It makes me wonder how we’ll react to such a pecking order. Will we be ashamed? Will we be envious or others’ rewards? Will we simply celebrate the rewards that others get?
That verse sounds like this to me: “Well done, good and faithful servant, but don’t get too comfortable here because we have ANOTHER round of judgments coming up.”
I truly hope I’m reading into it things that aren’t there, b/c it sounds we can’t relax for a microsecond, even in the millennial kingdom due to yet another series of judgments coming down on us. Basically it seems like until we make it into the New Heaven and New Earth, we could still not make the cut.
The way I look at these crowns or rewards we might earn is this....
...Our eternal pleasure and goal is worship. If you have ever experience even a moment of the great, overpowering love that comes in that second when you realize that everything you have ever done, or everything you are or ever will be is because of Him, and you absolutely want nothing more than His pleasure, then you might understand the feeling of eternal bliss that will come with eternal worship in His Kingdom.
And what can we offer him as worship, but our crowns. It will not increase HIS pleasure, it will increase ours in our ability to offer our “crowns” our own rewards we receive to Him in adulation. This is our reward, to increase His glory. That and that alone. Isn’t it enough?
5 crowns
Crown of Righteousness 2 Tim. 4:8 To all who have kept the faith and longed and loved for His return
Crown of Rejoicing 1Thes. 2:19 To all who have helped bring others to Christ
Crown of Life James 1:12 To all who endure temptation & are faithful through trials and to those that love Him
Crown of glory 1 Peter 5:1-4 To all that serve and shepherd God’s people
The imperishable or eternal crown 1 Cor. 9:25 To those who have had self-control in all things and subdued the old sinful nature.
Now these are not crowns that we will wear and parade around in. These crowns are going to be cast down at Jesus’ feet, to the one that is worthy to be praised. He is the one that made all these things possible. Rev 4:9-11.
We fall down
We lay our crowns
At the feet of Jesus
The greatness of mercy and love
At the feet of Jesus
We cry holy, holy, holy
We cry holy, holy, holy
We cry holy, holy, holy
Is the lamb
It makes me wonder how we’ll react to such a pecking order.
***See how you call it a ‘pecking order’, similar to how birds peck eachother, etc.? That’s the worldly way of looking at it. We will be much more inclined towards a spiritually healthy way of looking at things in the next life, and God will give us bodies that don’t decay & are inclined towards heaven. So... how will we look at it with this new inclination? We’ll be excited for others at what they accomplished for God, saying attaboy & cheering them on as they throw their crowns at God’s feet.
That verse sounds like this to me: “Well done, good and faithful servant, but don’t get too comfortable here because we have ANOTHER round of judgments coming up.”
***There’s only 2 judgements as far as I can tell. The first one deciding whether you’re in or out, whether we’re a sheep or a goat. And the second one, looking at what we did here and parceling out rewards.
I truly hope I’m reading into it things that aren’t there,
***I think you are but I’m no expert. This is one of those sandboxes where religious folks like to play in. I don’t put much stock in religiosity — we have a simple faith and God encourages childlike, straightforward, innocent faith in Him. “Let not your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in Me.”
b/c it sounds we can’t relax for a microsecond, even in the millennial kingdom due to yet another series of judgments coming down on us.
***Maybe this is God’s way of spurring you on to earn a few crowns in heaven, who knows?
Basically it seems like until we make it into the New Heaven and New Earth, we could still not make the cut.
***You will make the cut. Nothing can separate you from the love of Christ.