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THEY HAVE THEIR REWARD

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Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Jun 15, 1869

FromReview and Herald, Vol. 33, No. 25.

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“THEY HAVE THEIR REWARD.”

By Dudley Marvin Canright

Of certain men who prayed to be seen of men, and who gave alms to be seen of men, Christ said, “They have their reward,” “ye have no reward of your Father which is in Heaven.” Their object was to have men think them very pious, and very benevolent. This was what they prayed for, what they gave alms for, and they gained their object. They received just what they sought—the praise of men. Now, says Christ, they will have no other reward. They may have given thousands of dollars to the poor, yet in the Judgment no reward will be allowed for it, for they received their reward for it at the time they gave it. They have no treasure in Heaven.
For some time these words have made a strong impression on my mind. They teach us that we may do good things, and make great sacrifices, and yet, if they are not made with the right motive, we shall receive no reward for them in Heaven. All that we do, should be done with a spirit of sacrifice, and to please God. I greatly fear that many of us who preach the gospel, will never receive any reward in the kingdom of God, for all our toil and sacrifices. If we preach, and pray, and write, to be thought well of by our fellow-men, or if we do it for the pay we get, verily we have our reward—we receive just what we work for. The farmer works long and hard for his crop of grain. When he gets it he receives what he labored for. He expects no other reward for his toil. So the lawyer and the doctor toil hard, early and late, with wearisome work to help others. But what is it all for? For the pay. This they get. This is their reward. They never dream of being rewarded for their work in Heaven. They have their reward now. Why not the same with the ministers, if they labor for the same object—the pay? If they get this, if they live as well, if they make money as fast, and lay up as much as other men, of other callings, why should they expect any reward in heaven for their labor? May God help us so to live, and so to labor, that we may not lose our reward in the kingdom of God.
D. M. CANRIGHT.
Chicago.