Great Expectations (7)

“But many who are first will be last, and the last first.” Matthew 19.30

Our hope-filled forebears
Peter asked Jesus what they could expect who had left everything to follow Him. Jesus replied by saying that all who follow Him in the age of regeneration will be equipped by God’s Word to serve and judge others, and will realize all the blessings and joy of God’s covenant promises within a worldwide community of loving, caring, witness-bearing believers like themselves.

Such great expectations must have satisfied the apostles and the earliest believers, because many, many of them gave up everything that people these days hold to be important, to follow Jesus in full faith. They left homes and families, the security of jobs and lands, diversions and distractions, safety and security, even their very lives. They forsook everything and followed Jesus, wherever He led them, day after day. They became “last” in the eyes of the world so that they could be “first” in the eyes of Christ.

How could they do that?

The period of the early Church is sometimes referred to as the age of martyrs. During the first 250 years of the Christian movement, wave after wave of violent persecution broke out against the followers of Christ, leaving multiplied thousands tortured, maimed, and murdered for their faith.

But what about the promise of abundance and joy in the safety of family and friends? The early Christians showed that they had found a prize of greater value even than all these. They had learned to embrace the last thing of the faith as the very first thing they hoped for every day.

Last place first
In the terms and perspective of the world, those who are in “first place” have got it all. They’re the rich and famous, the powerful and admired, the beautiful people of the world. They drive the best cars, live in the nicest homes, have the most secure IRAs, and have plenty of leisure time to do with as they please. If the ads and commercials are right, this is the life most people want to realize, the life of being first, being best, being happy.

Those who are in “last place” have nothing of the sort – empty of every worldly pleasure or prize, despised, and with nothing of their own to claim. They have no goods to covet. They are looked down on and scorned by their neighbors. They having nothing in this world to which they can point in order to claim some status, privilege, or prize. They are the last of all, and few are they who are willing to settle for such an estate.

Yet Jesus said this is the greatest prize of all, because only thus, when we have laid aside every earthly privilege and delight, can we know the reality of eternal life in the Lord. The psalmist declared that God was his only good, his fullest cup, his true inheritance, and the only source of joy and pleasure he needed or wanted (Ps. 16). Delighting in the Lord, we find Him more than willing to give us the desire of our heart, which is to know and delight in Him more and more (Ps. 37.4).

We know that, in the new heavens and new earth, God will be all in all, and we will be with Him, in His presence, before Him, and like Him in a world where neither sin nor sorrow, want nor despair, will interrupt the joy and fullness we have in the presence of the Lord. While there will be much else to do in the new heavens and new earth, all of it will have meaning and joy only because we exist perpetually, uninterruptedly, and gloriously in the full light and truth of the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Last now, first forever
This is every true believer’s last estate and highest hope; therefore, it must be the first thing we live for every day of our lives.

And when we empty ourselves of all this world’s distractions and diversions, gewgaws and goods, pleasures and privileges, we open our souls to be filled, here and now, with all the fullness of God. Thus, setting aside what the world considers as of first importance, we daily and continuously embrace what it regards as of least significance so that we might bask and delight and flourish and be transformed in the eternal presence of Jesus Christ our King.

This is the believer’s greatest expectation of all, to be last in the world’s eyes and first in the Lord’s, last in the world’s treasures and first in the treasury of Christ’s love, last in being esteemed and first in esteeming others better than ourselves, last in the securities of this world and first in the secure knowledge that our lives are hidden with Christ in God (Col. 3.3).

And this great expectation is ours to know, enjoy, and grow in every day of our lives, and for all eternity.

For reflection
1.  What do you look forward to in the new heavens and new earth? Do you expect to know any of that here and now? Explain.

2.  How should following Jesus affect our view of everything the world regards as “first”?

3.  What “great expectation” will you pursue in full faith today?

Next steps: Download a copy of the PDF of this study for yourself and a friend. Work through it together to encourage one another in your walk with and work for the Lord.

T. M. Moore

This week’s study, Great Expectations, is Part 2 of a 10-part series, Full Faith. You can download Great Expectations by clicking here. Your gifts to The Fellowship of Ailbe make this ministry possible. It’s easy to give to The Fellowship of Ailbe, and all gifts are, of course, tax-deductible. You can click here to donate online through credit card or PayPal, or send your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 19 Tyler Dr., Essex Junction, VT 05452.

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.