Acknowledged By The King
Matthew 10:32-33 (NIV)
‘Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven.’
Captain Sir Tom Moore and Marcus Rashford are among those acknowledged for their distinguished work during the pandemic by Her Majesty, the Queen. Receiving a knighthood or other medals is arguably the greatest type of honour in our national public life.
But imagine receiving honour from someone greater than the Queen! How about King Jesus, the King of Kings, the author and creator of the universe, through whom all things were made?
When we accept him as Lord and Saviour, he has a plan to transform our lives, calling us to take part with him in building his kingdom, most importantly sharing with others the good news of who Jesus is. Some of us find it relatively easy sharing what God’s done in our lives. Others find this quite daunting. No doubt it can sometimes be emotionally, socially or physically costly, as Jesus spells out in a parallel passage in Mark 8. But here we find the reward for sharing our faith: by acknowledging Jesus before others, we receive acknowledgement before God our Father himself. How amazing is that! And in Luke 12, Jesus says he’ll acknowledge us before the angels in heaven. Wow!
Being acknowledged by Jesus before God the Father and before the angels in heaven is incomparably more impressive than an acknowledgement from the Queen!
Sometimes we can ‘chicken out’ or be apathetic about sharing our faith, more concerned about how others acknowledge us rather than seeking God’s acknowledgement. But there can be true joy in sharing our faith, and even more so when we know the reward is great!
That’s why I pray this Scripture with my 3-year-old asking that this word will take root in our hearts.
Prayer – Father, I’m sorry when I care more about other people’s acknowledgement than yours. Thank you for the opportunities to share who you are with others. Jesus, I thank you for the reward of being acknowledged before the Father and the angels of heaven.