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Do you know what a good credit risk is? It usually someone who has the ability to pay back what was loaned to them by another person or business. Often when a person goes for a loan there is a great amount of paperwork that has to be filled out. It looks at the track record of the person asking for a loan, how well they have paid off previous debts, how good their character is and so on. If someone borrows money from another their ability to pay it back is always taken into consideration before the money is given out.
A similar principle applies when it comes to the kingdom of God, when we do little things out of our love for God, to others; God is always willing to pay us back for them. I believe He has the greatest credit rating ever; He can be trusted to pay back what He says He will. One Sabbath, Jesus was invited to the home of a prominent Pharisee, along with other distinguished guests. Who’s, Who of the Pharisaic world. Vs 7. Jesus watches them as the jockey for the best seats, closer to the host. It seams each of them thought very highly of themselves. So, Jesus offers up some unsolicited advice; vs 8-11. We can just imagine the indignant looks Jesus would have received from them who thought so much of themselves, that they were better than the others there and should have a better seat. Vs 12 But, Jesus doesn’t stop there, He goes on to tell the host that all the people he had invited to this dinner were just a waste of space as far as God in concerned. God won’t be indebted to him. Don’t misunderstand, God cared about them as He does any of His children but they were able to pay back the host by reciprocating, having him over for dinner at their place. Then the host would have no reward from God in heaven because he was paid back here. Matt. 6:2
Vs 13-14 After this, Jesus tells the host that if he wants God to be indebted to him for a good deed done, then invite those who can not pay him back, if he does this he will be blessed by God. Do something for someone who couldn’t do it for themselves? Makes you feel good inside. Don’t we feel good when we help someone who could not help themselves? That little thing done in love.
Jesus reveals, here, why there will be blessings for an act of loving kindness; the blessing will come at the resurrection of the dead. Who would you rather have indebted to you; God or man? With all the people that were in the room, none of them would have missed what Jesus said and meant. Jesus was saying that God will repay us for a loving act after we are dead.
I am sure most of them thought as many of us do today; that God pays us back here on earth for the little things we do. But, Jesus is telling us just the opposite. He says that when we do a good deed for a person who can not pay us back, we will be repaid in the next life and when we receive it we will be blessed. By the way this principle will not work at the bank. Again, don’t misunderstand, this does not mean that God does not bless us here and now by His grace. Yes, God gives us blessings now for the right choices and faithful service to Him. But the rewards Jesus is telling us about are different. These are God’s guaranteed response to the loving little things we do that will continue to pay out for us throughout all eternity.
We must understand the difference or else we will become disappointed, questioning God’s goodness. God does not promise us that if we labor for Him here that we will always have gain from it here. We saw that last week in the message on Matt. 16:24-27. God never promises us a rose garden here on earth, He does promise us troubles for our faith. John 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Acts 14:22 “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said. But, we are guaranteed rewards later when we go to be with the Lord for what we did for Him here. Matt. 16:27 For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.
What does Jesus mean by reward? The Bible uses 2 different words to describe Jesus’ reward; the word in Luke 6:23, persecution for our faith, used for reward is ‘misthos’. It is the same word Jesus uses in Matt. 20:8 where the laborers are paid their wages and which Paul uses in 1 Tim. 5:18 For the Scripture says, “The worker deserves his wages.” Everyone who was at the dinner that evening would have understood what Jesus meant when He said, “ when you labor on earth, your employer gives you misthos, wages, and when you labor for me I will pay wages too.” No tips for B&B’s. A tip guide say’s not to tip B & B’s. Jesus never describes His rewards as charitable tips for a job well done. He called them misthos, wages, something earned for something done. The second word used for reward in heaven shows up here in our passage, the dinner party story. Jesus uses the word ‘apodidomai’. It is a Greek word compound; the first part ‘apo’ means back and the ‘didomai’ part means give. Combined together they mean to give back or repay. Vs 14
When Jesus uses the word ‘apodidomai’ it takes on a deeper meaning; what He is saying is that when we are apodidomai, we are being reimbursed for what we did in His behalf. It is not just for the big things that we do for the Lord that will give us great reward but the little things done as well. Mark 9:41 I tell you the truth, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to Christ will certainly not lose his reward. No little thing we do for others will be overlooked by the Lord, instead they will be rewarded.
What about the person who says they can not do much for the Lord because of their situation? Ask, can they pray or give or both? Matt. 6:3-6 Heb. 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. God will reward us for praying and giving. He will also reward us for submitting to our employers as a faithful steward; Eph. 6:8 because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free. For denying self in service to Him; Matt.16:24-27 For those times when we suffer for His name sake; Luke 6:22–23 Blessed are you when men hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. 23 “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their fathers treated the prophets. God will reward us for sacrificing for His cause; Luke 6:35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Jesus even said that when we sacrifice greatly for Him we will be paid back a hundred fold; Matt. 19:29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. God will reward each of us for sharing our time, talent and treasure to further His kingdom. Matt. 6
When you look at these things do you feel encouraged for doing the little things for the Lord already? Do you feel convicted for what we are not doing? As long as we are sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit in our lives for what we should be doing, we will have great blessing waiting for us in heaven. God does not expect us to do it all on our own, by ourselves, but just what He is calling us to do. The need does not always constitute the call. Do you feel like you deserve all the blessings promised? OR; Just grateful that Jesus died for our sins. Luke 17:10 So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’ ” This passage shows us that above all it is our duty and privilege to serve God. But;
Remember the parable Jesus told about the man who hires workers for his vineyard, going out different times of the day and hiring more? When he pays them they all get the same pay. Some grumble at the owner’s generosity. God is a generous God, who desires to bless His children for all that they do for Him. If we try to argue with God about His generosity to us it may be because goodness and generosity are lacking in our lives. Remember God is a rewarder of those who seek Him in faith.
Interestingly, the word rewarder in Heb. 11:6 in the Greek is only used once in the Bible. It is neither the word misthos nor apodidomai, but an unusual combination of the 2 together. It is misthos-apodidomai – the rewarder who pays back your wages in return. God chooses to reward us because it is an expression of His own generous nature. His plan is to reward like His provision to save us from sin. It is a display of His amazing grace to us. Who would you rather have indebted to you, God or man. God has the greater credit rating as far as I am concerned. He will pay us back for all the little things we do in love for Him. Benediction: Heb. 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
