Life Ministries

Purpose; Plan; Reward Part 2
1 Cor. 9:24-27 and Hebrews 12:1-3 and 11

Today I want to look at two more scriptures from the same perspective of the Purpose, the plan, and the reward…

    “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize?” (Now don’t get discouraged, because Paul’s purpose is to show that we all can receive the prize or the reward that he has in mind) But, he stops in the middle of his thought to give us some encouragement – “Run in such a way as to get the prize.” (In other words if you want the prize, there is going to be some effort involved!) “Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.” – (That’s the reward)…Vs. 26 – “Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air; No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”
    “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith…” ( This is, of course, part of the plan. )
    The Purpose: Paul says is to “run in such a way as to get the prize.” When it comes to the eternal reward, there is no 2^nd, 3^rd. or 4^th. place prize…Don’t just show up because you like to jog!.. Don’t show up thinking; “All I have to do is finish”… Run like you are going for the gold!
    The Plan: So, what’s it going to take to get there? 1^st. – “Don’t run aimlessly” – Have a strategy; a discipline;  set some goals; make a plan. 2^nd. – “Don’t fight like a man beating the air”…It’s not that easy. It takes knowing your opponents and training for endurance. Don’t wander through life – know where you are going and what it will take to get there. You will never hear an Olympic star say “I don’t feel like…” They always have their eyes and hearts set on winning…not whining! 3^rd. – “Throw off everything that hinders and the sin that entangles” (Habits, doubt, past baggage, friends ) 4^th. – “Persevere”. Never give up! No matter how many times you fall, start over! No matter how much it may hurt, or how tough the discipline may seem, do it till you get it right! “No discipline seems pleasant at the time”…Don’t look for quick fixes or short term rewards.
    Finally, let’s look at the reward – In reality, we would probably look at this first because we want to know what we are going to get out of it. We want to make sure the prize is worth the effort! Well, not even the purest gold or the brightest diamond is worth more than this prize!... “A crown that will last forever”… “A harvest of righteousness and peace”…”In a kingdom that cannot be shaken”…and when we stand before the Judge – He will hold up a perfect 10 – and say “Well done, thou good and faithful servant”.

“Reap What You Sow”

Galatians 5:13 - 6:10

There are really three rewards given in this scripture – What are they? (destruction – eternal life – a harvest)

1. Vs. 13 “serve one another in love”… Let me paraphrase this a little and insert a couple of words; “If your purpose is to keep on biting and devouring each other – your reward is that you will destroy each other.” Or, let me reverse that – “If your purpose is to destroy one another; or destroy the church; then make it your plan to keep on back biting, and knit-picking, and finding fault with one another; and you will reap what you sow!”  The reward then is “destruction”
2. Vs. 8 – “reap eternal life” …This is the reward of the “Spirit led, Spirit filled life.” What is the “harvest” of this Spirit filled life? ( Fruit of the Spirit )…”love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control”
3^rd.  Vs. 9 – “at the proper time, we will reap a harvest”… We mentioned the harvest of the “fruit” but what other types of things can we harvest? (friends; loving family; good health; good reputation) It begins with Vs.16; “live by the Spirit”…
Vs 18, “led by the Spirit”…
Vs. 24 “crucify the sinful nature”…
Vs 25 “keep in step with the Spirit”…
Vs. 6:4 “test your own actions” ( “comparing” ) …
Vs. 9 “Don’t become weary”…
Vs. 10 “as we have opportunity, let us do good”… How many opportunities do we have to do good?
But, “especially to those who belong to the family of God” Why? ( This is what draws people to the Lord – when they see the “love for one another” they want to be a part of it. Sadly, the opposite is also true.
Ultimately, the truth is “You Reap what you Sow!”