Rewards

Ever been told or thought of Heaven as a bunch of mansions? Ever thought of doing 'good deeds' in order to earn Heavenly rewards? Ever said jokingly that you just lost or earned a jewel on your crown or have this fantasy idea of what Heaven looks like?

As I've been challenged lately on my views of Heaven, I've come to find out that you will never find the plural phrase of the word 'reward' in the New Testament. Paul spoke of a reward or prize in running the race and reaching the end but what is the prize? In Matthew, you read of Jesus saying to store up treasures in Heaven but as I've studied that, treasures aren't rewards. In fact, you don't earn treasures...you find them. And once you find them, you can either invest it or leave it as if you never found it. That's an interesting thought.

Pastor Andrew Farley says, "As humans, we always seem to be looking for a punishment or reward-based motivation to keep our behavior on track." And as I've talked to believers, this seems to be a common factor. Farley goes on to say, "God doesn't want us to think and act in certain ways because we're seeking to accumulate heavenly merchandise. Just as Paul was willing to lose all things for the sake of knowing Christ, we too should make it our agenda to know Him! For more wealth in Heaven? No, we want to know Christ simply because it's the greatest thing going on planet Earth."

Wow. Is Jesus enough? Frankly, the reward is Jesus. A life filled with unconditional love, sufficient grace, and a reality that in Christ you are perfect, worthy, righteous, and forgiven...a saint, saved by grace. The reward is allowing Jesus to live your life in the here and now. Will you store up treasures or should I say an attitude, a love (action) that endures forever or will you pursue the unfulfilling success and dead works that don't earn you 'jewels'? The choice is yours, the reward is now!