There's the teaching that in
heaven there will be a difference among God's people. Those who
have been saved many years and been faithful to the church and
to the gospel and to making their contributions, witnessing, and
as they say, when in soul, will occupy a higher seat in heaven
than others. There's also a very shocking teaching that certain denominations
will occupy the new Jerusalem, the city of God, and everybody
that's not in that denomination will be outside the gates of
the city. They'll be permitted to come
in occasionally, but they can't live there. Somebody said they
must leave at night, and I said, there's no night there when they're
going to know when to leave. You know, this is taught, actually
taught. And surprisingly, it's a Baptist
doctrine. There are Baptist churches over
this country. I just left a nest of them last
week that teach that unless you are a missionary Baptist, of
that particular brain. I'm a missionary Baptist since
I was knee-high to a duck, but I'm not in the Bride of Christ.
But I'm in good company. John the Baptist is not in the
Bride of Christ either, according to them. Neither is Moses or
David or Isaiah or Jeremiah or Noah or Enoch or Abel. Joseph or Jacob, so I just soon
hang around with those boys. It'll be all right. You know,
I think we'll enjoy ourselves I don't know what that crowd's
gonna do in the city, you know, because there's not too much
Nor is Isaac watch nor is John Newton nor is David Brainerd
nor is Robert Murray McShane in the bride Nor is John Owens
nor is Jonathan Edwards nor is Charles Spurgeon nor is John
Gill And you just keep naming they're not in it either And
you laugh at that, but brethren, these men are serious. They're
serious. We're bombarded with suggestions
of degrees in glory, of actually there being a judgment at the
end of time. And there are going to be believers
in Christ standing before the Lord weeping because they didn't
give more, do more, and go more. There are going to be other believers
standing before the throne who are going to be loaded down with
crowns. They're going to have them high as they can wear them,
and this is the truth, and they're going to have them in their arms.
Now, when they get through with some consideration to these dear
men who teach that, they are going to lay them at Christ's
feet. They do say that. But some people are not going
to have any crowns to lay at His feet. And I believe that
subject is dealt with right here in this Scripture. I think it's
dealt with clearly. I think it's dealt with in a
fashion that that we'd be foolish to question. This is the Word
of God. And here's what you have to do
to teach this sort of thing is go over here and get a verse,
and over here and get a verse, and over here and get a verse.
The Church of Christ does the same thing to teach baptismal
regeneration. And the Catholic does the same
thing to teach their doctrines. And somebody else does the same
thing to teach theirs. But if you'll take the subject,
our Lord Peter asked a question. He asked a question. He said,
Lord, behold, verse 27 of Matthew 19, we have forsaken all. And
they had. These men had left everything.
These men were ridiculed, despised, made fun of. These were the twelve
apostles. And they had literally forsaken
everything. They had forsaken their nets
and their boats and their friends and their families and everything
else. And they followed Him. And Peter wants to know. He said,
what are we going to have? What's going to be our reward?
What's going to be our recognition? What's going to be our position?
I don't understand a great deal about what Christ says here to
the apostles. I don't think many people do.
But he says to these 12 men, he says, ye that have followed
me in the regeneration, when the Son of Man shall sit in the
throne of His glory, ye shall, ye shall, ye also shall sit upon
12 thrones, judging the 12 tribes of Israel, and everyone your
Walter Groovers and your David Ellis's and your Bill Clark's
and your Judson's and your William Carey's and your John Williams's,
everyone that has forsaken houses and brethren and sisters and
mothers and fathers and wives and children and land, left their
home for my sake, they shall receive a hundredfold. They've
left nothing that they shall not receive a hundredfold. And
they shall inherit everlasting life. But many that are first
in position, in power, in authority, in gifts, in talents, in ability,
in service, shall be last, and the last shall be first. For
the kingdom of heaven, verse 1, is likened to a man. Now let
me just tell you the story. Our Lord gave this illustration.
This is the answer. There's nobody going to be slighted.
He says that. He said, a man's not going to
give a cup of cold water in my name and lose his reward. Nobody's
going to be forsaken. You're going to be blessed. You're
going to be blessed a hundredfold. You're going to receive everlasting
life. But as far as this position of importance and power and prestige
and glory, it shall not be for those that are first. in service,
in gifts, in talent, in ability, in accomplishments shall be last,
and the last shall be first." And then he gave this story.
He said a certain householder, here's a man who is the lord
of the vineyard, he called it. Well, he had grapes to pick.
He didn't have anybody to work. So he went out into the market
place, and he said he found some people there idle. And he said
to them, in verse 2, One went out early in the morning
to hire laborers when he agreed with the laborers that this is
six o'clock in the morning. And he hired some men and agreed
to pay them a penny to go work in his vineyard, a Roman penny,
whatever that amounted to. And they went. And then he, verse
three, he went out again about nine o'clock in the morning.
He saw some men standing in the same place idle. And he said
to those men, why do you stand here idle? And they said, nobody's
hired us. He said, go into the vineyard at nine o'clock. Twelve
o'clock, at three o'clock in the afternoon, and then down
here in verse six. Five o'clock in the evening,
the sun is setting. It's the last hour of the day.
That is of daylight. And he went out in the marketplace,
and he found some men standing there. He said, why are you standing
here idle? And they said, well, nobody's hired us. He said, you
want to work? Yes, we do. Well, go to my vineyard. Whatever's
right, I'll give you. They went to the vineyard and
all of them finished work. Six o'clock, when the evening
was come at six o'clock, he called his steward. And he said to him,
verse 8, You call the laborers and give them their hire, and
this is significant, beginning from the last unto the first.
And so the steward called in the men that had worked one hour,
and he gave them a penny. And then the fellows that had
worked three hours and six hours and nine hours. Some of them
worked 12 hours. They'd been out there all day long. They
said they'd borne the burden and heat of the day. And they
came and he gave them all the same thing. And they looked at
it and said, what's this? Well, he said, what you agreed to work
for a penny. Well, they said, those other fellows that just
worked an hour, they got a penny too. Well, he said, I did you
no wrong. When I hired you, what did you
agree to work for? We agreed to work for a penny.
Well, then take what belongs to you. I've done you no wrong,
can I not do with my own what I wish? It's my money, it's my
vineyard, you work for me, I'll give you what I choose. Are you
jealous and envious because I am gracious? Many are called, few
are chosen to grace and love and peace. Many are called, few
are chosen to know His love, few are chosen to enter into
His blessed will. Now the entire teaching of this
parable, as I can see it, is this. Our Lord is rebuking. Our Lord is rebuking those who
fall into a legal spirit. He's rebuking those who fall
into a proud spirit and begin to calculate what their reward
and their position ought to be in the kingdom of heaven. For
the kingdom of heaven, our Lord says, is a kingdom in which the
legal proud spirit is entirely out of place. since all of salvation
is a gift of God's grace. The legal spirit, the proud spirit,
is totally out of place in this Kingdom of Heaven. Now, what
are we saying? Here's two or three points. What are we saying?
Here's what I'm saying. I state this case as clearly as I can
from the Word of God as I've been taught by God's Spirit.
I'm saying that all believers, Jew or Gentile, all believers
now, all who have been brought by the Spirit of God to a knowledge
of sin, to an understanding of their inability, to faith and
confidence in Christ who had been regenerated and born again,
filled with the Spirit of God, saved by the grace of God, whether
Jew or Gentile, male or female, born or free, whether they are
Old Testament or New Testament believers, whether Moses looking
to the cross or you and I looking back to the cross, Old Testament
or New Testament, those saved early in life like Timothy, or
from the womb like John the Baptist, or those saved late in life like
the thief on the cross. I want to be understood what
I'm saying, and what I believe the Lord is teaching me. I'm
saying that every true believer, not every church member now,
every true believer, Every regenerated, born-again, saved person, everyone
who knows and loves and trusts the Lord Jesus Christ, whether
he's Jew or Gentile, whether he's male or female, whether
he's an Old Testament or New Testament believer, whether he's
saved as a young man or whether he's saved as a thief on the
cross, whether he's a martyr who has been burned for his faith,
or whether he's a believer that lived to be 95, whether he's
a missionary who has given his entire life, like many missionaries
have, who buried their wives and children on foreign soil
like Judson did, or whether he's a person who stayed home and
sent a missionary. Those who've given fortunes and
those who've given pennies. I'm saying that every one of
them who are redeemed by His grace and by His blood are loved
with the same love. redeemed by the same blood, chosen
in Christ, redeemed in Christ, crucified in Christ, risen in
Christ, ascended in Christ, seated in Christ, and they shall everyone
be just like Christ. And there shall be no difference
in glory, in their possessions, in their position, or in their
praises. That's exactly what our Lord
is teaching here. Now, all believers are sons of
God. All believers are heirs of eternal
glory. All shall be conformed to the
image of Jesus Christ. Turn to Psalm 17. Psalm 17, verse
15. Listen to what David said. Psalm
17, verse 15. As for me, I will behold thy
face in righteousness. I shall be satisfied when I awake
with thy likeness. Now how many believers are going
to experience that? John, how many believers are
going to experience that? everyone of them. They're all going to
be awake in His likeness and all are going to be totally,
completely satisfied with that mercy, with that blessing. As
Jay prayed a while ago, Christ is our only and our sufficient
reward. David says, I'm going to be satisfied
when God lines me up and tells everybody how good I was and
how great, no sir, I'll be satisfied when I awake with Christ's likeness.
Now turn to 1 John 3. I was giving some Scripture verses
to my grandson, Kay, last night in the car while we were waiting
on Doris to go in the store, and he wanted me to give him
some verses so he could look them up. And I said, well, turn
to John. He said, is that plain John or
I John? Well, I want you to turn to I
John. This is I John, I John 3. He says in I John 3, verse
1, Behold what manner of love The Father hath bestowed on us
that we should be called the sons of God. How many are sons
of God? Every believer is a son of God.
Every believer. What more is there, brethren,
than to be a son of God? Not a chief, but a son. Read
on. Therefore the world knoweth us
not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we sons of God.
And it doth not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that
when he shall appear, we'll be like him. How many are going
to be like him? Everlast one of them. are going to be like
Him. Not some more like Him than others.
They're all going to be like Him. You're either like Christ
or you're not like Christ. There can't be any degrees in
the likeness of Christ. We've got to be like Christ.
We shall see Him when He shall appear. We shall be like Him
for we shall see Him as He is. And every man that has this hope
in him, what hope? He's going to be like Christ.
Not the hope of degrees of glory, the hope of position, or the
hope of reward, the hope of being like Christ. One other verse,
turn to Philippians. And I say this is the tenor and
tone of the whole Scripture in reference to believers, Philippians.
Now brethren, you say, well why do preachers preach this? Why
do they preach degrees of glory and reward? Do you want me to
tell you exactly why? Besides pride? Besides a sectarian
spirit? They preach to motivate people
to do things for the church. That's exactly how they do it.
If you want to get a man to give more in this plate, tell him
that God will pay him off when he gets to glory. That's what
they do it for, I guarantee you, that's why they do it. If you
want to get young people not to do certain things that worldly
young people do, you tell them that when Jesus Christ comes,
If they do what those young people do, they're going to barely get
to heaven and have to live in a log cabin somewhere, while
the faithful young people are going to live in a mansion and
have a crown. That's exactly why they do it, Bob. Motivation. Same thing when I was growing
up. They tried to keep us out of the picture show by telling
us Christ may come that night and catch us there. And then
we'd be in trouble. Motivation. That's exactly what
to do. Well, let me tell you something.
That's rotten from the start. That's rotten from the root.
If you aren't motivated to love Christ and to worship Him, if
you aren't motivated with a better motive than that, you're in trouble
to begin with. Paul said, the love of Christ
constraineth me. The love of Christ. We don't
worship God because we might get caught somewhere when He
comes, or we might not get a reward when He comes, or we might not
get this, or somebody might be higher in heaven than we are.
We do it because we love Christ. We love sinners. We love His
Word. We love His people. We love to
glorify His name. Look at Philippians 3, verse
20. Our citizenship is in heaven.
We're citizens. sons in another family and citizens
of another kingdom. From whence also we look for
the Savior, the Lord Jesus, who shall change our vile body."
How many vile bodies are you going to change? Every one of
them. "...that it may be fashioned unto his glorious body." How
many of them? Every one of them. Every one
of them. "...according to the working
whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself." My
friends, with believers, sons of God, there is no difference.
They all have sinned. There is no difference. Christ
redeemed them all. There is no difference. The Holy
Spirit called them all. There is no difference. Lord
Jesus Christ intercedes for them all, and there is no difference.
They're all going to be like Him. There is no difference. Now then, secondly, believers
do not have the same gifts. They do not have the same offices. They do not have the same ability.
They do not have the same talent. Let's turn to Ephesians 4. Now
that's true. They're not all. They differ,
like snowflakes differ. There are millions of them, but
they're all different. Like the stars, there are millions of
them, but they're all different. But who maketh thee to differ?
Who maketh thee to differ? In Ephesians 4, our Lord said,
Verse 11, when he ascended to heaven, he gave some apostles,
he made 12 men apostles, a special particular office with gifts
and credentials. There aren't any apostles today.
He made some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, for
the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry,
for the edifying of the body of Christ. He made them what
He wanted them to be. He gave them gifts according
to His will. Turn to 1 Corinthians 12. We have the same thing over
here. The body of Christ is made up of many members. They're not
all just alike. Here's the head and here's the
body. Now, the eye is not the ear and
the ear is not the hand. The hand is not the foot. But
where would your body be if you didn't have those particular
members? How would your body function? And this is what he's
saying in 1 Corinthians 12, verse 6. Start with verse 4. Now, there are diversities of
gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of administrations,
or ministers, ministering, or ministries, but the same Lord.
There are diversities of operation, but it's the same God that worketh
all in all. You see how he's saying this? It's the same Spirit,
the same Lord, and the same Father, though His children have different
gifts and abilities and talents and offices. in verse 7, but
the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit
withal. Unto one is given the Spirit
of the word of wisdom, to another word of knowledge by the same
Spirit, to another faith, to another gifts of healing, to
another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another
discerning of spirit, to another different kinds of languages,
to another the interpretation, but all these worketh at one
and self, same Spirit dividing to every man as he will. For
as the body is one and hath many members, that's your natural
body, and all the members of that one body, being many, are
one body, so also is Christ. For by one spirit are we all
baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, bond
or free. We've been made to drink of one
spirit, for the body's not one member but many. Suppose the
foot says, well, I'm not the hand, I'm not of the body. Is
it not of the body? Suppose the ears shall say, well, I'm not
an eye, so I'm not of the body. Is it not of the body? What if
the whole body was an eye? What if the whole body was a
hearing? What if the whole body was a smelling? God hath set
the members, every one of them, in the body as it hath pleased
him. I wish we could get that through
here. Oh, through here, it'd be better, wouldn't it? Through
here, the heart would be better. And if they were all one member,
where would the body? Would you have a body? No, you
wouldn't have a body. But now there are many members,
yet one body. Thank God for the Isaac Watts
who wrote the hymn. Thank God for the Gills who wrote
the commentaries. Thank God for the Groovers and
Ellis's and Clark's and others who go to the mission field.
Thank God for the Wimbles. And thank God for the elders
out here. And thank God for those who put
something in the offering to keep us on the air tonight. You
prayed for the radio broadcast. We wouldn't have one if it wasn't
these folks. I don't know, it just disturbs
me. All believers do not have the
same capacity for knowledge even. They are elders in Christ. You
fellows that have been around a while and you know a little
bit about the Scripture, don't look down on the man who doesn't
know as much as you. God taught you. God gave you
your knowledge and your wisdom and your understanding. They
are elders in Christ, they are young men in Christ, and they
are babes in Christ. I'll tell you what Paul said.
He said one time, he said, if you've got a problem in the church,
you've got some folks having a problem, the way to solve that
problem is pick out the least esteemed members and let them
solve it for you. You know what he said? He said,
don't call in the leaders, don't call in the elders and deacons,
turn that problem over to the men, some of the men in the church,
and the women who are least esteemed, and they'll work that thing out
for you. Because they'll give God the glory. They won't try
to use their intelligence and their wisdom, you know, and their
experience. That's right. So there may be
degrees of punishment in hell. I'm not questioning that according
to light. But brethren, I cannot find in
God's Word anywhere where a man's going to be rewarded for something
God did. I don't believe that. I can't find anywhere in this
Bible A man is going to be rewarded for exercising a gift that God
gave him and fulfilling a responsibility for which God opened the door.
Now, I know you say, well, if somebody says, I don't like that,
well, now these laborers over here didn't like it either. They
didn't like it either. When they came to get their money
and they saw those fellows that came in last get just exactly
what they did, they got jealous and envious. And they thought
they deserved more because they worked harder. And you know,
James and John wanted special treatment, and Peter wanted special
recognition. But I believe those schooled
in grace, those who are schooled in grace, they'll have no murmuring
about place, position, or power, for they'll be able to say, I
am what I am by the grace of God. Now let's take another look
at this parable. Just a moment. Will you take
another look with me? And let's see how we can fit this into
our experience quickly. The owner went out, and our Lord
gave this parable. I'm not going to try to make
it walk on four legs. I'm going to use it for what
he used it for. He said the lord of the vineyard went out. Now
those workers weren't looking for him. He was looking for them.
That's the first thing. He went out, Jay, and found them.
He went out and found them. He made the move. And the same
thing is true of this picture right here. I didn't seek God,
He sought me. I didn't choose Him, He chose
me. I didn't call, He called me. That's right. He came where
I was. He found every one of them in
the same place in seeking, in the marketplace, in the world.
That's what He found. Everlast one of them. He found
everlast one of them in the same place. And He found everlast
one of them doing nothing idle. Every one of them. He found them
idle. All right? Every one of them,
the first one, he agreed with a price. He agreed on a price. He said, and they agreed with
the laborers. He agreed with the laborers for
a penny. That was agreed. He said, I'll give you this.
Our Lord Jesus Christ came to us where I was. And he says,
I'll forgive your sins. I'll give you pardon. I'll give
you life. I'll give you an heir, an inheritance,
I'll give you eternal glory, I'll give you all these things.
Praise the Lord. Isn't that wonderful? Nothing said here about any recognition
or place of special preeminence over somebody else, just I'll
give you this. You see, that's what he said.
Now, he called them in at different hours. And the others, he went
to them, he said, he didn't say one word about what he was going
to give them, he just said, I'll give you what's right. I'll give you what's
right. He called, just let me see when
he called them. I think there's something here.
Early in the morning, 6 o'clock in the morning, he called some.
I believe that's very young people, early in life. You know, Timothy
from a child knew the Holy Scriptures. There's some here tonight who
were brought to the knowledge of Christ very early in life.
Let's say, I don't want to give any ages here, but early in life.
And then there was the third hour. Nine o'clock in the morning. I would say that's people from
15 to 30 years of age. That's about, you see how many,
12 hours and nine o'clock in the morning would be one-fourth
of life gone. And then noon, he calls some,
that's half a life. That's what, 40 years of age,
30 to 40? And then three in the afternoon, what's that, 45 to
60 lives? Three-fourths gone. Three-fourths
gone. And then he, by his grace, he
called these men out there when 5, 6, but that's more than that,
isn't it? At 5 o'clock in the evening,
one hour left out of 12, that's 11 twelfths of life gone. 11 twelfths of it. That's a man
75, the last days of life. Christ called all of them in
the marketplace, all of them in sin, all of them in rags.
He went out there and called them, and when the day was over,
He called them in, and He blessed them, and He gave every one of
them the same thing. Every one of them. Turn to Ephesians
2. And when he did that, these fellows
that were hired, what are you going to be like? You fellows
that have been all your life in the gospel. I've been in it
34 years here in Ashland, 33 years preaching. And God saves
a man, say tonight, and he dies in six months. How will I find
it in my heart, Jay, to demand any more recognition than Him?
I don't understand that. Now, you'll explain that to me.
You'll explain that to me. It says in Ephesians chapter
2, that spirit I don't understand. That spirit, that attitude. Thank
God He saved me early. In Ephesians 2 verse 7, He says,
in verse 4, but God who is rich in mercy for His great love wherewith
He loved us even when we were dead in sin, He quickened us,
He called us, quickened us together with Christ. By grace are you
saved, free grace, the grace of God. He's raised us up together
and made us sit together in heavenly places. We occupy the same position,
legally, in Christ. that in the ages to come He might
show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward
us. He's not going to show what we
did. He's going to show what He did. He's not going to show
off the riches of our talents and of our gifts and of our...
He's going to show what He did for poor worthless worms and
ragged beggars and dead sinners. We're going to be trophies of
His grace. How in the world am I going to be a trophy of His
grace if I'm running around carrying my trophies? That's not going
to be. Now let me offer some observations. There'll be no mansions and cabins,
no high and low people, no rich and poor, no kings and paupers,
no people with crowns and some with no crowns. We're going to
reign with Christ. But let me offer you some suggestions.
These are four or five things, observations I've drawn from
this message. If you were converted early in
life, Say you were converted when you were 20 and somebody
else was converted when he was 60. Was your early conversion
a curse or a blessing? If you had the privilege of walking
with Christ longer on this earth than someone else, do you consider
yourself deprived or blessed? Do you think because You walked
with Christ longer than someone else that you deserve more recognition
than they do? You had more light and more understanding
than another? Was that a blessing or was that
a curse? I tell you actually, I think we've been rewarded already
to have the privilege of walking with Christ so long. Life has
already been a greater blessing. And then secondly, suppose you
had the gift to sing. Like these three ladies sang
tonight, like Shirley sang this morning. Somebody else doesn't
have that gift. So you sing during the services
and they don't. Should you be rewarded for that? Suppose you
have the gift to preach. Jay preaches, I preach, Darwin,
Bruce, some of these fellows help, others preach, Herman.
You fellows ought to be rewarded for that. Somebody else sitting
out there, he'd do it if he had the gift. Why, he'd do it in
a minute if he had. I don't know any child of God
that wouldn't preach the gospel if he had to give. Do you know
any? Wouldn't you, John, if you had to give? Why, in a minute. And then suppose you, suppose
you, God, God's prospered you. You have a good income. You make
more than this fellow over here. So, so you give a thousand dollars
in offering. He can't give but ten. You really
think God ought to give you a crown for that? Now, do you think God
will call you up in heaven and say, this gentleman here gave
$10,000 a year to the church. Now, you fellow, you that gave,
I tell you who just loudly called up is that old widow that gave
two pennies. Our Lord said she gave more than anybody. Now,
we need to learn this. And I tell you this, if that
spirit prevails in your heart or in my heart, we'd better do
something about it. Because that's not the spirit
of God. That's another spirit. Any man who... But the scripture
says this. Turn to 1 Corinthians 4. 1 Corinthians
chapter 4. And you say, why are you working
on this so heavily? I'm working on it because I think
it's an evil spirit. I think it's contrary to Christ.
I think it's contrary to the gospel. I think it's contrary
to the spirit of grace. And I think it's devastating
to God's people. In 1 Corinthians 4, 7, who maketh
thee to differ from another? What hast thou that thou didst
not receive? Now, if you received it, why do you glory as if you
had not received it? I tell you thirdly, it disturbs
me that any believer, any true believer in Christ would want
a higher seat in glory, a finer mansion, a brighter crown, a
greater reward, or a closer relationship with Christ than his brothers. Where is this, where is this,
I am less than the least of all the saints? What happened to
that? Where is this, I am the chief of sinners? Where is this,
I am nothing? Where is this scripture who says,
who is he that planteth? Who is he that watereth? Who
is he that ploweth? Nothing! God gives the increase.
What about those scriptures? Suppose I give my life, my time,
my money. Suppose I live for God's glory
for 50 years. I've only done what I ought to
do. Isn't that right? If I do any less, God ought to
deal with him in judgment. And even, he says, when we've
done all of that, we're still unprofitable servants. And let me ask you this, what
is any gift compared with his gift? What is any sacrifice compared
with his sacrifice? I think we should be ashamed
to expect recognition I think we should be ashamed. But I've
got a suggestion, I'm being a little facetious here, and a little
smart headed really, but I've got a suggestion. If anybody
here still lays claim to a reward, If anybody still in this congregation
would like to present your claims before God, you feel like that
you've preached or you sang or you gave a certain amount of
money or you attended church and Sunday school and taught
Sunday school and labored all your life and you feel like you
should be rewarded, I'm going to suggest that Almighty God
let you present your claim right after Noah speaks. That would
be a good place for you to stand up. Or perhaps He would let you
follow Job. Maybe he'd like to be on the
program, Jay, right after Job gets through. Or maybe perhaps
you'd like to follow Abraham. Or maybe turn to 2 Corinthians
11. Perhaps this would be the one for you to follow. In 2 Corinthians
11, the Apostle Paul is talking about his persecutions. And he says in 2 Corinthians
11, Verse 23, are they ministers of Christ, these fellows, these
legalists, these fellows disputing over position and power and preeminence? I speak as a fool, I am over.
2 Corinthians 11, 23, in labors more abundant, in strikes above
measure, in prison more frequent, in deaths often. Of the Jews,
five times received I fought his strikes, save one. Five times
he was scourged. Three times I was beaten with
rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I suffered shipwreck.
I spent a night and a day in the deep, in journeyings often,
in perils of water, perils of robbers, in perils by my own
countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city,
in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils
among false brethren, in weariness and painfulness, in watchings
often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and
nakedness. Beside those things that were
without, That which cometh upon me daily, the care of the churches."
Bradman, when I read something like that, and someone begins
to talk to this poor fellow that's never paid a price, never made
a sacrifice, never known what it is to be persecuted, talk
to me about a reward. I don't even want to hear it
preached. I don't even want to hear it
suggested. I'll tell you what I want to
do. I want to shrink back in that crowd of believers and see
the Lord Jesus Christ exalted. I want to just fall back at His
feet and say, give Him the glory and the praise. Were it not for
His grace, I'd still be in the marketplace of sin, idle in my
rags and dirt and hunger and filth. And if He allowed me to
work twelve hours in his vineyard for his glory. Praise his name.
I'd work for free, wouldn't you? If he allowed me to work for
ten hours, praise or nine hours, and bless your heart if he allows
us to just be there an hour, all glory to him. I'm content
to say of all redeemed of all ages what our assistant pastor
prayed a moment ago, Christ is our reward. And I'm saying this,
what possible interest could I have in anything else if I
have Christ? What possible interest? And let
me ask you this, just as food for thought, something to think
about. What direction would these rewards take? If they're not
position, if they're not power, if they're not prestige, if they're
not preeminence, what would they be material? What use would I
have for anything material when the wealth of heaven is mine? What use would I have for anything?
What use would I have for any kind of crown? When I'm walking
on gold, walking on streaks of gold, that's figuratively, I'm
sure. But these, the spirit of it,
I want you to consider this, I want you to think about it.
Please don't take these things because I'm saying them. I know
you won't. But look into this scripture. And you say, but preacher,
he shall present a crown of righteousness, crown of life. There are different
crowns mentioned. But leave those crowns in their
context. And I say this, those crowns are meant for every believer.
And they're a good possibility. Those aren't literal crowns.
They're figurative crowns. the crown of life, and the crown
of righteousness, and the crown of glory, and all of these different
crowns, and rewards. And then in 1 Corinthians 3,
you have a message to preachers there about seeing their works
burned. The foundation is Christ Jesus,
and we build on Christ that which is either wood, hay, and stubble,
or that which is gold, silver, and precious stone. And the wood,
hay, and stubble will not stand the heat of the fire, and it's
swept away. And that man suffers a loss, a loss right here on
this earth. And that gold, silver, and precious
stone stands. But it's still the work of God.
He did it all. He found me. He chose me. He
called me. He redeemed me. He kept me. And
He glorified me. And He's pleased to call every
believer when it pleases Him. The Apostle Paul was about 40
years of age when God saved him. Timothy was a very young man.
But it's of the Lord. Our Father, bless the Word. We're
thankful tonight that our Lord has spoken to us through his
word. We believe that you led us tonight
to look into this scripture. We believe that you led thy servant
to deliver this message. And now we pray you would accomplish
what it pleases thee. But most of all, give every one
of us a spirit of grace, a spirit of humility. a spirit of concern
and compassion. Deliver us, O Lord, from pride.
Deliver us from being motivated by bad motives and wrong motives. Grant that we shall so understand
what we were by nature and what God did for us in Christ and
what He's going to make of us someday. We're going to be like
the Savior. And put the grace of God in our
hearts that will lead every one of us to be able to say with
David, I'll be satisfied. when I wake with His likeness.
And Lord, enable us to be able to rejoice when we read passages
like this, the last shall be first and the first shall be
last. And even those, and give us the spirit of grace when those
who are called in the final hour walk up to be honored and glorified
before us. For we see in our Lord's Word
that those who were hired last were paid first. But glory to
thy name and praise to thy name. Thank thee for the privilege
of preaching your word. Thank you for the privilege of
hearing it. Thank you for the privilege of fellowshipping with
your people and being a part of your family. And thank you
for the glorious hope that we're going to be like Christ. In his
name we pray. Amen. Ronnie, come lead us in
a song, please. Number 474. Let's stand please. Not have I gotten, but what I
received. Grace hath bestowed it, since
I have believed. Boasting excluded, pride I have
raised. I'm only a sinner, saved by grace. Only a sinner, saved by grace. This is my story, to God be the
glory, I'm only a sinner saved by grace.