Worth the Wait
Read Matthew 19:1–20:34
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16. Someone came to Jesus with this question: “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?”
17. “Why ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. But to answer your question—if you want to receive eternal life, keep the commandments.”
18. “Which ones?” the man asked. And Jesus replied: “‘You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely.
19. Honor your father and mother. Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
20. “I’ve obeyed all these commandments,” the young man replied. “What else must I do?”
21. Jesus told him, “If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” Matthew 19:16-21
Anger, fatigue, frustration, insults, setbacks—some people will endure all this and more for the promise of an eventual reward. Without some future payoff, however, you would be hard-pressed to find one person who would be willing to endure a great deal of difficulty.
Reward is one of Peter’s concerns in this reading. After Jesus makes a startling revelation about wealthy people and salvation, Peter begins to worry about his chances of being saved. In addition, he begins to wonder if leaving everything behind to follow Jesus is worth it. But Jesus knew that the cost of being one of his followers was great, and he didn’t expect those who followed him to leave everything for nothing. He did, however, expect them to trust him and learn the truth about who is doing the saving and why. As you read, check your level of commitment to the Lord.
God’s rewards don’t appeal to those, like the rich young man, who desire instant gratification. If God gave out immediate and material rewards for obedience, some people would obey him for the wrong reasons. And God doesn’t want people to obey him just for the potential rewards. He prefers that people obey him out of love and gratitude. That’s why the rewards he offers for obedience and service to him appeal to those who long for something more than material prosperity, who long for such things as truth, justice, mercy, and peace.
Don’t look for the immediate rewards of money, comfort, and status when serving God. Instead, be willing to wait for the greater reward of spending eternity in his presence. But most of all, serve God out of gratitude for what he has done for you and out of love for who he is, not for the rewards that he will give you.
