We all will stand before the judgment seat of Christ. Who is Paul referring to, believers or unbelievers? In examining these Scriptures in context, there's no misunderstanding: it is believers.

But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.... So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.
(Rom. 14:10,12)

We all will stand before the judgment seat of Christ. Who is Paul referring to, believers or unbelievers? In examining these Scriptures in context, there's no misunderstanding: it is believers.

He addresses the seriousness of a Christian judging or showing contempt for a fellow brother, and those who do such will have to give an account. Therefore, not only will unbelievers stand before God in judgment, but all Christians will also stand before the throne of God to give an account of their lives here on earth.

This is further emphasized in his letter to Corinth:

We would rather be away from these bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord. So our aim is to please him always, whether we are here in this body or away from this body. For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in our bodies. It is because we know this solemn fear of the Lord that we work so hard to persuade others.
(2 Cor 5:8-11, NLT)

Again, it is evident Paul is not talking about the judgment of sinners, but of Christians. His statement "We would rather be away from these bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord" gives no room for doubt to whom he's addressing.

No unbeliever will be at home with the Lord once he leaves his body; his eternal home is the Lake of Fire.

On the other hand, the believer's judgment occurs long before the Great White Throne Judgment. The timing of this is not made clear in Scripture; however, we do know it will take place sometime after the church is caught away in the clouds and before the thousand-year reign of Christ commences. So there is roughly a thousand years separating the two major judgments.

"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ" (2 Cor. 5:10).The English words judgment seat in both Romans and Corinthians are from the single Greek word bema. Strong's Concordance defines this word as "a step, foot-breath, a rostrum (an elevated platform), i.e. a tribunal (a court of justice)."

The UBS Commentary states, "The judgment seat was the judicial bench of a city court in the Roman Empire. Paul uses this imagery to refer to the judging activity of Christ." Based on this, we will refer to the believer's judgment as the judgment Seat of Christ.

The Judgment Seat of Christ is literally the divine tribunal of God. Scripture declares that the Father has committed all judgment to the Son (John 5:22).

Jesus Christ is not only our Savior, but He is our Judge and will soon judge His own household.The simplest way to define the original word for judgment is to say it is a decision resulting from an investigation, for or against.

There are numerous individuals in church unaware that they will give an account of what they've done in their short stay on earth. Many have the erroneous idea that all future judgment is eradicated by their salvation.

Indeed, Jesus' blood cleanses us from the sins that would have kept us from the kingdom; however, it does not exempt us from the judgment of how we conducted ourselves as believers, whether good or bad.

Wide Range Of Rewards
Scripture shows the eternal rewards and positions given to believers will not only differ but will span a wide range. They will vary from seeing everything lost and burned up all the way to reigning beside Christ for all eternity (1 Cor. 3:15; Rev. 3:21).

Many flinch when they hear the terms lost and burned up in regard to their lives; they find it hard to believe this could ever happen in heaven. However, it is made crystal clear to us in Scripture.

Before I share the verses, let me preface by explaining that many times in Scripture the metaphor of a building is used to represent an individual life, and other times Scripture speaks of the church as a single building or temple.

In these metaphors, we are depicted as the builders in regard to how we affect our own lives, others' lives, or the overall church. In fact, I'll reference this metaphor frequently throughout the rest of this book. Paul clearly states:

You are also God's building.... But each one must be careful how he builds. For God has already placed Jesus Christ as the one and only foundation, and no other foundation can be laid. Some will use gold or silver or precious stones in building on the foundation; others will use wood or grass or straw. And the quality of each person's work will be seen when the Day of Christ exposes it.

For on that Day fire will reveal everyone's work; the fire will test it and show its real quality. If what was built on the foundation survives the fire, the builder will receive a reward. But if anyone's work is burnt up, then he will lose it; but he himself will be saved, as if he had escaped through the fire.
(1 Cor. 3:9-15, TEV)

We determine how we will build, and we have two major choices in our construction every moment of our life. One is to gravitate toward the temporal, that which appeases the flesh (wood, grass, or straw).

The other is to live in line with our born-again spirit's desire, the eternal Word of God (gold, silver, and precious stones). How we build, or how we live our lives, will determine how we fare when the fire of His presence examines our work.

Not only will our works be examined, but our thoughts, motives, and intentions as well. This is why it is so crucial for believers to carefully listen to, heed, and hide in our hearts the Word of God, for it is continually "exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart" (Heb. 4:12, AMP). Nothing else can get to the depths of our heart as His Word.

If we listen to human reason, logic, or wisdom, we will gravitate in our thoughts and heart motives toward the temporal, and we will most often be completely unaware. For this reason Jesus warns,

Whatever is hidden away will be brought out into the open, and whatever is covered up will be found and brought to light. Be careful, then. How you listen; because whoever has something will be given more, but whoever has nothing will have taken away from him even the little he has.
(Luke 8:17-19 TEV)

Source: Driven By Eternity by John Bevere
Excerpt permission granted by John Bevere Ministries