The Different Kinds of Rewards
ICS Daily Devotions

Matthew 10:40-42 (NKJV) “He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me. He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward.”

This passage says that there are rewards for those who are hospitable in receiving prophets, pastors, and ministers. They will receive the same rewards because they are helping them fulfil their call. This is the only place in the Bible where it says one can receive the same reward as the ministers of God when we support them in their ministry.

Full-time ministers or servants of God who carry God’s message to the people have a reward because they represent God and do what God has sent them to do. The Senior Pastor has the blueprint for the local church and a mandate to reach the lost, but they can never fulfil the calling alone. They need the entire body of Christ to support them in the mission.

Meanwhile, whoever does anything for the people or the underprivileged will also receive a reward. Because we are the body of Christ, God expresses His love for the people through us. Others will see Christ when we serve the people that God has placed in our midst.

Besides heavenly rewards, there are also likely to be earthly rewards for those who treat a believer or minister well. God confronted Saul for persecuting the church, demonstrating that God takes it personally when the church is being blessed or persecuted. As such, He will reward and promote those who help the church, because God’s covenant stipulates that He opposes those who come against His covenant partners and blesses those who bless them.

Finally, whatever we do for the Kingdom of God has to be done out of our love for the Lord without any ulterior motives or selfish ambition. One should not have the “what is in it for me” attitude because we will never serve if we hold onto that kind of attitude, but actually, there is something in it for you, and it is the rewards in heaven that you will receive for serving Him with your gifts and talents. They are the treasures in heaven which moths and thieves cannot destroy (Matthew 6:19-20). They are imperishable and have eternal value.

Sermon Series: ServeFest