Sunday Sermon1: You Shall Receive a Prophetic Reward

You Shall Receive a Prophetic Reward

Reward is the prize, honour or award one gets in exchange of hard work or good behavior. There are so many kinds of reward, we have earthly reward and heavenly. Within the heavenly reward we have prophetic reward. Prophetic reward is a reward given to those who live uprightly and righteously.

In Matthew 10:40-42 our Lord Jesus Christ assured His followers, “He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives him who sent me.” God’s messengers are God’s ambassadors here on earth. They represent God. They act as intermediary between God and His chosen people. Acceptance of God’s messengers is acceptance of God.

Jesus said, “He who receives a prophet because he is a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward.” A Prophet is God’s mouthpiece. He is a vessel through whom God communicates to His chosen people. A prophet mediates between God and man. They are so dear to God that the Lord God said “Touch not My anointed ones, And do My prophets no harm.” (Psalm 105:15). God will bless those who bless His prophets and He will fight those who fight His prophets.

The righteous ones are another set of people that are dear to God. Jesus told His followers, “He who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward.” The righteous ones are those who live upright and holy life. They are those who strive to do God’s will.

Psalm 15 declares, “Lord, who may abide in Your tabernacle? Who may dwell in Your holy hill?  He who walks uprightly, And works righteousness (Psalm 15:1-2). In Genesis 12:3 the Lord God assured Abraham, saying, “I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you” Abraham was a typical example of a righteous man. God defends the righteous. Those who bless them He will bless. But those who curses them He will curse!

There is also a special reward for the disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ. A disciple is a student or a learner.  In the gospel of John 15:15 our Lord Jesus Christ told His disciples, “No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.” Jesus said, “Whoever gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he shall        not lose his reward.” As you provide for God’s disciples, God will surely provide for you!

Second Kings 4:8-16 is typical example of a prophetic reward. The Prophet went on to Shunem, where A wealthy barren woman took care of him. With the consent of her husband she provided food and shelter to the Man of God.  Elisha was highly impressed and he asked Gehazi his servant, “What is to be done for her?” Gehazi answered, “Well, she has no son, and her husband is old.” “Call her.” Elisha said. When he had called her, Elisha said to her, “At this season, when the time comes round, you shall embrace a son.” That was exactly what happened! And this is one of the many instances where people were rewarded for taking care of God’s messenger.

Apart from the Prophets the righteous and the disciples, there is a general reward for all the baptized. In his letter to the Romans 6:3-11 St. Paul wrote, “Brethren: All of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death. We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him.” In union with our Lord Jesus Christ, we all who are baptized in Christ shall walk in newness of life. We shall all live with Him.

St. Paul also declares, “For we know that Christ being raised from the dead will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. The death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.” As death has no more power over our Lord Jesus Christ death has no more power over any of us. As St. Paul rightly declares, if you can kill the spirit of sin in you, then you must consider yourself alive to God in Christ Jesus.

How then can we kill this spirit of sin? You ask. Repentance and mercy is the only weapon that can destroy sin. Our God is a Merciful God. He is ever ready to forgive us.

Let us join the Psalmist as we Sing forever of God’s Mercy!

RESPONSORIAL PSALM           Psalm 89:2-3.16-17.18-19 (R. _cf. 2_a)

1. I will sing forever of your mercies, O Lord.

I will sing forever of your mercies, O Lord;

through all ages my mouth will proclaim your fidelity.

have declared your mercy is established forever;

your fidelity stands firm as the heavens. R.

How blessed the people who know your praise,

who walk, O Lord, in the light of your face,

who find their joy every day in your name,

who make your justice their joyful acclaim. R.

For you are the glory of their strength;

by your favour it is that our might is exalted.

Behold, the Lord is our shield;

he is the Holy One of Israel, our king. R.