“Again,
the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long
trip. He called together his servants and entrusted his money to them while he
was gone. He
gave five bags of silver to one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of
silver to the last—dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip. “The
servant who received the five bags of silver began to invest the money and earned
five more. The
servant with two bags of silver also went to work and earned two more. But the servant who received the one bag of silver dug a hole
in the ground and hid the master’s money.
“After
a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an
account of how they had used his money. The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of silver
came forward with five more and said, ‘Master, you gave me five bags of silver
to invest, and I have earned five more.’ “The
master was full of praise. ‘Well done,
my good and faithful servant. You have
been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more
responsibilities. Let’s celebrate
together!’
“The
servant who had received the two bags of silver came forward and said, ‘Master,
you gave me two bags of silver to invest, and I have earned two more.’ “The
master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small
amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’ “Then the servant with the one bag of
silver came and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops
you didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate. I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the
earth. Look, here is your money back.’ “But
the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew I harvested crops
I didn’t plant and gathered crops I didn’t cultivate, why
didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on
it.’ “Then he ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give
it to the one with the ten bags of silver. To those who use well what they are given, even more will be
given, and they will have an abundance. But
from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where
there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ Matthew 25:14 - 30 (NLT)
“Look, I am coming soon, bringing my reward with me to repay
all people according to their deeds. I
am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.” Revelation
22:12 (NLT)
Revelation 22:12 says that Jesus is
bringing his reward with him. The word literally means wages. The Bible is full of information about these
wages or CROWNS.
After an evening out, some parents returned home to
their children, whom they had left with the baby sitter. They were pleasantly surprised to find the
kids fast asleep. When the sitter had
been paid, and just as she was walking out the door, she communicated this little
detail: "Oops –almost forgot to
tell you; I promised little Sammy that if he would stay in bed, you would get
him a pony in the morning."[1]
Life is difficult enough. If you don't sense meaning, something to
which you look forward, it can be an impossibility to enjoy, or even cope with
life. Sitting in the sixth-grade
assembly at the end of the year, I was suddenly shocked to find that they were
going to hand out awards for achievements.
I can remember thinking to myself, Why
didn't somebody tell me? I would've
gotten better grades. This morning we
will put that excuse to rest.
The meaning, or light at the end of the tunnel that we
deal with today is, What about God's awards ceremony?
Certainty of Crowns
The reality that Jesus is coming again to the earth is
hard to miss in the New Testament. But
the text says that He is coming soon. From our perspective, two thousand years is
not really SOON! But, as Einstein
pointed out, time is relative. Factors
such as speed and gravity have their effect.
God moves in a dimension you and I have little knowledge about.
Many scholars believe the “quickly” part refers not to
how
soon Jesus would return, but the manner in which it
happens. It will be in the twinkling of
an eye!
Here are the two possibilities about when:
A. He is coming at our death. For some,
like my Grandmother who died many years ago, death carries us to see
Jesus. As Paul wrote, absent from the body is present with the
Lord. The other possibility:
B. He is coming by His descent.
This is the Parousia, the Second Advent of
Christ. Atheists laugh, skeptics explain
it away, and agnostics refuse to think about it; but the Bible simply declares
its reality. Either way, the Lord is
coming TO US! That is a great
comfort and hope to me.
God never lies! The angel who spoke to the disciples (Acts
11:1) as they watched Jesus' ascension into heaven promised that He would
come again in the same manner. So
whether by our death, or his descent, we should be prepared. One of the best opportunities we have for
getting ready is at Christmas, Advent season.
What better way to expect the second coming than to honor His first
coming?
A family moved to a new neighborhood, and the mother
was registering her 6 year old for school.
He was a hyper sort, always getting into mischief. The mother filled out all the required
information on shots, Doctor, and previous school. But when she came to the large open space for
"COMMENTS," she simply wrote in huge block letters: BRACE
YOURSELVES.
To the church John records the words of Jesus, Brace
yourselves, I am coming again soon!
Catalogue of Crowns
I'm certain one could make a more exhaustive list of
crowns that are going to be a part of God's awards ceremony; however I will
list only four:
1. The
Soul Winner’s Crown is for those
who participate in bringing people to Jesus.
Daniel (12:3) talks of those who lead others to
righteousness. The writer of Proverbs (11:30)
says it clearly that...he that winneth
souls is wise.
How do you participate
in soul-winning? In many ways, praying,
giving, and going. Is it your desire to
see souls saved? NOT GOOD ENOUGH! The soul winner's crown is for
participating. When you have a strong
enough burden to be involved, you will find a way. A denomination, a church, or a believer not
involved in efforts to win souls is not wise.
2. The
Crown of Glory is a pastoral
crown for those elders that feed the flock (1Pe 5:4). Beloved, you don't have to be a pastor, or a
deacon to win this crown. You simply
have to be willing to pass the bread and butter down the table.
When I was young Thanksgiving was always at Mom &
Dad's house. While Mom was in the
kitchen preparing the food, Dad and my brother and I would do the other stuff. We would set the table; get out the extra
chairs; dust, and get ready to gripe about doing the dishes. All this was necessary. My mother cooked the food....but we helped.
If you would receive the crown of glory just as pastor
Peter and John and Paul will, then pass the bread of life on down the
table! Feed God's flock.
3. The
Crown of Life is for being
faithful in trials. John wrote in a day
when faithfulness meant death. Roman
emperors expected the worship of all the people. To worship Jesus sometimes meant that you
died the way Jesus did. Do you love God
enough to die for Him? (James 1:12)
4. The
Crown of Righteousness means
God's approval of your response to His claim on your life. Paul told Timothy in his last letter to the
young pastor (4:8) that his fight was over, and the crown of
righteousness was awaiting him in heaven.
Paul had been faithful to answer the call of God,
giving his whole life for the purpose of that call.
We must not miss the significance for you and me
here: God calls each of us...it is our
responsibility to fulfill that calling.
·
Has He called you
to be a policeman?
·
Has he called you
to witness to your neighbor?
·
Has He called you
to be a faithful steward?
The crown of righteousness is God's smile over the
fact that you have been willing to turn your back on your own desires and the
allure of this world, and follow Him instead!
In Chicago years ago the great evangelist D.L. Moody
was preparing for a service inside the church.
Outside it was thundering and lightning, with torrents of rain. A little girl ran in from outside and told
him excitedly, Mr. Moody, the world is
coming to an end. Moody said, that's all right, Honey, we can live without
it.
The very first thing God called you to is the
salvation of your soul. To win the crown
of righteousness, you must accept the fact that you are not entitled to it, and
that only Jesus' blood can purchase it for you.
There is a certainty of crowns, the catalogue of
crowns, and the…
Crowning of Christ
Two simple facts:
A. THOSE WHO
HAVE, WILL! (Rev 4:10)
Those who, in this
life, have been faithful to win crowns from Christ will then place them at His
feet in heaven's glory. It is the
natural response of a thankful heart to give praise. Saved people will act like it!
B. THOSE
WHO HAVEN'T, CAN'T! (Mt 7)
No matter what we have done in this life, if we have
not placed a crown on Jesus' head, placing Him as Lord of Life, over my actions
and thoughts, we will not be able to do so in heaven.
In Revelation 22:16 there is a list of those who have
not invited Jesus to be Lord over their life.
Instead they have made it a practice to invite the baser things of this
world to be their lord.
The question becomes, What are you preparing for....Who is your Lord?
Boxer Joe Frazier said,
You can map out a fight plan or a life plan. But when the action starts you're down to
your reflexes. That's where your
roadwork shows (the discipline of training).
If you cheated on that in the dark of the morning, you're getting found
out now under the bright lights.
Resolved:
How do you feel about crowns? Will you live this day, and every day with
the expectancy of Advent...that our Lord may come back today?
Charles the Great was what they called him
(Charlemagne); builder of empires, conqueror of the world. He spoke, and it was done in all the earth. His riches rivaled Solomon's.
On Christmas Day, 800 AD he was crowned the first
emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. He was a man; like any other man, he
died.
A thousand years later his tomb was opened. To the shock of the archaeologists, they saw
the corpse of Charlemagne sitting upright in a chair. The long, petrified finger of his right hand
pointing to a verse in the Bible on his lap:
For what shall
it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Mark 8:36
If
you are to receive the crowns of Christ, you must crown HIM King!
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