Reward

Seeing a certain rich man walk away from Christ on account of his allegiance to the almighty dollar, Peter then asks, “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?” (19:27). He did leave behind his boat and fishing nets to be yoked together with a Rabbi. Was he being mercenary just in it for the money? Did he have a concern for self and others who gave up so much? The disciple’s motives remain veiled. The question still warrants a response. What does God offer to those who left all behind for the sake of the kingdom of heaven?

Jesus offers a twofold promise. First he says, “Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (19:28). This is a call to have an eternal perspective on things. The Lord points the disciples to the final consummation of all things, and particularly refers to the vision of the Son of Man in Daniel 7.

Daniel saw down the corridor of time the comings and goings of four beastly kingdoms: Babylon, Media, Persia, and Greece. The sixth-century prophet also foresaw the kingdom of the Son of Man was rising out of the ashes. The disciples would be rewarded as judges or rulers over the twelve tribes of Israel. Those who rejected the Christ were apostate Israel, but those who left all for the Christ were true Israel. All the Old Testament prophets concerning the Messiah and His kingdom were coming to realization, and the disciples were part of this grand eschatological happening. Christ’s apostles began the on-going work of the church in building up a community of true worshippers of God.

The second promise is that “And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms for My name’s sake, will receive many times as much, and will inherit eternal life” (19:29). Those who had become followers of Christ had experienced conflicts with family, some even lost their livelihood. They were persecuted for their faith. Yet, Christ promises that whatever they lost did not compare to all that the kingdom of God had to offer. They too would receive the resurrection to eternal life in a new heaven and new earth that would never come to an end. For those in the kingdom of heaven the best is yet to come. The Apostle Paul also understood this truth, and found all his venerable accolades as a righteous Pharisee to be simply rubbish for the dung heap in comparison to knowing the Jesus the Messiah, and the hope of the resurrection (Phil. 3:2-11).

The world has many things to offer and those with the right kind of savvy and drive can obtain much fame and fortune. Some might build great monuments of all sorts to their own achievements such as businesses, buildings, and a host of other things. Others may strive for recognition in the limelight of all that glitters. Still others might be the few who lead the culture to new places. Yet, all of these things are fleeting. Kings have built pyramids to their own glory; yet, people do not really remember them in any personal way, save admiring their architectural feats or some intellectual discussion on ancient near East cultures. Other than that we pay no mind to the pyramid builders in our day-to-day lives. We all die and the very memory of our life eventually fades. For all of us, our lives eventually become summed up in the “dash” between the years of our birth and death. But what if we can transcend all of that? Is there not something greater? What of those who have given up all for the sake of the kingdom of heaven?