The Faith to Believe that God is your Rewarder!

2 October 2016 (11.30am service, New Creation Church at Star Vista)

- Sermon delivered by Pastor Joseph Prince

 

Sermon Notes (Note: These are personal notes and not a transcription of the sermon.)

I.           Zayins in Psalm 91

Hebrew letters are also used to express numbers. Eg. Hei is number 5, and 7 is the letter zayin, which means sword/substance/nourishment.  

In psalm 91, you don’t find the letter zayin. It’s not mentioned in whole entire Psalm. However, if you read Hebrew’s psalm 91, zayin is everywhere. Three zayins can be seen on top of many letters, in the form of a crown. These are the hidden zayins. When you are reciting psalm 91, you are unleashing spiritual weapons.

The truth will set you free.

When God delivered us through his son’s resurrection, we have been delivered from the authority of darkness. If we have the Holy Spirit in us, the Holy Spirit will not share the habitation with the evil spirit.

God is for you, He is not against you. While our sins are the number one problems, Christ took the sins to the cross.

II.        Fear as Wrong Thinking

Fear is our wrong thinking. Many times, we don’t know that we are thinking wrong. However, we know when we feel fear or when fear is expressed. For instance, we may believe in the worst of people.

Do you believe the worst of people? If you do that, you will have resentful emotions towards people. Feeling negative towards people is not good.

If you feel fear all the time, there is a wrong believing in that area. Job learns this lesson. Pastor used to be worried about his daughter Jessica. The Lord corrected his belief through the story of Job. Job was also fearful that bad things that might happen to the children:

Job 3:25

“For the thing I greatly feared has come upon me, And what I dreaded has happened to me.”

The very area that we are fearful of is the area that we don’t trust the protection of God in. You trust your enemy more than your God in the area of fear. Surrender your family, your finance, your career to the Lord and trust Him in projecting you.  Go right into the word of God, and truth will set you free.

 

III.      Not to Turn Faith into a Formula

Some of us have turned faith into a formula that it has become dry.

Hebrews 11:5-6

“By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, and was not found, because God had taken him; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But 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 diligently seek Him.”

He who comes to God must believe that

 

1.   He is; and

2.  That he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

For instance, if you are sick, God is your physician; if you are broke, God is your supply. The faith that pleases God is the faith that believes that God is a rewarder.

God gives you the grace to do something, in your work, in your career, in everything that you are in.

Even for the unbelievers, God gives certain grace such as rain, sunshine, crops, and cows that give milk to them.

        IV:      Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above

James 1:17

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.”

An example of good gift is medicine, and an example of perfect gift is divine healing.

Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15:9-10

“For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.”

It is possible that when God is giving you something, God will work through that aspect in you so that you would want to accomplish it. God thus even works through you to give you the desire to do something. It’s a privilege for us when God starts to move our hearts.

At the end year assessment in a Christian organisation, how are you going to assess your employees? If it’s by “grace”, everyone will have equal assessment. However, that should not be the case.

Your work reflects whether you are “using the grace”.  Use the grace with hard work, the bush will be burning but will not be burnt out.


     V.      Serve the Lord and the Blessings will be Multiplied

If you use your strength for the Lord, the Lord will give you more strength; if you give time for the Lord, your time will be multiplied.

The economics of the world are about scarce resources; the economics of God tell us that there is more than enough supply.

When you use the grace God gives you, God rewards you with more than enough supply than you need.

God wants to bless you so much, so that you get to bless others around you.

Luke 5:1-6

“So it was, as the multitude pressed about Him to hear the word of God, that He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret, and saw two boats standing by the lake; but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets. Then He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little from the land. And He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat.

When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, ‘Launch out into the deep and let down your nets (plural) for a catch.’

But Simon answered and said to Him, ‘Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net (singular).’ And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking.”

There were two boats by the lake. When the Lord comes to your boat, it’s because he is favouring you, you are blessed.  Your lost time and lost revenue spent in giving to the Lord, will be rewarded much more. Be confident of God's rewards for you.

Luke 5:7-8

“So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!’”

 
It’s the goodness of God that leads people to repent. Jesus just blessed Simon Peter and Simon repented. There was no mention of sin from Jesus’s lips.

Luke 5:9-10

"For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish which they had taken; and so also were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, ‘Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men.”

Don’t be afraid that God will judge you. God will find every excuse to bless you.

Matthew 10:41-42

“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. 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.”

God gives you something first, you do something, and then God rewards you. Rewards of God can also be found in the story of Ruth when she had faith in God's favour.

 
Ruth 2:9-12

"'Let your eyes be on the field which they reap, and go after them. Have I not commanded the young men not to touch you? And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink from what the young men have drawn.’

So she fell on her face, bowed down to the ground, and said to him, ‘Why have I found favour in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?’

 And Boaz answered and said to her, ‘It has been fully reported to me, all that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband, and how you have left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a people whom you did not know before. The Lord repay your work, and a full reward be given you by the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge.’”

The Lord holds all the answers to your problems. Sinners can approach Jesus and be blessed with grace, and sinners should not be afraid of coming to God.

You can pray to God whole day, at any moment. Even when you are alone, you can thank God for being with you.
 

VI.       Draw near the Lord with a Heart of Faith

Hebrews 10:18-25

“Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.”

We should stop to offer sin offering, as the final sin offering is God’s son. We have to live life as if Jesus has just died for us. We should respond to God and God will reward you.

“Living way” implies that the more you come to God and the more your body responds to God, the more alive you live; and the more you stay away from God, the more your body will decay. Thus, you should be talking to the Lord whole day long.

However, at times, if you are disappointed in some things, God is building character in you. God disciplines you to build your level of endurance:

Hebrews 10:35-36

Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise.

 

VII.     Rewarding those who uses the Grace He Gives

If a father has three sons— one a party animal, another one is a disciplined son, but without much wisdom, and the third son is one who loves the father and finds joy in carrying out his father’s tasks. These three sons will be the children of the father forever. However, which son would the father be trusted with position and responsibility? Yes, the third son.

God rewards those who use the grace he gives. You need to draw near to him. Whatever you have lost, God will reward you.

It pleases God when you have faith.  An example of prayer is, “You want me to be in health more than I want to be in health.” That sort of faith pleases God.

The fruit of the womb is also a reward, as children are a heritage from the Lord:

Psalm 127:3-4

“Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
The fruit of the womb is a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,
So are the children of one’s youth.”

2 Kings 4:12-17

“Then he said to Gehazi his servant, “Call this Shunammite woman.” When he had called her, she stood before him. And he said to him, “Say now to her, ‘Look, you have been concerned for us with all this care. What can I do for you? Do you want me to speak on your behalf to the king or to the commander of the army?’”

She answered, “I dwell among my own people.”

 So he said, “What then is to be done for her?”

And Gehazi answered, “Actually, she has no son, and her husband is old.”

So he said, “Call her.” When he had called her, she stood in the doorway. Then he said, “About this time next year you shall embrace a son.”

And she said, “No, my lord. Man of God, do not lie to your maidservant!”

But the woman conceived, and bore a son when the appointed time had come, of which Elisha had told her.”

 Above demonstrated the power of the spoken blessing. When God wants to bless you, he brings somebody to your life. At times, we feel frustrated as we look to people for rewards. God does disappoint us but not with car wreck or diseases.

God is a rewarder.  God knows the right time to reward you. Don’t look to men for reward, look to God for reward.

VIII:     Conclusion

Exodus 1:16-21

“and he said, ‘When you do the duties of a midwife for the Hebrew women, and see them on the birthstools, if it is a son, then you shall kill him; but if it is a daughter, then she shall live.’ But the midwives feared God, and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the male children alive. So the king of Egypt called for the midwives and said to them, ‘Why have you done this thing, and saved the male children alive?’

And the midwives said to Pharaoh, ‘Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women; for they are lively and give birth before the midwives come to them.’

Therefore God dealt well with the midwives, and the people multiplied and grew very mighty. And so it was, because the midwives feared God, that He provided households for them.”

God will never forget your deed and labour for him. You may not see your reward now, but when the blessing comes, it is sure.

1 Samuel 2:18-21

"But Samuel ministered before the Lord, even as a child, wearing a linen ephod. Moreover his mother used to make him a little robe, and bring it to him year by year when she came up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice. And Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say, ‘The Lord give you descendants from this woman for the loan that was given to the Lord.’ Then they would go to their own home.

And the Lord visited Hannah, so that she conceived and bore three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile the child Samuel grew before the Lord."

“The Lord give you descendants from the woman for the loan that was given to the Lord” illustrates the power of spoken blessing. Both riches and honour come from the Lord. Our breath also comes from the Lord.

Even when we receive the reward He gives us, it is because of the grace he first gives us.

John 21:3-10

“Simon Peter said to them, ‘I am going fishing.’

They said to him, ‘We are going with you also.’ They went out and immediately got into the boat, and that night they caught nothing.  But when the morning had now come, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Children, have you any food?’

They answered Him, ‘No.’

And He said to them, ‘Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.’ So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish.

Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, ‘It is the Lord!’ Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it), and plunged into the sea. But the other disciples came in the little boat (for they were not far from land, but about two hundred cubits), dragging the net with fish. Then, as soon as they had come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid on it, and bread.  Jesus said to them, 'Bring some of the fish which you have just caught.’”

The Lord made breakfast for his disciples after his resurrection, and gave the credit to the disciples for the fishes that were caught. The Lord gives you the credit though He blesses you with grace in everything you do in the first place. Even our “faith” is not “our faith”.  When He gives you the credit, we know we should give Him the praise.