In my previous teaching, I discussed the powerful truths in Hebrews 11: 6. Let’s look at the scripture again.
King James Version: 6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Amplified Bible: 6 But without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him. For whoever would come near to God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him (out).
The words that stood out to me this time were REWARDER and DILIGENTLY.
Rewarder means: one who pays wages, one who compensates
Diligently means; to search out, i.e. to crave, investigate, seek after carefully
Webster dictionary defines diligently as ” with steady application and care; not carelessly; not negligently.
I want to share a couple examples of rewards God gives the diligent-those who whole heartedly want Him.
- What is the reward of seeking Christ?
Our Scripture Proof: 2 Corinthians 5:17
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
The reward is we become a new person, a new creation, a new species. You become a new person all together with new abilities and new capacities. You can do things you could not do before. You could achieve things you could not do before. You can understand things now, which you could not before. Why? You now have God’s nature. You now have eternal life (life and nature of God) inside you. In other words, you have God’s DNA. Let that sink in a little bit. That’s what we get when we sincerely ask Jesus into our hearts.
2. What is a reward of diligently seeking God by hearing His Word?
Our scripture proof: Romans 10:8 and Romans 10: 17
8 The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;
17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
The reward of diligently hearing God’s Word is faith. God’s Word contains faith. Faith is being activated in our hearts. We need to be on a mission of understanding faith and how it works. Because faith will be he purchasing power from the Kingdom of God. Your protection and provision come by faith. If we want the victorious life Christ has purchased for us, we must learn how to live by faith.
Romans 1: 17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.
2 7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)
Now that I am a new creation in Christ, the manifestation of who I am, will come forth as I walk by faith. Faith in God come hearing and hearing the Word of God. This tells me that I must become a student of God’s Word. I can have the God-kind of faith. That’s powerful. Jesus told the disciples in Mark 11:22-24 how powerful the God-kind of faith is.
22 “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. 23 “Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
This is powerful. Let’s remain diligent, let’s crave for, be earnest and watch God do what He does. He rewards and compensates our diligence.
Dr. A.L. Richardson