An excerpt from Kris Vallotton's upcoming book, Heavy Rain. Watch for more news about the January 2011 release!
We will never nurture greatness in people without cultivating a culture of reward. I would like to propose to you that no truly great feat has ever been accomplished without (at least in part) the promise of reward. For example, David killed Goliath so he could marry the king’s daughter. The Israelites left Egypt to obtain a Promised Land. Jesus Himself achieved His greatest victory for the sake of reward: “For the joy set before Him He endured the cross” (Hebrews 12:2). History books are full of stories of godly people who accomplished great things for the sake of reward.
But reward has become a dirty word in many religious circles. Some have deemed it unspiritual even to think of rewarding people for their efforts. If you were a carpenter, mechanic, or any occupation for that matter, it would never dawn on you to do your job and have your employer decide how much to pay you after you are done with the work. Yet, if you are a conference speaker in some Christian circles, you better not act like you even care about how much the offering is. If you require a certain dollar amount per session when you speak at conferences, you will most likely be tagged as a materialist. Don’t worry, I never ask for an offering when I speak, and I am well taken care of. Neither am I advocating that we should work for money instead of working for God. But I am saying that God intends us to be motivated by reward in working for Him as surely as our employers do. The fact that we struggle over things like paying spiritual leaders a wage for their labors indicates that we don’t truly understood God’s heavenly economy. It is spiritual to expect God to compensate us for our efforts. Jesus said, “… the laborer is worthy of his wages” (Luke 10:7). The last chapter of the Good Book says, “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done” (Revelation 22:12). The parables of the talents, minas, and the sower are all about working for a reward.
Reward is the driving motivation of our faith. The writer of Hebrews says: “Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6). People who argue that Christians shouldn’t care about reward is like saying they shouldn’t believe in God. You simply can’t please God unless you expect Him to reward you.
One of the main ways we create a culture of reward is by celebrating people’s accomplishments. Thus, it is no surprise that folks who struggle with the idea of reward also resist compliments, praise, or acknowledging achievements. I have been to churches where they don’t even clap when the worship band rocks. In some circles celebrating people’s efforts is seen as unspiritual, self-promoting, or arrogant. Many people actually believe that recognizing a person’s success steals glory from God. But isn’t it God who created us and gave each of us special gifts and abilities? We cheer for our kids when they are playing sports. We never think, “They are stealing my glory.” Actually, when one of my kids does something amazing on the court or field, I turn to the other parents and say, “Whose kid is that?” Everyone laughs and says, “We know, it’s yours!”
The truth is that when we do something awesome on the earth, God is the loudest one in the stands of life, cheering us on, saying things like, ”Whose son is that? That kid takes after His Daddy! That girl is amazing!” The great exploits of God’s sons and daughters actually glorify the Father! That’s why Paul wrote, “Be imitators of God, as beloved children…” (Ephesians 5:1). When we imitate God, we are being ourselves. We were created in His image and are commanded to become Christ-like. Therefore there is nothing too noble to reach for, too awesome to believe for, too powerful to hope for, or too excellent to live for because we are children of the KING!
