Living with “Perhaps Today”

Heaven: Faithful Expectation, Passionate Prayer, and the Father’s Reward

The return of Jesus Christ is not a minor teaching tucked away in an obscure corner of Scripture. It runs like a golden thread through the New Testament, reminding believers that history is moving toward a promised meeting with the King. Paul expressed this expectation when he wrote, “There is laid up 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 loved His appearing” (2 Timothy 4:8).

Paul was not claiming that heaven could be earned through human effort. The crown is given by the Lord to those who have been saved by grace and whose lives reveal that they genuinely long for Christ. The Greek word translated “appearing,” epiphaneia, describes a visible manifestation or glorious arrival. Paul did not merely believe that Jesus would return; he loved the thought of His return.

The Christian who loves Christ’s appearing will begin arranging today’s life around tomorrow’s meeting with Him.

Jesus illustrated this readiness through servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding celebration. They remained dressed, kept their lamps burning, and listened for his knock. Christ said, “Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find on the alert when he comes” (Luke 12:37). The remarkable part of the story is what the master does next: he seats the faithful servants at his table and serves them.

Together, Luke 12 and 2 Timothy 4 show that God intends to reward faithful expectancy. He is not a reluctant Father who begrudgingly acknowledges His children’s service. He delights in honoring those who love His Son, remain watchful, and live faithfully while awaiting His arrival. Readiness, therefore, is not frightened speculation about dates and signs. It is the steady practice of asking, “If Jesus came today, would He find me loving Him, serving others, and walking obediently?”

Christ also connects heavenly reward with passionate, sincere prayer. In Matthew 6:5–6, Jesus contrasts public prayer performed for human admiration with secret prayer offered to the Father: “Your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.” The issue is not whether others hear us pray; public prayer has a proper place in worship. The issue is whose approval we desire.

A helpful spiritual principle says, “We are rewarded by the person whose praise we seek.” If I pray to impress people, their admiration is all I receive. If I pray because I desire fellowship with God, my Father sees what no one else sees. Robert Murray McCheyne reportedly observed, “You wish to humble a man? Ask him about his prayer life.” Prayer exposes how dependent—or independent—we have become.

The secret place prepares us for the public appearing of Christ. When I regularly meet the Father in prayer, the return of Jesus becomes more than a doctrine. It becomes a cherished hope. Prayer keeps my lamp burning because it keeps my heart close to the One for whom I am waiting.

The crown of righteousness, the blessing promised to watchful servants, and the Father’s reward for secret prayer all reveal the same gracious truth: God notices faithfulness. These rewards do not purchase salvation; they celebrate what His grace has produced within His children. Like a loving father rejoicing over a child’s faithful steps, God delights to honor lives shaped by expectancy, devotion, and love.

Let the words “Perhaps today” pass through your mind each morning. Let them influence your choices, deepen your prayers, and loosen your attachment to everything temporary. Christ is coming, and those who love Him have every reason to keep their lamps burning.

May the Lord strengthen your faith, deepen your prayer life, and fill your heart with joyful expectation until the day you see Jesus face to face.

Pastor Hogg

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