“ “Lo, we have left all, and have followed Thee! Jesus answered, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for My r/- mm sake, and the Gospel’s but he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time and in the world to come eternal life.” — Mark 10:28-30. Vian This is going to be different Baptist from what you thought when you Church see the title. It isn’t that you are unsaved and left behind at the Rapture, but it is talking about what you have given up for Jesus.
The principles of this world, and those of our Lord are widely different. The world is set on grasping all it can accumulation, self fulfillment of the piling up of fortunes, the climb up the ladder of fame, the gathering of hosts of friends on the Internet. Looking after “number one” is the readiest way of expressing this principle of life! But it is unsatisfactory and disappointing. The soul which is the centre of its own circumference is doomed to realize that there are more forfeits than prizes, more bitterness than success, more dark hours than bright ones.
On the other side, Christ’s principle of life is to give, to trust, to bless! His measure must be always pressed down and running over. The cloak must follow the coat; the second mile must be gladly thrown in with the first. The necessity to forgive seven times is followed by times seven. To be willing to surrender all for the sake of others, is the ordinary claim of the King on those who have claimed Him as their Lord.
Philippians 3:7-9 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: Paul is trying to explain without boasting what has happened in his life. He is telling the people at Philippi that there are more important things than to succeed by worldly standards. We have approximately 50 very productive years. The years before, we are too young and the years after we are too old, yet much can be accomplished in those 50 productive years. Fortunes have been made and lost. Fame is fleeting. Friends are fickle at best, but what is done for Jesus is eternal.
Paul tells us that success in worldly things is so much dung, but the righteousness found in Christ is the true goal.
Let the world scramble, fight, claw, and chew on each other to obtain or overcome to win a worldly crown. Christians have an eternal goal and rewards that can be won. Our earthly life for Christ translates to our eternal existence.
ICorinthians 3:13 “Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.”
What will the trying of your work be? Romans 2:16 “In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel.”
Well there is a scary thought…all those secret things, all your guilty pleasures, all the things done in the darkness of night, will be revealed and judged by none other than Jesus Christ, who lived a perfect life while on earth.
Our original text is Peter telling Jesus that they have left all behind. He wonders what his reward will be for doing this and Jesus answers, “but he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time and in the world to come eternal life.”
So this is a conundrum left for you to ponder. A conundrum is a confusing and difficult problem or question. Jesus is telling the disciples that anyone who leaves things sought after by the world will be rewarded with more than they left behind.
Now, I am going to talk with Christians for a minute. What have you left behind? How much time and energy have you spend in following Christ? Have you discarded fame and fortune to obtain eternal reward? Are we simply collectors of stuff? One of our church brothers has a storage business. They are full almost all of the time. Why? Because we are all Stuff Kind of People!
Now let me ask another question of Christians. What have you actively done for Christ to give Him the honor and glory he deserves?
Now for a few seconds I want to speak to nonchristians. I hate the tee shirt that says, He the Dies with the most Toys Wins. The Bible is quite clear about what you accumulate on this earth.
Ecclestiastes 2:18-19 Yea, I hated all my labour which I had taken under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me. And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour wherein I nave laboured, and wherein I have shewed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity.
Solomon said that. Jesus said this… Luke 12:20 But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?
Matthew 16:26 For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
These last three verses are very telling. At death, all that you have accumulated passes on to another if it is world things. Only eternal things last beyond death. Think carefully, lost person and Christian. Will God reward your stuff filled life in eternity?
