Romans 14:12 – Personal Testimony
So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.
Truth to Learn
All Christians will have to testify regarding what they have done for God while on this earth.
Behind the Words
Paul starts off the current verse with the Greek words ara oun, which basically mean, “So, in conclusion, …” This expression applies to what he will say in this and the following verse.
“Each” is translated from the Greek word hekastos, meaning “each one” or “every one.” It is expressed in the singular, indicating that we will be standing individually before the Judge. Only our individual actions will matter.
The word “give” is didōmi, which means “to deliver up” or “to give over.” And “account” is logos, meaning “a word” or “something said.” Thus, it appears that we will each have to talk about how we spent the life that was given to us.
“Himself” is the reflexive pronoun heautou, indicating that the account given will be that of the one giving the account not of anyone else.
Meaning Explained
Let me start off by saying that this verse clearly shows that Paul believed that Jesus Christ is God. You will notice that this verse is still in reference to the judgment seat (bematos) of Christ, and it is clearly Jesus Christ who is sitting on this seat. Also, in John’s gospel account our Lord taught that the Father entrusts all judgment to the Son.
For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son, (John 5:22)
Yet in this verse, Paul tells us that we will have to give an explanation of our actions to God. Jesus Christ is the Creator, our Savior, our Judge, and our God.
The next thing that Paul has to say regarding our appearance before the bema seat of Christ is that “each one of us will give account concerning himself to God.” That is, when we appear before Christ’s judgment seat, we will have to give an explanation of what we have done for Him. We will not be called upon to give testimony about anyone else, nor will He be calling us as a witness to anyone else’s actions, only our own. Therefore, since God’s focus at the judgment seat of Christ will be on our works done for His glory, our focus in this earthly life needs to be on what we are doing for God, not on what other Christians are or aren’t doing.
Also, notice very carefully that this is a judgment of our works, not our sins. According to 2Corinthians 5:10, which we looked at a couple of verses back, this judgment will be “according to what each person has done.” Our sins, on the other hand, have already been judged. They were judged at the cross when Christ paid the penalty for all our sins with His blood. When we believed God’s promise, like Abraham we were declared righteous. All of our sins – past, present, and future – were judged and paid for; hence, they cannot be the subject of the judgment seat of Christ.
Application
Let us all judge our own actions, not the actions of other Christians, so that He will judge them worthy on that day! We would all rather receive rewards than the smell of smoke.
In God’s service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2011 Will Krause. All rights reserved.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
If this message or this link was forwarded to you by a friend and you wish to receive future verses directly to your inbox, send an e-mail to: