And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. (Matt 19:28)
The Apostles had shown their respect to Jesus, as the first that followed Him, and to them He promises not only treasure, but honor, in heaven. We, too, have been given the opportunity to follow. We, those who follow and are faithful, will also receive our reward. Whatever the Lord bestows upon us will be more than we deserve. We are sinners, all of us, and will deserve nothing. Even our entrance into Heaven was paid for by someone else. Who are we to become greedy over what we will receive when we get there? I'll be happy just to BE there, I don't really much need or want anything other than that. If sweeping the streets or cleaning the toilets in heaven is my job, I will go well prepared.
We all regard many "duties" as being beneath us. For some reason, society has put it out there that mopping floors, cleaning bathrooms and shoveling horse manure are positions for uneducated or ignorant people. The wages paid for these jobs will barely put food on the table for the worker, let along an entire family. There are many jobs that do not cover the cost of living. There are many that quadruple it for doing absolutely nothing. Fortunately for us, Heaven isn't achieved through "works" and you don't need a college degree nor do you need to keep a minimum balance in your bank account to enter. As long as you accept Jesus as your Savior and believe that His blood has cleansed you, walk by faith and bow only to Him, you are in harmony with the saints of Heaven. There is no credit check.
All that we give up to follow Jesus will be returned to us many times over. Some of us have given up our friends whom we have known for a lifetime, some have given up family (both blood family and acquired family), some have given up lifestyles and homes, some have given everything. Those of us who can actually admit that our lives are much better and fuller with Jesus in it, as opposed to the "privileged" one we'd become accustomed to, will tell you that is it worth it. Our moments of joy and happiness may be short lived, but our eyes are not focused on the present - they are focused on HIM. We live each day in hopes that "today is the day" and wait with an anticipation that is ten times greater than that of a five year old on Christmas Eve...He is our life, our joy, our hope!!!
Decide. Make a choice. Choose Jesus over everything else and everything else will fall into place. Walk out in front with Him and you will reach the finish line and hear the praises of those who have gone before you. There are no losers in God's race - everyone comes in first and no one is left behind. The winner's circle is large enough to accommodate everyone who participates. There is a crown for all of God's people and reserved seating elsewhere for those who choose to be spectators. Answer the calling of the Holy Spirt and lift your eyes toward heaven. Your King waits there...
