THINK TOGETHER.
What’s the difference between a reward and a gift?
READ TOGETHER
Proverbs 22:4. The reward for humility and fear of the Lord is riches and honor and life.
At Christmas we don’t get rewards, we get gifts. Or maybe I should say that we aren’t supposed to get rewards, we are supposed to get gifts. What’s the difference between a reward and a gift? A reward is something you earn or deserve, but a gift is something that you get by simple grace, even if you don’t earn it or deserve it.
Proverbs 22:4 is what we call a paradox. Can you say paradox? A paradox is something that seems to say two opposite things. The paradox in Proverbs 22:4 is that there is a reward for humility. Remember a reward is deserved. But the humble person knows that they don’t deserve anything from God.
God rewards those who don’t earn rewards. Huh? Yep, that’s a paradox. When we stop trying to earn with God and simply trust him instead we are “earning” God’s reward – riches, honor, and life.
There’s another paradox. The riches, honor, and life that we “earn” from trusting and not earning are spiritual riches, honor, and life. That means that they are inside our hearts, not outside of us.
Think about Mary and Joseph from the Christmas story. They were humble. They trusted God. Did they become rich? No. Were they famous? No. Did they have an easy life? No. And what about Jesus himself? Was he humble? Yes. Did he become rich, famous, and powerful on Earth? No. He suffered and did on a cross. But God rewarded Mary, Joseph, and Jesus with his eternal life. Heavenly riches. And honor before God’s throne.
What about you? Are you humble? Do you trust God? None of us do the way we should. Thankfully Jesus did it for us. He was humble in our place, so that when we humbly trust in him we receive HIS riches, honor, and life. His reward.
Because of Jesus his reward for humility can be ours when we trust in him.
With Jesus we can be humble too.
DO SOMETHING TOGETHER
Make James 4:10 a family Christmas memory verse.
PRAY TOGETHER
Jesus, thank you for sharing all your rewards with me. Make me humble too. Amen.
TLICfamily 