His teaching on the ‘Five Wise, and the Five Foolish Virgins’ - it's all about entering into a ‘marriage feast’; about ‘eternal intimacy’, and a ‘close relationship’, and a ‘joy’ with Jesus. He taught a parable about the man with the ‘talents’ - how he'd been faithful over little, but much is given to you. In Matthew 25, He said: I'll make you ‘ruler over many things’.
So constantly, He's moving His people, saying that. The most important thing of all, is that we walk in love; that we love Him passionately, and love people.
Everything you can see; you will leave behind. What's left that's valuable? It's the things which you can't see; the things which are invisible - things of the kingdom!
The next thing then, is the eternal rewards are Glorious. It's hard to describe them, but there are many pictures of it through the Bible. The rewards that God has in mind, are beyond our imagination!
1 Corinthians 2:9-10 - “The eye has not seen, nor the ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man, the things that God has prepared for those who love Him.”
He said: you've never seen it! No matter what you've seen, that's been magnificent - it's still small! You've never heard it spoken, and you haven't been able to even imagine the possibilities that God has ahead; he says, but the spirit reveals them to us.
The Holy Spirit, as you hunger for more, will gradually, little by little, reveal more of the wonderful things God has prepared, for those who love Him. Notice it said: ‘those who love him’. Also, “If you love Me, you'll keep My commandments”!
Paul is praying, and he prayed that…
Ephesians 1:17-18 - “the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened, you might know what is the hope of His calling… (and here it is) ...what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints”..
There's a Glorious Inheritance. The word ‘riches’ - it's abundant, magnificent. It's full of glory, and it's within us! It's the formation of Jesus' life, and what will become. It's spectacular!
When you have a look at, say, Buckingham Palace; and you look at all the buildings - the detail, how ornate... and there's gold, and jewels, and all those things. When you look at the way that royalty carry themselves, the clothing, and everything that's there... Well, whatever God rewards us with, that's just only a little pale thing, compared to what He has.
1 Peter 2:9 - “you're a chosen generation, a royal priesthood”. ‘Royal’ means that you're descended from a king. You're part of a royal family.
Exodus 28:2 - “God appointed special garments for Aaron, the high priest”
He called these ‘garments of beauty and glory’. Aaron, who was the high priest, who had access to the presence of God - they made special garments for him, with gold and jewels - all kinds of things; so whenever you saw him, his garments were beautiful, and they covered him in glory. They shone; there was a magnificence about them; such that, the high priest wearing these beautiful garments, is a picture of us, in eternity.
A second picture of it that you can find is in the story of Jesus, on the Mount of Transfiguration.
Matthew 17:2 - “His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as light, or brighter white than anyone could make”.
When Jesus was transfigured on the Mount of Transfiguration - as He was praying, the glory that was within Him, began to shine forth, and all His clothes changed. His countenance changed. He began to shine.
“His countenance was like the sun, in all its magnificence”.
There's a glory that has been put into us. Christ has been put into you, and although it can't be seen yet, there is a day, when what God has been doing, will shine out of our lives.
Matthew 13:43 - “the righteous (that's us) will shine forth as the sun, in the kingdom of their Father”.
God has reserved rewards for us, and they're shown, in different ways.