The Rewards of Faithful Service
God is good! He is fair and equitable, with an excellent track record of faithfulness to those who trust Him and blesses those who serve Him. From Abraham and the Patriarchs to faithful saints of all generations, the testimony is sure: God is truly dependable!
Those who have not come to grips with this foundational reality which fills the pages of both Testaments of the Holy Writ cannot truly answer the call to ministry in full assurance of faith. Whatever is not of faith, as Romans 14:23 say is sin!
God is a rewarder of those who diligently serve Him! He wants us to bear this reality in mind and trust Him completely even if there are seasons when the flesh will assume all is lost as Satan assails the five carnal senses. A careful reading of Hebrews 6: 9-20; Hebrews 10:35-39 and Hebrews 11:1-40 is recommended.
One day, Peter took the liberty to voice a question on behalf of all those who had abandoned all else to answer the call of Jesus. In Matthew 19:27 the former fisherman asked pointedly: "See, we have left all and followed you. Therefore what shall we have?". After stating the specific rewards due to the 12 disciples in verse 28, Jesus went a step further to declare in verse 29: "And every one who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My Name's sake shall receive a hundred fold, and inherit eternal life"
This blank check, so to say, offers limitless scope of blessings that are far out of proportion to the seed of life, time, opportunities and ministry we can ever sow. A hundred fold means limitless possibilities of divine rewards on earth for those who serve creditably! No matter the needs of your life now and in the future, God has figured them all out!
Yet, the right attitude of those who will inherit these awesome promises is not to be mercantile or impatient with God when we are undergoing His necessary process to build character and strength! The right attitude is three fold:
> Gratitude that He chose us for an awesome assignment
> Total trust in God as a benevolent and dependable Employer who is willing to bless us
> Exercise dynamic faith to draw down each of the promises needful for our well being as and when needed.
The eternal dimensions of our rewards are three fold:
1. We will inherit eternal life! This alone is worth serving and dying for: the joy of eternal fellowship with God!
2. We will serve as co-heirs with Christ as Kings over nations of the world and rulers of cities and regions when He sits as King of Kings and Lord of Lords in Jerusalem for 1000 years
3.We will serve as Priests of God who will minister to and teach billions of people across the world (who will be transmitted into the Millennial reign of Jesus but did not know Him in the present age)These are the of these scriptures which are generally misapplied by those who reject accuracy of scriptures: Revelation 1:5-6; Revelation 5:9,10; Revelation 20:1-6.
