Chapter 2: The Unbreakable Link

You blink your eyes and your there! That's how fast your move from here to eternity will be like. One moment your here, the next eternity ... What do you know about your eternity? What did Jesus tell you about your future?

For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works
(Jesus, in Matthew 16:27),

Jesus said He would come again! When he comes, He will bring rewards and He will ...

. . . reward each according to his works (Matthew 16:27)

Do you remember the opening illustration in chapter one of the toddler looking through the keyhole at the night sky? There is so much to see and understand. Now, step back once again from the keyhole and let Jesus open the door so you can see your future.

Did you know that your future is being decided by one little dot called today? Think of your life as a dot on a page much like a period at the end of a sentence. Draw a line from the dot that extends to the right. Now place an arrow on the end of the line. The dot is your life now, but the line with the arrow is your future, which extends forever (pgs. 28-29)

. . . Jesus revealed that most of our life happens after our physical death (pg. 20).

There are six main events that will happen in your future.

THE SIX MAIN EVENTS OF YOUR FOREVER LIFE

(pgs. 21-23)

1. LIFE - You are created in the image of God for a life of purpose.

This life is now! You did not exist forever in the past, but you will exist forever in the future. You live as a Body, Soul and Spirit.

Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit
(John 3:6)

Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth (John 4:23-24)

May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (I Thessalonians 5:23)

2. DEATH - You die physically, but not spiritually.

Through physical birth we enter this life (the Dot) and through physical death we make our instant exit (Blink). However, since we were created with a Body, Soul and Spirit, the soul after death is with God in Heaven, or apart from God in hell

Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise" (Luke 23:43)

We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord (II Corinthians 5:8)

3. DESTINATION - You reach your destination after death,

which is determined by what you believed on earth.

Remember the Dot? It represents your life now. Have you believed in Jesus? Jesus taught that there were two possible locations in the afterlife: heaven or hell; and both last forever. Your forever future is decided based on your decision to trust in Jesus, during the Dot.

In my father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you
(John 14:2)

You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell? (Matthew 23:33)

4. RESURRECTION - You receive a resurrected body.

You will experience a bodily resurrection and exist forever in the future because eternity is forever. You will be immortal and death can never touch you again. Each person who has ever lived, will experience a bodily resurrection and live in the presence of God forever, or away from God in hell!

Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out -- those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned (John 5:28-29)

For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed -- in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality (I Corinthians 15:22,51-52)

But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there,the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body
(Philippians 3:20-21)

5. REPAYMENT - You receive your reward or your retribution

for eternity based on what you did on earth.

Do you remember the two keys that determine everything about your eternity? Belief and behavior? Your eternal destination (Heaven or Hell) is based on your belief. However, your behavior while on earth (the 'Dot') will determine how you spend eternity. Jesus will review every believer's life at the Bema, or the Judgment Seat of Christ and give you your rewards based on your behavior (Matthew 25:31-34).

When you placed your faith in Jesus Christ you made your entrance into Heaven; your destination was decided when you believed. Therefore, the Bema is a time when Jesus looks at your behavior and rewards you for your works of faith. Those people who have not believed in Jesus Christ will also have their works evaluated. Every person who has not believed in Jesus Christ will be judged at The Great White Throne Judgment (Matthew 25:41, 46; Revelation 20:11-15) and cast into the Lake of Fire.

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him (Hebrews 11:6)

It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment (Hebrews 9:27)

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world (Matthew 25:31-34)

Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life (Matthew 25:41, 46)

Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. . . . and each person was judged according to what he had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:11-15)

6. ETERNITY - You will live forever in the presence or absence of

God, reaping the consequences of your
beliefs and actions on earth.

Jesus revealed that eternity would be a real life in a real place, forever.

Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life (Matthew 25:46)

If you make certain choices now, your future can be filled with great rewards. Your life now is impacting everything that will happen to you after you die. Dr. Wilkinson calls this the Law of the Unbreakable Link: "Your choices on earth have direct consequences on your life in eternity." (pgs. 24-25)

The Law of the Unbreakable Link like the Law of Gravity, is always present. Do you remember the two keys that determine everything about your eternity: 1) Belief and 2) Behavior? Your eternal destination (Heaven or Hell) is the consequence of what you believed on earth. Your eternal compensation (Rewards) is the consequence of how you behaved on earth.

Earlier, I made reference to Dr. Wilkinson's illustration about the dot and the line. The 'Dot' represents your life here on earth. The 'Line' represents your life forever in eternity. Jesus taught us that what happens inside the dot determines everything that happens on the line.

Have you been living for the line or for the dot? (pgs. 28-29)

Next, Chapter 3: What the Bible Says About Rewards

Chapter 1: Keyhole to the Stars

We are like toddlers peering through a keyhole at the night sky, trying to hold on to our tiny patch of stars. But the keyhole is so small and the view is so great Jesus wants to open the door and show us more. Much more. (pg. 9)

This is the illustration that Dr. Bruce Wilkinson uses for the title of chapter one and to help us see that there is more to Jesus' teaching on rewards than what we have ever understood.

Jesus was trying to tell us that our actions, the things that we do today, will affect our future forever.

When Jesus delivered His Sermon on the Mount, He was not talking about rejoicing in the face of persecution, but He was talking about rejoicing over something great He would do for you in heaven because of something you do for Him on earth. Jesus described what He would do as a "reward". (pg. 10)

In Luke 6:22-23, Jesus said ...

Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude you and revile you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of Man's sake. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven.

This is a reward for doing, not a gift you receive for believing. This reward is for you and only you, if you behave in a certain way. However, it is not yours if you behave in another way. Since Jesus is speaking about persecution, if you run away in the face of persecution, you will not be given this reward.

Jesus is not asking for us to enjoy misery on His behalf. However, He is saying that there are consequences in heaven for certain actions that we take here on earth. Those consequences will be so wonderful that knowing that they are coming and that they will be great will transform how we live in the present.

Jesus spoke about the promise of rewards in heaven on several different occasions. Here are a few examples ...

Matthew 16:27 ...

He will reward each according to his works.

Matthew 19:21 ...

You will have treasure in heaven.

Luke 14:14 ...

You will be blessed ... for you shall be repaid at the resurrection.

These scriptures suggest that God is keeping track of all that you do for Him every day. You have more to gain by serving Him than you ever imagined!

Like you and me, Dr. Wilkinson was startled at Jesus' teaching on rewards in heaven.

What He (Jesus) was saying seemed to contradict much of what I had always been taught and believed. (pg. 12)

Thus began Dr. Wilkinson's search for truth about the subject of eternal rewards. Five years later and with twelve binders full, he concluded his research. Dr. Earl Radmacher, president of Western Seminary in Oregon, invited Dr. Wilkinson to come to the seminary and share his research before a panel of leading scholars. One of these scholars said ...

I thought God brought me here to learn more about eternal rewards, but I was wrong. He brought me here to change my heart -- I'm leaving a changed professor! (pg. 14)

The Bible scholars were convinced that Dr. Wilkinson's teaching on rewards was consistent with what Jesus taught.

As you study the teachings of Jesus you will find two keys that determine everything about your eternity.

Key number one is belief.

This key unlocks the door to eternal life and determines where you will spend eternity. (pg. 15)

Key number two is your behavior.

This key unlocks the door to reward and determines how you will spend eternity. (pg. 15)

The second key is the focus of A Life God Rewards. As you follow my review of this book and I hope read the book for yourself, you will begin to see how everything you do today matters forever. (pg. 16)

In Dr. Wilkinson's first book of his three book series, The Prayer of Jabez, ...

We learned that God wants us to ask for His blessing and for greater influence, or "territory," in this world. (pg. 16)

In Dr. Wilkinson's second book, Secrets of the Vine, he showed that ...

Jesus wants our territory to produce a great harvest of good works for Him. (pg. 16)

In Dr. Wilkinson's third book, A Life God Rewards, you see how ...

... the harvest you produce will directly impact your experience in eternity -- and how that truth can change your life today for the better. (pg. 16)

Next, Chapter 2: The Unbreakable Link

A Brief History

My name is David Neal and I have been serving in ministry for twenty years. I have a Master of Divinity from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary with an emphasis in Pastoral Ministries. I have served as a Pastor, Minister of Music/Administration & Senior Adults and as a Mission Pastor. Over the years I have preached many sermons and led various Bible studies.

Several years ago I had the opportunity to lead a Men's Bible Study using a book written by Dr. Bruce Wilkinson entitled The Prayer of Jabez. This is a great little book if you desire to learn more about prayer and expand your boundaries of influence. Dr. Wilkinson has also written two other great little books entitled Secrets of the Vine and A Life God Rewards. I chose to study both books with our Men's Bible Study group because I knew they would challenge their faith, but they challenged mine instead! As a Christian, I knew it was important to share my faith and bear fruit, but I never truly understood the rewards that God had promised me for sharing my faith and bearing fruit.

What does it mean to bear fruit as a Christian? Does God really reward those who bear fruit by sharing their faith? These are two important questions that every Christian needs to answer. The action you take in response to these questions will determine how much treasure you are storing up in Heaven!

I will be posting a chapter by chapter book review of A Life God Rewards with the purpose of helping you understand the importance of sharing your faith and the rewards you will receive for bearing fruit. Stay tuned and begin praying for opportunities to share your faith and bear fruit!

Up & Coming!

This blog site was established February 8th, 2009. The Scriptural basis for this blog is John 15:5 & 16:

I am the vine; you are the branches ... bear much fruit ... fruit that will last.

The ultimate purpose of every Christian is to be fruitful; to share our faith so that other people will come to know Christ as their personal Savior and Lord. Real salvation results in a life of fruitfulness. My desire is to see Christians bearing fruit that will last!

Through this blog I will share my reviews of books that have deeply affected my life as a Christian. My first review will be of Dr. Bruce Wilkinson's book entitled A Life God Rewards. I highly recommend that every Christian read this book.