First will be Last
Kenny and the broken printer… at the closing of Best Buy. Kenny able to still get the printer so that he can print out our church bulletins. Praise be to God!
Book of Jonah is not so much about the characters but about the grace and generosity of God.
No matter how many times Jonah rebelled against God, God never gave up on Jonah…
Matthew 28:19–20 contains what has come to be called the Great Commission: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Jesus gave this command to the apostles shortly before He ascended into heaven, and it essentially outlines what Jesus expected the apostles and those who followed them to do in His absence.
When Jesus told the disciples they would be greatly rewarded in heaven for what they had given up on earth, He was contrasting their sacrifice with the rich young ruler’s lack thereof. While the young man had been unwilling to give up much of anything for Christ’s sake the disciples gave up whatever they were doing and followed Jesus. As Christians we need to know that our omnipresent God, who sees the heart, will reward accordingly. The disciples are an example of those who may be first, and they happened to be poor (but their poverty was not what makes them first in heaven). The rich young ruler is an example of those who may be last, and he happened to be rich (but his wealth was not what makes him last).
In the chapter following Jesus’ statement that the first will be last and the last will be first, Jesus tells a parable found in Matthew 20. The story concerns some laborers who complain that others, who did not work as long as they, were paid an equal amount. In other words, they saw their own labor as worthy of compensation but considered their companions’ labor to be inferior and less worthy of reward. Jesus ends the parable with the statement, “The last will be first, and the first last” (Matthew 20:16). The most direct interpretation, based on the content of the parable, is that all believers, no matter how long or how hard they work during this lifetime, will receive the same reward: That is eternal life. We can learn that the thief on the cross as found in Luke 23:39–43, whose life of service was limited to a moment of repentance and confession of faith in Christ, received the same reward of eternal life as did Timothy, who served God for years. Of course, Scripture also teaches that there are different rewards in heaven for different services, but the ultimate reward of eternal life will be given to all equally, on the basis of God’s grace in Christ Jesus.
There are several ways in which “the first will be last and the last first” holds true. There are some who were first to follow Christ in time yet are not the first in the kingdom. We know that Judas Iscariot who was one of the first disciples and was honored to be the treasurer of the group, yet his greed led to his undoing; Paul was the last of the apostles, who even prosecuted the new Christians yet later we find that he was the one who worked the hardest as we can learn from 2 Corinthians 11:23, “Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again.” The bible tells us that there were some who were first in privilege yet are not first in the kingdom.
What Jesus is teaching in Matthew 19:30 is this: there will be many surprises in heaven because Heaven’s value system is far different from earth’s value system. Those who are esteemed and respected in this world (like the rich young ruler) may be frowned upon by God. The opposite is also true: those who are despised and rejected in this world, even sinners, may, in fact if and when they steadfastly come to Christ as ones saviour, will be rewarded by God. Therefore as believers we should not get caught up in the world’s way of ranking things; because it’s too prone to error. Those who are first in the opinion of others (or first in their own opinion!) may be surprised to learn, on Judgment Day, they are last in God’s opinion. Because Jesus said: ““But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.” (Matthew 19: 30).
