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40 He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me. 41 He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. 42 And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward. ~ Matthew 10:40-42
Today, we conclude our study of Matthew 10, the lengthiest description given in the gospels of what it looks like to be a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. We must be careful that discipleship is not to be confused with becoming a member of the family of God. There is only one thing that gets any of us into heaven and that is our faith in the finished work of the Lord Jesus on the cross to garner the forgiveness of our sin. Once in the family of God, we all experience quite a difference of experiences with God resulting in His discipleship of us. The key to genuine discipleship is to be so utterly consumed with the cause that we have no thought for our own life.
In v.40 of today's passage we read, "He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me."
When we remind others about the fact that we are all broken and in need of the Savior, they will be positioned to make a decision whether the Lord Jesus is their Savior or not. Due to the blindness that was hoist upon us so long ago in the Garden of Eden, there will always be tension when we share the bad news about how our sinfulness and how it has separated us from God. It is at this point that we must be poised to share the good news that at the cross the Lord Jesus bridged the gap between the us and the Holy God. Not everyone will refuse the message. There will be those who choose to believe in the greatest message to ever enter the human ear. And, when they believe in the Lord Jesus they will believe in the Father. This is known in Math class as the transitive property.
When the world receives us and the gospel, we can call that "A." Then, when those who receive us and the gospel enter into a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus, we can call that "B." Then, when those who enter into a relationship with the Lord also receive the Father, we can call that "C." In the end this means A = C. This transitive property, theologically, means the Lord Jesus is the only way to be blessed by the Father who sent Him. It means whoever receives the Lord's message delivered by His disciple will believe in the Lord Jesus alone for salvation.
In John 14:6 we read, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
In v.41 of today's passage we read, "He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward."
The prophet is the one who has the task to deliver the message from God to man. The prophet who has been called and sent by God has been acknowledged by God as righteous. Throughout the Bible the basis of our righteousness before God has always been faith in the God of the Bible. The proclamation of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ either alienates or it reunites. Those who are reunited to God through believing in the Lord Jesus as their Savior are the rewards into eternity for those who were humble enough and brave enough to share the gospel with the lost.
As disciples of the Lord Jesus we play a role in the ultimate destiny of our hearers. We cannot believe for them but when we are faithful to share the gospel with people, they are given the opportunity to respond in belief in the Lord Jesus. Since the just penalty for our sin is infinite and eternal, only the infinite and eternal God could pay the penalty created by our sin. But God, in His divine nature, could not die. So, God became a human being in the person of Jesus Christ. God took on human flesh so that He could sacrifice Himself on our behalf. And, the criteria for forgiveness of our sin is to believe that what the Lord Jesus did on the cross was sufficient for our salvation.
In v.42 of today's passage we read, "And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward."
The "whoever" here means there are no limits to God's promise of salvation. The words "little ones" describes the insignificant. The words "cold water" highlights the smallest deed of kindness. People do not care about what we believe until they know that we truly care. Even when we do the most insignificant for the most insignificant the attentiveness of God is triggered to the point of reward for all involved.
In Romans 8:18 we read, "For I consider that the suļ¬erings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."
There is that word again, "worthy." The worth of anything comes from God. And, the greatest value having ever been issued was issued at the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. He valued us so much that He laid down His life for us. When we find our security in the person and the worth of the Lord Jesus, our motivation for choosing to walk in God's way is changed from selfishness to selflessness. We obey Him because we love Him. And, it is His love that has trained us to love Him in return. This is the greatest reward because in this is freedom which is the ability to do what we were created to do.
