Sacrifice Determines Heavenly Rewards

Luke 21:1-4 “And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury, (2) and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites.  (3)  So, He said, "Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; (4) for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.”

In this section we want to discuss how heaven values the works we do on the earth, which is completely different to this world’s standards. Many in the church mistakenly assume that this world’s standards are also applied in heaven, and so when they see for example a minister of the gospel having a “prosperous” ministry with a large following in the church they naturally assume that their reward will be great on that day. The heavenly reward for our works are never based on the impact or size of our works however, but are always based on the sacrifice that we have incurred in doing those works. You will recall that our Lord taught us that the one who desired to be great in the kingdom of God had to become last of all and servant of all (Mark 9:35). In the passage of scripture quoted above our Lord Jesus gave us a clear example of this heavenly principle, for even though this poor widow gave the least of all on that day, our Lord taught us that she gave more than all the others. So why did the Lord say that? He said that because the cost she incurred in giving her offering was far greater than all the others combined, for she had given everything she had. And so this poor widow will be rewarded in heaven immeasurably more than all the others that gave on that day. The clear principle that is illustrated in this passage is that heaven never rewards us in proportion to the size of works we have done; it always rewards us in proportion to the cost that we have incurred in doing those works.

1 Corinthians 9:16-18 “For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not preach the gospel!  (17)  For if I do this willingly, I have a reward; but if against my will, I have been entrusted with a stewardship.  (18)  What is my reward then? That when I preach the gospel, I may present the gospel of Christ without charge, that I may not abuse my authority in the gospel.”

In the passage of scripture quoted above we have another example of this same heavenly principle, for in this passage the apostle Paul teaches us a very valuable lesson in relation to our rewards received for the specific works that our Lord Jesus has called each of us to perform on the earth. The principle that I want you to see here is that even though Paul was preaching the gospel and impacting the lives of multitudes, he stated that he should not expect to be rewarded for doing this and in fact he stated that he would incur woe if he didn’t preach the gospel. So why would the apostle Paul say something like that? He said it because he understood the principle of heavens rewards being based on not only what works we do, but also on the cost we incur in doing those works. And so the simple act of preaching the gospel was not costing Paul very much because he had received that ability (stewardship) from the Lord. The Lord had however commanded that those who preach the gospel should live by the gospel (1 Corinthians 9:14), and so Paul had decided that he would forgo this right and preach the gospel free of charge, i.e. not take up offerings for his ministry. In this way it would cost Paul to preach the gospel, and so in that way he could expect heaven’s reward for doing that which God had already instructed him and enabled him to do.

Matthew 19:27-29 “Then Peter answered and said to Him, "See, we have left all and followed You. Therefore, what shall we have?"  (28)  So, Jesus said to them, "Assuredly I say to you, that in the regeneration, when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.  (29) And everyone 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 hundredfold, and inherit eternal life.”

 In the passage of scripture quoted above our Lord Jesus reinforces the principle of heaven’s rewards being directly related to the cost we incur in doing our works. In this passage the apostle Peter asked the Lord what rewards the twelve apostles could expect to receive seeing that they had left all to follow Him. Our Lord’s answer was that they would be seated on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel, but the Lord did not stop there, for He went on to say that everyone who left all and followed Him for the sake of the gospel could expect to receive a one hundredfold reward of that which they had left behind and also receive eternal life. Not all believers are prepared to make that degree of sacrifice however, and in fact most believers aren’t called to make that degree of sacrifice. For those who are called and obey however, they can expect to receive the one hundredfold reward that our Lord Jesus spoke about. And so the principle remains clear. Heaven’s rewards for good works are in direct relation to the cost incurred in doing those good works.

Luke 17:7-10 “And which of you, having a servant ploughing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, 'Come at once and sit down to eat'?  (8)  But will he not rather say to him, 'Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink'?  (9)  Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not.  (10)  So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, 'We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.'”

In the passage of scripture quoted above our Lord Jesus reinforced the fact that doing God’s will for our lives, in and of itself, is no guarantee of our being rewarded in heaven. For our Lord tells us in this passage that when we are obedient to do the works which our Lord calls us to do, that our attitude should be that we are just unprofitable servants who have done that which we were commanded to do. So is the Lord saying for example, that those who are called to preach the gospel and are obedient to that call cannot expect any reward from Him on that day? He is not saying that at all, because elsewhere in scripture we are taught that those who are faithful in their callings will be rewarded on that day. The Lord Jesus is dealing with the principle of cost in this passage, and so what He is saying is that the proportion of reward that they can expect is in relation to the cost that they have incurred in obeying their call. This same principle applies to every work that our Lord Jesus has called us to do.

Michael E.B. Maher

Eternal Judgement

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