Faithful Believers Receive a Crown of Righteousness

The crown of righteousness is a promise to faithful believers.

Faithful believers must endure and embrace the cross before receiving their crown.

Suffering produces Christian character and maturity of faith.

Joy and hope are produced in believers through their tribulations.

Thank you. Today we are going to talk about a subject where one of the promises we are to inherit is a crown. The particular crown that I speak about today is called the crown of righteousness. And the title of our message today is called The Promise of a Crown of Righteousness is to Faithful Believers. And we start out by looking into 2 Timothy 4, verses 6-8, where our chief apostle declares, For I am already about to be sacrificed. My life is about to be poured out as a drink offering. The time of my spirit's release from the body is at hand, and I will soon go free. I have fought the good fight, worthy, honorable, and noble fight. I have finished the race. I have kept firmly held the faith as to what remains henceforth. There is laid up for me the victor, the crown of righteousness, for being right with God and doing right, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me and recompense me on that great day, and not to me only, but also to all who have loved and yearned for and welcomed his appearing, his return. At first, we must know that Paul was delivering these words to the church, and these were among some of the last words that are bathed in unspeakable sorrow. Paul, by this time, was an old man, and we can just imagine that his hair whitened with age and his face was no doubt creased with many lines due to his loving care and concern for the church and the fact that his body worn was suffering from the thorn in the side that he was given to bear during his devoted ministry to beloved and precious savior Jesus Christ. Not only that dear listener his body was injured by the former brutal persecutions and here he was now at the time of this writing, a captive to Nero in the miserable dungeon in Rome. But imagining by reading this epistle also, we can see that although that Paul's conversation seems to speak very calmly, we know that it is the peace of God Almighty dwelling in his heart, and yet the wretchedness of his imprisonment makes him regret that he left a cloak at Troas that would have warmed him in the winter's biting cold or shield him from the dungeon's perilous damnness. In 2 Timothy chapter 4 verse 13, Paul says, when you come, bring the cloak that I left at Troas with Carpus, also the books, especially the parchments. And still more earnestly does he regret that he has to face his loneliness without the company of his son Timothy and the precious comfort of his books and papers. In and through all of this, we know it was very difficult for Paul to endure, but by now we know that he had great faith and devotion and love for his Savior and was willing to go through whatever he must in order to finish his race of life and receive his crown of righteousness. So therefore, he was not void of hope and his future promise inheritance for the crown of righteousness that awaited him. So by the short introduction into this message called the promise of a crown of righteousness is to faithful believers, we see in this example of Paul, which shows us that we all must endure and embrace the cross before we will receive our crown. In Philippians chapter 1, verses 29 and 30, we see this clearly as Paul teaches, For you have been granted the privilege for Christ's sake, not only to believe in, adhere to, and rely and trust in him, but also to suffer in his behalf. So you are engaged in the same conflict which you saw me wage in which you now hear to be mine still. And we read in 2 Timothy chapter 4, verses 6 through 8, where Paul tells that he was, quote, on the point of being sacrificed, having fought the good fight and finished the race, so that henceforth there will be laid up for me the crown of righteousness. And James writes, Blessed is the man who endures trial for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life which God has promised to those who love him. And also dear ones chapter 5 verse 2 in Romans shows us that we rejoice in our hope of sharing the glory of God and then immediately follows with the list of virtues that suffering produces Christian character. Well, hallelujah. This is entering into the race. Amen. Let's look at that in Romans chapter 5, beginning in verse 3. Moreover, let us also be full of joy now. Let us exult and triumph in our troubles and rejoice in our sufferings knowing that the pressure and affliction and hardship produce patience and unswerving endurance 4 An endurance fortitude develops maturity of character approved faith and tried integrity And character of this sort produces the habit of joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation. 5. Such hope never disappoints or deludes or shames us, for God's love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. What we see in the process by which sinful human beings are made acceptable to a holy God is a benefit which examples joy in suffering and tribulation. Dear one, you must know that peace with God does not always result in peace with other people. Nevertheless, the fact that we have peace with God in relationship with him, with assurance and standing acceptable in his presence, and empowers us and allows us to view present difficulties with joy. we can rejoice and exult in tribulation because God has revealed through his word that he uses them to produce steadfast endurance or perseverance and proven character in those who relate to their sufferings properly for instance in James chapter 1 beginning in verse 2 we clearly see as we are encouraged to Quote, Consider it wholly joyful, my brethren, whenever you are enveloped in or encounter trials of any sort or fall into various temptations. Be assured and understand that the trial and proving of your faith bring out endurance and steadfastness and patience. Verse 4 But let endurance and steadfastness and patience have full play and do a thorough work so that you may be people perfectly and fully developed with no defects, lacking in nothing. Now, throughout these scriptures, we can see that we are not promised an easy path as a way as we pursue our promise of eternal life. But we are told over and over that we are commissioned to stand firm in our faith and that we would encounter many obstacles and hindrances along our straight and narrow path. Paul speaks this in Acts chapter 14 verse 22 as he says, establishing and strengthening the souls and hearts of the disciples, urging and mourning and encouraging them to stand firm in the faith and telling them that it is through many hardships and trials and tribulations that we must enter into the kingdom of God. In this setting, Paul and his leaders were warning the new converts that they too should expect persecution. They exhorted and encouraged the believers to continue in the faith, and they told them it was their duty and best personal interest to persevere and to stand in the faith in the belief of Jesus Christ, the Son of God and the Savior of the world. It is in this way only that one will inherit eternal life and receive their crown of life. It is only through Jesus Christ's death and burial and resurrection that anyone will be allowed to enter heaven's gates. Those who have grown in their faith and are concerned to continue in faith in spite of all the temptations that they may be under to abandon their salvation. those who are continually surrounded with temptations to abandon their savior have need to be continually reminded with immediate and serious exhortations to persevere and stand firm in the faith and be reminded that it will be through many hardships that one must enter into the kingdom of God now besides our Lord Jesus Christ horrible suffering for all of mankind one of the cruel treatments he endured was a crown of thorns that the Roman soldiers pressed upon his head which cut through his scalp making him bleed profusely as they mocked him Jesus gave all in his coming to this earth dear ones to die for each and every one who would choose him as their savior and receive the gift of eternal life through a life of obedience to him and his commands. This crown will never be awarded to lazy and slothful people or those who love the life of ease or self-indulgent people of the world who take their salvation for granted and enjoy the world and its pleasures. God's word tells us that we must contend and strive and fight. Dear listener, these will be the first conditions of conquering and overcoming in order to have the victory of receiving yours and my crown of righteousness. In 1 Corinthians chapter 9, beginning in verse 24, Paul makes use of the terms of these contests to illustrate to the Corinthians to whom he was making his appeal, telling of the necessity of self-denial, the strenuousness, and the glorious issue of the Christian conflict, drawing his figurative allusions from the foot race and partly from boxing and wrestling matches. Beginning in verse 24, Paul tells us, Do you not know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one receives the prize? So run your race, that you may lay hold of the prize and make it yours. Now every athlete who goes into training conducts himself temperately and restricts himself in all things. They do it to win a wreath that will soon wither but we do it to receive a crown of eternal blessedness that cannot wither Therefore I do not run uncertainly without definite aim I do not box like one beating in the air and striking without an adversary, but like a boxer, buff up my body, handle it roughly, discipline it by hardships, and subdue it for fear that after proclaiming to others the possible and things pertaining to it that I myself should become unfit not stand the test be approved and rejected as a counterfeit there is a very interesting allusion to the games in Ephesus in second Timothy chapter 4 verses 7 and 8 when Paul declares I have fought the good fight I have fought the good, worthy, honorable, noble fight I have finished the race I have kept firmly held the faith as to what remains henceforth there is laid up for me a victor's crown a crown of righteousness for being right with God and doing right which the Lord, the righteous judge will award to me and recompense me on that great day and not only to me but also to all of those who have loved and yearned and welcomed his appearing, his return. This stands in an amazing contrast to Philippians chapter 3, beginning in 12. Not that I have attained this ideal or have already been made perfect, but I press on to lay a hold, grasp, and make my own, that which Jesus Christ the Messiah has laid hold of me and made me his own. I do not consider, brethren, that I have captured and made it my own yet, but one thing that I do, it is one aspiration, forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead. Verse 14. I press on towards the goal to win the supreme and heavenly prize to which God in Christ Jesus is calling us upward. So let those of us who are spiritually mature and full grown have this mind and hold these convictions and if in anything respect you have different attitudes of mind. God will make that clear to you also. Verse 16. Only let us hold true to what we've already attained and walk and order our lives by that. Brethren, together, follow my example and observe those who live after the pattern we have sent for you. Verse 18 For there are many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, who walk, live as enemies of the cross of Christ, the Anointed One. They are doomed and their fate is eternal misery, perdition. Their God is their stomach, their appetites, their sensuality, and they glory in their shame, siding with earthly things and being of their party. Verse 20. But we are citizens of the state, commonwealth, homegrown, homeland, which is in heaven. And from it also we earnestly and patiently await the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Messiah, a Savior, who will transform and fashion anew the body of our humiliation to conform to and be like the body of his glory and majesty by exerting that power which enables him even to subject everything to himself. Wow. Well, here again, it is the intense eagerness of the athlete that is especially dominating in Paul's mind. and I've always thought that he must have been a vigorous contender in these athletic games because he explains with such intensity of heart of one who has been involved and trained to win by pouring your all into these events and games. There are many other figurative analogies by Paul to a foot race as in Romans chapter 9 verse 16 and these generally refer to the course of life and conduct. In Romans chapter 9 verse 16, Paul declares, So then God's gift is not a question of human will and human effort, but of God's mercy. It depends not on one's own willingness or his strenuous exertion in running a race, but on God having mercy on him. and also in Galatians chapter 2 verses 1 and 2 Paul informs us saying that after an interval of 14 years I again went up to Jerusalem this time I went with Barnabas taking Titus along with me also I went because it was especially and divinely revealed to me that I should go and I put before than the gospel declaring to them that which I preach among the Gentiles. However, I presented the matter privately before those of repute, for I wanted to make certain by thus at first confirming my communication to this private conference that I was not running or had not run in vain, guarding against being discredited either in what I was planning to do or had already done. And also in Acts chapter 20, verse 24, Paul is liking finishing the course to a race when he says, But none of these things move me, neither do I esteem my life dear to myself, if only I may finish my course with joy, and the ministry which I have obtained from which was entrusted to me by the Lord Jesus faithfully to attest to the good news the gospel of God's grace his unmerited favor special blessing and mercy now in this last scripture it should be remembered that is addressed to the elders at Ephesus The full significance of Romans chapter 9 verse 16 is missed if we realize the intensity of effort required by the one running this race of life The supreme effort of the will is worthless dear listener without the grace of God We have analogies to the wrestling match in Ephesians 6.12 where Paul speaks of wrestling against spiritual forces and to boxing in Ephesians chapter 4 verse 27 where giving place means giving advantage to the spiritual foe, Satan the devil, when he makes it clear. Leave no such room or foothold for the devil, giving no opportunity to him. Now Paul constantly throughout these verses emphasizes the truth that faith is counted for righteousness and never means by faith that it is merely an intellectual belief or you exert your own power or energy. but it is as faith and energy is founded and entrenched in our Lord Jesus Christ and is evidenced by his nature, which is demonstrated by love and joy and peace and patience and so on. This is being deeply rooted in the whole personality of our dear Savior, dear listener. This faith and the love must be genuine and true in the believer and must show its action as they grow and they must be concerned with becoming more perfect or mature in the nature of our Lord Jesus Christ. in Romans chapter 2 beginning in verse 12 Paul declares all who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law verse 13 for it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God's sight but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous you see in all of this effort and exertion of energy and action is not the undertaking or the accomplishment of all that one does in their running this race, but it is what constitutes and consists of righteousness in God's sight and is the genuineness and sincere motives of one's heart that are driven by faith and love for Jesus Christ. These are the true virtues of God that will be considered in yours and my judgment as we stand before our maker that will be the deciding factors of whether or not we receive our promised crown of righteousness. God looks on us as to our earnest and tenacity of how we ran our race of life that shows whether or not we have true union with our Savior, Jesus Christ. As the believer beholds true faith, the glory of the Lord, he is transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord the Spirit, which is spoken of in 2 Corinthians 3, verse 18. Christ is the second Adam. And we are by this mysterious union of love considered to be in Christ. Let me repeat that. In Jesus Christ. In Christ Jesus. Who was made unto us righteousness and sanctification. Oh Lord, may we truly become the righteousness of God in Him, our precious Savior. Lord, please help us to do all of the things in our race of life, to take to heart Paul's encouraging words, which tell us that I can do all things in him who strengthens me. You know, dear listener, we usually think of the rewards as recompense for a work well done. But did you ever think that you would be rewarded for merely looking forward to something with great anticipation? Remember, no suffering from Christ will go unrewarded. and remember our precious Savior Jesus Christ was our forerunner who gave us his all as mere creatures of clay whom he loved with undying love and proved his love for all of mankind the day that he died a horrible death on the cross and was buried rose again and was seated next to his heavenly father on the throne Paul knew that that reward of the believer is never complete here on this earth. He said, there is laid up for me a crown, which implies that God has made a personal promise in Paul's eternal account that he will receive someday, he will receive his crown of righteousness. Dear listener, this reward has been rewarded to Paul because he finished his race of life and was a true and genuine believer who exampled many patterns or illustrations for us in the figurative analogies how we must run our race of life. We know that it is by true faith and love for our dear Savior and our Heavenly Father that will determine if we receive the promised crown of righteousness or not. Be faithful and diligent to obey, to pray, to study the word of God and worship the one who loves you and will one day be the great judge of all of us. Amen. Thank you.

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