kingdom. So, you have three views of the bema seat judgment, but all three realize the significance of the event, right? It is important in reform theology, usually from an amillennial perspective. The millennial kingdom is spiritualized, so there is no Thousand Years. Well, what happens before the Thousand Years begin is the bema seat judgment. What happens at the end of the millennial Kingdom? The great white throne judgment. If you don't have a millennial Kingdom, those are brought together, and all of a sudden, you're talking about both things with the same voice, and that's a real problem. I remember Dr. Moo, Doug Moo, came to a seminary where I

was teaching Phoenix seminar, and he was talking about his new book on Galatians. So, the faculty, we were interacting with them, and I asked Dr. Moo, I said, So, tell me, what exactly then is the severity of the Judgment at the bema seat in 2 Corinthians 5:9-10? He said, Oh, that's hell. That's hell. And I said, I, I, you know, nobody said anything. I'm looking around. I went, 'No, no, I, I mean the bema seat.' Oh yeah, that's hell. That's hell. And Dr. Grudem, who was sitting right next to me, he said, Well, Doug, Doug, isn't it possible that that's a reward for faithful Christians? And Dr. Moo said, Oh no, no, no, it's way too severe for that. That's not it at all. Well, that's because there's no Millennium, and then the bema seat judgment is combined with the great white throne judgment, and they're put together, and now you got all kinds of silly talk going on, right? That's a problem.

What's the Difference Between "Entering" and "Inheriting" the Kingdom? (Dr. Fred Chay)

C4C Apologetics

Inheriting the kingdom is based on reward, while entering it is guaranteed for all Christians.

All Christians will have a glorified body and will rule with Christ, but their capacity and level of inheritance will differ.

The concept of an "abundant entrance" into the kingdom suggests that some Christians will inherit more than others, leading to the bema seat theology where believers are evaluated and rewarded by the Lord.

The Role of Faithfulness in Christian Inheritance

Faithfulness is key to ruling with Christ, but not all Christians overcome or are faithful.

Paul's writings suggest that those who practice sin may not inherit the kingdom of God, leading to different theological interpretations.

The Judgment Seat of Christ is often misunderstood, with varying beliefs about the consequences of sin for believers.

Understanding the Judgment Seat of Christ

The Judgment Seat of Christ is often misunderstood, with many underestimating the emotional impact of losing rewards for unfaithful Christians.

There are three main views on the consequences of this judgment: loss of rewards, punitive damage for evil deeds, and exclusion from living in the Kingdom.

The significance of the bema seat judgment is emphasized, especially in the context of reform theology and its perspective on the millennial Kingdom.

The Severity of Judgment at the Bema Seat

Moo described the severity of the Judgment at the Bema Seat in 2 Corinthians 5:9-10 as hell.

Grudem suggested it could be a reward for faithful Christians, but Dr.

Moo dismissed that idea, stating it was too severe.

The lack of a Millennium and the combination of the Bema Seat judgment with the Great White Throne judgment led to confusion and differing interpretations.