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If Salvation Is Free_ Why Are There Rewards in Heaven · truthunedited

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  Speaker 1: Do you want to know what rewards actually look like
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  Speaker 1: in eternity? Because salvation is free, but rewards, those are earned.
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  Speaker 1: And most Christians don't even know that's biblical, because according
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  Speaker 1: to the Apostle Paul, there are rewards in heaven that
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  Speaker 1: are far greater than anything we can imagine on earth.
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  Speaker 1: Crowns that never fade, joy that doesn't rust, glory that
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  Speaker 1: isn't for show, but for the pleasure of the King.
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  Speaker 1: But here's the twist. These rewards aren't about climbing ladders.
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  Speaker 1: They're not about outperforming someone else. They're about something far deeper,
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  Speaker 1: living faithfully in the story God wrote for you. And yet,
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  Speaker 1: so few believers are even aware of what Scripture teaches
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  Speaker 1: on this. Have you ever wondered if your sacrifice in
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  Speaker 1: this life is seen by God? Have you ever asked yourself,
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  Speaker 1: will my pain, my obedience, my late-night serving... my quiet
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  Speaker 1: prayers for others, will any of it matter beyond the grave?
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  Speaker 1: If that's you, this video is for you, because Paul
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  Speaker 1: didn't talk about rewards casually. He lived with eternity in view,
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  Speaker 1: not just heaven, but what happens at the judgment seat
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  Speaker 1: of Christ. He spoke of crowns, not for ego or applause,
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  Speaker 1: but as evidence of a life poured out for God.
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  Speaker 1: And here at Deep Bible Stories, we want to go deeper,
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  Speaker 1: not just to teach you what rewards are, but to
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  Speaker 1: walk with you through the eternal blueprint laid out in Scripture.
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  Speaker 1: Because this isn't prosperity teaching. This is kingdom reality. And
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  Speaker 1: it's rooted in truth. So before we dive into the
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  Speaker 1: five crowns and the eternal treasures Paul describes, ask yourself this.
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  Speaker 1: What are you really living for? Are you aiming for
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  Speaker 1: applause here or glory there? And what if the very
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  Speaker 1: things you do in secret today are building something weighty
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  Speaker 1: in heaven? And let's get even more real. Do you
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  Speaker 1: want us to do a full teaching just on the
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  Speaker 1: judgment seat of Christ, on what it means to give
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  Speaker 1: an account for your life, not to be condemned, but
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  Speaker 1: to be rewarded? Let us know in the comments, because
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  Speaker 1: in this Deep Bible Stories video, you're going to see
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  Speaker 1: why your life matters more than you think, and how
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  Speaker 1: heaven has more waiting for you than you've ever imagined.
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  Speaker 1: Let's begin. If everything we do is seen by God,
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  Speaker 1: then the next question is, what exactly is he looking at?
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  Speaker 1: Because this is where many believers get it twisted. The
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  Speaker 1: moment we start talking about heavenly rewards, someone asks, wait,
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  Speaker 1: I thought salvation wasn't based on works. Are you saying
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  Speaker 1: we earn heaven? And the answer is clear and biblical, no.
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  Speaker 1: Absolutely not. Salvation is a gift. Rewards are a return.
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  Speaker 1: And the Apostle Paul makes the distinction powerfully clear. Let's
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  Speaker 1: go straight to the foundation. Ephesians 2, 8-9 For it
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  Speaker 1: is by grace you have been saved, through faith. And
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  Speaker 1: this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God,
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  Speaker 1: not by works, so that no one can boast. That
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  Speaker 1: means you can't earn salvation. You can't work your way
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  Speaker 1: into God's family. You don't get in because of performance, perfection,
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  Speaker 1: or pedigree. You get in because of grace, unearned, undeserved, unpayable.
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  Speaker 1: But what happens after that? What happens after you're saved?
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  Speaker 1: That's where rewards come in. Rewards in Scripture are not
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  Speaker 1: about whether or not you're in heaven. They're about what
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  Speaker 1: happens once you're there. And this is exactly what Paul
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  Speaker 1: teaches in 1 Corinthians 3, 12-15. He's writing to a
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  Speaker 1: church full of gifted people who were building ministries, reputations,
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  Speaker 1: even spiritual influence. But he stops them in their tracks
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  Speaker 1: and says, Let me show you how this all gets tested.
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  Speaker 1: He writes, If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver,
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  Speaker 1: costly stones, wood, hay, or straw, their work will be
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  Speaker 1: shown for what it is, because the day will bring
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  Speaker 1: it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and
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  Speaker 1: the fire will test the quality of each person's work.
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  Speaker 1: Verse 12-13 Then he says something even more sobering, If
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  Speaker 1: what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward.
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  Speaker 1: If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss,
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  Speaker 1: but yet will be saved, even though only as one
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  Speaker 1: escaping through the flames. Verse 14-15 Did you catch that?
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  Speaker 1: There are people who are saved, but their life's work
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  Speaker 1: will be burned. They're in heaven, but with empty hands,
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  Speaker 1: no reward. Why? Because what they built didn't last. It
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  Speaker 1: may have looked impressive on earth, but it didn't carry
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  Speaker 1: eternal weight. And others, their faithfulness— not fame, not followers, not
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  Speaker 1: flashy ministry— but their faithfulness gets refined and revealed, and they
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  Speaker 1: receive what Paul calls a reward. This was radical in
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  Speaker 1: Paul's day. He was writing to Corinth, a city obsessed
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  Speaker 1: with status, honor, legacy. And what does he tell them?
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  Speaker 1: God isn't impressed with your platform. He's watching your foundation.
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  Speaker 1: Not how loud you built, but what you built on.
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  Speaker 1: Not how much, but with what heart. And honestly, isn't
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  Speaker 1: this still true now? We live in a generation where
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  Speaker 1: people want to go viral more than they want to
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  Speaker 1: be virtuous. Where success is measured in likes and influence,
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  Speaker 1: not obedience and sacrifice. But Paul is reminding us, God's
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  Speaker 1: reward system isn't built on our social feed. It's built
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  Speaker 1: on faithfulness. So hear me, you're not working for your salvation.
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  Speaker 1: Jesus already secured that. But once you're saved, what are
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  Speaker 1: you doing with the life he gave you? That's what
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  Speaker 1: the beamer seat, the judgment seat of Christ is all about.
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  Speaker 1: Not punishment, but recognition. Not condemnation, but evaluation. Not, are
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  Speaker 1: you saved, but what did you do with what I
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  Speaker 1: gave you? Think of it like this. Imagine two athletes,
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  Speaker 1: both are on the Olympic team. Both have been chosen.
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  Speaker 1: But when the games are over, only one hears their
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  Speaker 1: name on the podium. Both are Olympians, but only one
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  Speaker 1: receives the reward. That's what Paul is urging believers to
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  Speaker 1: think about, not just getting to heaven, but living in
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  Speaker 1: such a way that you arrive with joy, not regret,
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  Speaker 1: that your life echoes in eternity. It's why Paul says
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  Speaker 1: in 1 Corinthians 9.24, Do you not know that in
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  Speaker 1: a race all the runners run, but only one gets
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  Speaker 1: the prize? run in such a way as to get
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  Speaker 1: the prize. He's not talking about salvation. He's talking about
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  Speaker 1: eternal reward. And maybe you're wondering, why does this matter
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  Speaker 1: so much right now? Because so many believers are tired.
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  Speaker 1: You've been praying in secret, giving quietly, forgiving when no
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  Speaker 1: one saw. And deep down, you're asking, God, does any
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  Speaker 1: of this matter? Yes. It does. Paul says the fire
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  Speaker 1: will test the quality of your work, not the quantity.
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  Speaker 1: That means the things done with love, humility, patience, and
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  Speaker 1: faithfulness are not forgotten. Even when nobody clapped for you,
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  Speaker 1: heaven recorded it. So don't stop. Don't stop sowing when
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  Speaker 1: it feels like no one notices. Don't stop obeying when
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  Speaker 1: it doesn't feel dramatic. Don't stop loving when it costs
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  Speaker 1: you everything. because salvation is the starting line, but rewards
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  Speaker 1: are the finish line. And as we go deeper in
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  Speaker 1: this video, we're going to look at the actual rewards
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  Speaker 1: Paul mentions, crowns, inheritances, commendations, not for show, but for celebration,
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  Speaker 1: because the same God who saved you by grace wants
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  Speaker 1: to reward you for how you responded to that grace.
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  Speaker 1: So now that we've cleared the foundation, let's step into
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  Speaker 1: the next scene Paul paints, where those rewards will be revealed,
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  Speaker 1: the judgment seat of Christ. Let's go. So if salvation
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  Speaker 1: is the starting line and rewards are the finish line,
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  Speaker 1: then where exactly is that finish line crossed? Paul tells
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  Speaker 1: us plainly. It's called the judgment seat of Christ, not
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  Speaker 1: a place of fear for the believer, but a place
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  Speaker 1: of revealing. a moment that every child of God will experience,
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  Speaker 1: not to determine if they're saved, but to unveil how
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  Speaker 1: they lived once they were. 2 Corinthians 5.10 says this,
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  Speaker 1: For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ,
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  Speaker 1: so that each of us may receive what is due
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  Speaker 1: us for the things done while in the body, whether
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  Speaker 1: good or bad. Paul isn't writing to unbelievers here. He's
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  Speaker 1: writing to Christians, faithful ones, and yet he uses language
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  Speaker 1: that sobers every soul who reads it. We must all appear.
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  Speaker 1: No one bypasses this. No believer is exempt. We will
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  Speaker 1: stand one by one before Jesus and give an account
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  Speaker 1: of our lives, not to be condemned, but to be evaluated.
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  Speaker 1: Romans 14.10-12 echoes this truth. We will all stand before
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  Speaker 1: God's judgment seat. Each of us will give an account
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  Speaker 1: of ourselves to God. Now here's where the cultural context
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  Speaker 1: adds a deeper layer. Paul uses a very specific word
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  Speaker 1: for this moment, beamer. It's not the word used for
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  Speaker 1: criminal judgment. It's the word for an athletic platform. the
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  Speaker 1: place where victorious athletes would stand before a judge after
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  Speaker 1: the race to receive their crowns, medals, honors. Paul, writing
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  Speaker 1: in the heart of the Roman Empire, was surrounded by
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  Speaker 1: Olympic-style games. The Corinthians especially knew this image well. Every
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  Speaker 1: few years, The Isthmian Games were held just outside their city,
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  Speaker 1: a massive celebration of athletic prowess. After the competitions were over,
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  Speaker 1: the winners would stand before the beamer seat and the official,
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  Speaker 1: often a ruler or prominent figure, would personally present each
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  Speaker 1: athlete with a laurel wreath crown, a reward not for
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  Speaker 1: showing up but for running well. This is the image
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  Speaker 1: Paul chooses for the final moment of a believer's life
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  Speaker 1: on earth, not a courtroom. a coronation. The judgment seat
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  Speaker 1: of Christ is not where your sins are re-aired. Those
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  Speaker 1: were nailed to the cross, Colossians 2.14. This is where
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  Speaker 1: your faithfulness is honored, your obedience is examined, and what's
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  Speaker 1: done in Christ will be rewarded. But don't misunderstand. This
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  Speaker 1: isn't about comparing resumes in heaven. It's about revealing hearts.
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  Speaker 1: Paul said in 1 Corinthians 4-5 that the Lord will
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  Speaker 1: bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will
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  Speaker 1: expose the motives of the heart. At that time, each
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  Speaker 1: will receive their praise from God. Yes, you heard that right.
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  Speaker 1: Praise from God, not praise to God. but from him
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  Speaker 1: to you. Can you imagine the same God who created
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  Speaker 1: galaxies looking at you and saying, well done? That's what
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  Speaker 1: Paul lived for. He wasn't building churches and enduring beatings
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  Speaker 1: just to survive. He was running with eternity in mind.
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  Speaker 1: He saw the finish line, and it wasn't a crowd clapping.
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  Speaker 1: It was Christ commending. Now let's pause. What does this
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  Speaker 1: mean for you today in a world that only celebrates
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  Speaker 1: you when you're visible, influential, or trending? It means this.
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  Speaker 1: The secret sacrifices are not forgotten. The long nights of prayer,
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  Speaker 1: the hidden generosity, the forgiveness no one knew about. God
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  Speaker 1: saw it all. And one day you will stand before Jesus,
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  Speaker 1: and he won't judge your value. He'll reveal your faithfulness.
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  Speaker 1: Maybe you've been discouraged. Maybe you've served others while battling
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  Speaker 1: unseen pain. Maybe you've walked in obedience while being misunderstood.
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  Speaker 1: This is the moment Paul is pointing to, where your
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  Speaker 1: quiet faith will speak loud in heaven. But let's also
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  Speaker 1: be honest. For some, this moment will be sobering. Because
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  Speaker 1: Paul doesn't just say the faithful will be rewarded. He
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  Speaker 1: says others will suffer loss. Not loss of salvation, but
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  Speaker 1: loss of reward. He describes it as someone escaping through fire, saved,
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  Speaker 1: but with nothing to show for how they lived. It's
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  Speaker 1: like standing at the gates of eternity, with your life's
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  Speaker 1: work in your hands, and watching it burn because it
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  Speaker 1: wasn't built with things that last. That's not fear, that's clarity,
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  Speaker 1: and it's God's grace to tell us now, so we
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  Speaker 1: can live ready. Because the beamer seat is coming. The
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  Speaker 1: race is already on. And the good news? You're not
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  Speaker 1: running alone. The Spirit is your strength. The Word is
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  Speaker 1: your map. And Jesus is both the judge and the
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  Speaker 1: one who paid the entry fee. So as we continue,
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  Speaker 1: we're going to get practical. What exactly are these rewards
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  Speaker 1: Paul speaks about? He doesn't just leave it vague. He
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  Speaker 1: names them. Crowns. each with purpose, each tied to how
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  Speaker 1: we live, serve, endure, and finish our race. Let's look
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  Speaker 1: at the first one Paul mentions, the crown of righteousness,
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  Speaker 1: given not to the perfect, but to the faithful who
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  Speaker 1: longed for his appearing. As we leave the Bema seat
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  Speaker 1: and step into the first reward Paul names, the tone
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  Speaker 1: of Scripture shifts from the general to the deeply personal.
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  Speaker 1: We aren't just reading theology, we're reading a farewell letter
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  Speaker 1: written by a man staring death in the face and
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  Speaker 1: speaking about reward. Paul, nearing the end of his life,
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  Speaker 1: wrote Second Timothy, not from a mountaintop, but from a
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  Speaker 1: Roman prison cell. Cold, forgotten, awaiting execution. His friends had left.
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  Speaker 1: The churches he planted were facing chaos. and the world
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  Speaker 1: that once celebrated his Roman citizenship would soon sever his
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  Speaker 1: head from his body. And yet he's not afraid, he's
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  Speaker 1: not panicked, he's not bitter, he's anchored. 2 Timothy 4,
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  Speaker 1: 6-8 captures one of the most powerful personal reflections in
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  Speaker 1: all of Scripture, for I am already being poured out
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  Speaker 1: like a drink offering, and the time for my departure
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  Speaker 1: is near. I have fought the good fight, I have
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  Speaker 1: finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there
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  Speaker 1: is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which
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  Speaker 1: the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on
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  Speaker 1: that day, and not only to me, but also to
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  Speaker 1: all who have longed for His appearing. Did you hear
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  Speaker 1: the weight of that? Paul doesn't say, I was the
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  Speaker 1: best church planter. He doesn't say, I converted more than
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  Speaker 1: anyone else. And he simply says, I stayed faithful. And
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  Speaker 1: for that, he knew a reward was waiting, not a
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  Speaker 1: plaque on a wall, not a legacy in history, but
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  Speaker 1: a crown from Jesus himself. the crown of righteousness, not
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  Speaker 1: because Paul was perfect, but because he finished well, because
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  Speaker 1: in a world where everyone was living for the moment,
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  Speaker 1: Paul lived for that day, the day he would see
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  Speaker 1: Jesus not as a name on a scroll, but face
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  Speaker 1: to face, and receive, not salvation, because that had already
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  Speaker 1: been secured, but the reward of having lived like it mattered.
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  Speaker 1: And here's the part most believers miss— that crown isn't
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  Speaker 1: just for Paul. Did you catch what he said? Not
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  Speaker 1: only to me, but to all who have longed for
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  Speaker 1: his appearing. That means it's for you, if you've ever said, Jesus,
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  Speaker 1: I want to live for more than this world offers.
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  Speaker 1: If you've ever kept showing up in prayer when no
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  Speaker 1: one else noticed. If you've endured temptation, betrayal, heartache, or silence,
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  Speaker 1: and still said, God, I trust you, then this crown
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  Speaker 1: has your name on it. But let's be honest. That
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  Speaker 1: kind of mindset feels rare in our culture. We are
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  Speaker 1: constantly told to live for the now. Do what feels right.
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  Speaker 1: Chase what's trending. Build your platform. Don't miss your moment.
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  Speaker 1: We're drowning in distractions. Our phones have become altars. Our
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  Speaker 1: schedules are packed with things that don't matter five minutes
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  Speaker 1: after we do them. And in the middle of it all,
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  Speaker 1: Paul is whispering from the pages of a prison cell.
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  Speaker 1: Don't live for now. live for what's coming. He's saying
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  Speaker 1: there's a reward for those who endure, not perfectly, but faithfully.
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  Speaker 1: And that's the hope for believers who are struggling to
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  Speaker 1: stay faithful in a distracted age. Maybe you're not the
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  Speaker 1: loudest Christian. Maybe you're not on stages or podcasts or
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  Speaker 1: writing devotionals. Maybe you're just trying to stay pure, stay kind,
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  Speaker 1: stay patient. And some days it feels like no one sees.
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  Speaker 1: God does. And Paul says there's a crown for you.
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  Speaker 1: This isn't a metaphor. This is an actual moment coming
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  Speaker 1: in eternity. The righteous judge, the one who wore a
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  Speaker 1: crown of thorns so you could wear a crown of righteousness,
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  Speaker 1: will hand it to you. Not because you won every battle,
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  Speaker 1: but because you didn't quit the race. And it's not
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  Speaker 1: a gold medal to put on a shelf. It's a
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  Speaker 1: symbol of long obedience in the same direction, of a
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  Speaker 1: life marked by holiness, not by popularity. Let's take it deeper.
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  Speaker 1: The Bible says in Hebrews 12, 1 through 2, Let
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  Speaker 1: us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,
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  Speaker 1: fixing our eyes on Jesus, who for the joy set
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  Speaker 1: before him endured the cross. That's the same mindset Paul had,
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  Speaker 1: and it's the same mindset you need in this hour.
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  Speaker 1: There's a race marked out for you, and some days
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  Speaker 1: it feels uphill, through storm, against culture. but there's joy
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  Speaker 1: set before you too. And it's not just survival, it's reward.
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  Speaker 1: The early church understood this. They were persecuted, imprisoned, even killed.
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  Speaker 1: But they pressed on, not for earthly success, but for
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  Speaker 1: a crown that never fades, 1 Peter 5, 4. They
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  Speaker 1: longed for his appearing. They lived like he could return today,
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  Speaker 1: and maybe that's the missing fire in our walk. What
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  Speaker 1: if we actually believed that Jesus could return tonight? Would
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  Speaker 1: we forgive faster? Would we waste less time? Would we
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  Speaker 1: speak up more boldly? Would we worship with greater sincerity,
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  Speaker 1: The crown of righteousness is for those who live with
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  Speaker 1: eternity in view, who make decisions now based on then,
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  Speaker 1: who run not to be impressive, but to be faithful.
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  Speaker 1: And here's the best part. It's not too late to start.
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  Speaker 1: Maybe you've drifted. Maybe you've slowed down in the race.
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  Speaker 1: Maybe distractions have dulled your fire. Start again. Today. Because
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  Speaker 1: the judge is still watching. The reward is still waiting.
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  Speaker 1: And you're not running alone. As we continue, let's look
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  Speaker 1: at another crown. A reward for a very different kind
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  Speaker 1: of faithfulness. the kind that shows up in discipline and self-control.
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  Speaker 1: Next up, we explore the imperishable crown, a reward for
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  Speaker 1: those who say no to the world so they can
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  Speaker 1: say yes to God. The crown of righteousness reveals what
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  Speaker 1: happens when you finish the race with your faith intact.
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  Speaker 1: But now Paul turns to another kind of reward, one
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  Speaker 1: not just about the finish line, but about how you
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  Speaker 1: run the race. It's the imperishable crown, And it's earned
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  Speaker 1: not through public applause, but through private discipline. This reward
• 21:03
  Speaker 1: is introduced in 1 Corinthians 9.24-27. And again, Paul draws
• 21:12
  Speaker 1: from the imagery of the athletic games that his Corinthian
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  Speaker 1: audience would have known well. Do you not know that
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  Speaker 1: in a race all the runners run, but only one
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  Speaker 1: receives the prize? Run in such a way as to
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  Speaker 1: get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games exercises
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  Speaker 1: self-control in all things. They do it to get a
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  Speaker 1: crown that will not last, but we do it to
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  Speaker 1: get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do
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  Speaker 1: not run aimlessly, I do not fight like a man
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  Speaker 1: beating the air. No, I discipline my body and make
• 21:48
  Speaker 1: it my slave, so that after I have preached to others,
• 21:52
  Speaker 1: I myself will not be disqualified. It's one of the
• 21:55
  Speaker 1: most raw, honest, and urgent sections of Paul's letters, because
• 22:00
  Speaker 1: Paul wasn't just trying to finish, he was trying to
• 22:03
  Speaker 1: finish faithfully, and he knew that required more than good intentions.
• 22:08
  Speaker 1: It required discipline. In ancient Corinth, athletes would train for
• 22:12
  Speaker 1: months before the Isthmian Games. They gave up comforts, practiced
• 22:17
  Speaker 1: in harsh conditions, submitted to strict diets and grueling routines,
• 22:21
  Speaker 1: and why? For a laurel wreath. a temporary crown that
• 22:25
  Speaker 1: would wither in days. But Paul says, we do it
• 22:28
  Speaker 1: for something eternal. This is the imperishable crown, given to
• 22:33
  Speaker 1: those who live not for what fades, but for what endures.
• 22:37
  Speaker 1: And let's be honest, in our culture that's radical. We're
• 22:41
  Speaker 1: told to chase the immediate, instant pleasure, instant approval, instant success.
• 22:46
  Speaker 1: We reward quick results, viral impact, quick starts. But heaven
• 22:51
  Speaker 1: doesn't give out crowns for flashes of fire. Heaven rewards
• 22:56
  Speaker 1: those who are consistent in the quiet. That's why Paul says,
• 23:00
  Speaker 1: I discipline my body. I make it my slave. Discipline
• 23:05
  Speaker 1: isn't glamorous. It's early mornings in prayer when no one sees.
• 23:09
  Speaker 1: It's choosing purity in a world that celebrates indulgence. It's
• 23:14
  Speaker 1: turning off the screen when your flesh wants more. It's
• 23:17
  Speaker 1: giving when you want to withhold, forgiving when you want
• 23:20
  Speaker 1: to be bitter, showing up when you feel nothing, staying
• 23:24
  Speaker 1: surrendered when it would be easier to walk away. That's self-control,
• 23:28
  Speaker 1: and it's not weakness, it's spiritual power. It's easy to
• 23:32
  Speaker 1: be bold in the spotlight, but crowns are earned in
• 23:36
  Speaker 1: the shadows. And Paul knew that without discipline, even the
• 23:39
  Speaker 1: most gifted people can disqualify themselves. He said, I don't
• 23:44
  Speaker 1: want to preach to others and then be disqualified. That word, disqualified,
• 23:51
  Speaker 1: was used in the games when an athlete was found
• 23:54
  Speaker 1: to have broken the rules. They didn't just lose the race.
• 23:58
  Speaker 1: They were removed from the reward. So Paul took it seriously.
• 24:03
  Speaker 1: And maybe you need to hear that right now. Maybe
• 24:06
  Speaker 1: you've been living aimlessly, running, but without a clear target, fighting,
• 24:12
  Speaker 1: but without real purpose. Maybe you've been relying on talent
• 24:16
  Speaker 1: instead of character, gifting instead of grounding, or maybe you've
• 24:21
  Speaker 1: just gotten spiritually lazy. This is your wake-up call. Discipline matters.
• 24:26
  Speaker 1: And not because God is keeping score, but because he's
• 24:30
  Speaker 1: preparing you for something that will never fade. The world
• 24:33
  Speaker 1: will try to convince you otherwise. It will say, live
• 24:37
  Speaker 1: for now. Do what feels good. deserve this. But Paul
• 24:44
  Speaker 1: is telling us, every time you say no to your flesh,
• 24:48
  Speaker 1: you say yes to the Spirit, and that yes is
• 24:51
  Speaker 1: recorded in eternity. Even if no one claps for you here,
• 24:55
  Speaker 1: heaven will crown you there. This crown isn't just for apostles.
• 25:00
  Speaker 1: It's for the single mom who remains pure and prayerful
• 25:04
  Speaker 1: when no one sees. For the teenager who walks away
• 25:07
  Speaker 1: from temptation with trembling hands and tear-filled eyes. For the
• 25:11
  Speaker 1: young man who confesses the sin he could have hidden.
• 25:15
  Speaker 1: For the believer who fasts in secret, who prays in
• 25:18
  Speaker 1: the dark, who tithes when it hurts. This crown belongs
• 25:22
  Speaker 1: to the ones who stay faithful to the call, not
• 25:25
  Speaker 1: just the crowd. It belongs to the ones who say,
• 25:27
  Speaker 1: I won't run aimlessly. I won't waste my days. I
• 25:31
  Speaker 1: will not be disqualified. And if that's you, even if
• 25:35
  Speaker 1: your steps feel slow, even if your track record is messy,
• 25:39
  Speaker 1: God is not asking for perfection. He's asking for surrender.
• 25:44
  Speaker 1: You don't earn this crown by being flawless. You receive
• 25:47
  Speaker 1: it by being faithful in the fight. Remember what Paul
• 25:51
  Speaker 1: said in Philippians 3.13-14, Forgetting what is behind and straining
• 25:58
  Speaker 1: toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal
• 26:03
  Speaker 1: to win the prize. That's the mindset of discipline, eyes forward,
• 26:09
  Speaker 1: heart anchored, life aligned. So take a moment to ask,
• 26:12
  Speaker 1: where do you need to realign? Where has comfort replaced calling?
• 26:17
  Speaker 1: What habits need to be broken or rebuilt? Because this
• 26:20
  Speaker 1: crown is not unreachable. It's not reserved for the elite.
• 26:24
  Speaker 1: It's for the one who says, Jesus, I want to
• 26:27
  Speaker 1: live in such a way that when the race is over,
• 26:31
  Speaker 1: you are glorified. And I am rewarded not with what fades,
• 26:36
  Speaker 1: but with what lasts. As we move ahead, we're going
• 26:40
  Speaker 1: to look at a different kind of crown, one that's
• 26:43
  Speaker 1: tied not to discipline in the secret place, but to
• 26:46
  Speaker 1: the joy of seeing other people's lives change through your obedience.
• 26:51
  Speaker 1: It's called the crown of rejoicing, and it just might
• 26:55
  Speaker 1: shift how you see your conversations, your testimony, and your influence.
• 27:00
  Speaker 1: Discipline in the secret place shapes the soul, but there's
• 27:04
  Speaker 1: another kind of crown, one that reflects not just how
• 27:07
  Speaker 1: you lived, but who you reached. A crown not rooted
• 27:12
  Speaker 1: in restraint, but in rejoicing. And the joy isn't just
• 27:16
  Speaker 1: your own, it multiplies across eternity. It's called the crown
• 27:21
  Speaker 1: of rejoicing, and Paul introduces it in one of his
• 27:25
  Speaker 1: most heartfelt letters, written not from theological distance, but pastoral intimacy,
• 27:31
  Speaker 1: to a group of young believers in Thessalonica who had
• 27:34
  Speaker 1: come to faith under persecution and confusion. Paul writes these
• 27:39
  Speaker 1: words in 1 Thessalonians 2, 19-20, For what is our hope,
• 27:45
  Speaker 1: our joy, or the crown in which we will glory
• 27:48
  Speaker 1: in the presence of our Lord Jesus when He comes?
• 27:51
  Speaker 1: Is it not you? Indeed, you are our glory and joy.
• 27:57
  Speaker 1: Did you catch it? Paul doesn't say his crown is
• 28:00
  Speaker 1: his achievements, sermons, or sufferings. He says his crown is people.
• 28:05
  Speaker 1: It's the souls he led to Jesus, the ones he
• 28:08
  Speaker 1: discipled through storms, the ones who stayed rooted in faith
• 28:12
  Speaker 1: because someone like Paul planted a seed, watered it, and
• 28:17
  Speaker 1: watched God bring the growth. That's the crown of rejoicing,
• 28:21
  Speaker 1: the reward given to those who poured their lives into
• 28:24
  Speaker 1: reaching others with the gospel. and not just those on platforms,
• 28:30
  Speaker 1: but everyday believers who lived with a heart that said,
• 28:33
  Speaker 1: if just one person comes to know Jesus because of
• 28:37
  Speaker 1: my life, it's worth it. And friend, if you think
• 28:41
  Speaker 1: that kind of reward is out of reach for you,
• 28:44
  Speaker 1: think again, because in this modern moment, evangelism often feels complicated.
• 28:51
  Speaker 1: We associate it with massive crusades, theological debates, or having
• 28:56
  Speaker 1: the perfect answer. But Paul's life shows us something far
• 29:00
  Speaker 1: simpler and more personal. Evangelism isn't about being loud. It's
• 29:06
  Speaker 1: about being available. It's about choosing to open your mouth
• 29:10
  Speaker 1: when the Spirit prompts. It's about living with the awareness
• 29:15
  Speaker 1: that someone's eternity could be changed by your obedience. Sometimes
• 29:20
  Speaker 1: that looks like sharing your story. Sometimes it's praying with
• 29:23
  Speaker 1: a co-worker who's breaking down quietly in their car. Sometimes
• 29:28
  Speaker 1: it's answering your child's deep questions about faith with honesty
• 29:32
  Speaker 1: instead of brushing them off. And other times it's inviting
• 29:36
  Speaker 1: someone to church, dropping a Bible into someone's hands or
• 29:41
  Speaker 1: being the first Christian they've ever truly trusted we live
• 29:45
  Speaker 1: in a digital world where it's never been easier to
• 29:48
  Speaker 1: connect and yet people have never felt more unseen unloved
• 29:53
  Speaker 1: and uncertain about eternity the harvest is ripe the hearts
• 29:58
  Speaker 1: are open But the workers are still few, which is
• 30:01
  Speaker 1: why this crown is so important today, because God honors
• 30:05
  Speaker 1: those who say, I'm willing to be used. Even if
• 30:09
  Speaker 1: you fumble over your words, even if you feel underqualified,
• 30:14
  Speaker 1: even if the conversation doesn't end with a perfect prayer,
• 30:18
  Speaker 1: God doesn't reward the conversion. You can't save anyone. He
• 30:22
  Speaker 1: rewards the faithful witness, the one who opens their mouth,
• 30:25
  Speaker 1: lives the truth, and leaves the rest in his hands.
• 30:29
  Speaker 1: And if that still feels distant to you, let me
• 30:32
  Speaker 1: ask a question that might bring it home. Who in
• 30:35
  Speaker 1: heaven will point to you and say, Because of you,
• 30:39
  Speaker 1: I'm here? That question haunts me in the best way,
• 30:43
  Speaker 1: because eternity isn't just about what you avoided, hell. It's
• 30:48
  Speaker 1: about what you invested, souls. Proverbs 11.30 says, He who
• 30:54
  Speaker 1: wins souls is wise. Daniel 12.3 says, says those who
• 30:59
  Speaker 1: lead many to righteousness will shine like the stars forever.
• 31:03
  Speaker 1: Jesus himself said in Luke 15 that heaven throws a
• 31:07
  Speaker 1: party over one sinner who repents. So why do we
• 31:10
  Speaker 1: stay silent? Fear, shame, apathy. What if we began to
• 31:14
  Speaker 1: see every encounter as an eternal opportunity? Every Uber ride,
• 31:20
  Speaker 1: every lunch break, every family dinner, every online interaction. And
• 31:24
  Speaker 1: don't forget, this isn't just about conversions. It's also about discipleship,
• 31:30
  Speaker 1: about walking alongside someone as they grow in Christ, the
• 31:34
  Speaker 1: teenager you mentor, the new believer you encourage, the one
• 31:39
  Speaker 1: you lead in Bible study when they can't even find Leviticus.
• 31:43
  Speaker 1: That's part of this crown, too, because this reward isn't
• 31:48
  Speaker 1: about being the closer. It's about being faithful in the process.
• 31:52
  Speaker 1: Paul didn't just start churches. He followed up. He wrote letters.
• 31:56
  Speaker 1: He checked in. He prayed. He carried their names in
• 32:00
  Speaker 1: his spirit and their growth in his heart. That's why
• 32:03
  Speaker 1: he called the Thessalonians his crown. They weren't numbers. They
• 32:07
  Speaker 1: were people. So what does this mean for you? It
• 32:10
  Speaker 1: means every time you choose to care about someone's eternity,
• 32:14
  Speaker 1: you're storing up treasure. It means every awkward gospel conversation,
• 32:19
  Speaker 1: you don't run from matters. It means every seed you plant,
• 32:23
  Speaker 1: God sees it. And one day, someone in glory might
• 32:27
  Speaker 1: walk up to you and say, you don't know me,
• 32:30
  Speaker 1: but you handed me a tract in high school. You
• 32:33
  Speaker 1: prayed for me when I didn't believe. You smiled when
• 32:36
  Speaker 1: I wanted to quit life. And now, I'm here. That's
• 32:41
  Speaker 1: the crown Paul longed for, and it's available to you,
• 32:44
  Speaker 1: so ask God to open your eyes, to soften your heart,
• 32:48
  Speaker 1: to give you boldness, because the harvest is ready, and
• 32:51
  Speaker 1: you're not just a spectator, you're a soul winner in
• 32:55
  Speaker 1: the making. As we move forward, let's explore another reward,
• 32:59
  Speaker 1: one that's not tied to others' salvation, but to your
• 33:03
  Speaker 1: own suffering. It's the crown of life, reserved for those
• 33:07
  Speaker 1: who endure storms and stay faithful through pain. Not every
• 33:11
  Speaker 1: crown is born from the spotlight of ministry or the
• 33:14
  Speaker 1: fire of discipline. Some crowns are forged in the valley,
• 33:18
  Speaker 1: in the hidden places where pain, grief, and perseverance collide.
• 33:23
  Speaker 1: And this next crown is one of the most tender,
• 33:27
  Speaker 1: yet most glorious. It's the crown of life, the reward
• 33:31
  Speaker 1: given not for those who ran fast, but for those
• 33:34
  Speaker 1: who endured faithfully through suffering. James 1.12 speaks with quiet strength,
• 33:39
  Speaker 1: Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial, because having
• 33:44
  Speaker 1: stood the test, that person will receive the crown of
• 33:47
  Speaker 1: life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.
• 33:51
  Speaker 1: Revelation 2.10 echoes it again in Jesus' own words, Do
• 33:56
  Speaker 1: not be afraid of what you are about to suffer.
• 33:58
  Speaker 1: Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I
• 34:01
  Speaker 1: will give you life. as your victor's crown. This is
• 34:06
  Speaker 1: not a crown for those who never felt weak. It's
• 34:09
  Speaker 1: for those who kept going anyway. It's not a reward
• 34:12
  Speaker 1: for avoiding pain. It's a reward for loving Jesus in
• 34:16
  Speaker 1: the midst of it. This crown is not earned in comfort,
• 34:19
  Speaker 1: but in crushing seasons, where everything in you wanted to
• 34:23
  Speaker 1: give up, and you still whispered, I trust you, God.
• 34:29
  Speaker 1: And Paul, he knew this path intimately. We sometimes forget
• 34:33
  Speaker 1: how much of his life was marked not just by mission,
• 34:37
  Speaker 1: but by suffering. He wasn't living a life of ease.
• 34:40
  Speaker 1: He was shipwrecked, beaten, imprisoned. Betrayed, stoned and left for dead,
• 34:47
  Speaker 1: chained in dark cells, hunted by enemies, misunderstood by friends,
• 34:51
  Speaker 1: afflicted in body, burdened in spirit, and yet he never
• 34:56
  Speaker 1: stopped pointing forward, never stopped hoping, never stopped believing that
• 35:01
  Speaker 1: beyond the pain there was a prize. In Romans 8.18
• 35:06
  Speaker 1: Paul says, I consider that our present sufferings are not
• 35:09
  Speaker 1: worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.
• 35:13
  Speaker 1: Not worth comparing. Paul's life was not cushioned, it was crucified,
• 35:18
  Speaker 1: and still he saw the crown of life waiting for him.
• 35:22
  Speaker 1: But here's the question that hits deep. What does that
• 35:25
  Speaker 1: mean for you, especially if you're in the middle of
• 35:28
  Speaker 1: your own suffering right now? Maybe it's not a Roman prison,
• 35:33
  Speaker 1: but a hospital room. Maybe it's not lashes, but a
• 35:37
  Speaker 1: broken marriage. Maybe it's not persecution from the outside, but
• 35:41
  Speaker 1: depression from within. You've questioned if God sees you, if
• 35:46
  Speaker 1: your faithfulness in the fire matters. You've wondered, how long, Lord?
• 35:50
  Speaker 1: You've prayed for rescue, and the silence has been loud. Friend,
• 35:55
  Speaker 1: if that's you, lean in. Because the crown of life
• 35:58
  Speaker 1: wasn't promised to the successful, it was promised to the faithful,
• 36:02
  Speaker 1: to the one who said, I don't understand this pain,
• 36:06
  Speaker 1: but I won't let go of Jesus. To the one
• 36:09
  Speaker 1: who still shows up to worship, even while bleeding inside.
• 36:14
  Speaker 1: to the one who forgives through tears, loves through loss,
• 36:17
  Speaker 1: and praises through pressure. That's the one Jesus says he'll crown.
• 36:22
  Speaker 1: This isn't poetic, it's personal. He sees every sleepless night
• 36:26
  Speaker 1: and he counts every tear. Psalm 56, verse 8. He
• 36:29
  Speaker 1: holds every groan the world ignored. And one day... The
• 36:33
  Speaker 1: same Jesus who wore a crown of thorns for you
• 36:36
  Speaker 1: will place on your head a crown of life because
• 36:39
  Speaker 1: you refuse to let suffering silence your love. This crown
• 36:42
  Speaker 1: matters in a world that tells you to escape pain.
• 36:46
  Speaker 1: In a culture that numbs, avoids, and medicates everything hard,
• 36:51
  Speaker 1: the gospel says, endure with me. Because suffering in Christ
• 36:57
  Speaker 1: is never wasted. That's what Revelation 2.10 reminds us. Jesus
• 37:01
  Speaker 1: speaks to the church in Smyrna, one of the few
• 37:04
  Speaker 1: churches he doesn't correct. Why? Because they were suffering and
• 37:09
  Speaker 1: still standing. And he tells them, be faithful even to
• 37:13
  Speaker 1: the point of death and I will give you the
• 37:15
  Speaker 1: crown of life. Even to the point of death. This
• 37:19
  Speaker 1: crown is for the martyrs. for the persecuted, for the
• 37:23
  Speaker 1: believers who lose jobs, family, even safety for the sake
• 37:27
  Speaker 1: of Christ. But it's also for the everyday saints who
• 37:31
  Speaker 1: choose faith over fear and perseverance over comfort. It's for
• 37:36
  Speaker 1: you if you're walking through cancer and still clinging to
• 37:39
  Speaker 1: the cross, for you if you're raising kids alone and
• 37:42
  Speaker 1: still worshipping through weariness, for you if you've lost everything
• 37:46
  Speaker 1: you thought mattered and still say, Jesus, you're enough. The
• 37:52
  Speaker 1: crown of life is a reminder that faithfulness is never
• 37:55
  Speaker 1: forgotten and that our trials are not the end. They
• 37:59
  Speaker 1: are the tunnel through which we walk into glory. So
• 38:02
  Speaker 1: don't give up. Galatians 6, 9 says, Let us not
• 38:06
  Speaker 1: grow weary in doing good, for at the proper time
• 38:10
  Speaker 1: we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
• 38:14
  Speaker 1: That harvest is coming. That reward is real. And when
• 38:18
  Speaker 1: you finally step into eternity and the pain is behind you,
• 38:23
  Speaker 1: and the joy floods in. You'll understand every delay, every heartbreak,
• 38:29
  Speaker 1: every quiet act of endurance, and you'll hear the one
• 38:33
  Speaker 1: who saw it all say, well done. Now, enter your reward.
• 38:43
  Speaker 1: As we move forward, the next crown is one of
• 38:45
  Speaker 1: the most misunderstood, and yet it's deeply linked to Jesus' return.
• 38:50
  Speaker 1: It's about longing for him, not just what he gives.
• 38:54
  Speaker 1: Let's explore what it means to live for the joy
• 38:57
  Speaker 1: of his appearing as we look at the final crown
• 39:00
  Speaker 1: in Paul's list and how it changes how we live now.
• 39:04
  Speaker 1: After walking through the crowns— righteousness, endurance, evangelism, discipline, and suffering— there' s
• 39:12
  Speaker 1: one more thread that runs through them all— motivation, because it's
• 39:17
  Speaker 1: possible to do the right thing with the wrong heart,
• 39:20
  Speaker 1: to serve God on the outside, while seeking applause on
• 39:24
  Speaker 1: the inside. That's why Paul doesn't stop at behavior. He
• 39:28
  Speaker 1: takes us deeper. to the heart behind the obedience. In
• 39:33
  Speaker 1: 1 Corinthians 4.5, he writes this powerful warning and promise.
• 39:39
  Speaker 1: Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time. Wait until the
• 39:43
  Speaker 1: Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden
• 39:46
  Speaker 1: in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart.
• 39:50
  Speaker 1: At that time, each will receive their praise from God.
• 39:54
  Speaker 1: Did you catch that? God is not just looking at
• 39:57
  Speaker 1: your actions. He's weighing your why. Because eternity won't just
• 40:02
  Speaker 1: reveal what we did. It will expose why we did it.
• 40:07
  Speaker 1: And in Paul's time, that was revolutionary. Corinth was a
• 40:10
  Speaker 1: place obsessed with prestige, honor, visibility. Spiritual gifts were being flaunted.
• 40:16
  Speaker 1: Teachers were dividing churches. Some believers were even leveraging ministry
• 40:22
  Speaker 1: for status. But Paul pulls the curtain back and says,
• 40:25
  Speaker 1: God's not impressed with performance. He's looking for purity, not
• 40:30
  Speaker 1: of actions, but of motives. And that message still hits
• 40:34
  Speaker 1: hard today. We live in a time when even good
• 40:37
  Speaker 1: works can become platforms for ego. We see churches built
• 40:42
  Speaker 1: more on personality than presence. We see social media turn
• 40:46
  Speaker 1: ministry into marketing. It's easy to confuse kingdom building with
• 40:50
  Speaker 1: brand building, but the Bema Seat won't reward charisma. It
• 40:54
  Speaker 1: will reveal character. It won't celebrate the crowds you drew,
• 40:59
  Speaker 1: but the love that fueled you. It won't multiply what
• 41:02
  Speaker 1: was done for self. It will burn it away. Paul
• 41:06
  Speaker 1: uses the imagery of fire in 1 Corinthians 3.13-15 to
• 41:11
  Speaker 1: show this clearly. He says the fire will test not
• 41:14
  Speaker 1: just the work, but the quality of each person's work.
• 41:19
  Speaker 1: Some will receive reward. Others will watch their legacy turn
• 41:23
  Speaker 1: to ash, not because it wasn't impressive, but because it
• 41:27
  Speaker 1: wasn't pure. Let's make this real. You can preach a
• 41:31
  Speaker 1: great sermon, but if your aim was applause, the fire
• 41:34
  Speaker 1: consumes it. You can serve faithfully on stage, but if
• 41:38
  Speaker 1: bitterness ruled your heart, it's burned. You can give millions,
• 41:43
  Speaker 1: but But if it was to be admired, it has
• 41:46
  Speaker 1: no weight in heaven. Because the kingdom isn't impressed with volume.
• 41:51
  Speaker 1: It honors surrender. God rewards those who love him, not
• 41:56
  Speaker 1: those who used him. And maybe that's uncomfortable, but it's
• 42:00
  Speaker 1: freeing too. Because it means the smallest act done in
• 42:04
  Speaker 1: love matters more than the loudest act done for show.
• 42:08
  Speaker 1: It means the prayer you prayed in secret, the meal
• 42:12
  Speaker 1: you made without thanks— The forgiveness you offered with trembling hands,
• 42:16
  Speaker 1: it all echoes in eternity when your motive was pure.
• 42:21
  Speaker 1: That's why Jesus said in Matthew 6, Be careful not
• 42:24
  Speaker 1: to practice your righteousness in front of others to be
• 42:27
  Speaker 1: seen by them. If you do, you will have no
• 42:31
  Speaker 1: reward from your Father in heaven. He's not saying don't
• 42:34
  Speaker 1: serve publicly. He's saying don't serve for publicity. Even giving, fasting,
• 42:39
  Speaker 1: and praying, if done to be seen, lose their reward.
• 42:44
  Speaker 1: Because God is the only audience that matters. This flips
• 42:48
  Speaker 1: everything upside down. The most celebrated Christian on earth may
• 42:52
  Speaker 1: have very little reward in heaven. And the most overlooked
• 42:56
  Speaker 1: unseen quiet servant, the one who never had a title,
• 43:00
  Speaker 1: never went viral, never wrote a book, may shine the
• 43:03
  Speaker 1: brightest at the judgment seat. because it's not about ego.
• 43:07
  Speaker 1: It's about honoring the giver, the giver of breath, of grace,
• 43:11
  Speaker 1: of opportunity, of every good thing. And when you live
• 43:15
  Speaker 1: to please him, not people, your reward is secure. That's
• 43:19
  Speaker 1: why Paul ends 1 Corinthians 4.5 with something so intimate.
• 43:24
  Speaker 1: At that time, each will receive their praise from God.
• 43:28
  Speaker 1: Did you hear that? God will praise you, not in
• 43:30
  Speaker 1: the way we praise him, but in the sense of
• 43:32
  Speaker 1: divine commendation. the creator of the universe, saying to you,
• 43:38
  Speaker 1: I saw that, and I'm proud of you. So take
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  Speaker 1: a moment and ask, why am I doing what I'm doing?
• 43:47
  Speaker 1: Am I giving out of love or obligation? Am I
• 43:50
  Speaker 1: posting to glorify God or myself? Am I serving to
• 43:54
  Speaker 1: serve or to be seen? And if the answer is convicting,
• 43:58
  Speaker 1: don't run from it. Let it realign your heart. Because
• 44:02
  Speaker 1: it's not too late to shift. You don't need a
• 44:04
  Speaker 1: platform to please God. You need a pure motive, a
• 44:07
  Speaker 1: surrendered heart, a desire to make Jesus famous, not yourself.
• 44:12
  Speaker 1: And when you live that way, every act counts, nothing
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  Speaker 1: is wasted. Every glass of water, every tear shed in intercession,
• 44:20
  Speaker 1: every yes whispered in weakness. This is how you multiply
• 44:25
  Speaker 1: your reward, not by doing more, but by doing what
• 44:28
  Speaker 1: you do for the right reason. And here at Deep
• 44:32
  Speaker 1: Bible Stories, we don't want you to chase visibility. We
• 44:36
  Speaker 1: want you to chase eternal value. We want your life
• 44:39
  Speaker 1: to ring in heaven because your heart was fixed on
• 44:42
  Speaker 1: the King. As we continue, let's look at how all
• 44:46
  Speaker 1: of this, our obedience, our discipline, our motives, can shape
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  Speaker 1: more than our reward. It can shape how we live
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  Speaker 1: right now. Because the more you understand God's eternal system,
• 44:58
  Speaker 1: the more your everyday decisions begin to change. Let's talk
• 45:02
  Speaker 1: about how your present faithfulness can have eternal impact. If
• 45:06
  Speaker 1: your motives matter in eternity, then so do your choices.
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  Speaker 1: And the more we understand the weight of what God remembers,
• 45:14
  Speaker 1: what He rewards, the more it changes how we live
• 45:18
  Speaker 1: right now. Because while the world is busy chasing temporary
• 45:23
  Speaker 1: gain— Heaven is measuring eternal impact. That's why Paul wrote
• 45:27
  Speaker 1: to a weary group of believers in Galatians 6.9 with
• 45:31
  Speaker 1: this charge, Let us not grow weary in doing good,
• 45:34
  Speaker 1: for at the proper time we will reap a harvest
• 45:38
  Speaker 1: if we do not give up. Paul wasn't writing from theory.
• 45:43
  Speaker 1: He was writing from the trenches. This was a man
• 45:46
  Speaker 1: who had endured betrayal, backlash, beatings, abandonment. And yet he
• 45:54
  Speaker 1: never stopped sowing, never stopped serving, never stopped believing that
• 45:59
  Speaker 1: nothing done in Christ was wasted. He could have said,
• 46:03
  Speaker 1: take a break. Instead, he said, keep going. Why? Because
• 46:09
  Speaker 1: faithfulness doesn't always feel fruitful in the moment, but it
• 46:13
  Speaker 1: always echoes in eternity. Jesus echoed this same truth in
• 46:18
  Speaker 1: Matthew 6, 19 to 21, when he said, Do not
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  Speaker 1: store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and
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  Speaker 1: rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But
• 46:32
  Speaker 1: store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, for where your
• 46:35
  Speaker 1: treasure is, there your heart will be also. Jesus wasn't
• 46:40
  Speaker 1: demonizing money or success. He was revealing a better investment
• 46:44
  Speaker 1: strategy because the applause of men fades. The promotions get outdated.
• 46:50
  Speaker 1: The platforms crumble. The plaques gather dust. But the treasure
• 46:54
  Speaker 1: of a surrendered life that never disappears, and maybe the
• 46:58
  Speaker 1: most comforting part of all, is this. Heaven remembers what
• 47:03
  Speaker 1: we forget. In Matthew 10.42, Jesus said, If anyone gives
• 47:09
  Speaker 1: even a cup of cold water to one of these
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  Speaker 1: little ones who is my disciple, truly I tell you,
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  Speaker 1: that person will certainly not lose their reward. Think about that,
• 47:21
  Speaker 1: a cup of water, the smallest gesture, the simplest act,
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  Speaker 1: done in love, for Jesus. And it's recorded in heaven.
• 47:30
  Speaker 1: That means God remembers the prayers you whispered when no
• 47:33
  Speaker 1: one else was awake. He remembers the meals you cooked
• 47:36
  Speaker 1: for others when you had nothing left to give. He
• 47:39
  Speaker 1: remembers the conversation you had with your co-worker when you
• 47:43
  Speaker 1: were emotionally exhausted but chose to listen anyway. He remembers
• 47:47
  Speaker 1: the money you gave in secret, the child you mentored
• 47:51
  Speaker 1: when no one clapped. the grudge you surrendered in silence.
• 47:55
  Speaker 1: And one day he will say, I saw that, I
• 47:58
  Speaker 1: remember that, I'm rewarding that. But here's the part that
• 48:02
  Speaker 1: really hits deep. What if heaven remembers the sacrifices you
• 48:06
  Speaker 1: forgot you made, the ones you didn't even think were significant,
• 48:10
  Speaker 1: the day you let someone else go first, the compliment
• 48:13
  Speaker 1: you gave that stopped a suicide? The kindness you showed
• 48:17
  Speaker 1: when it wasn't reciprocated, the yes to God that cost
• 48:21
  Speaker 1: you friends, comfort, or status, you may have moved on,
• 48:25
  Speaker 1: but eternity doesn't forget. Revelation 14.13 says, Blessed are the
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  Speaker 1: dead who die in the Lord. Their deeds will follow them.
• 48:35
  Speaker 1: Your deeds follow you, not to save you, but to
• 48:38
  Speaker 1: crown you. That's why Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15.58,
• 48:42
  Speaker 1: Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord,
• 48:46
  Speaker 1: because you know that your labor in the Lord is
• 48:48
  Speaker 1: not in vain. Not one moment, not one seed, not
• 48:53
  Speaker 1: one tear, not in vain. That means when you choose
• 48:57
  Speaker 1: to live for what lasts, you can endure what seems
• 49:00
  Speaker 1: meaningless now, because you trust that God is keeping record
• 49:03
  Speaker 1: in a realm that doesn't rust. In a culture obsessed
• 49:07
  Speaker 1: with visibility, this truth is revolutionary. Because eternity isn't built
• 49:12
  Speaker 1: on what went viral. It's built on what was done
• 49:15
  Speaker 1: in faith. So here's the question we all need to answer.
• 49:19
  Speaker 1: Where are you standing? your treasure? Are you living for
• 49:22
  Speaker 1: now or for well done? Are your decisions shaped by
• 49:25
  Speaker 1: comfort or by calling? Are you measuring impact by numbers
• 49:29
  Speaker 1: or by obedience? Because when your eyes are fixed on Jesus,
• 49:34
  Speaker 1: the little becomes mighty. The unnoticed becomes unforgettable, the mundane
• 49:40
  Speaker 1: becomes majestic, every diaper changed, every bill paid, every truth spoken,
• 49:46
  Speaker 1: every temptation resisted, every lunch shared, every ride given, every hug,
• 49:51
  Speaker 1: every text, every tear, it all matters when it's done
• 49:55
  Speaker 1: unto him. You are not invisible if your obedience is
• 49:58
  Speaker 1: not wasted. Your sacrifices are not overlooked. The king of
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  Speaker 1: kings sees it all, and he is not unjust. He
• 50:07
  Speaker 1: will repay. Hebrews 6.10 declares it with force. God is
• 50:12
  Speaker 1: not unjust. He will not forget your work and the
• 50:14
  Speaker 1: love you have shown him as you have helped his
• 50:16
  Speaker 1: people and continue to help them. So don't stop. Don't
• 50:21
  Speaker 1: stop sowing. Don't stop believing. Don't stop running. Don't stop storing.
• 50:26
  Speaker 1: Don't stop living for what lasts, because your faithfulness now,
• 50:30
  Speaker 1: it echoes forever. As we come to the final part
• 50:33
  Speaker 1: of this teaching, it's time to bring it all together.
• 50:37
  Speaker 1: What do these crowns, these promises, this eternal system, what
• 50:41
  Speaker 1: does it all lead us to? It leads us to
• 50:44
  Speaker 1: one place, the feet of Jesus. Let's finish this message
• 50:50
  Speaker 1: with a moment of sacred reflection, because the crowns we
• 50:54
  Speaker 1: receive are not for display, they're for devotion. Let's conclude
• 51:00
  Speaker 1: this series by looking at why every crown we earn
• 51:03
  Speaker 1: will be laid back down. Once you realize that your
• 51:06
  Speaker 1: obedience echoes beyond this life, it changes how you see everything,
• 51:12
  Speaker 1: because if the crown is real, if heaven sees the invisible,
• 51:16
  Speaker 1: if Jesus rewards not just what you did, but why
• 51:19
  Speaker 1: you did it, then the stakes aren't just high, they're eternal.
• 51:24
  Speaker 1: That's why Paul tells us in Colossians 3.23-24, Whatever you do,
• 51:30
  Speaker 1: work at it with all your heart as working for
• 51:32
  Speaker 1: the Lord, not for human masters. Since you know that
• 51:36
  Speaker 1: you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward,
• 51:41
  Speaker 1: it is the Lord Christ you are serving. He's writing
• 51:44
  Speaker 1: to servants, ordinary workers, not apostles or preachers, not miracle workers,
• 51:51
  Speaker 1: people whose daily tasks seemed menial, unnoticed, thankless. And Paul says,
• 51:57
  Speaker 1: God sees it and it counts. He's saying, when you
• 52:01
  Speaker 1: show up with a heart that says, this is for Jesus,
• 52:04
  Speaker 1: even the ordinary becomes eternal. This is the call to
• 52:08
  Speaker 1: live for the crown, because once you know this life
• 52:11
  Speaker 1: is not all there is, once you see the reward
• 52:14
  Speaker 1: not as fantasy but as fact, your daily choices get
• 52:17
  Speaker 1: a new weight. The invisible becomes valuable, the small becomes sacred,
• 52:23
  Speaker 1: and you stop chasing the world's approval, because you know
• 52:27
  Speaker 1: heaven is watching. Paul lived with that fire, and he
• 52:30
  Speaker 1: passed it on to us in Philippians 3.12-14. Not that
• 52:34
  Speaker 1: I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived
• 52:38
  Speaker 1: at my goal, but I press on to take hold
• 52:41
  Speaker 1: of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
• 52:44
  Speaker 1: Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to
• 52:48
  Speaker 1: have taken hold of it, but one thing I do,
• 52:52
  Speaker 1: forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,
• 52:57
  Speaker 1: I press on toward the goal to win the prize
• 53:00
  Speaker 1: for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
• 53:05
  Speaker 1: Paul had seen visions of heaven, he had experienced miracles,
• 53:09
  Speaker 1: he had planted churches across continents, but he still said,
• 53:13
  Speaker 1: I haven't arrived, I'm still pressing. Why? Because Paul wasn't
• 53:19
  Speaker 1: living for retirement or reputation or earthly legacy. He was
• 53:25
  Speaker 1: living for the upward call. He didn't just want to
• 53:28
  Speaker 1: get into heaven. He wanted to bring heaven into everything
• 53:31
  Speaker 1: he touched. He wanted to run in such a way
• 53:35
  Speaker 1: that when he crossed the finish line, Jesus would stand,
• 53:39
  Speaker 1: not just to welcome him, but to reward him. What
• 53:42
  Speaker 1: if we lived that way? What if every moment mattered?
• 53:46
  Speaker 1: Not just the big ones, but the mundane ones? What
• 53:49
  Speaker 1: if you woke up and remembered that every meeting, every choice,
• 53:53
  Speaker 1: every word you speak and thought you entertain, it's building
• 53:56
  Speaker 1: something in eternity? That's not pressure, it's purpose. and it's
• 54:00
  Speaker 1: a radical shift from how our culture lives. We're constantly told,
• 54:04
  Speaker 1: live for comfort, make your own truth, take the easy route,
• 54:08
  Speaker 1: get noticed, be known. But the gospel says, die to self,
• 54:13
  Speaker 1: live for Christ, press on when no one's looking, seek
• 54:16
  Speaker 1: reward from the one whose eyes never leave you. Living
• 54:20
  Speaker 1: for the crown means you. Forgive when it costs you.
• 54:24
  Speaker 1: Stay pure when no one's watching. Serve without applause. Say
• 54:28
  Speaker 1: no to sin because your yes to Jesus is louder.
• 54:32
  Speaker 1: Keep running when your legs are tired and your heart
• 54:35
  Speaker 1: is bruised because you know there's a crown waiting. It
• 54:39
  Speaker 1: means that how you handle this job, this season, this pressure,
• 54:43
  Speaker 1: this pain, it all matters because you're not just living
• 54:47
  Speaker 1: for Friday, you're living for forever. And maybe that's what's
• 54:50
  Speaker 1: been missing in your life. Maybe your fire has dimmed
• 54:54
  Speaker 1: because your eyes have dropped. Maybe you've been comparing yourself
• 54:57
  Speaker 1: to others instead of pressing toward the upward call. Maybe
• 55:01
  Speaker 1: you've been walking when God's inviting you to run. This
• 55:05
  Speaker 1: isn't about burnout. It's about focus. Because running toward the
• 55:09
  Speaker 1: crown doesn't drain you. It fills you. It reminds you
• 55:14
  Speaker 1: why purity is worth it, why faithfulness is worth it.
• 55:18
  Speaker 1: Why the narrow road matters, because at the end of
• 55:21
  Speaker 1: that road is a saviour who remembers every step. A
• 55:25
  Speaker 1: king who saw you say yes when the crowd said no.
• 55:28
  Speaker 1: A father who watched you suffer well. A judge who
• 55:31
  Speaker 1: never forgets. A giver who loves to reward. And when
• 55:35
  Speaker 1: he places that crown on your head, you'll realize something.
• 55:38
  Speaker 1: It was never about the crown. It was about the
• 55:41
  Speaker 1: one who gave it. And suddenly all those little moments
• 55:45
  Speaker 1: that felt pointless. all the nights you cried yourself to
• 55:48
  Speaker 1: sleep after choosing obedience, all the times you wondered if
• 55:53
  Speaker 1: it was worth it, it all makes sense, because you
• 55:56
  Speaker 1: didn't just live well, you lived for what lasts. So
• 55:59
  Speaker 1: don't just endure life, run your race, not for the
• 56:02
  Speaker 1: applause of people, not for fleeting validation, but for the
• 56:06
  Speaker 1: crown that never fades, the smile that never dims, the
• 56:10
  Speaker 1: reward that never rusts. And as we close, we'll take
• 56:15
  Speaker 1: one final look at that moment, the one when the
• 56:18
  Speaker 1: faithful kneel before the king and lay down every crown
• 56:22
  Speaker 1: at his feet, not as a transaction, but as an
• 56:25
  Speaker 1: act of worship, because in the end, it's not about
• 56:29
  Speaker 1: how many crowns you've earned, it's about how surrendered you
• 56:32
  Speaker 1: are to the one who made you worthy to run
• 56:35
  Speaker 1: at all. So here we are, standing at the edge
• 56:38
  Speaker 1: of everything we've explored, five crowns, five crowns, divine rewards.
• 56:45
  Speaker 1: Not trophies for the religious elite, but promises for the faithful,
• 56:49
  Speaker 1: for the ones who chose eternity over ease, the ones
• 56:53
  Speaker 1: who pressed on when everything in them wanted to quit.
• 56:57
  Speaker 1: We saw the crown of righteousness for those who love
• 57:00
  Speaker 1: his appearing and run to the finish line with their
• 57:03
  Speaker 1: eyes fixed on Jesus. We studied the imperishable crown. given
• 57:08
  Speaker 1: to those who walk in discipline and surrender, choosing self-control
• 57:13
  Speaker 1: over self-indulgence. We stood in awe at the crown of rejoicing,
• 57:17
  Speaker 1: awarded to the soul-winners, the disciple-makers, the ones who said, Jesus,
• 57:22
  Speaker 1: if you can use me to save one more, I'm
• 57:24
  Speaker 1: all in. We wept through the crown of life, the
• 57:28
  Speaker 1: reward for the suffering, the persevering, the crushed yet clinging
• 57:32
  Speaker 1: saints who refused to let pain cancel their praise. And
• 57:36
  Speaker 1: we examined the crown of glory granted to those who
• 57:40
  Speaker 1: lead with purity, shepherd others without selfish ambition, and reflect
• 57:44
  Speaker 1: God's heart in the way they love and serve his people.
• 57:49
  Speaker 1: Five crowns, five eternal affirmations that your life here is
• 57:53
  Speaker 1: shaping what you will carry into forever. And Paul knew it.
• 57:57
  Speaker 1: That's why his life, though battered and bloodied, was blazing
• 58:01
  Speaker 1: with vision. Because he wasn't just living for survival. He
• 58:05
  Speaker 1: was living for reward. He said in 2 Timothy 4, 7-8,
• 58:11
  Speaker 1: I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race,
• 58:14
  Speaker 1: I have kept the faith. Now there is in store
• 58:17
  Speaker 1: for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the
• 58:21
  Speaker 1: righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and
• 58:25
  Speaker 1: not only to me, but also to all who have
• 58:29
  Speaker 1: longed for his appearing. Paul wasn't boasting, he was longing,
• 58:34
  Speaker 1: longing for the day when all the sacrifice would become sight,
• 58:38
  Speaker 1: when every no to sin, every yes to Jesus, every
• 58:42
  Speaker 1: battle through hardship would culminate in that one sacred moment,
• 58:47
  Speaker 1: a moment not of applause, but of presence, a moment
• 58:51
  Speaker 1: where the judge becomes the rewarder, where the Saviour, once
• 58:55
  Speaker 1: crowned with thorns, crowns His servants with glory. And yet
• 58:59
  Speaker 1: even as we picture it, crowns on our heads, eternity
• 59:03
  Speaker 1: before us, Revelation 4 gives us one last vision that
• 59:07
  Speaker 1: reframes everything. The twenty- elders fall down before him who
• 59:12
  Speaker 1: sits on the throne. They lay their crowns before the
• 59:16
  Speaker 1: throne and say, You are worthy, our Lord and God,
• 59:19
  Speaker 1: to receive glory and honor and power. Do you see it?
• 59:24
  Speaker 1: The goal is not the crown, the goal is Christ,
• 59:27
  Speaker 1: because the more crowns you receive, the more you have
• 59:30
  Speaker 1: to lay down. The more you've been faithful, the more
• 59:33
  Speaker 1: you get to say, Jesus, it was all for you.
• 59:37
  Speaker 1: So here's the final question. Are you just trying to
• 59:40
  Speaker 1: make it to heaven, or are you trying to make
• 59:42
  Speaker 1: it count? Because you can be saved by grace and
• 59:45
  Speaker 1: still waste your race. You can make it in, but
• 59:49
  Speaker 1: smell like smoke, your life burned up with only ashes
• 59:53
  Speaker 1: left behind. Or you can step into eternity full of fire,
• 59:57
  Speaker 1: full of joy, full of purpose, knowing that every hard
• 1:00:01
  Speaker 1: choice mattered, every secret act of obedience counted, and every crown...
• 1:00:07
  Speaker 1: is a reminder that your life glorified him. And that's
• 1:00:11
  Speaker 1: our prayer for you today. Let's bow together and ask
• 1:00:14
  Speaker 1: God for more than survival. Let's ask him for surrender
• 1:00:18
  Speaker 1: that bears fruit in eternity. Our Father, we come before
• 1:00:22
  Speaker 1: you in awe that you, holy, perfect, righteous, would not
• 1:00:26
  Speaker 1: only save us by grace, but invite us to run
• 1:00:29
  Speaker 1: for eternal reward. We thank you for Jesus, the one
• 1:00:33
  Speaker 1: who wore the crown of thorns so that we could
• 1:00:36
  Speaker 1: one day wear the crown of life. We thank you,
• 1:00:39
  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit, for empowering us to endure, to persevere, to
• 1:00:44
  Speaker 1: walk in obedience. And we ask, make us a people
• 1:00:48
  Speaker 1: of purpose and let our lives be marked not by
• 1:00:50
  Speaker 1: comfort but by calling. Let us not chase applause, but
• 1:00:55
  Speaker 1: intimacy with you. Give us eyes to see the unseen.
• 1:00:59
  Speaker 1: Give us hearts that long for the upward call. And
• 1:01:02
  Speaker 1: when it's all said and done, let us not just
• 1:01:05
  Speaker 1: be those who made it into heaven. Let us be
• 1:01:08
  Speaker 1: those who lived for your glory, who impacted eternity, who
• 1:01:12
  Speaker 1: brought joy to the one who deserves it all. We
• 1:01:16
  Speaker 1: don't want to waste our race. We want to hear,
• 1:01:19
  Speaker 1: well done. We want to lay every crown at your
• 1:01:22
  Speaker 1: feet because you alone are worthy. In Jesus' mighty name
• 1:01:26
  Speaker 1: we pray. Amen. And if this message stirred something in you,
• 1:01:30
  Speaker 1: don't let it stop here. We have more videos that
• 1:01:33
  Speaker 1: go deeper into these themes of reward, purpose, and eternal significance.
• 1:01:39
  Speaker 1: If you want to understand more about the judgment seat
• 1:01:42
  Speaker 1: of Christ or how to practically live for eternal things
• 1:01:45
  Speaker 1: in a distracted world, We've got teachings, e-books, and study
• 1:01:50
  Speaker 1: guides designed to help you build a life that lasts.
• 1:01:54
  Speaker 1: Check them out, explore, and share this with someone who
• 1:01:57
  Speaker 1: needs to know. Your life matters more than you think.
• 1:02:03
  Speaker 1: Stay surrendered, stay growing, stay blessed.