Sharing in the Prophet’s Reward through Partnership

David W Palmer

In today’s reading, Jesus concludes his pre-mission briefing to his apprentice leaders. He had already called them, taught them in the classroom, and trained them on-the-job—up to the level of competence needed to succeed on their first supervised assignment. Now he is almost ready to send them; but just before their departure, he reminds them of their absolute value and importance, and of the universal and eternal significance of their assignment. But he also talks to them about rewards related to their mission; they will be rewarded along with those who help them and/or send them:

(Matthew 10:41–42 NKJV) “He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. {42} And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward.”

Jesus is saying that those who minister in his name, and who serve his vision and mission, receive rewards. This is not surprising; but in this passage, he further reveals that those who help them achieve their mission—by receiving them and providing for them, etc.—receive a share in the same reward.

The Aramaic translation into plain English puts verse 41 like this:

(Matthew 10:41 APE) “Whoever receives a Prophet in the name of a Prophet receives the reward of the Prophet, and whoever receives The Righteous One in the name of The Righteous One receives the reward of The Righteous One.”

Initially, this implies that those who receive Jesus’s representatives and their ministries, also receive the benefits of the ministry that he conveys through them—whether that be the new birth, healing, learning, encouragement, or inspiration, etc. But to understand more fully the implications of what Jesus said in verse 42, we look to the Holy Spirit’s expansion and explanation through Paul’s writings of how this was applied practically:

(Philippians 1:3–5 NLT) Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. {4} Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy, {5} for you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now.

Paul uses the word, “partners.” The good people of the Philippian church had become partners with Paul in his mission by supporting him, praying for him, and encouraging him. Did they receive any reward?

First, we see that they had the amazing apostle Paul praying for them. With his depth of revelation and faith, his prayer for them would have been of immense help, releasing God’s grace and peace over their lives.

(Philippians 1:2, 6 NLT) May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. ... {6} And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

They also had a special place in Paul’s heart:

(Philippians 1:2, 7–8 NLT) So it is right that I should feel as I do about all of you, for you have a special place in my heart. You share with me the special favor of God, both in my imprisonment and in defending and confirming the truth of the Good News. {8} God knows how much I love you and long for you with the tender compassion of Christ Jesus.

In this passage, we feel the love Paul had for his partners at Philippi. His love for them was an expression of Jesus’s own “tender compassion” for them.

We also pick up a very very important point, grace. Let’s look at this in two different translations:

(Phil. 1:7 APE) … you are my partners in grace.

(Phil. 1:7 KJV) … ye all are partakers of my grace.

We see that by partnering with Paul, the Philippian church not only received his love, covering, prayer, teaching, and deep appreciation; they also partook of the same grace that was upon him. Let’s think about what that looked like:

Their first meeting with Paul was when he first arrived and preached the gospel to them. (See: Acts 16). His mission there began with prayer by the river. After prevailing in prayer, the Holy Spirit empowered and emboldened him to drive out the controlling spirit of divination. After that, the whole city was spiritually shaken to the core: money trails changed, and uproar ensued. This was followed by imprisonment, earthquake, and jailbreak, but also by many salvations. All of this resulted in the birth of an amazing church—the newly saved prison keeper was a key convert and significant leader in the new assembly.

This was a powerful display of the awesome authority, superiority, and grace of the almighty God. Now Paul was saying that because they were his partners in the gospel, they were also partakers of the same grace they saw at work on him—grace that enabled his ministry, his jailbreak, a citywide awakening, church growth, and supernatural revelation. Amazing! That is a surprising but very real reward for partnering with God’s called and sent apostle.

With this fresh understanding of God, how he worked through Paul, and his triumphant power, the following verse would have had a huge impact on the Philippians:

(Philippians 4:19 NKJV) “And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

The God that protected, empowered, and supplied for Paul, would now be supplying their need.

And this because …

(Philippians 4:16–18 NKJV) “For even in Thessalonica you sent aid once and again for my necessities. {17} Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that abounds to your account. {18} Indeed I have all and abound. I am full, having received from Epaphroditus the things sent from you, a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well pleasing to God.”

The Philippians were generous to Paul; they supplied much more than a cup of water, and they received a great reward; not only had they received the gospel and his personal ministry, but the grace they had seen at work in and through Paul would now be at work in and through them. What’s more, the God they had seen at work in and through Paul would now supply “all” their need.

Today, I encourage you; even as you obediently embark on the supervised missions Jesus has for you, remember to partner with other gospel ministers. Love them, cheer them on, encourage them, pray for them, and support them. Their reward will become your reward; and your reward will become theirs as they reciprocate. And remember this advice from Paul:

(Galatians 6:6 NLT) Those who are taught the word of God should provide for their teachers, sharing all good things with them.

(Galatians 6:7–8 NKJV) Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. {8} For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.