(Jesus said) "You are those who have stayed with Me in My trials, and I assign to you, as My Father assigned to Me, a kingdom, that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel" (Luke 22:28-30).
Read Luke 22:28-30.
Though Jesus was generally well-received by the crowds throughout His ministry, He faced ever stiffening opposition and hostility from the Jewish religious leaders. But the disciples faithfully stood by Him through it all. Peter said it well: "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that You are the Holy One of God" (John 6:68b-69).
Jesus looks around the table at them. A moment ago they disputed which of them was greatest, but He knows in the future they will suffer as He will-beatings, imprisonment, exile, even death. So Jesus points them beyond those sufferings to the glorious reward that waits for them at the end. When their earthly lives are completed, they will receive a greater honor, privilege and glory than anything they could have sought on earth. Here they will serve in humility and suffering, but in heaven they will find true glory and honor. The promise is true for you and me as well.
Though our daily work for the Lord often seems to go unappreciated and unrecognized, Jesus assures us that God marks it well and will faithfully reward it in eternity.
THE PRAYER: Lord Jesus, thank You for teaching us a new way to think about ourselves and our place in Your world. Help me grasp the beauty and grandeur of it all, that I may live as You did, in humble service and self-sacrifice. Amen.
Today's Bible Readings: Leviticus 6-7 Mark 6:1-29
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