How to keep a divine perspective

When it comes to eternal rewards, Jesus and the New Testament writers used a number of analogies to describe the kinds of rewards which God will bestow on those who faithfully partner with Him.  One particular word picture that shows up several times is receiving a crown.  Sometimes, crown-rewards are specific to particular groups, while earning other crown-rewards are open to all believers. 

Crowns designate both power and authority.  Some commentators have equated God bestowing a crown with our modern-day practice of a soldier earning a medal.  The medal itself does not contain valor, but instead declares the owner to have earned the reward through courage, bravery, or heroism.

Last time we looked at a crown that is available for those who have put in the effort to care for and disciple other believers.  Next is a crown that is available to believers whose lives are driven by a divine perspective.

Since meeting Jesus on the road to Damascus, the Apostle Paul has worked to spread the good news of eternal life through Jesus.  He’s worked in his local church, he’s gone on mission trips, he’s mentored younger believers, and he’s written letters of both encouragement and rebuke to help other believers understand how to live out their new life in Christ.  However, in his last letter – written to his protégé, Timothy – we read that Paul knows his time on earth is almost up.  Soon after writing this letter, he is brought before Emperor Nero and beheaded.

However, he is not afraid of what’s next.  In fact, he’s already looking beyond his meeting with Nero:

2 Timothy 4:6-8
For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time for my departure is close.  I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 

There is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that day, and not only to me, but to all those who have loved His appearing.

Joseph Dillow, author of “Final Destiny: The Future Reign of the Servant Kings”, describes the crown of righteousness in these terms:

Righteousness in this passage should be understood as “upright behavior”.  It is a crown of vindication, a crown which says, “Paul, you have lived well.”…As he wrote, Paul stood before an unrighteous judge receiving an unrighteous reward.  But one day, he will stand before the only Judge that matters and that Judge will grant to him a righteous crown, a crown of vindication saying, “Paul, you were right, Rome was wrong!  Thank you for serving Me.”

The crown of righteousness is for all those who have loved His appearing.  Do we look forward to the day when Jesus returns, just like He promised He would?  I’m sure for most of us, the concept of Christ’s return sounds great.  But if He returned right now – how would you feel about the life you’re living?  Would you be happy to give Jesus a tour of your daily life, or does the thought of a heavenly life-audit bring a sense of shame?  If Jesus appeared right now, would you stand up and cheer, or would you be more inclined to shrink back in embarrassment?

Looking back, there are plenty of moments in my life where I’m relieved that Jesus didn’t return at that specific moment.  Not so much as a “gotcha!” but as a “I’m selfishly living the life He’s given me right now”.  Thankfully, there is an antidote, one that will put us back on track to earn the crown of righteousness, and it is found in one of the Apostle John’s letters:

1 John 2:28
So now, little children, remain in Him so that when He appears we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming.

Getting our life on track doesn’t require an 8-step program or a magical formula.  Our aim is to remain in Him.  Stay connected to Jesus, just like a branch needs to be connected to the vine.  When we do, our confidence and life-decisions will sort themselves out.  The longer we remain in Him, the better we get at it, too.  We’ll learn how to live well, and we’ll truly look forward to His appearing.

How great would it be to hear “Well done!” from Jesus and then to receive the crown of righteousness from Him?

Keep Pressing,
Ken

Giving the world what it needs

If you spend even a few months attending church services, you’ll likely hear someone say a phrase similar to “Jesus is the vine, and we are the branches”.  What they’re quoting is from John 15, where Jesus is teaching His disciples as they walked to the Garden of Gethsemane.  The apex statement in the section is found in verse five:

John 15:5
I am the vine; you are the branches.  The one who remains in Me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without Me.

But did you know…that God had previously used the vine analogy to describe His relationship with Israel?  Take a look at what the prophet Isaiah said about 700 years before Jesus:

Isaiah 5:1-2
I will sing about the one I love, a song about my loved one’s vineyard.  The one I love had a vineyard on a very fertile hill.  He broke up the soil, cleared it of stones, and planted it with the finest vines.  He built a tower in the middle of it and even dug out a winepress there.  He expected it to yield good grapes, but it yielded worthless grapes.

And then God speaks:

Isaiah 5:3-6
So now, residents of Jerusalem and men of Judah, please judge between Me and My vineyard.  What more could I have done for My vineyard that I did?  Why, when I expected a yield of good grapes, did it yield worthless grapes? 

Now I will tell you what I am about to do to My vineyard:
I will remove its hedge, and it will be consumed;
I will tear down its wall, and it will be trampled.
I will make it a wasteland.
It will not be pruned or weeded; thorns and briers will grow up.
I will also give orders to the clouds that rain should not fall on it.

And to make sure the people understood the analogy, Isaiah says:

Isaiah 5:7
For the vineyard of the Lord of Armies is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah, the plant He delighted in.  He expected justice but saw injustice; He expected righteousness but heard cries of despair.

The best explanation of this passage that I’ve found comes from G. Campbell Morgan, in his book Great Chapters of the Bible:

Two words in this interpretation reveal the Divine purpose and ideal.  They are the words righteousness and judgment.  The Hebrew nation was created in order that all the nations might be given righteousness and judgment.  In other words, the Divine intention was that through the nation the principle of life which is righteousness, and the consequent practice of judgment should be revealed to humanity as a whole.  In its history the nation had entirely broken down in this matter.  Within its own borders, instead of righteousness, oppression existed, and for lack of judgment or equity, the cry of the oppressed was heard.  Therefore the nations of the world were not being supplied with the things essential to their being, and their well-being.  Because of this failure the nation was rejected as the vine of God.

Jesus’ statement of I am the vine; you are the branches wasn’t just a little teaching illustration.  I’ll let Morgan explain further:

Thus He stood in the midst of human history and declared that God’s purpose was not failing, that His intention would be carried out, that He was the Vine through Whom these things would come to complete fulfilment.  The majesty of the claim is self-evident; and the high privileges and responsibilities of His own are revealed in the fact the He incorporated that group of men with Himself as the instrument of Divine realization as He said, “I am the Vine, ye are the branches”.

Where Israel failed, Jesus declared that He would be the one to show the world what God’s design for true righteousness and justice looked like.  And…the most surprising part of it…is that Jesus has included His disciples (and us) in this work.

If we believers are to show the world what righteousness (i.e. – living rightly by God’s design) and justice looks like in our own lives, then we must remember Jesus’ warning: you can do nothing without Me.

We must stay connected to Him.  We must be talking with Him often and learning to walk as He walked.  We cannot manufacture righteousness and justice by our own efforts and programs – throughout the centuries, Christians have tried to do so and have failed miserably each time.  We can only produce the fruit of the vine when we are connected to it.

Are you intentionally staying connected to the Vine?

Keep Pressing,
Ken