The Prophet's Reward

The Prophet's Reward.

The Faith life is a culture of existence that was designed by the intelligence of God. This faith life has inbuilt in it a system of reward, where both the server and the served, stand to benefit something from the engagement.

Before we got saved, we were told that God would heal, save, deliver, prosper, give us speed, and all those beautiful things we were promised during the evangelism.  Now, we have made the switch to the kingdom and to our greatest shock, we are still sick, our financial status has not changed, neither has our delayed promotion in the office been delivered to us. And we are begin to wonder if the evangelist knows what he was advocating, or was he making claims that God could not meet?

The kingdom life is such a regimented life, that runs on set principles and predetermined laws. Obedience to these, brings the blessings attached, while disobedience to them could recycle our pains. It is however sad that we want the blessings, yet we are not ready to obey the principles that sponsor their reality. These blessings; beyond the benevolence of the Father's love; are more of merited rewards, than gifts.

Many times, we want to earn rewards, without knowing how to go about getting those rewards. God is a rewarder of they that diligently seek Him. If the seeker must find God, then that seeking must be done diligently. A reward is not a gift. A reward is not a right you are entitled to. A reward is a thing given in recognition of service rendered, effort exerted, or achievement recorded. The reward for a paid employee is his or her salary. The reward for a product produced is the price used to purchase it. The reward for any service is the amount of money given in exchange for that service rendered.

Reward has been and would always be the motivation behind everything done, as they come in different forms and variations. Every businessman is in business because of the reward he hopes to get out of it (Profit). Every employee is in employment because of the reward (Salary). The tailor who makes your dress doesn't need to be clapped for, your clapping won't meet his needs, he is hoping for and expecting a commensurate reward from you in return for the service he has rendered (Payment). Even the non-profit organizations are after rewards, theirs may not be monetary, but in some way or the other, they are being rewarded (Social satisfaction). Rewards are the reason we seek higher degrees, as more qualification attracts more financial rewards, hence the unending quest for academic excellence. Rewards are the sole reason a spiritual man presses for higher levels of the anointing. His prayer is not just a religious act, but a spiritual exercise to attain spiritual growth, maturity, empowerment, etc.

When there is no reward, there is no motivation for doing anything. The reward is the reason for the thing being done. When people are being deprived of their rewards, it has a way of affecting their perception of the individual, system, or organization they work for. When people are being deprived of their rewards, it rubs off on their moral and zeal, negatively. A system that has no reward in it, is a no-go area for serious-minded folks. Delayed rewards can be perceived as denied rewards. No one wants to be engaged in activities with no hope of rewards in the end. The rewards are a major determinant of the level of energy, devotion, and drive a person commits to any given assignment.  

As good as rewards can be, they can also be a snare, in the sense that, once you feel rewarded by a particular system, in a specific way that suits your peculiar interest, you are reluctant to leave that system. This explains why many have become slaves to organizations, the reward they get from there is the glue that keeps them stuck. Ask them to change jobs and the first question, more important than the location, "is what the salary?". Many have gone to great extents to get rewarded better, including changing location, job functions, job descriptions, etc.

Reward is an integral part of God's world that He designed and built the world based on a reward system. Man's life; according to the original intent of God; is supposed to profit the Father. God created man to; beyond the mandate of being fruitful, multiplying, replenishing the earth, and having dominion over it; have communion with Him. This fellowship, met God's intimate needs, thereby bringing Him reward for the investment of man's creation. Being fruitful, multiplying, replenishing the earth, and having dominion over it, was supposed to be a by-product of man's fellowship with God. God did not just use clay in forming man, He invested His Spirit, image, likeness, character, power, and so much more. All these, qualify God for returns on investment, which we call reward.

God was not the only beneficiary in this engagement, man too, had so much to gain, but, just as with the "law of cause and effect"; which God obeyed, fulfilling His part of the bargain; man's participation in these benefits was premised on the grounds of what he (man) brings to the table, value. Your value is a major determinant of your reward. You are not expected to be rewarded beyond the measure of the value you create and offer to your market. Everything God promised is conditional, and those conditions are of great value to Him. Service is valuable to God, that is why He promised to reward you by blessing your bread and water and taking sicknesses away from you. Obedience is valuable to God, and that is the requirement for the blessings of Deuteronomy 28. So, in your measurement of what you call valuable, if the scales are not in consonance with God's parameter, they may not qualify for reward(s). God is the ultimate decider, as to whether a thing is valuable or not.  Rather than please men, our cumulative agenda should be focused on delighting the Father.

Scattered across pages of scriptures are accounts of people who got rewarded, based on the value they created and a close analysis reveals that; while men look on the outward appearance, God looks on the heart, to determine value. Prayer is good, but if God must hear it, then it has to be done in humility (2 Chronicles 7:14). David was the man after God's heart because He knew how to go unashamedly naked before God. Abraham almost averted the weight of justice destined for Sodom and Gomorrah, if not for the shortfall in spiritual manpower needed to make up the quota. Esther showed us how fasting could turn the heart of a king. 

All these are intangible pointers to the fact that the value God intends for man to create was not physical in nature, though they might appear physical. However, obeying the law of types and similitudes, an intangible value offered, would receive a befitting intangible reward. That is why a humble prayer would secure God's healing upon the land as the ultimate reward. This explains why friendship with God, can influence His decisions, as we saw with Abraham, etc.

When the Bible tells us in Matthew 10:41 AMP, that "He who receives and welcomes a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and he who receives a righteous (honorable) man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man’s reward.", there are many things which that scripture is communicating, and we need to decode and take advantage of if we hope to derive maximum reward. 

1. Reception:

First, the scripture says "He who receives and welcomes a prophet...". This goes to say, the first rung on the ladder of reward is the step of "reception". Reception is truly a vital key to access. You can never enjoy the blessings of a man you have not received. This is why the very first step on the journey of your eternal destiny, if you must pass through the corridor of salvation, is to receive Him as your Lord and Savior.  John 1:12 tells us that "But to as many as did receive and welcome Him, He gave the authority (power, privilege, right) to become the children of God, that is, to those who believe in (adhere to, trust in, and rely on) His name". Again, we say reception and welcoming, going pari passu.  

What then is this reception all about?

To receive means to be given, presented with, or paid (something). If Jesus gave us His life, then our reception of Him at salvation, means that we no longer live our lives but His.  This is what Apostle Paul was trying to communicate to us in Galatians 2:20, when he said "I have been crucified with Christ [in Him I have shared His crucifixion]; it is no longer I who live, but Christ (the Messiah) lives in me; and the life I now live in the body I live by faith in (by adherence to and reliance on and complete trust in) the Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself up for me". At salvation, we were presented with a new nature, and as such, we were given the life He paid for with His own life. That is why God has a stake on us.  He, through the substitutionary sacrifice of His dear Son, died our death and we now live His life.

To receive also means to suffer, experience, or be subject to (specified treatment). if there was one thing Apostle Paul prayed for, it was that He may know God, and the fellowship of His suffering. When we received Jesus into our lives, it meant that we received His suffering, we partook of His experience and we were subjected to the same baptism, passion, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension as He. This makes us co-laborers with Him and as such, qualified for rewards in the end.

So, when next you receive a prophet, it means you have been given a system of advantage, because the prophet, most times, were God's emissary to the world. They carried His verdict, represented His will and communicated His intentions to a life, territory, civilization and dispensation. 

To receive a prophet means that you are presented with the reward you did not labor for, that price has been paid on your behalf.

To receive a prophet means that you share in his sufferings, you share in his labors in the spirit and you share in his dealings.

To receive the prophet is to believe the prophet, so that you can prosper. 2 Chronicles 20:20

To receive a prophet means you receive his experiences.  You are ready to learn at his feet.  You admit that he possesses a bank of resources (spiritual, mental, intellectual, financial, material, etc.) that can benefit you in the pursuit of your destiny and God-given assignment. This means you are willing to learn from his wealth of experience, and by so doing, compress time and chance for yourself because you will achieve in a fewer time, what took him years and failed or missed opportunities to achieve.

To receive a prophet means that you are subject to him.  To be subject to him is to be submitted to him. This means you accept his words as the verdict of God for your life. You accept his words as a compass for the next phase of your life.

However, let me balance this with the words of Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 11:1, "Pattern yourselves after me (follow my example), as I imitate and follow Christ". You are only to receive a prophet, as long as He represents the person, purpose and principles of Christ to you, your life and your destiny.

This is a call to inculcate the act of receiving people, you never know when you will entertain a prophet.  Many times, it is after we have received people wrongly, we come to realize that they were not just ordinary people but prophets sent from God to us specifically, but our awful first impression had already shut the door of access on us, and as such, we cannot benefit of their ministry.  

2. Discernment and Honor:

The next lesson we can draw from that scripture is "He who receives and welcomes a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward...".  This highlights the need for discernment and the honor that accompanies that discernment. Many have received prophets and welcomed them with open arms, but their inability to discern their office and honor them adequately, has truncated the flow of the prophet's rewards. This is what Apostle Paul was warning the Hebrews when he said "Do not forget or neglect or refuse to extend hospitality to strangers [in the brotherhood—being friendly, cordial, and gracious, sharing the comforts of your home and doing your part generously], for through it some have entertained angels without knowing it" Hebrews 13:2. 

Be kind to people! 

Be kind to people!! 

Be kind to people!!!

As my Father in the Lord will always say "E get why".

Jesus after His resurrection still hid Himself from His disciples on their way to Emmaus. Even, at the sea of Tiberias, Seven (7) of His disciples (Including Simon Peter, James and John who were the closest to Him) couldn't recognize Him. This goes to say that you can be in the vicinity of a grace or an anointing or a prophet, or your destiny helper, or even your sent word, and yet not recognize it. 

What then does it mean to discern and honor a prophet?

To discern a prophet, simply means to recognize, him, find him out, decipher him, distinguish him, etc. You communicate discernment to your prophet by the way you receive Him.  This is not an advocacy for human worship or ritualistic pretense, No, it is a call to discernment.  The same way you discern and revere a distinguished dignitary at a function, is the same way you should discern and revere your prophet, both on and off the podium. Many of us only discern our prophets when they are around and in their absence, we almost forget about their existence.  To discern a prophet, means discerning not only him/her but anyone and anything connected to him/her. This may be difficult, but it is the truth of God's word. David discerned Saul was the Lord's anointed and even in a rejected state, David's heart smote him when he cut off a portion of Saul's garment. The influential Shunammite woman in 2 Kings 4:8-17 would have died barren if not for her ability to discern Elisha as a prophet of God.

Discernment is a potent magnetic field that draws the object of your discernment to the forcefield you have created by your discernment. 

To Honor is to highly respect and greatly esteem a person. This is why you must discern a man before you honor him. The spirit of discernment will teach you, first and foremost, who to honor and who is not deserving of your honor, and also how to honor them appropriately.  Many people honor prophets, but the honor is misapplied.  They give to their prophets the honor that is due to their spouses and vice versa. Some give the honor due to their bosses or leaders, to their prophet.  It may be honor, but as long as it is not done appropriately, it won't achieve the desired result.  Honor has a way of creating vulnerability in the object of your honor and with this vulnerability comes access.  This access then becomes the window to draw from the grace, anointing, power, favor, etc at work in the life of the man you honor. Jesus didn't need to ask for the box of perfume to be poured, but the woman discerned that He was a prophet, and honored Him with all she had, and Jesus gave an instruction that what she had done must be preached to every nation where the gospel is proclaimed.

The woman with the issue of blood discerned Jesus and honored Him, and without His consent, drew down on the healing virtue at work in his life.

Many of us have familiarized ourselves with our prophets, that we have failed to discern them and the result is the dishonor with which we maltreat and debase them.

Remember, I said earlier that a prophet is a system of advantage, a portal, a mediator.  If you can discern him for who he is, a prophet, and accord to him the honor due to his office, then you will qualify for his reward.  To effectively honor a prophet, is to know the honor his office demands and diligently (not hypocritically) administer it with understanding. There are many ways to honor many people, but there are certain and specific ways to honor a prophet, if you must receive his reward.  This kingdom life is truly a regimented one.  You cannot do what you like and get what you desire. God is a God of patterns and systems.

3. Reward

Another lesson we can learn from this is "He who receives and welcomes a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward..." It is one thing to know how to receive a prophet, (i have touched on that earlier), but it is yet another thing to know how to receive his reward. One valid access portal to receiving his reward is service. Discern his needs and honor him by meeting those needs. Discern and meet his need for prayers, encouragement, visitation, acceptance, validation, endorsements, referrals, etc. Discern and meet his financial needs. Let your abundance meet his lack. All Elisha did was to serve Elijah, and he ended up with the double portion of his spirit.  

Service, when done with understanding, creates and opens a gateway which even the object of your service cannot shut close. Your service, not only brings you to the place of alignment, but it creates a weakness in the object of your service that becomes the conduit for the flow of whatever you desire.  The easiest and cheapest way to get the rewards of a prophet is by serving him, with the consciousness of his office as a prophet.  This is not to advocate or encourage eye service or hypocrisy, but to the end that our service is not done in emptiness. 

Any prophet you are able to receive, discern and honor, according to the pattern that is shown you, you will receive his reward.

It is however, pertinent to note here that the reward of a prophet are in two dimensions. A prophet's reward are; 

1. The reward from the prophet, and

2. The reward for the prophet.

Many of us are conversant with the first kind of reward and that explains why we have only drank from that stream, as that is the only source we know.  When you receive, discern and honor a prophet, and he proclaims a blessing upon you, you get a reward.  It could be a simple "Thank you, God bless you" but that statement was made on the strength of his office, ordination, consecration and covenants with God. While the statement may sound simple and this simplicity is the reason we don't take it seriously, yet as many as have received those words in faith, they have become witnesses to the efficacy and potency of a man's utterance, when he speaks from the pedestal of his standing with God.

The second is the reward for the prophet, and our ignorance of it has left our lives bankrupt of its experience. A prophet is a man sold out to God, while his office describes his job function, his ordination outlines the coordinates of his assignment, his consecration defines the boundaries of dealings, and in his covenants are captured the details of his possibilities. A man that has gone through the demands of his consecration, by reason of the office he occupies, is entitled to some rewards. 

Apostle Paul in his letters to his son, Timothy captured this succinctly. In 1 Timothy 5:18 we see Paul tell Timothy "For the Scripture says, You shall not muzzle an ox when it is treading out the grain, and again, The laborer is worthy of his hire" and in 2 Timothy 2:6; he said "It is the hard-working farmer [who labors to produce] who must be the first partaker of the fruits".  This already suggests that a prophet who has fulfilled thee demands of his consecration is entitled to his hire and by extension, he must be the first partaker of the fruits of his labor.  However, the scripture said he must be the first partaker, but it never said he must be the only partaker.  This means that there is an understanding I can have, and there are certain steps or actions I can take, on the strength of that understanding that will make me qualified to be a co-partaker of the fruits of his labor.  Remember, in Isaiah 65:22 "They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat [the fruit]. For as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, and My chosen and elect shall long make use of and enjoy the work of their hands", we see that it is unlawful to eat the fruit of another man's labor, but with understanding, we can bring ourselves to the place where we become co-partakers of his rewards. That understanding is encapsulated in the principles of reception, discernment and honor.

In closing;

Before you can receive a prophet's rewards, you must first receive the prophet, then discern and honor him, and then you can receive his reward.  And never forget, the easiest and cheapest way to access and partake of any and every dimension of grace a man carries, is service.

Grace and Mercy!!!

Amb. Emmanuel Etukudo

Kingdom Wealth Ambassador