JUN 13

2 Timothy 4:8
Memorise Proverbs 11:30
“… in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.”

After yesterday’s reading, are you tempted to wonder about what then is the point of serving Christ? If by serving Christ, it means that I will suffer persecution, then why should I continue to do so? From the perspective of the world it is foolishness. Why would one voluntarily choose the path of suffering? For that matter, why would one want to serve Christ? What is your motivation for continuing to serve Christ?

Paul gives us the motivation for service in 2 Corinthians 5:13-14a: “For whether we be beside ourselves, it is to God: or whether we be sober, it is for your cause. For the love of Christ constraineth us”. Servants of God voluntarily go headlong into the difficult path of service because of the love of Christ. We serve Christ because we love Him. Why do we love Him? We love him, because he first loved us (1 John 4:19) and gave Himself for us.

Paul wrote the book of 2 Timothy as his final words before he was martyred. He had every confidence that what awaited him in heaven was the “crown of righteousness”. Because of this crown, we can enter into heaven accepted of God. The crown is costly, the price is the blood of Christ purchased for us. Yet it is given to us freely. It gives us Christ’s own righteousness. It is a precious gift because it enables us to be reconciled to God and be given eternal life in heaven. This is what all believers can expect to see in heaven when they arrive there. Although on this earth we expect persecution and suffering while we serve faithfully, but in heaven, we can expect the crown of righteousness. Hence, our reward is in heaven. But is the believer’s life on earth truly a life without comfort? It is not isn’t it? Although many passages exhort us to endure hardness, as good solider of Jesus Christ, God does not leave us without consolations and encouragements. Our loved ones and brethren are always brought to comfort us. Sometimes, in an inexplicable manner, God Himself comes to us to comfort us in ways that often cannot be explained. God loves those who suffer for His sake and will never leave them without help. Instead, God will tenderly succor His own, especially those who suffer for His name’s sake.

Thought: Is there anything you suffer that will be more than what Christ has already suffered for you?
Prayer: Father, help me to suffer for You expecting nothing more than what You have already done for me.