How to get: Heavenly Rewards

You get to heaven by

Faith in Jesus.

It is by faith not works.

BUT rewards in heaven...

come as a result of

what you DO on earth.

~

So... How do I get  rewards  in heaven?

In Heaven...

Some people will have more rewards than others.

Some people will have more treasures than others.

Some will have more authority than others.

Some will rule over the cities of heaven.

Some people waste their life

and get no heavenly rewards

or

only a few rewards.

This page will help you understand

The Rewards of Heaven.

-

We talk about

The 5 Crowns

that are available to you.

Treasures in Heaven

“Lay not up for yourselves

treasures upon earth,

where moth and rust doth corrupt,

and where thieves break through and steal:

But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven,

where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt,

and where thieves

do not break through nor steal.”

 Matthew 6:19-20

Don't let the meaningless things of this world
distract you
from
the things that God wants you to accomplish
on this earth
- and thus -
deprive
you
of many of the rewards
that you could have in heaven.

The video below is a great introduction

to this topic.

Pastor Shelby explains:

What you have in eternity

will depend on

the quality of what you do - the quality of your life choices.

Your choices on earth

determine

your heavenly rewards.

Some people waste their life

and get no heavenly rewards

or

only a few rewards.

Will Christians be judged after they die?

Everyone
will have a judgment after they die.

The judgment for Christians is for rewards.

(2 Corinthians 5:10)

Those who have repented of their sins and

believed in Jesus Christ as Savior and live for him

will go to heaven...

yet we will be judged -

but not in the same way

as the unrepentant ones

who go to hell.

We

will

only be

judged

to see if

we get any rewards in heaven. 

The Bible says this

about believers in Christ:

"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.” 2 Corinthians 5:10

There are different kinds of rewards.

For example, there are

5 kinds of

Heavenly Crowns. 

I will discuss them shortly.

First, I want to write about some Good News!

 Good News

Small heavenly rewards

are not hard to get.

Whoever

helps any of these little ones

because

they are my followers

will definitely get a reward,

even if they only give them a cup of cold water.”

Matthew 10:42 ERV

They [Believers in Jesus] are to do good,

to be rich in good works,

to be generous and ready to share,

thus

storing up treasure for themselves

as a good foundation for the future,

so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.

1 Timothy 6:18-19 

Acts of kindness

done with a heart who wants to

give glory to Jesus and bless others

is rewarded.

You just have to remember that

it is not just what you do but

"WHY"

you do it.

Don't just do it

for rewards

but also because

you want to please Jesus!

BUT

WHAT if

you do good things for the wrong reason?

Matthew 6:16-18 gives us an example:

“And whenever you are fasting,

do not look gloomy like the hypocrites,

for they put on a sad and dismal face 

[like actors, discoloring their faces with ashes or dirt] 

so that their fasting

may be seen by men.

I assure you and most solemnly say to you,

they [already] have

their reward in full.

 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head

 [as you normally would to groom your hair]

 and wash your face

 18 so that your fasting will not be noticed by people,

but by your Father who is in secret;

and your Father who sees [what is done] in secret

will reward you.

Take Note:

Sometimes young Christians

have to

begin by

doing good works for a reward

but they continue to draw close to God

and thus

transition their heart

to do good works because they love the Lord.

Before we continue on this page

check out the next section of links.

This link will take you to lots of verses!

Below is a link to an excellent page of Bible verses about this subject.

I strongly urge you to read through them. 

If I posted all these verses, it would make the page really long... and this site has done that for us.

https://www.openbible.info/topics/rewards_in_heaven

Crowns of Heaven

There are 5 crowns listed below.

There is also information listed below

on

HOW you GET them.

The crowns are honor and privileges

for certain things

that a person chooses to do on earth.

Some people waste their life

and get no heavenly rewards

or only a few rewards.

On the other hand,

Some people are

diligent and excited

about pleasing the Lord.

1 Corinthians 3:11-15

(written out farther down)

explains this.

1 Corinthians 3 tells us that

when we accept Jesus as Lord

he becomes our foundation -

and we build on that foundation

as we serve him.

After we die,

the fire of God tests our works.

They will shine  or  they will burn.

1 Corinthians 3:13

What we do on earth will be judged.

It will either shine

like gold, silver, etc.

- meaning that God is pleased

with what we did

- and with the motivation behind what we did - 

or

it will be as wood, hay, and straw

which gets burned up and destroyed.

Some people get into heaven

with no rewards

or few rewards.

1 Corinthians 3:11-15

11 For no other foundation can anyone lay

than that which is laid, 

which is Jesus Christ. 

12 Now if anyone builds on this foundation 

with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 

13 each one’s work will become clear;

for the Day will declare it,

because it will be revealed by fire;

and the fire will test each one’s work,

of what sort it is.

 14 If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures,

he will receive a reward. 

15 If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss;

but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.

Next:

The Five Crowns

And after that...

Who will rule over heavenly cities ?

The Crowns are in no particular order.

You can earn more than one crown.

Each of the Crowns will be given for

large-scale consistency in a particular area.

Yet, do not forget that

even if you don't get a particular crown,

you can get

smaller rewards

for doing things

that pertain to that crown.

For example, 

The Crown of Glory

is given to those who diligently teach the Bible.

If you

teach a Sunday school class for one year -

you will get

a special reward for

teaching the Bible

but you were not consistent enough to get a crown.

-

 The Crowns might be similar to crowns on earth.

Or

they might be a kind of glory or visible shining of
our resurrected body.

Whatever the Crowns are,

we will find them

very valuable and desirable.

The Crown of Rejoicing

1 st Crown

The Crown of Rejoicing

is 

The Soul-Winners Crown

Will you get this crown?

Are you sharing your love for Jesus with others?

Are you helping people get a

saving knowledge

of Jesus Christ?

Most people do not know how to 

get to heaven.

Are you helping them?

?

Are you

teaching

your children, teens, and other loved ones?

Most people

falsely think

you can get to heaven

by

being

"good enough."

They need

correct information.

The link below will help you give them information.

Explaining how to get to heaven.

Do you tell people about Jesus?

Or are you too

afraid or busy?

Do you teach your children,

grandchildren, etc.

about Jesus?

Or do you feel

inadequate or too busy?

See also

Deuteronomy 11:18-19

and

Deuteronomy 6:7

After all, what gives us hope and joy,

and what will be our

proud reward and crown

as we stand before our Lord Jesus when he returns?

It is you!

1 Thessalonians 2:19 NLT

Paul said,

Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters,

 stay true

to the Lord.

I love you and long to see you, dear friends,

for you are my joy and

the crown

I receive for my work.

Philippians 4:1 NLT

The Crown of Glory

2nd Crown

This crown is for those

who diligently teach the word of God to others.

It is for those who are serious about

The Great Commission.

This is for those who shepherd people.

These people feed others

nourishment and encouragement

from the word of God.

This crown is for

all those

including pastors and Bible teachers

who are

serious about sharing God's word.

Do others know you value the Word of God?

Do they see you reading the Word of God?

Do you teach your family about the Bible?

Do you send Bible verses to encourage your friends?

When others have problems 

do you gently bring them

to what the word of God says?

 Shepherd and guide and protect

the flock of God among you,

exercising oversight not under compulsion,

but voluntarily,

according to the will of God;

and not [motivated] for shameful gain,

but with wholehearted enthusiasm;

3 not lording it over those assigned to your care

[do not be arrogant or overbearing],

but be examples [of Christian living] to the flock

[set a pattern of integrity for your congregation].

 4 And when the Chief Shepherd (Christ) appears,

you will receive the [conqueror’s] unfading crown of glory. 

1 Peter 5:2-4

The Victor's Crown

3 rd Crown

This crown is received when someone

has been serious about

growing spiritually.

They have picked up the Bible regularly and

allowed God

to use His Word

to change their heart and their behaviors.

This includes the areas of

self-control

and self-discipline

concerning Biblical commands.

It is also called the

Incorruptible or Imperishable crown.

It is an

Overcomer's Crown.

It is for diligent believers

as opposed to lazy believers.

So teach us to number our days,

That we may gain a heart of wisdom.

Psalm 90:12 NKJV

Wisdom

In the Bible, Paul talks about

the

wisdom

of

being diligent 

as we run toward the finish line of our life.

Paul explains:

 You know that many runners enter a race, and only one of them wins the prize. So run to win! 

25 Athletes work hard to win a crown that cannot last, but we do it for a crown that will last forever.

 26 I don’t run without a goal. And I don’t box by beating my fists in the air. 

27 I keep my body under control and make it my slave, so I won’t lose out after telling the good news to others.

1 Corinthians 9:24-27 CEV

Paul is telling us to chose

what God says 

- not what our body wants -

and then later

we will be happy that we did!

People who receive this crown have had

Victories

over temptations and addictions.

They have chosen to

be ridiculed and lonely

instead of submitting to peer pressure.

They have

grown spiritually

by

studying the word of God

and

following what it says.

Would the people who know you

say

that you are serious about following the Bible?

Study and 

do your best

to present yourself

to God approved, a workman [tested by trial]

who has no reason to be ashamed, accurately

handling and skillfully teaching the word of truth. 

2 Timothy 2:15

In various Bible verses,

Paul wants to inspire us...

To control our body and our desires. (1 Cor. 9:24-27)

To Grow in Maturity. (Colossians 1:9-10)

To Show the Fruit of the Spirit. (Galatians 5:22-23)

To go from drinking the Milk of the Word to eating the Meat of the Word.  (1 Corinthians 3:1-3)

To do those things

we must learn

HOW  to  Encourage  ourself  and

HOW  to  Motivate  ourself...

Consider our

Breakthrough Prayer page

and our Champion for Christ pages

and our inspiring Running the Race devotions.

The Crown of Righteousness

4th Crown

You receive the Crown of Righteousness

when you love God and his Word

so much

that you are eager to see

Jesus Christ in person.

That would refer to

the rapture of the church,

and it refers to

seeing him in heaven after death.

Now there is in store for me

 the crown of righteousness, 

which the Lord, the righteous Judge,

will award to me on that day—

and not only to me, but also

to all who have longed for his appearing.

2 Timothy 4:8

2 Timothy 4:8 -

long for his appearing ...

love the idea of his appearing...

wait eagerly for his appearing...

and sometimes yearn for his appearing.

Are you eagerly looking forward to seeing Jesus?

Do you delight in God and his Word?

(Psalm 37:4)

Even if you don't right now,

You CAN develop

that in your life.

You can intentionally develop it.

These people are what I call "in-love" with Jesus.

The Bible refers to Jesus as a bridegroom.

Jesus is the bridegroom and we are the bride.

 

This group has some of the

same reactions

as couples who are

"in-love" with a human being.

See my page: Falling in love with God

And those who get this crown

LOVE

righteousness.

By steadfastly following Jesus,

they have come to

LOVE righteousness.

They not only see it as something God loves

but as

something they love.

They have come to

respect and love God's commands

and they sincerely want to

live right

- not just to please God -

but because they have come to

love righteous living.

Righteous is God's way of being and doing.

- Righteousness -

In the New Testament,

there are two aspects in the word

"righteousness"

in the life of a saved believer in Jesus Christ.

The First Aspect

When we accept Jesus

as Savior and Lord of our life,

we are made righteous

in the eyes of God.
 

The righteousness of Jesus
has now been
credited
to us.

For he [Father God] hath made him [Jesus]

to be sin for us,

who knew no sin;

that we might be made

the righteousness of God in him.

2 Corinthians 5:21

Also see Romans 4:5, and 24

Click below to understand more about

The Trinity

The Second Aspect

After we accept Jesus as Savior and Lord,

the Bible commands us

to begin

a journey of

learning to live in a righteous way.

Now your attitudes and thoughts

must all be

constantly changing

for the better.

Yes, you must be a new and different person,

holy and good.

Clothe yourself with this new nature.

Ephesians 4:23-24 TLB

Clothe yourself  =  put ON this new nature.

We do this by:

Renewing our mind - by reading God's Word.

And Learning to Love what God loves.

This includes...

Allowing ourselves to be molded by God

so we become

instruments of righteousness.....

See the Bible verse below.

Those in this group,

never are perfectly righteous

in words and deeds. 

But

they dedicate themselves

to practicing righteousness....

which means they practice following God.

They seek to follow Jesus.

but no one does that

perfectly...

so when

they do sin, they repent.

See 1 John 1:9

-

As those in this group mature,

they become less and less 

 critical

of others

because

they become focused

on their own spiritual growth

which includes being

gentle, loving,

kind and patient with others.

-

When this group notices the sin of another person,

they pray for that person

and only talk with them about it

if the Lord directs them to do that....

which is rather rare.

Verses on this subject:

2 Timothy 2:24-26, Galatians 6:1,

2 Timothy 2:14,  Galatians 5:22-23

 A final word on

Aspect 2

In closing this section,

I remind you that Paul implores us by saying...

"Let me say this, then, speaking for the Lord:

Live no longer as the unsaved do,"

Then Paul talks about the sinfulness of the unsaved.

Next he motivates us by saying...

"But that isn’t the way Christ taught you!

 If you have really heard his voice

and learned from him 

the truths concerning himself, 

then throw off your old evil nature."

Ephesians 4:17-22 TLB

Throw off the old nature!

Psalm 63:3 NIV says:

For your love is far better than life -

my lips will glorify you...

lyrics

You are my God And with all my heart I seek You.

In a dry & weary land where there’s no water, my soul is thirsty for You.

All that I am longs for you. I yearn for your tender embrace - the touch of your love.

For Your love is far better than life.  My lips will glorify you.

I will praise You as long as I live.

In Your name I lift up my hands.

I will seek you as long as it takes, till I behold You face to face.

The Crown of Life

This crown is for death

or extreme suffering

for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

This crown is mainly received

when someone

is killed

because they stand for Jesus.

They die because they won't deny

that they love Jesus. . . 

Think   Martyrs.

When someone is told to deny Jesus or die,

and they do not deny Jesus

and they do die -

they receive this crown.

The Bible says:

Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer:

behold, the devil shall cast

some of you into prison,

that ye may be tried;

and ye shall have tribulation ten days:

be thou faithful unto death,

and I will give thee

a crown of life.

Revelation 2:10

Standing up for Christ

when told you will be killed -

is the most extreme temptation we can face.

This crown is also

for extreme suffering

for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Blessed is the man that endureth temptation:

for when he is tried,

he shall receive the crown of life,

which the Lord hath promised

to them that love him.

James 1:12

Some will rule over heavenly cities

The section below is from

Jack Wellman,

and the link is...

 https://www.whatchristianswanttoknow.com/what-will-christians-be-doing-in-heaven/

I know nothing about Jack Wellman

but I do like how he explained

the topic of ruling over cities in heaven.

Jack says...

Parables are stories

that Jesus used - 

by describing earthly things

to introduce heavenly concepts.

For example,

in Jesus’ Parable of the Ten Minas,

He shows that those who are faithful

with what they’ve been given

will rule with Christ,

but of course under Christ.

Jesus said

to the one who was faithful with the ten minas, 

“Well done, good servant!

Because you have been faithful in a very little,

you shall have authority over ten cities”

 (Luke 19:17), but also

 “the second came, saying,

‘Lord, your mina has made five minas.’

And he said to him,

‘And you are to be over five cities” 

(Luke 19:18b-19),

so as we can see,

Jesus is speaking about ruler-ship

for those

who are more faithful than others.

One man rules 10 cities

while the other rules 5 cities, but there’s more. 

“To him who loves us [Jesus Christ] and has freed us

from our sins by his blood and made us

a kingdom, priests to his God and Father,

to him be glory and

dominion forever and ever. Amen.” 

(Rev 1:5b-6).

Clearly, the children of God

will be part of the kingdom of God’s leadership.

Some will be kings, some will be priests,
and others will be rulers,
and
it is a literal kingdom
as Jesus promised the apostles that 

“you may eat and drink at my table in my

kingdom and

sit on thrones judging the twelve

tribes of Israel” 
(Luke 22:30).

This is not a metaphor

but a reality of the coming kingdom of God.

What position will you hold?

It depends upon your FAITHFULNESS

 and what you do with

what you’ve been given here on earth.

AND -

your motives behind your actions.

The Bible tells us about the rewards

to motivate us

but if

the only reason we are doing them is for rewards

and

we never transition

to doing them because we love God,

then

we lose those rewards.

We all have time, talent, and treasure,

so if we sow these

into the kingdom,

we will reap greater rewards.

I pray that this

Rewards in Heaven page

will inspire you and motivate you

to be more aware of the Lord

during your day

and

more aware of the opportunities to serve him each day.

To Jump to the top of the page

click: Rewards in Heaven