![]() It was also a place to distribute rewards. The Roman tribunal was not just a place to mete out judgment. The most well-known biblical example of the bema is when the Lord Jesus stood before the bema of Pilate, placed in front of the Prætorium (Mt. In those cases, temporary platforms were erected with ceremonious chairs placed upon them (see Josephus, Wars 2.14.8). In numerous places the bema was located, not in the region of the forum, but at the place where the Roman official decided to execute justice. Archaeologists have unearthed the bema in Corinth, and it can be seen today. Paul stood before the judgment seats of Festus in Cæsarea (Acts 25) and Gallio in Corinth (Acts 18:12–17). A Roman magistrate, acting as judge, sat in a designated chair on the bema or tribunal, with the defendant and plaintiff standing before him. The bema was also a place to hear court cases and make legal decisions. Often in the middle was a bema or rostrum from which to address the crowds. Many major cities throughout the Roman empire patterned their centers of public gatherings and commerce after the imperial forum in Rome. The Romans called the speaker’s platform a rostrum. Acts 12:21 records that Herod Agrippa I sat on his “throne” (bema) to deliver a speech. Bema was also used to describe a raised platform from which an orator would speak to the public. ![]() ![]() In its simplest usage, bema referred to a step, as in a footstep (Acts 7:5). ![]() In speaking of a judgment seat, the Scriptures use the Greek word bema. This lifetime “review” will take place at the judgment seat of Christ. In a similar but far greater way, all Christians will one day give an account of their lives to the Lord Jesus Christ. Did he meet his goals? Did he do well with the resources made available to him? What were his accomplishments? In what areas was he strong or weak? The year-end review is not only a time for the employee’s job performance to be measured against his work objectives, it is also a time for the manager to bestow praise and recognition. Is your goal to serve yourself - or to serve Christ? Make sure of your commitment to Him, and then put Him first in everything you do.Many successful businesses engage their employees in an annual ritual known as the “year-end formal performance review.” On those occasions, a manager sits down with an employee, report in hand, and surveys the employee’s job performance over the past year. Come and share your master’s happiness!” (Matthew 25:23). Our greatest reward, however, will be to hear Him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant…. The Bible doesn’t explain in detail what those rewards may be - but it reminds us that we are still accountable to Him for how we live. ![]() Why, then, must we still stand before God some day, even as believers? The reason is so God can reward us for what we have done for Him. As the Bible says, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). We deserved God’s judgment, for we were guilty of breaking His law - but Christ took all our sins upon Himself, and He endured the judgment that we deserved. This is why we don’t need to fear God’s judgment once we have committed our lives to Christ, for now we’ve been cleansed of all our sins. He forgave us all our sins” (Colossians 2:13). The Bible says, “God made you alive with Christ. One of the Bible’s greatest truths is that when Jesus Christ died on the cross all our sins were transferred to Him, and as we put our faith and trust in Him we are forgiven - freely and fully. ![]()
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