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 (September 2023)
各样的奖赏
马太福音10:40-42人接待你们，就是接待我。接待我，就是接待那差我来的。人因为先知的名接待先知，必得先知所得的赏赐，人因为义人的名接待义人，必得义人所得的赏赐。 无论何人，因为门徒的名，只把一杯凉水给这小子里的一个喝，我实在告诉你们，这人不能不得赏赐。
这段经文说，那些热情接待先知、牧师和传道人的人会得到奖赏。他们都将获得相同的奖赏，因为他们正在帮助那些人完成其使命。这是圣经中唯一一处说，当我们支持上帝的传道人的事工时，我们可以得到与他们相同的奖赏。
向人们传达上帝信息的全职牧师或仆人得到奖励是因为他们代表上帝并做上帝派他们去做的事情。主任牧师有当地教会的蓝图和接触失丧者的使命，但他们永远无法独自完成呼召。他们需要基督的整个肢体来支持他们的使命。
同时，但凡有人为他人或弱势群体做了任何事，他也将获得奖赏。因为我们是基督的肢体，神通过我们表达祂对人的爱。当我们服事上帝安置在我们中间的人时，其他人就会看到基督。
除了天上的奖赏之外，那些善待信徒或牧师的人也可能得到地上的奖赏。上帝质问扫罗为何迫害教会，表明当教会受到祝福或迫害时，上帝会将其视作是针对祂本人。因此，祂会奖赏和提拔那些帮助教会的人，因为神的圣约规定，祂反对那些反对祂圣约伙伴的人，并祝福那些祝福他们的人。
最后，无论我们为神的国度做什么，都必须出于对主的爱，没有任何别有用心或自私的野心。人不应该抱有“这对我有什么好处”的态度，因为如果我们持有这种态度，我们永远不会事奉，但实际上，这里面有一些话是对你说的，那就是你将得到属天的奖赏，你将为了以自己的恩赐和才干服事祂而领受这奖赏。它们是天上的财宝，是飞蛾和蟊贼所不能毁坏的（马太福音6:19-20）。它们是不朽的，具有永恒的价值。
讲章系列：服事招募节2023年9月
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