Read: Revelation 22:10-13
Parents have an effective trick up their sleeves to get their children to do something, which, by the way, could be quite a challenge. This is the age-old giving of rewards. And it almost always works.
Rewards are effective incentives to get people to do something, even if it means that they would have to suffer to do it.
God also uses rewards, but not in the way we human beings do. Businesses, for example, grant rewards but only after certain conditions are met, such as spending a certain amount, or signing up for something. Teachers use reward systems to encourage positive classroom behaviour, which will then make their work somewhat easier. As for parents, well, as loving and selfless individuals as we are, deep down, we want those dishes done, we want the trash taken out, and we want their beds made. Because there are a billion other things that need doing in the house and we could use some help.
In short, we humans wield the power of rewards for something in return. Even our most honest and selfless incentive is still tainted by self-interest. Our best intentions still fall short of pure altruism.
The only truly altruistic one is God. He does not use rewards to acquire anything. God, being self-sufficient and having no needs, doesn’t need to lure us with rewards so that He may gain something from us. There is absolutely nothing we can do to make Him better. There is nothing He could profit from us.
The Bible says that, “He is the God who made the world and everything in it… and human hands can’t serve His needs—for He has no needs. He himself gives life and breath to everything, and He satisfies every need” (Acts 17:24 NLT).
Indeed, God is the Need-Satisfier, the Ultimate Provider and Benefactor of all creation. So it is not for His own advantage that He promised rewards for our righteous suffering. It is, rather, simply for our own sakes that He rewards us. It is purely out of His genuine love and care for us.
God’s rewards, unlike earthly ones, are not material and temporal. Rather, they are divine and everlasting. Endurace, character, and hope, these are the rewards of righteous suffering, which are priceless (Romans 5:3-4). When developed within, these rewards further equip a believer in enduring more righteous suffering, which will in turn make the believer able to do the will of God until Christ returns.
The Bible says, James 1:12 says, “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him,” (James 1:12).
The greatest reward, of course, is when we meet the One who suffered and died for our sins, the One who gave His life for us, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 4:13 – But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.
And so in your righteous suffering, keep your head up, look to our Heavenly Father whose rewards are ready for you. Endure until the end, because He who promised is faithful and true. He assures us, “Look, I am coming soon, bringing my reward with me to repay all people according to their deeds’” (Revelation 22:12).
Reflect:
Give one reward promise of God that motivates you the most in your service to the Lord.
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