JOHN 14:23 – “Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.””

1 JOHN 4:9 – “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent His only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him”.

THEME OF THE DAY: THE REWARD OF LOVE.   There was a story told of a rich man who died and left no heirs. When his household goods were auctioned off, an elderly lady dressed in shabby garments was the only one to bid on the picture of the dead man’s son. It had been greatly cherished by the wealthy father because his only child had died at an early age. But the crowd that had gathered for the sale showed no interest in it. When the woman who bought the portrait was asked why she wanted it, she said she had been the boy’s nurse many years before and had loved him dearly. Later she examined the picture closely and noticed a bulge in the heavy paper on the back. Making a small cut, she removed an envelope which turned out to be the man’s missing will. The document very clearly stated that he wanted to leave his property to the person who still held dear the memory of his beloved son.

The poor elderly lady in the story received the reward of love.  Did she know what was going to be hers when the rich man died? No. Love doesn’t give to get. Love gives to give. It is the nature of love to give without any thought of return or reward.  She served the father by loving his son with no strings attached or thought of gain. Yet, God does reward His people who love Him.  In fact, we are told at the Judgment Seat of Christ, there is the promise of gaining rewards from Him – “According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire” (1 Corinthians 3:10-15).

In pondering the possible rewards God would give us, consider the one I am about to identify as the chief reward of all.  It actually is one we may have now and comes from today’s scriptures.   Do we see the common thread between the two? It is fellowship with God. It is knowing God. It is living life through our union with the Lord.   The promise of Jesus is that if we live a life of obedience, He, along with His Father, would make themselves know to us in a real and experiential way.  What a promise!  What a reward – God Himself making Himself known to us!  And this the greatest reward of love – the reward of God Himself, the God who is love.

PRAYER: Lord, let me value fellowship with You for what it is – life’s greatest privilege and treasure.

REFLECTION:  To love God because He first loved us is the motivator to give Him all our hearts, all the time.