Eternal Rewards Pt. 3

This is Ronald Hopkins, and thank you for joining the Life Center Church.

All right, good to see you all this morning.

We've been on a new series and we've been talking about this heavenly or eternal rewards.

So I definitely want to encourage you, if you have not been with us, if this is your first time, welcome to the Life Center Church.

We don't believe that your visit with us is by chance or circumstance.

We believe it's by divine appointment.

So if you have ears to hear what the Spirit of God will say, we know that your life will never be the same.

Before we get started, if you all do me a favor, if you're first-time visitors, uh take a screenshot of that.

There's a QR code, it just kind of lets us know who you are and where you come from.

Alright, you are ready to jump right back into this?

Eternal rewards.

Living for eternity.

Let's put that definition back up.

I know they can flow back there.

Talking about eternity, because many people don't understand what eternity is.

And it's important that we have an understanding of what eternity is because we will either spend eternally with God or eternally separated from God.

One of two places where everybody's gonna go.

Either we're going to heaven, which is an intermediate state before we come back down to the earth to rule and reign, or we will be eternally separated from God.

It starts off in hell, and then hell is thrown into the lake of fire.

And that's forever.

So before we end this series of eternal rewards, we're gonna talk about heaven and we're gonna talk about hell.

So eternity is an unending, unending existence.

So we're going to exist beyond this physical body.

This body is only temporary.

If you've been living long enough, you can tell that your body has aged.

Most of us don't look the same as we did in high school.

Some of our hair have been pulled back a little bit.

Some have no hair.

Some have gained only a couple of pounds.

The body changes, the body ages, but there will be a time and there will be a season where this body will no longer age.

We will receive a perfect, glorified body the way the Lord Jesus Christ did, and we will be able to go through or walk through or think about being at a place and we'll be there.

So eternity is an unending existence beyond this present earthly life, in which our relationship with Jesus continues forever.

And the consequences of how we live for Christ on earth will have eternal significance.

So it is important as believers how you live on earth.

Because the only thing that is going to last is what we do for Christ.

And so it is important how we live.

It's also important if a person is not born again, it's important how they live because when we start talking about hell, there are levels of torture that are in hell based upon how that person lived.

So it is important how we live on earth.

So we've been talking about this eternal reward system that God set up to reward those who would live for him, who would work for him, who would be motivated to do things not for man, but to live a life that pleases one person.

2 Corinthians chapter 5, verse number 10 has been our foundation and it says, for we must all, all, all of us, all of us, every person on the face of the earth, whether they understand it or not, we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ.

2 Corinthians 5 · chapter mention

If you weren't here, I'm not gonna take a lot of time to go back and review this, but the judgment seat of Christ is for believers.

There is a judgment seat, the great white throne, in which all unbelievers will be judged.

So we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ so that each one may be recompensed, or that word recompense means to be paid.

So we will be paid by God based upon what we do for him.

That should be good news if you're working for God.

If you're not working for God, you're still gonna get paid.

Woo, sir.

Because the scripture says, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.

So every person will get a reward.

Thank God that we're born again and we can go to heaven.

Praise the Lord for that.

There is a reward beyond that.

Now, let's go back to Colossians chapter 2.

Colossians 2 · chapter mention

Colossians chapter 2.

Colossians 2 · chapter mention

Verse number 2 says, Set your affection on the things that are above, not on the things that are below or on the earth.

And so our priorities or our mindset should be based upon heavenly things, not on earthly things.

The Amplifier says, set your mind and keep focus habitually on the things above, the heavenly things, not on the things that are on the earth, which only have temporary value.

So the things that we enjoy have temporary value.

Yet the Apostle Paul said, what we should be focused in on every single day are things that have eternal value.

Now, we're gonna pick right back up where we left up on last week because one of the things that we said before we got started, in fact, let's go here.

Let's go back to 1 Corinthians chapter 3.

1 Corinthians 3 · chapter mention

Everything you build in life will fall into two categories.

So everything that you do in life will fall into two categories.

Everything that you do in life will fall into these two categories.

Everything that you do, everything that you say, how you live your life will fall into two specific categories.

And what we've been talking about is how you will be evaluated when you stand before the Lord.

We all will be evaluated.

There is no favoritism because he sees everything that you do.

He knows why you do what you do, he knows what motivated you, what didn't motivate you.

He knows everything.

So when we stand before him, we will be judged and he will turn us inside out.

There will be nothing that you can hide from.

We can hide on earth, but there's only one person that sees everything that's going on in your heart, in your life, in your mind, in your emotions.

God sees it all.

And I want you to understand, everything that we do is being recorded.

So don't think that you are you're getting away with something because the pastor doesn't see it.

Your Heavenly Father sees everything that you're saying to your spouse.

God sees everything that you have not done to your children.

He sees how you treat your coworkers, He sees everything, He knows the motive and the intent of your heart.

And when we stand before Him, everything is gonna be uncovered.

And you're going to be rewarded based off of what you do for Him.

That's why we should not point the finger at other folks.

We should be more focused on our individual lives because if you, when you understand this, it'll cause you to not say stuff that you have said in the past.

It'll cause you to catch your mouth.

Because you gotta understand God is going to hold you accountable for that.

Now, 1 Corinthians chapter 3, verse number 11 says, For other foundation can no man lay that is laid, which is Christ Jesus.

1 Corinthians 3 · chapter mention

Verse number 12.

If any man build upon this foundation, here are the three categories: gold, silver, precious stones.

Here's the other category: wood, hay, and stubble.

Every man's work shall be made manifest.

So all your deeds, all your actions, all your activity, all your words will show up before him.

For the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by somebody say fire.

And the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.

If any man's work abide, which he hath built thereupon, notice what happens.

He shall receive a reward.

So based upon what you and I do, the Lord is going to reveal those things, and now fire will evaluate your work.

And if your work is burned up, you get no reward.

When that fire comes to your work, it'll turn into these three different categories.

Verse 15 says, If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss, but he himself shall be saved.

So thank God you will be saved.

You missed a good place to get excited.

Thank God that you and I do not have to be separated from God eternally.

Yet so as by fire.

So fire will separate the junk from gems.

The fire is going to determine what's real or what's fake.

So you can fake people out.

You all know I play high school and college ball.

And you can you can pump fake somebody.

You can get somebody up.

Everybody, the Lord is going to see what's real and what's fake.

He's going to determine whether or not you've been faking like you was a believer.

Whether you play church.

And whether or not when that fire comes to your deeds, it's going to be burned up.

And you get no reward.

That's why it's so important to only do what he's telling you to do.

Because there'll be many that will stand before God that it will be burned up because you did stuff because somebody else told you to do it.

You did stuff or you stayed in a particular job, thank you, Lord, because of the money, but it was not where the Lord wanted you to be at.

And when you stand before Him, you will get no credit for working 25 years in a place that you get no heavenly reward.

You did it because it was convenient and you did it because it paid the bills.

But it's not where the Lord wanted you to be at.

It'll be burned up.

Doesn't make sense in my mind to be at a place where the Lord didn't tell me to be at or to do something that He didn't tell me to do.

I remember when we were in Boston, and I never forget this.

This was the last service that we had.

Talk about it.

And there was myself, Minnesota, Mama Hill, our two kids, Nick and Noah, and we were the only two people in church.

Nobody.

When following God, God will put you in situations where it's uncomfortable for your flesh.

But your spirit is saying yes, but your flesh is saying no.

And you have to know when to make that shift.

Because what I understood is when you are in a place too long, the grace is no longer there for you.

When we were in Phoenix, the Lord sent us out there for a specific time for a specific assignment.

And in the four years we were there, we never got hot.

Notice, we never got hot, and the temperature was 110 degrees.

When the assignment shifted, and we knew when the assignment shifted, is when we started getting hot.

Why?

Because we had grace to be there for a particular time, for a particular season, for a particular reason, and we understood times, purpose, and seasons.

If we would have stayed longer, then we would have frustrated the grace of God.

Because there would have been no creativity, no wisdom, and everybody around us would have irritated us.

You have to know when is that season.

Now, put that graphic back up for me, Tina, the first one, about the gold, silver, and precious stones, because these things that we've been talking about will survive the fire.

So we started off talking about certain things on last week, things that we should be doing, or how we should live our lives, because when we live our lives according to what we've seen, then now the things that we do, the deeds that we do, the words that come out of our mouths, they won't burn up.

So let's jump back into this today, talking about works of lasting value.

Hebrews chapter six.

Hebrews chapter six, verse number ten.

It says, For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labor of love.

Watch this, which you have shown toward his name.

He makes it real clear though, in that you have ministered to the saints and do minister.

So one of the rewards that will not burn up is your ability to serve and help other people.

Let me say that again.

Because if the church of the Lord Jesus Christ fully had light on this, had revelation about this, you would be working for God like you work for your job.

You wouldn't need anybody to tell you what to do.

Because the same way that if you work two weeks or you work one week or you work a month, however you get compensated, you work hard for your money.

That was about three people.

I don't know.

We should work harder for God, knowing that at the end of the day, when we check out of this body, when we stand before him on that beamer seat, you are going to get paid for what you do for him.

You will get paid for serving people.

Now, when you understand what that word servant means, it actually means to serve.

You don't want anything back in return.

Nothing back.

You should be serving your spouse.

Maybe this side will talk to me today.

You should be serving your spouse, not looking for anything in return.

If they do, praise the Lord.

If they don't, praise the Lord.

Because I'm not doing it for you anyway.

I'm doing it for him.

And because I'm doing it for him, you are the one that gets the benefit.

That's a different mentality.

That's somebody that understands that whether or not you told me thank you, I'm not doing it for that.

I'm doing it because he's thanking me.

And at the end of the day, when I stand before him, he is going to reward me how I treated her.

See, listen, you only get rewarded once.

Who do you want your reward from?

Do you want your reward from a man or a woman?

Or do you want to be rewarded by God?

Then we should work for God.

We should serve man.

We should be in the building, in the business of helping people.

That's what we do.

That's just who we are.

We help people.

24-7, 365.

There is no off day for helping people.

You don't take off.

I'm on vacation, so I don't help you today.

What if God said he was on vacation and didn't help you?

You'll get rewarded for helping other people.

Let me give you another one.

Go to 1 Peter chapter 4.

1 Peter 4 · chapter mention

Visualize a paycheck that you're going to get from God.

Now don't act like you haven't done this before.

If you play the lottery, you already decided what you're gonna do with that money.

Visualize God repaying you for what you did for him.

First Peter chapter 4, verse number 10.

1 Peter 4 · chapter mention

As every man have received the gift, even so, here's this same word again, even so minister, serve the same to another.

As good stewards of the manifold grace of God, another way that you will get a reward is God has given everybody a gift.

How are you using that gift?

Your gift could be music, your gift could be sports, your gift could be broadcasting, your gift could be writing poems.

How are you using those gifts?

Are you using those gifts to profit?

Or are you using those gifts to honor God?

Is God getting the glory out of your gift?

If he's not getting glory out of your gift, then one of two people are.

Either you are or the devil is.

So your gift should honor God.

Whatever that gift is, it's supposed to be used so God can be glorified.

Matthew chapter six.

Investing in heaven.

Matthew chapter six, verse number nineteen.

Jesus says, Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth where moth and rust dost corrupt.

But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust does corrupt.

There are investments on the earth that we may have that will remain.

But what about your investments that will go before you before you get to heaven?

See, sometimes we don't understand investing on earth.

When you are investing, there's money that you put away so it can build while you sleep.

It'll grow while you're sleeping.

It is the same way spiritually.

When you invest in heavenly things, your reward is increasing before earthly treasures are only temporary.

They're not going to last.

You can spend five thousand dollars on a diamond ring.

Praise the Lord that you can do that.

But you won't take that ring to heaven.

The issue isn't, do you have possessions?

The issue is what are you doing with the possessions that you have?

Heavenly rewards.

Lay up for yourself treasures, treasures, treasures in heaven, treasures in heaven.

Because what you have to understand is that these precious stones are actually building your house in heaven.

Remember, Jesus says, I go to prepare a place for you.

So your heavenly rewards is helping to establish the type of house that you will live in when you get to heaven.

There are levels of responsibility, not in heaven, but there are levels of responsibility and rulership and dominion when we come back down to rule and reign with him.

That's why it's important that you understand this because when you don't understand, and when these things that you do or your deeds are put into certain categories and they're burnt up, you will actually lose your reward.

So whether or not you rule and reign with Christ, when we come back here in New Jerusalem.

Better understand why all this is happening.

Better stop listening to what the world is saying in channel 2 and 4, 4, and 7.

You better read this B-I-B-L-E.

There's a reason why there is an uprising in Islam.

You better understand there's a reason why it's happening in our own backyard.

You better understand and don't get.

I've said, okay, Lord, don't get in covenant with a demon crack.

Or Republican.

You better follow the B I B L E and make decisions not according to your skin color, but make decisions according to what does the Bible say.

Because you will even be held accountable for your voting.

See, you gotta understand that every bill that's passed becomes a law that will govern the nation.

So whatever bill is focused in on whatever you want to make sure that you have gone to the Bible and found out what the Bible says about this issue, not because what's popular.

God says something about marriage.

God says something about Israel.

God says something about abortion.

You want to find yourself on God's side.

And not what's popular.

I'd rather be popular with God to be unpopular with the world.

Because one day this world that we know it will pass away.

And it will be replaced.

And then you'll get a new body.

So you can function in the new earth.

And once again, we'll all stand before Him to give an account.

I did this.

Why?

Because your mother told you to do it and it wasn't scriptural?

You're gonna give an account before the Lord.

Okay, let me give you another one.

This one you should be real excited about.

James chapter one.

James chapter one.

Verse number twelve says, Blessed in the man is the man that endureth temptation.

For when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

Notice James, who's the half-brother of the Lord Jesus Christ, says, when we face or when we endure tests, I call it the three T's, tests, trials, and temptation.

When we are victorious over those tests, trials, and temptations, notice that the Bible says, you will receive the crown of life.

A crown of life is a gift from God to those who number one love him.

Everybody will say they love God.

But remember, we said on last week, and I showed you, if you love God, you would do what he said.

So for those who will faithfully understand the test, the trial, and the temptation, and not complain about the test, the trial, temptation, not wonder why the test, the trial, and the temptation is happening to them, but they will understand that they're on a battlefield.

And when they do what the commander in chief tells them to do while they're on the battlefield, that they won't hit a minefield and blow up.

Because you follow the instructions of the commander in chief who sent you on the battlefield in the first place.

Then he will reward you for winning.

But you got to be disciplined.

Because disciples are disciplined.

When you remain faithful, God rewards faithfulness.

Let me give you another one since you're so excited about these heavenly rewards.

Matthew chapter 19.

Matthew 19 · chapter mention

Matthew chapter 19, verse number 29.

Matthew 19 · chapter mention

And every one of you that have forsaken, we stood on this scripture every time the Lord shifted our assignment.

Every single time the Lord shifted our assignment to move to a different state.

From Southfield to Nova.

But when you're talking about moving from Detroit to Phoenix, Arizona, away from everybody in a different time zone, we had to stand on the word.

And so we stood on this scripture every single time that we moved.

It says, and everyone, everyone, everyone that hath forsaken houses, brethren, sisters, fathers, mothers.

Notice why.

For his name's sake.

One translation says, and the gospels, he shall receive a hundredfold return in this life and in the life to come.

Now, there has been a misunderstanding for the one hundredfold return.

Yes, God does provide the one hundredfold return when you sow the seed and the right type of ground with the right heart.

But what he's talking about here is your sacrifices for him are not forgotten.

Your sacrifice for him, he doesn't forget it.

Thank you, Lord.

Thank you, Jesus.

You laying down what you wanted to do to put up what he wanted to do in place of you.

He doesn't forget that.

You may have forgotten it.

But he doesn't forget it.

The time that you were inconvenienced to help somebody else.

The time that you gave to somebody and it was your last and they didn't give it back.

Because he knows why you did it.

And you still, that's why you shouldn't be upset with them.

That's why you just gotta let them have it.

No, let them have the money, not let them have a piece of your mind.

I gotta make that clear.

Clarify.

Thank you, Jesus.

He saw you serving when nobody else was willing to do it.

He saw you taking care of your mother or your father when your siblings was like.

Now, point number three, let's talk about the other side.

The wood, the hay, and the stubble.

Because we've seen what happens when that fire tries our works.

Then we'll get rewarded.

What happens when that same fire tries our works, and then they're put into these categories.

Let's show that graphic, Tina.

Works that have no value.

Works that have no value, because again, everything that we do is being put into these categories.

Wood, hay, and stubble.

So everything that we do is being put into these two sets of categories.

And whatever's burned up will be lost.

So your actions, your deeds, your service, your decisions, how you lived your life.

Philippians chapter three.

Let's start here.

It'll cause you to reevaluate some things.

Philippians chapter two, verse number three.

It says, Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory.

Vainglory means empty pride.

But in lowliness of mind, let each esteem each other better than himself.

So the first thing that will be burned up is if you're doing things for selfish ambition.

You are doing things that will only benefit you.

I'm not doing this because I love my spouse.

I'm doing this because I want to get something from her.

I'm not doing this on my job because I'm trying to benefit the company.

I'm doing this because I only want a promotion.

Selfish motive for doing things.

Is it all about you or is it all about him?

That's why the apostle Paul says, I've got to die daily.

He said, There is no good thing in me that is in my flesh.

If you allow your flesh to determine whether or not you're gonna pray for somebody, more than likely you you probably not gonna pray for them.

God's work should be done to build his name.

So whatever I'm doing, I should be doing that his name is honored.

He gets the glory behind everything that I do.

If what I'm doing is not pleasing to God, I probably shouldn't do it.

If what I'm about to say is not good, if God can't be on the throne and say, Oh, that's my son, that's my daughter, if he can't say that, more than likely it probably shouldn't come out of your mouth.

Number two, talking about works that have no value.

First Corinthians chapter four.

Verse number five.

Until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things, the hidden things.

You gotta understand that sometimes we think.

That we're getting away with something.

You know what's interesting about this?

Because the world mirrors the things of God.

Things are first spiritual and then they're natural.

Things are first spiritual and then they're natural.

Let me ask you a question.

If you put something out on the internet, even though you delete it, have you actually deleted it?

No.

It is there forever.

It is there forever.

And if you put it out there today, 20 years from now, somebody can go and find what you wrote or what you posted.

If that's in the natural, what makes you think that God doesn't see everything that you are doing?

Because one day when we stand before him, it is God.

It's going to be revealed.

So things that have no value is having the wrong motive.

What motivated you to do that?

Because everybody is motivated to do something.

Something or someone is going to motivate you.

Okay, so I know Nick is watching, so my son and our daughter there in college right now.

And so I'm just putting his business out there.

So so talking about motivation.

So he's he's he's in a relationship right now.

He's 21 right now.

She has gotten him to eat stuff that we've been telling him for the last twenty-one years.

What's motivating him to eat something that we've been she been cooking?

I've been encouraging, but all of a sudden now he's eating this.

He's motivated to do.

What's motivating you?

So again, wrong motive.

The wrong motive for why you do what you do will be evaluated by God.

Go to Matthew chapter six.

Let me give you something else.

That will have and produce no value.

Matthew chapter six, verse number one.

It says, Take heed that you do your alms, do not your alms before men.

To be seen of them.

Otherwise, Jesus says, You have no reward from your Father which is in heaven.

You can do something and it's good, but your motive be wrong.

So you have to check the motive behind why you do what you do.

Notice what Jesus says.

Take heed that you do not alms before men.

He's talking about what you give.

And why you give.

Do you realize he knows what you can give?

And you don't give it?

Why are you not giving it?

You'll be judged from that.

I didn't give because my past told me the preacher's gonna take the money.

You're gonna be judged and that preacher.

Woo!

Interesting that we give all of the time.

We just don't give to God.

You didn't give to Macy's.

Foot Locker.

Some people might still be giving to the club.

We're gonna be held accountable for that.

I'm gonna skip all of that because Jesus also talked about prayer.

I'll go there.

Matthew chapter six.

See, remember last week we also showed you that you have opportunities.

You did not take advantage of those opportunities because you thought you had time.

Matthew chapter 6, verse number 5, it says, When you pray, don't be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on the street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them.

Matthew 6 · chapter mention

I tell you the truth, that is all the reward they will ever get.

When you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your father in private.

Then your father, who sees everything, when you pray, he will reward you.

You are going to be surprised because when we get to heaven, some of the people that you thought might get a reward or rule and reign will not.

So those that you think are in first place will actually be in last place.

And one of the rewards that God will reward people from is for people who pray.

And will never see you.

And were never seen.

Thank you.

Because he sees everything.

He sees when you get up at 3 o'clock in the morning.

Thank you, Lord.

Hallelujah.

He sees when he wakes you up for a prayer and assignment and you don't understand, so you still sleep.

He gives you opportunities at 6 o'clock Monday through Saturday.

He gives you another opportunity when you come to church and you get here on time and you pray from 815 to 828.

Those are opportunities to build up your heavenly reward system.

We'll close with this last one.

James chapter one.

See if you're doing what you do for human applause, that will be your reward.

James chapter four.

And then you don't do it.

To him.

That's sin.

See, disobedience isn't always doing something wrong.

Disobedience is refusing to do what's right.

Yeah, you know what's the right thing to do, and then you just refuse to do it.

God doesn't only hold you accountable for the wrong things.

There are things or right things that you knew to do, but you just refuse.

You knew you were supposed to give, but you just refused to.

You knew you were supposed to call that person and forgive them, but you just, you refuse to.

You knew you were supposed to walk in love with that person, but you just, you know what?

They don't even deserve it.

You just, you just refuse to do it.

That's called disobedience.

So we will stand before the Lord, and he will manifest all the works.

I don't know how he's gonna manifest.

I don't know if they all just gonna appear.

I don't know if they're all gonna be in a book, but they're all your whole life will flash before you.

And it will stand before the Father.

And that fire is gonna be right there.

And it's gonna, oh yeah, you refuse to do this, you didn't do this.

I I told you to do this countless times and you still didn't do it.

And then you'll find out that when we come back down here to rule and reign, the things that you should have done and the places you should have ruled over, do you realize that there are those, I'm gonna include me in this, that I'll be ruling over planets.

You do know that's what happened in the beginning when God told Adam and Eve to rule over the earth.

You do know that they had authority and dominion.

Disobedience.

This is the last one.

Matthew chapter twenty-five.

Matthew chapter twenty-five.

Verse number twenty-four.

Because of time, I will summarize this.

Let's go to number six, Tina.

Poor stewardship.

How did you steward what he gave you?

How did you take care of that body?

Did you just eat anything that you know you weren't supposed to eat?

Were you just snacking all day?

Just because you wanted to snack, you wasn't even hungry, you were just snacking.

Just tearing your teeth up because you just eat sugar after sugar and high blood pressure because you had a prescription from the doctor and you just refused to eat and take care of your body.

The resource that he gave you, he couldn't give you more because it was an issue of stewardship.

The vehicle that you drove and drive, he wanted to elevate you, but because you didn't even bother to vacuum, you still had fast food in the back, you didn't wash the car, you didn't maintain the car, and then you blamed everybody else because the car was broken down, you didn't make, you didn't take it to the dealership, and just you just just the just stewardship.

Poor stewardship.

We will be held accountable to God based upon how we stewarded everything.

We need to know these things.

I'll summarize this just because of time.

The last talent, because when you read this, there were three individuals that God gave talent to.

And the last one says, I was afraid, I went and I hid, I hid thy talent in the earth.

And his response was, you wicked and lazy.

So he didn't lose in the beginning.

He just chose not to do anything.

And what's interesting about this, that sometimes we don't understand, I want you to see this law.

He will take what you didn't use and then give it to somebody else who knows how to produce.

So we must use what he's given us because when you read this parable, it says that when he gave the talent, he was coming back to see what they did.

So all of the gifts, all of the talents, all of the abilities, all the things that he's put into our hands over our course of life, no matter when you started working, by the end of the time that you are in this earth, all of us will probably would have had over a million dollars.

Come through your hands.

The question is, what'd you do with that?

I got Jordans, I got I can only talk about me.

But I understand the spiritual investment.

Let me close here.

Revelation chapter 22.

Revelation 22 · chapter mention

This is the last scripture that I wanted to end with.

Revelation twenty-two, verse number twelve, the New Living Translation.

Notice this.

It says, Look.

I'm coming soon.

Jesus is returning soon.

Bringing my reward with me to repay all the people according to what you did.

That is very clear.

So your obedience matters.

Your sacrifice matters, your giving matters, your stewardship matters.

The words that come out of your mouth matters.

The motive of why you do what you do matters because he's coming back to repay you for what you've done.

So how you live your life matters.

Some may have to repent today.

Because after hearing this and you heard last week, maybe you built up the wrong kind of reward.

And maybe you need to change some things in your heart so that you can start building up your rewards.

And let me say this before I show it to you in the next couple of weeks.

Just because God doesn't reward you because you've been serving him for 30 years.

That's not even scriptural.

Time doesn't matter.

Thank you, Lord.

I'm going to show you the parable is that when the steward, God paid them not based off of how much time they had.

He paid them based upon the quality of their work.

You can be serving God for 30 years, and the work that you did is raggedy.

Your motive was wrong.

You did it to be seen by the pastor.

That fire is gonna be right there.

And it's gonna burn up.

So don't get moved because I just started serving God.

No, have the right heart, have the right motive, and now you can start building up your heavenly reward system.

Every head's bowed and every eyes closed in prayer.

Let's take a moment before we actually do an altar call.

Some of you may have to repent before God.

Because maybe your motive for doing what you did was wrong.

God knows, God sees it.

It's between you and Him.

I'm just a delivery boy to lead you into this.

So if that's you, say, Father, I apologize.

That my motive was wrong, my heart was wrong.

I didn't know.

So I'm asking you just to forgive me.

But now I know, and now I'm accountable.

So from this moment forward, I'm motivated to do things only for you in the name of Jesus.

Now, while every head is bowed, just want to make sure that you're in here today to give you the opportunity.

Maybe you're not born again.