Is Following Jesus A Vain Pursuit? (Proverbs 22:4)
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Proverbs 22:4
The reward for humility and fear of the Lord
is riches and honor and life.
You ever wonder if following Jesus is really worth it?
Maybe you wouldn’t say it out loud, but deep down, have you ever felt like it just doesn’t pay off? Like you’re giving up so much, but what are you getting in return? That’s exactly what the Israelites were feeling in Malachi 3:14: "It is vain to serve God. What is the profit of our keeping his charge?"
I actually had a conversation yesterday with someone who told me the people they want to witness to think Christianity is a circus. That following Jesus is a joke. They echo Malachi 3:14, thinking that it’s vain.
And if we’re honest, maybe we’ve wrestled with that too. When life gets hard, when obedience feels costly, when the world around us mocks what we believe – it’s easy to wonder: What’s the reward? If any?
Proverbs 22:4 gives us the answer:
"The reward for humility and fear of the Lord is riches and honor and life."
Following Jesus isn’t in vain. It’s the best thing you could ever do for yourself.
And those two qualities in the verse, ‘humility’ and ‘fear of the Lord’, are connected. Humility is the proper view of ourselves; fear of the Lord is the proper view of God. And when you have both, as evidenced by this verse, you’re blessed. The riches, the honor, the life – that is the blessed accumulation and totality of happiness that comes from serving God.
Now, that doesn’t mean you’ll have a fat bank account or a VIP pass to the easy life. Far from it.
But it does mean that in Christ:
If not rich in this life, rich in God’s glory.
If not honored by man here on earth, honored by the Lord in heaven.
And you were already dead in this life, dead in your trespasses, but God in His grace and through your repentance gives you new life, everlasting life in Him.
That’s the promise. That’s the reward.
And the question I think worth posing here is:
Do you believe this today? Do you really believe this – not just in your head, but your heart?
Where do you struggle to believe this to be true?
So let’s bring that before the Lord right now. Whether you’re wrestling with doubt or feeling confident in His promises, let’s ask Him to deepen our trust in the reward of following Him.
