We are breaking the Lord's heart

I've been wanting to write about this (again) but haven't been sure "how" to do it. So many Christians don't bother to study God's Word and yet still call themselves Christians, and will even tell themselves and others that they obey Christ. Yet all they know about it is what they've heard in sermons or read in other people's books, especially fiction ones--and many don't even do that. What they don't realize is that they cannot be obeying Him, and cannot be living according to His Will because they don't have a clue what His Will is! They're still in the dark, wandering around lost and pretending they know what they're doing. I don't mean that they're not saved...they are...but they're living as though they're lost because they don't know or understand God's Word. Those are the ones who will only escape this earth and the Bema Judgment with their salvation and nothing else. Those are also the ones that just read their bibles and don't study it with Him, reflect on it and then apply it. They may attempt to apply some things they read, but most often they really don't understand it, although of course they think they do.

When people hear that though, they immediately come back with: "well I don't care about rewards, or status, I'll be happy if I get to heaven by the skin of my teeth". Or they'll try to come off sounding "holy" and say that they're "not interested in rewards, they just want to please the Lord." And they have no idea how foolish they sound, because if we don't earn the rewards, we are not pleasing the Lord or living according to His Will.If we only just barely make it into heaven, we're not pleasing the Lord or living according to His Will. When the Lord tells the parable about the talents, He is also talking about rewards. The servant who did not earn any rewards...who did nothing with the talent he was given, did not please the Lord at all and He had some very harsh words for Him. (Matthew 25:26–30) I can't speak for others, but I certainly do not want the Lord to be displeased with me when I finally get to heaven!

Jesus plainly taught about rewards and He desires us to have them. It is His Will that we earn these rewards, and earning them pleases Him. So those people who say they aren't interested are basically slapping Him in the face and cannot be living according to His will.

Jesus made things very clear for the people who showed any interest in following Him. He let them know that it would not be easy because they would have many trials in this life and told them (us) to count the cost before making their decision. He let them know that this wasn't a light decision to make. But after telling them (and us) what the cost would be for following Him, He'd tell them what the rewards would be.

Matthew 10:37–42 — “Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. “He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives the one who sent me. Anyone who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and anyone who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man’s reward. And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward.”

Most Christians today however have no idea what their reward will be or even if they have one coming. It's really a shame too because in the old days, not that long ago really, when people spoke of dying, they called it "going to my reward" and they weren't just talking about going to Heaven. They actually knew they'd have rewards waiting for them! Today, most don't know anything about rewards except for the few who are into the end times and have learned about the crowns. And even they will say they don't care if they earn one or not, that "just going to heaven to be with Jesus will be reward enough for them".
Yes, that sounds nice and holy to most people, but to those who've studied His Word, they know it's really not holy, it's sin and ignorance talking. The people who say that think they're being grateful for God's gift of salvation, but really they're just making excuses for not doing His Will.

When we accept the gift of salvation, we agree to make Jesus the Lord of our lives, which means obeying Him and the first thing He commands is that we know and understand His Word, because we cannot do His Will if we don't know what His Will is. The word that's used for "know" when the Bible is talking about that is a word that means "to fully know; or to personally and intimately know", the same word that's used to "know Jesus" in an intimate, personal way. We are to know His Word intimately; it's to be deeply ingrained in us, a part of us; preferably the major part of us.

That's why I seem to harp on this so much. I know there are many Christians who truly love the Lord, but who don't know His Word and don't study it, who are going to be truly devastated when they discover that they let the Lord down--not just a little, but in a major way, and that He is displeased with them. It will break their hearts and I don't want to see that happen because that breaks my heart. And I know it breaks His heart too to see His children living their lives here and not fully trusting Him because they don't fully know Him.

Our Lord will give us these rewards because we have done His Will here-in this life, so if we receive no reward, then we have not done His Will. People seem to think that the rewards are "extras", for going above and beyond the call of duty so to speak. That's simply not true. Jesus is not telling us to be greedy and to seek the rewards He offers, but He does use the rewards to give us even more hope for our future, and He expects us to want them. After all, how would you feel if you went out and got some really neat gifts for a loved one and they turned their nose up at them and said they weren't interested? In some ways it's similar to when we as parents reward our children for their good behavior. I'm not talking about parents who bribe their children to be good, but rather those who at times give their children a reward because they've shown that they know how to behave correctly. With our Lord, it's even clearer then that, because for Him it's all about our hearts attitude and not our actions/works even though it's our actions He's rewarding. That's why we're told that it's what's behind our works--what's in our hearts, that will determine if we receive a reward or not. (1 Corinthians 4:5; 1 Corinthians 3:12–15) We need to realize that there's no possible way we could ever earn our salvation or that we could ever do enough to "be good" because when we're doing His Will, we're simply doing what He commanded us to do in the first place. In order to completely fulfill His Will, we would have to be perfect like He said in Matthew 5:48. He knows that won't happen in this life but it is a goal we're to work toward here. Like most loving parents though, our Lord loves to give us gifts and so He will honor us with rewards for those things we do abiding in Him. Just like the parent who gives their child an occasional reward to honor them for their good behavior.

The child who does get rewarded for that good behavior doesn't behave so that they'll get the reward, they behave because they love their parents and want to please them. However, the child does appreciate the reward and even at times dreams of what their next reward might be. There is pleasure for the child both in pleasing their parents because they love them and in looking forward to and receiving the reward. The child knows that they're being rewarded because their parents are pleased with them and that makes them feel good.

Our Lord has gone to great extents to create the rewards He has for each of us. He loves us and He loves to give us good gifts. We're told that the things He has for us are so amazing and so wonderful that we can't even begin to imagine them, and they were created especially for us because He loves us. To turn our nose up at them, to act like it's no big deal if we don't get them, or worse, to say we're not interested in them, is just terrible! How can we say in one breath that we love Him but that we don't want His gifts? Gifts that He Himself felt were important enough to be included in His Word. These rewards are all part of our blessed Hope and He wants us to long for that day! On that day we will receive our new bodies and our salvation will be complete; and we will receive the rewards and see all the treasure in heaven that we have accumulated in heaven during this life --treasure and rewards that will last through all eternity.

I hope and pray that many will commit themselves now to studying His Word with Him so that they really can discover His Will for their lives and be obedient to Him and please Him. I pray that He will grant to each person a heart of love and passion for Him and His Word so that we may each live up to our calling in Christ and so no one can malign Him or His Word because of us. Let me leave you with some of the scriptures that speak about this.

2 John 8–9 — Watch out that you do not lose what you have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully. Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.

Hebrews 10:36–38 — You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For in just a very little while, “He who is coming will come and will not delay. But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him.”

Philippians 3:8–11 — What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.

Philippians 3:12–16 — Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. Only let us live up to what we have already attained.

Luke 17:7–10 — “Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat’? Would he not rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink’? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? 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.’ ”

Luke 12:47–48 — “That servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

Matthew 25:23 — “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’

Matthew 25:26–30 — “His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest. “ ‘Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents. For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Matthew 10:37–42 — “Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. “He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives the one who sent me. Anyone who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and anyone who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man’s reward. And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward.”

Matthew 6:19–21 — “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

2 Corinthians 5:9–10 — So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

Psalm 138:2 — I will bow down toward your holy temple and will praise your name for your love and your faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name and your word.

James 1:22 — Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.

John 8:31 — So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples,

John 15:7–11 — If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love.If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

John 17:17 — Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.