⁹Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him. ¹⁰For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.

The Christian’s desire is to be with the Lord in eternity. The apostle John expressed it this way: “Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is” (1 John 3:2).

Yet our greater ambition, as Paul puts it, is “to be pleasing to Him.” So whether we are “home” in the body or “absent” from the body (that is, with the Lord in eternity), our ultimate goal is the same. Elsewhere, he expands on this, that we might “please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God” (Col. 1:10).

People can have many and different ambitions in life. For some it may be to achieve a particular career, to get married, to become a leader, to attain financial independence, and the list goes on. But for the genuine believer, the ambition that trumps them all is to please the God who saved them, who will ultimately be their judge. Whether Paul speaks generally of Christians or of himself and Timothy as examples when he writes “we also have as our ambition,” the thrust is the same. All believers should strive for this, following their example.

Christians still must face a judgment, but it is not the Great White Throne judgment that will indict and convict unbelievers, those whose names are not written in the Lamb’s book of life (Rev. 20:11–15). That judgment will bring the condemnation of those who have not repented and have rejected faith in God. Their eternal destiny will be determined “according to their deeds” (Rev. 20:12) and sentence passed, namely an eternal separation from God.

Believers, on the other hand, will never face the Great White Throne judgment, because we have been forgiven, redeemed, made new in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17). But we will face a different judgment, not to determine our destiny in heaven or hell, but a judgment related to rewards. This is called the “Bema” seat judgment, based on the Greek word (“bema”) translated in our passage as “the judgment seat” of Christ. Therefore, we are motivated to live lives pleasing to God, and He promises rewards based on what we have done for Him. We are not motivated by fear of hell, but we are motivated by the promise that we will be recompensed (that is, rewarded) based on what we have done for Christ.

Lord, my greatest desire is to please You in all that I do.