Who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. Heb. 12:2
There is the cross. But never forget that after the cross, there IS a new day coming!
“Before you get hung up on the cross, don’t forget – after the cross comes the resurrection and the power and the glory and the cross! … When you are horrified by the thought of risking … anything you want in order to embrace what He wants, remember the glory to come” (Lotz, My Heart’s Cry, 65, 69).
God is no man’s debtor. He never takes away but what He returns in abundance. Hell would emphasize the sacrifice … the devil would magnify the pain … but heaven’s promise is that God will inevitably reward those who dare to walk with Him!
It is true, of course, that the ultimate reward will be realized in heaven, but even in the here and now, there is a unique dimension of glory … the glory of His forgiveness … the glory of His strength … the glory of His character … the glory of His blessing … the glory of lives transformed through my influence … which comes to those fully surrendered to Him.
Indeed, denying my dreams, giving up my goals, sacrificing my success, are as nothing when compared to …
“the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Rom. 8:18).
Praise the Lord!
