XI. The Reward of Confession
CHAPTER XI
The Reward of Confession Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in Heaven. - Matt. 10:32.
Unto the faithful confession of the Lord's name is bound a reward, which is great in the Heavens.
Continually Holy Writ speaks of a reward which shall be granted unto believers at the return of Christ. It is granted as an indemnity, for that of which the disciples of Jesus here upon earth denied themselves for His sake, or for what they suffered, or for the good works of mercy and love which they fulfilled. And Holy Writ does not hesitate to encourage believers unto a faithful perseverance in their confession by the promise of such a reward. She is not afraid that she thereby shall introduce a false principle into the practice of godliness, that she shall give cause or reason to exercise virtue to serve fortune and God for the sake of the Heavenly salvation.
For although constantly speaking of a reward Holy Writ is very strongly opposed to all service for reward. The reward that awaits the faithful soldiers, is not obligatory, is not a right which is theirs by nature, is not an obligated remuneration for accomplished labor.
Such a reward is not known to scripture and she cuts it off in the root by the relation in which she places man as creature to God his
Creator. Whosoever has done everything that was commanded him is even then only an unprofitable servant. Man is, and has of himself nothing and therefore can give nothing unto God upon whom he is absolutely dependent. He can give nothing because he has to receive everything. He is not a party opposite to God, who, has his own, inalienable rights, and in the form of a contract can demand reward or wages for the labor to be delivered.
But God, from His side, has of His own free will bound Himself to richly crown all, who walk in His ways, with the gifts of His grace.
Unto that He bound Himself in the first covenant, when in the obedience unto His commandment He opened the way to eternal life and heavenly salvation. This was not a reward in the sense of a reward for work performed, for what equality does there exist between the very easy and in itself obligated keeping of the Lord's commandment and the unobligated gift of eternal, blessed life in communion with God?
And just so in the covenant of grace He binds Himself to give unto everyone that believes in Christ, eternal life. But here there is still less room to speak of a reward in the original sense of the word. For believing is nothing else than accepting the gift of grace which has been revealed in Christ, and is therefore no more meritorious than the grasping of the life line by a shipwrecked mariner who is upon the verge of perishing and sinking in the deep. But God is so good that He attaches unto faith, not for His own, but for Christ's sake, the forgiveness of sins and life everlasting, and by the glory which awaits believers He encourages them in the fight. Thus it is, that both are true, on the one hand the possession of all the benefits of the covenant is placed before all works and bound only to faith, and on the other hand the believer is so earnestly exhorted to the doing of good works, as if all of these benefits were only to be obtained in this way. The believers are chosen from eternity and yet they have to make their calling and election sure. Thru faith they possess eternal life and yet, one day they shall receive it out of the hand of the Father as a reward for their self-denial. They are branches of the vine, who without Christ can do nothing and yet, they are exhorted to abide, in Him, in His Word, in His love. They are the handiwork of God created in Christ Jesus unto all good works, which God has prepared, and still they must walk in the same. They are holy, and nevertheless must sanctify themselves from day to day. They have crucified their flesh with its lusts and yet they are called to mortify their members which are upon earth. They are sure of their ultimate salvation for God's election is immutable, His calling irregrettable, His covenant
immovable, His promises yea and amen, and yet they are constantly urged to work out their own salvation with fear and trembling, to be faithful unto death and to persevere unto the end.
Holy Writ does not encourage a passive but an active Christianity. It desires that, the believers shall constantly and continually become more what they are; that they shall merit what they have inherited; that they shall more and more, make themselves possessors of what in Christ belongs to them. Therefore the same thing—that on the one hand is an unmerited free gift, can on the other hand be represented as a reward. It can be called a reward because faith and perseverance in faith is the only way, in which believers can perfectly come into possession of those benefits which in Christ are given unto them out of pure grace. Without holiness no one shall see God.
By that reward we sometimes understand the heavenly salvation itself and then again the different steps or grades in glory which shall be granted unto the believers according to their works Even as it is upon earth so shall it be in heaven. There is diversity in unity.
Another is the glory of the sun, and another is the glory of the moon, and another is the glory of the stars; for the one star differeth in glory from the other star. In the house of the Father, wherein dwell all the children of God, there are many mansions. According to the measure of their faithfulness each church receives of the King of the church an own ornament and crown. For we all must appear before the judgment seat of Christ that everyone may receive the things done in His body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
Then the separation between man and man will be perfected. At the first coming of Christ, yea, already at His very first announcement in the promise; this crisis, this judgment in the world began. Christ came unto the resurrection and the fall of many. He came not to bring peace upon the earth but the sword, to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. He compels all, to choose for or against Him. His Word is a judge of the thoughts and
meditations of the heart. His Gospel is a savour of life unto life or a savour of death unto death. And that separation is perfected by Him in the day of His future, when everything shall be revealed before His judgment seat. For the Father has given all judgment unto the Son because He is the Son of Man.
Everyone's fate shall then be determined by the fact, whether or not Christ acknowledges him to be His and confesses him before His
Father, which is in Heaven. Upon His public confession hangs our acquittal, our salvation.
Christ was not ashamed of us at His incarnation. To be sure He had many reasons to be. For He, Himself, was the only begotten of the Father, of one essence and glory with God the Father and the Holy
Spirit, yea, the brightness of the Father's glory and the express image of His person—who thought it not robbery to be equal with God. And we were laden with guilt, unclean from the crown of our heads to the soles of our feet, and subject to corruption. But still He was not ashamed to call us brothers. He was ashamed of us neither before God nor before the Holy Angels. He accepted our flesh and blood, went in unto our nature, became like unto us in everything, sin only excepted. And even God was not ashamed to be called our God in Christ.
Therefore then He shall also not be ashamed of us in the day of His future. To be sure, at that time He comes again not as servant but as Lord, not to suffer but to be glorified, not unto a cross but with a crown. But nevertheless He shall not be ashamed of us. For He that ascended up far above all Heavens, is the same, that once descended into the lower parts of the earth. He that judges, is the Son of Man,
Who once came to seek and to save that which was lost. Our judge is our Savior. He never forgets and never forsakes those that are His.
Whosoever confesses Me before men, thus He witnesses, him will I also confess before My Father which is in Heaven.