Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on. “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them“. Revelation 14:13
We come to the start of a new year. This is a time when 38.5% of US adults ponder what they want to do differently in the next year. They make resolutions (the top 3 are health related). New Year’s resolutions are made, kept for a while (23% quit in the first week, only 36% make it past the first month) and then things usually return to normal. Our best intentions are put on a shelf until the next year when they will be pulled out, dusted off and tried again.
The start of a new year is a good time for Christians to think about the future. Instead of making resolutions, a Christian is better served to ponder how they want to invest the time and talents the Lord has given them. Why is this valuable? Revelation 14:13 gives us an insight into the importance of how believers spend their lives. At the end of the verse we read a small but significant phrase –“for their deeds follow them.” These words are written about the Tribulation saints. They accept Christ as their Savior at a time when that decision means death and persecution by the whole world. We are told in scripture that when we face intense trial and testing we are to endure. The Tribulation saints do much more than that. They do not deny their faith and trust in Jesus Christ but they also do works for Him. The word John uses for deed in Revelation 14:13 means ”an action that carries out (completes) an inner desire (intension, purpose)”. In other words they serve the Lord because they want to – it is the inner desire of their hearts no matter whey they must suffer. The word “labor” that John uses before that means“ laborious toil, involving weariness and fatigue”. The work is very hard at very great, almost certain, risk of loss. So we stand embarrassed that they serve the Lord faithfully when it costs them everything and yet we do not speak up for Jesus when there is the possibility of a mild rebuke.
Yet there is something even more significant in Revelation 14 that is there to motivate us. John writes, “their deeds follow them.” The word follow is the same word used of the disciples following Christ. It is what disciples do. Here John gives us insight into how God sees our works for Him in this life. When we serve for the Lord, we have the perception that the work is done and completed at the time. We did the work and it is over. God sees it differently. He looks to see the fruit that results from that work. So for example a gift or tithe given to God is an act we perform in a moment. God sees it in terms of what it accomplishes over time. This is the same for an act of kindness, an encouraging word or a prayer for another person. We are concerned with the act, God sees the fruit – the result. So these tribulation saints serve God at a time when they are despised and ridiculed by almost everyone. There is likely very little visible evidence that says their work is appreciated or matters. God, however, waits until the end to assess the full impact of what is accomplished for Him.
What can we learn? The start of a new year is the time for us to ponder how we will invest the time (365 days) and talents that God gives us. Will we invest them in actions that give God glory and produce fruit for all eternity or will we use them for our own comfort and satisfaction? (The Lord called it hiding our light under a basket.) God tells us our works will faithfully follow us into eternity just as a true servant faithfully follows His master.
“Be not deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows that shall he reap.”
Invest wisely, each and every day.!