Good morning my “walking with Jesus” friends,
Crowns are something most of us have never touched or worn, but of course they have great significance on the head of a king or queen. Did you know there will be crowns in heaven? Today, as we continue following the apostle Peter as he is writing his first letter, I invite you to join me in considering what Peter meant when he spoke of “an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade, kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power…” (1 Peter 1:4,5) Specifically let’s look to see what we can find out about ‘crowns in heaven’ as part of this glorious inheritance, and if you or I might ever wear one?
Of course, there is one crown which will NOT be in heaven, but this crown is the reason there are any crowns in heaven. This is the Crown of Thorns, which was pushed down onto the head of Jesus, piercing His skull, causing a flow of blood down His face. (Matt. 27:29) This mockery was done by Roman soldiers who served Governor Pilate. This horrific experience was only one ugly part of the humiliation poured out on Jesus as Jesus was sentenced to be crucified. They mocked Jesus as “king of the Jews”.
His atonement death, while horrific, was of course the ultimate purpose for which Jesus, the Son of God, had come to earth. His death paid the full sin price for any person willing to trust in God’s redemption plan, repent of their sin, and trust Jesus’ death to be sufficient to earn their sin forgiveness from God and the gift of eternity with Jesus in heaven!I find five different crowns mentioned by New Testament writers which I believe are all an important part of what the Holy Spirit was intending as He led Peter to write about our heavenly inheritance. Let’s look today at three of them, and tomorrow we’ll look at the other two. Can you imagine receiving a crown in heaven from Jesus Himself??
The apostle Paul, as he was nearing his execution, wrote these among his final words: “…the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the CROWN of Righteousness, which the Lord Himself, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day – and not only to me but to all who have longed for His appearing.” (2 Tim. 4:7,8) The word ‘righteous’ refers to holiness and purity. Of course, neither Paul nor you or I are righteous naturally for we are all sinful people. As a young Pharisee Paul had worked tirelessly to keep all the laws so he could earn righteousness, but it was impossible. Yet one of the remarkable things God does during our miraculous salvation experience, is that God not only forgives our sin, accepting as payment in full the death of Jesus, but God then declares us ‘righteous’! Romans 5 uses the word Justification!
God applies the holiness of Jesus the Son of God to us (2 Corinthians 5:21) and the Holy Spirit of God cleanses us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9) Paul was looking forward to arriving in heaven for many reasons, but one was that he knew a Crown of Righteousness awaited him and the risen Jesus Christ Himself would award that crown to Paul. That crown would be a visible, tangible celebration of the fact that finally Paul was declared by God to be fully righteous, without any sin and home in sinless heaven! Did you notice Paul wrote that all who have trusted Jesus and longed for His appearing will receive that same crown of righteousness? Oh, to be perfectly sinless, standing face to face with Jesus, in the sinless heavenly presence of God for all eternity!! The Crown of Righteousness! I’m looking forward to that inheritance, are you, my friends? Are you confident that because you’ve placed your full trust in Jesus to be your Savior, that this crown will be presented to you in heaven by Jesus Himself?
A second crown I see in heaven is the Crown of Life. James wrote: “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love Him.” (James 1:12). John wrote about it this way in Revelation 2:10 “Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer…be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.” When a person trusts Jesus Christ to be their Savior, God births in them a new, immortal, spiritual nature which enables that person to live in a wonderful relationship with God, both during their earthly life, and then for all eternity in heaven! Jesus said it this way: “I tell you the truth, whoever hears My words and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.” (John 5:24)
Our eternal life relationship with God begins the moment God does His glorious work of saving us from our sin condemnation at the moment we fully trust in Jesus. When a follower of Jesus arrives in heaven, a Crown of Life will be presented to them as a tangible celebration of the fact that God has given them His great gift of eternal life, earned for them by Jesus. While that eternal life journey started on earth at the moment of their salvation, once we arrive in heaven eternal life in God’s presence takes on a whole new and glorious reality! Eternity my friends! Sinless, painless, perfect life, forever and ever in the presence of God! Oh my, what a royal crown that will be! Especially for those who have suffered great persecution or even been killed for being followers of Jesus Christ. Did you notice by friends, BOTH the Crown of Righteousness and the Crown of Life will be presented to EVERY human being who arrives in heaven, having trusted Jesus to be their Savior!
At the beginning of our time today I told you I’d show you three crowns today, but I think we’ll pause right here and contemplate these two remarkable crowns. What will be their significance when you see them and how will you feel when Jesus gives them to you with a smile of great delight on His face and speaking your name in His great love? But I know what you are thinking: How can I wear two crowns on my head at the same time? Well, I really don’t know the answer to that my friends, but I ask you to consider this: those royals in our world who do have crowns which signify their exalted position only wear those crowns on rare occasions. The other time those crowns are on display in a safe place. Perhaps you and I will have a way of displaying both those crowns rather than wearing them all the time? Tomorrow we’ll look at two more crowns described in Scripture which are awaiting those who have trusted Jesus to be their Savior. For today, as we reflect on the Crown of Righteousness and the Crown of Life, let’s also ponder this reality friends… those crowns and even heaven itself would not be available to us if Jesus had refused the Crown of Thorns and His horrific crucifixion. This worship song helps us put all this in proper worship perspective. ‘OH, we praise you Lord Jesus Christ for what you suffered for us so that we can receive eternal life and crowns of Righteousness and Life!’
Today’s Scripture is 1 Peter 1:4.
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Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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