Peter answered him, “We have left everything to follow you! What then will there be for us?” Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.”

Some days it is hard to see God’s plan in the hardships and challenges of living in a sinful world. Why do some people seem to get rewarded for lying, cheating, and stealing their way to the top? Why are children hurt or injured in life? When I give and serve as a life practice, why does hardship still seem to come?

Jesus answered these types of questions here, when his disciples asked about their rewards for being faithful. (They had after all, sacrificed much to follow him, and they would sacrifice much more in the future). And in his answer he shifts the focal point to “the renewal of all things”.

There is a reward system that is discussed in Revelations and here when Jesus will come back for his faithful, God will judge those who followed Jesus and those who didn’t (those who actively received grace and followed Jesus and those who are under the law, rejecting grace and living for themselves).

At the “renewal of all things”, there will eventually be a new heaven and a new earth. We will be risen in Christ Jesus into the heavenly realms, and the faithful will be rewarded. So while we live in a challenging world, we must think of it as a battleground or testing process. The goal is to sacrifice on earth to bring God glory and for heavenly rewards.

When we see life through this eternal lens, the plans and purposes of God become much clearer. We still feel and experience victories and heartache, but this is not all we have. We have a hope for today that God is with us in the trials, and a hope for eternity that we will be resurrected in glory and rewarded!

Lord, thank you for your truth and your promises. They direct my focus to eternity with you and to a present with a purpose, in a fallen world. Help me to keep a heavenly perspective and shine your light in a dark world. Encourage me and sustain me, I pray!