“For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? Indeed, you are our glory and joy” (1 Thessalonians 2:19-20).
One of the incentives which motivates us to move forward is the possibility of a reward. That is true in our ordinary activities and it is true in our lives of faith. In the Olympics athletes compete for medals and the most coveted award for physical effort is the gold medal. The winner of an event stands on a pedestal and the Olympic official places a gold medal around his or her neck in recognition of a superior achievement.
The apostle Paul lived in a world that valued athletic achievement and it was easy for him to describe Christian excellence in language his readers would understand. There will be a podium someday and Jesus Himself will recognize what we have done. In our day we would give someone like Paul a trophy or hang his jersey from the rafters of an arena to acknowledge his accomplishments as the world’s greatest missionary.
He wanted none of that. His crown wouldn’t be a physical statuette. The reward he wanted was the changed lives of those he had touched with the good news about Jesus. Their transformation was his joy and his reward. It’s just another way he expressed a central value of his life and ministry. He focused on people and his mission was to introduce them to Jesus.
It is easy to be sidetracked about our purposes in life. We can begin to think it’s about honors being extended to us or acclaim we have earned by our performances. Our goal that propels us toward excellence is the same as it was for Paul. We want to see people changed by Jesus and, when that happens, they become our crown and our joy. This Christian life isn’t about what we can do on our own; it’s about Jesus and seeing people transformed by what He did. Connecting Him with others is the most satisfying reward we could ever desire.
