Victory Can Be Yours!
Article #56 –
“Eternal Rewards (Part 2)”
Understanding
eternal rewards is so terribly important to us as believers that it deserves
more attention. Many churches and people
believe if you sin you will lose your salvation, or, that you never had it to
begin with. That is not based on the
Scripture. Jesus said, “This is the will
of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have
eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:40)
The promise here is that if you believe in Jesus you will have
everlasting life. That is a promise from
God and He does not break His promises.
This is clear throughout the Bible so, that question should be settled
for good. Now, what does happen if we
fall into sin or if we do not serve God?
We don’t lose our salvation, so, what happens?
God has all kinds of rewards or
treasures laid up for those who love and serve Him. We cannot know what rewards await us
following the judgment seat of Christ but, we must know that whatever they are,
we must work for them and endure until the end.
We can know generally what the rewards will look like; in the parable of
the 10 minas one received authority over 10 cities and another over five
cities. In 2 Timothy, we read, “It is a trustworthy statement: For if we
die with Him, we will also live with Him; if we endure, we will also reign with
Him.” (2 Tim. 2:11, 12a) From this
passage it is certain that we could potentially have authority to reign with
Christ. The capacity at which we could
reign is dependent upon the value of our works and whether we endure to the
end. It looks like the promise is
twofold, you do good works and last to the end honoring God. Paul writes about running the race to win. (1
Cor. 9:24)
In Revelations, chapter two and
three, John writes to the seven churches passing along what Jesus has
instructed him regarding the behavior of these seven churches. He both criticizes the churches and
encourages them. Jesus tells each of
them what they have done right and what they have done wrong. At the end of the letter to each of the
seven, Jesus instructs them what they must do and what they may be rewarded. These rewards are not to the churches but to
the individuals within each of the churches.
To the church of Ephesus He instructs, that they will suffer tribulation
but if they are faithful until death, they will be given the crown of
life. To another church He promised if
they repent of their wrongs they would receive hidden manna and a white
stone. To a third church He says, “Nevertheless what you have, hold fast
until I come. And he who overcomes, and
he who keeps My deeds until the end, to him I will give authority over the
nations; and he shall rule them with a
rod of iron, as the vessels of the potter are broken to pieces, as I also
have received authority from my Father; and I will give him the morning star.”
(Rev. 2:25-28)
Blessed will be those who serve
God with a loving heart and will endure, last, stand firm in the Lord to the
end of their lives. For them the rewards
will be great. All who have believed in
Jesus will inherit eternal life in heaven but for those who serve and honor God
to the end will have a much greater eternal experience than those who do not.
You, too, can have victory in
Jesus! More to follow.
Lowell Parrish
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