For the rest, I dare not make specific application. For there will be surprises as Christ equitably distributes His rewards. The first here will be last there and the last here will be first there. Rewarding His people will be part of the great work of Christ as judge. Only He has the knowledge and only He has the wisdom rightly to reward. Of this I am sure, many laymen and laywomen who received little attention in the church in this life will be more glorious than many a minister who did receive the praise of men (and not necessarily wrongly) here. The wife and mother who bore patiently with a rough husband (or even an unbelieving husband) raised her children in the fear of God and prayed night and day, though taken for granted by her fellow saints, will be more glorious than many a professor of theology.

Because the quality and the circumstances of the work count for much with Christ, and not simply the quantity, the malefactor on the cross who confessed Christ—who alone confessed Christ—at that crucial moment—though he had but one good work may be more glorious than many who rather matter-of-factly, but not insincerely, confessed Christ their life long.

An example that illustrates the idea of degrees of glory is that of glasses filled with wine (I choose wine because the parable of the talents in Matthew 25:21 represents the reward of eternal life as entrance into the joy of our Lord and wine is a symbol of that joy). When the multitude no man can number receive eternal life in body and soul in the day of Christ, all the glasses will be full of wine. But the glasses are not of the same size. Some are larger and more capacious than others.

That the reward includes the degrees of glory is clearly taught by the Bible. This is taught by all those passages that promise a reward according to one’s works. Not only does this refer to the basic nature of the works, that is, that eternal life itself accords with the basic nature of the works of one’s life (their goodness), but it also refers to the quality and number of the works, that is, that the degree of the glory of eternal life that each receives accords with the quality and number of his works.

In Luke 19:11ff., the faithful servant who gained ten pounds for the king is rewarded with rule over ten cities and the faithful servant who gained five pounds gets a reward of rule over five cities. These are degrees of the glory of ruling with Christ in the new world.

And I Corinthians 3:8 promises faithful ministers that each one will receive not the same reward in every respect but his own unique reward according to his own unique labour.

This then is the truth about the reward of good works: There certainly will be a reward of our good works. The reward will be eternal life itself in varying degrees of bliss and glory. And the varying degrees of glory will correspond to, and marvellously accord with, the good works that the elect believers did in their earthly life.

The reward, however, is not of merit, as I demonstrated in the previous instalment. When we receive the reward, we will not receive it as something we deserve by virtue of our works. This includes as well the degree of glory we receive. When the apostle Paul sits high up, very near the Lord Jesus Himself, at the table of the great marriage supper of the Lamb and His bride, he will not say, or think, I deserve this by all my apostolic labours. Nor did the apostle ever work with this notion or purpose. Nor do we work now with the notion and purpose that we earn eternal life and a future glorious position.

When Christ bestows the reward, He will not be paying wages for which we obligated him by our working.

What then is the explanation of the reward of works?

If the explanation is not merit, what is it?

When the Heidelberg Catechism considers the Romish argument against justification by faith alone and for justification and salvation by meritorious works in Question 63 (which I also referred to in the previous instalment), "What! Do not our good works merit, which yet God will reward in this and in a future life?" Its response is, "This reward is not of merit."

The Catechism does not deny, or in wise minimize the importance of, the truth of the reward of our good works.

It only denies that this reward is a meritorious reward.

Then the Catechism completes its response to Rome’s argument for justification by meritorious works: "... but of grace."

The reward is a gracious reward, a reward, therefore, that is in harmony with the biblical teaching of justification by faith alone and salvation by grace alone.

This, I take up, finishing my explanation of the reward of good works, in the next instalment, God willing.

Cordially in Christ,