Pay Day
Pastor Larry D. Kettle
Have you ever wondered why people drive on a parkway and park on a driveway? There have been many “Geniuses” who have produced brainchildren and bright ideas. (Most of them now work for the government)
Labor day is a bright idea. Honoring the American Worker is worthwhile. We owe a lot to our hard working laborers both union and non-union. Labor Day is actually the brainchild of Labor Unions. The practice of setting aside a day to honor workers began in 1882 in New York City. In 1894 Congress made Labor Day a Federal Holiday.
I do find it ironic that Labor Unions now oppose states having right to work laws. It goes to show that man can take a bright idea and put a dimmer switch on it! The title of this Holiday always intrigued me as a child. “I asked my mother once why they called it “Labor Day” if everybody just took off from work?” She offered me the chance to work if I wanted to; I wisely declined.
Really, the day should be called “Lazy day”, “Lake day”, Lounge day” or if you get presented with a “honey-do” list; “look forward to going back to work so you can rest day!” Most of us like the idea of being able to get paid for a day that we don’t work. (Some only wish we could be so fortunate.) I don’t know about you, but I am glad to see “pay day” come, especially if there is any “Pay” left at the end of “paying the bills day”!
Did you know that Heaven has an economy and that Jesus is in charge of a payroll? The Bible teaches us that there will be a day of reward and a day of judgment. Have you ever had someone that owes you money promise, “to catch up with you later?” Be assured that Jesus will “catch up” with all of us. Be doubly assured that he will pay us our wages. He is a “Rewarder” as much as He is Savior, Healer, Baptizer, and Coming King. Everyone will receive what is deserved when the day comes.
Have you noticed how time flies? Pressure makes it fly faster; just ask a “student procrastinator” who is cramming for the next test, or a child who is stuffing their britches full of padding while they wait for “their dad to come home!” Anticipation, on the other hand, can make time seem to stand still. Looking forward to something can make a clock and calendar watcher out of you. If we are looking forward to a reward we usually find that time moves too slow. If we are dreading retribution or quaking in fear of possible failure we feel the pressure of time flight. Some people dread meeting their Maker. Other people have a nonchalant attitude about the day of Christ’s coming. The day of His coming is not a day to dread nor is it a day to shrug your shoulders at; it is a day to get ready for! Jesus is coming soon, and Christians, we need to get ready. I am not talking about whether or not you will make the rapture. I am talking about being prepared for the judgment seat of Christ. Lets take a closer look at what Jesus says to John in Revelation 22: 12-13.
Revelation 22: 12-13
• 12 “Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
Now, lets take a closer look. Understanding definitions is important; so let’s unpack this verse by examining the Greek words in verse 12. Behold I am coming soon. Behold (horao) be in attendance- “Just because the lights are on doesn’t mean anyone is home!” Pay attention – Being in attendance doesn’t automatically mean that you are paying attention. There are many people who have attended churches where the word of God has been proclaimed faithfully, yet they didn’t really pay attention. Some people are too poor to pay attention. Jesus described these people in Revelation chapter 2 as He referred to the Laodecian Church. He talked about how they are rich in “this world’s goods, and they have need of nothing.” My Dad used to tell me that “I couldn’t see for looking!” He wanted me to understand that the power of observation was the key to promotion. This is true in the arena of the spirit as well. The parables of the talents and the minas teach us that Jesus rewarded the observant investor whereas He rebuked the stubborn and fearful “hoarder”. Jesus wants his church to open spiritual eyes and see what He wants us to focus on. And, he wants us to get with the program because time is running out!
Take action – Students can attend schools for 16 to 20 years and become professional students. People can be in love with learning new things and yet never really know anything. The Apostle Paul referred to people who “were ever learning” and yet they were not able to “come to the knowledge of the truth”. (2 Timothy 3:7) We know that Jesus is coming soon; but if we are not active in serving him what will the day of reward look like for us? We are required to be faithful! (1 Cor. 4:2) We will be held accountable for being doers of the word and not hearers only. (James 1:22) Why does it matter to me that Jesus is coming soon? “I AM”, Jesus is the eternally self-existent God who always was, is, and always will be! He is the Alpha and Omega, the Greek Alphabet for A to Z! John the revelator goes out of his way to underscore and repeat three times, using different words, that Jesus is the beginning and He is the end. He is the only person in the universe that can claim this title.
We need to especially pay attention to the fact that He is the end. The end of your life is a certainty! None of this would matter if you simply cease to exist at the end of your life on earth. Unfortunately there are people who have died believing this and will certainly be sorry for their gamble! The Bible says in Hebrews 9:27, that there is an appointment that all of us will keep with death and the next item on the agenda is judgment. Get this down after you write, “the end” God puts the period on your sentence! If you have not received your full pardon, Jesus has paid for it by his death. Your choice is to receive his gift of eternal life or to go on trying to pay your own way. If you choose to reject the offer that Jesus has made you will attend a judgment that is much more dreadful than the one that I am going to talk about now. Trust me, you don’t want to go to the Judgment of the White Throne!
Jesus will preside over the judgment of his people. At that judgment everything that we have done in the body will be evaluated whether it is good or bad. Our motives, attitudes, and behavior in every work will pass through the fire that is in his eyes! (Revelation 1:14) The works that remain and that will be rewarded are compared to gold, silver, and precious stones. The works that will be burned up and destroyed are described as being made of wood, hay, and stubble. We have assurance that those who are thus judged will still be saved as by fire. Now I don’t know about you, but I do not want to see the works of my life go up in smoke! The fact is if I shrug my shoulders and have an uncaring attitude toward the coming of Jesus Christ it could mean that I also have a poor attitude about serving the Lord while I am here! Jesus is coming soon, and His reward is with him! This is the “I AM” we are talking about!
His coming is a promise and it will be a glorious appearing for a glorious church! He is coming soon, in other words, without delay, suddenly, readily, and it will be a surprise that we are expecting. For those of us who have accepted Christ it is a day of anticipation. It is a day of anticipation because we will see Jesus. And, when we see Him He will have his reward with him. We need to take more time to think about what that looks like.
Most of us look forward to pay day. Do we think of paydays as a reward? Do we consider paydays as a privilege of employment? Being employed is a blessing in more ways than one. It is great to receive an income and to be able to pay your bills. A comfortable living is the goal of most workers that I know. However, there is a difference in what people think they need in order to be comfortable. The satisfaction that comes from a job well done is part of the reward and the pay is the other part. When we come before Jesus, who is the custodian of our reward, he will evaluate our service to him. In the Greek the word for reward is (misthos), it is defined as wages or pay for service and it applies to our work and service whether it is good or bad. If it is good we will receive a reward. If it is of inferior quality it will be destroyed, yet we will be saved.
Jesus declared that, “My reward is with me.” The Greek word (sun) brings out the fact that the reward is personally associated with Jesus. In other words Jesus is the accountant for your reward. The reward is in Christ’s possession and he is the owner of the account. Another shading of the word is that Jesus is the “instrument” another words, He is the signatory who signs the order. Finally, the word speaks of “completion” meaning he is the closer. He is the one who will make the final transaction.
This reward is not just for the “Mother Teresa types”! The reward is designed for everyone. There are no exceptions, everyone will receive a reward and Jesus will give them out.
Check out 1 Corinthians 3:8-15 8 The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor. 9 For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.
10 By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. 11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.
12 If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13 his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. 14 If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. 15 If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.
Spring is an awesome time to have a student in school because it is the time that they hand out rewards. I love going and seeing my children receive recognition and honor for their hard work and achievement as students. Different students react to their recognition in various ways. Some students will try to hide and then when they are caught, try to deflect the attention saying, “who me?” Others strut proudly on to the stage, flash a big smile, strike a good pose, and swagger off of the platform. Some people like the attention and others do not but the point is that all of them deserve their rewards
Jesus said, “I will give”. The Greek word is (apodidomi) which means give back, pay, perform, recompense, render, complete, restore, reward. Jesus feels the same way about “us kids” as I do about “my kids”. He will reward all of us and he will reward each of us. There isn’t going to be any “group” rewards given. He has all of the “eternity” that he needs to read all of the names. He has all the records he needs to give a full review!
Another incredible fact is that your reward in heaven will belong to you! You will not be a manager at that point. You will be a joint-owner with Jesus. A joint heir of the inheritance of Jesus Christ! (Romans 8:17, James 2:5)
How much time do you spend thinking about your destiny in life? You have probably thought quite a lot about your desires; for instance what you want to eat, what you want to drink, what you plan to wear, where you plan to go. Some people are driven by their immediate destination and have no idea of their ultimate destiny. Others are keen on enjoying the trip and smelling the roses. The destination is a lesser priority for this kind of traveler. Either way whether you are a “type A” traveler or “the other type”, you need to know that your destiny is beyond your destination. Your destiny is what will outlive your life on this earth. It is the picture of your future in heaven with Christ and it is the legacy that you will leave on this earth for future generations that will follow you.
Many people look at salvation as being the reward but salvation is not a wage that you can earn! Therefore, it is not the reward that Jesus is talking about in the text. Jesus has invested his riches in us! He left us here on earth with a commission (Matthew 28: 18-20), a mandate, to enlist disciples. His instructions were clear and explicit. You see when we received salvation we also received our employment handbook. The employee handbook is very clear about the conditions of our employment as well as the compensation for our employment. The handbook is the Bible, the word of God. It is true that we receive salvation as a result of the finished work of Jesus Christ. However, it is also true that we are expected to produce fruit that will last for God’s glory. (John 15:16)
This could all get sort of tedious if we fail to understand that we have been given the resources to complete the work. The resource is the Holy Spirit and He is alive in you! (John 15:4-5, 16:13) The work is a “tall order” to say the least. It is very important to Jesus Christ! So much so that he is keeping an account of our response to him and he is prepared to pay us handsomely! (Matthew 16:27, Mark 9:41, Ephesians 6:8, Colossians 3:24, Hebrews 10:35, Hebrews 11:26, 2 John 8)
Can you see that Jesus is coming, and that he is the one who will pay you back for your obedience and devotion? The obedience that he requires is not “too hard” because we have the Holy Spirit to help us. Jesus is our Savior-Healer, Baptizer, and Coming King (Rewarder). (Hebrews 11:6) He will be catching us up in the clouds to be with him, and he will catch up with us (to pay us back). Jesus will certainly make His payroll. Our Labor Days on earth will bring an incredible payday in heaven!
It is so rewarding to be part of a cause that makes a difference! It is so gratifying to join in a purpose that is greater than we are and that will outlive us. That cause is employment in the Kingdom of God!
Have you accepted the free gift of eternal life yet, if not why not? Have you accepted the free gift but don’t know what is next? Here it is, receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit and then get to work. Your rewarder will be settling up with you! Are you ready to be caught up with Him? Are you ready for Him to catch up with you?
