January 5, 2010 Daily Reading

In these two passages of scripture, we deal heavily with reward. Abram receives many rewards: one great reward that will have eternal implications (I won’t deal with this one here because I think it will be better served in Galatians ) and many small rewards of earthly value; both of which Abram will benefit greatly. He receives the promise of the Seed, favor with the pharaoh (even after being dishonest!), the promise of the land, a blessing from the high priest, Melchizedek, AND he defeated the kidnapping kings. Talk about reward! These are the kinds of rewards that excite us. We love the rewards that speak to our goodness and pat us on the back for our obedience (and disobedience at times). We love being made much of by God and having Him applaud how glorious we are to Him, how much He is happy that we’re on His team.

Abram’s reward seems more “logical” to us as humans. You do something good on earth and you reap a good earthly reward. Go when God calls you, do what God says, and He’ll bless your socks off with all your earthly desires greater than you can ever imagine! Unfortunately, many teach that we are to anticipate these earthly rewards to the detriment of the church, leaving her to chase the lusts of her flesh. I can hear many of you thinking, “Oh no, not me. I don’t want God to make much of me. He’s the glorious One!” But does your life echo those sentiments? If we take off our self-righteousness for a second or two, we’ll probably see ourselves somewhere in there because if the truth were told, we are all lovers of ourselves (even if we self loathe—especially if we self-loathe). So, what’s the cure for this? Let’s lean over into the gospel of Matthew, pull up a chair (or maybe a rock ) on the Mount, and listen to what Jesus says.

Jesus speaks of rewards that have absolutely NO earthly value. In fact, the one who receives the rewards must suffer greatly according to earthly standards of “blessedness” and receive their reward in heaven. Among the rewarded are the mourners, the poor in spirit, and those persecuted for righteousness sake. THESE are the ones who will be called the sons of God, who will be comforted, who will inherit the kingdom of heaven, who will receive mercy, who will see God (etc.)—who will receive the GREAT reward of Matthew 5:12.

Let us all take some time today to reflect on where we stand. Do an honest assessment of yourself and spend some time in prayer over the condition of your desires:

• Which reward am I most concerned with?
• If I say I am most concerned with Christ’s heavenly reward, do I possess any of the characteristics of those who are qualified for the reward? If not, what’s standing in my way?
• If I can honestly say that I am not all that excited about the heavenly reward and my heart desires all that the earth has to offer, I will pray earnestly and confide in/pray with a trusted brother/sister in the faith for Christ to detour my desires and give me a ferocious thirst for His righteousness.

Beatitudes, Rewards