Made for Forever · Day 7 of 14 · About 10 minutes

Crowns You’ll Give Away

The Bible names five crowns. The best part is what we do with them.

Michael Kendrick · Scripture: King James Version

READ FIRST 2 Timothy 4:6–8 · Revelation 4:9–11

Paul wrote those words from a prison cell, knowing he was about to be executed. Yet he wasn’t bitter or afraid. He was looking forward. He’d finished his race, and the finish line was a crown.

In the ancient games, winners received a wreath of leaves that wilted within days. Paul says ours are different: “they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible” (1 Corinthians 9:25). The New Testament names five crowns — think of them as five kinds of rewards Jesus loves to give.

Look at what the crowns are for: self-discipline, leading people to Jesus, longing for His return, staying faithful when life is brutal, and caring for other believers. Every single one is available to you — right now, wherever you are.

Then We Give Them Back

Here’s the most beautiful part. In Revelation 4, John sees a scene in heaven:

The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power. — Revelation 4:10–11 (KJV)

They take their crowns off and lay them at His feet. That tells us something huge: rewards in heaven are not trophies for our shelf. They’re gifts for His glory. The reason to want a crown is to have something to give Him.

It also tells us rewards will never make anyone proud or jealous. Nobody will compare crowns. Rewards aren’t about getting closer to God than someone else — every believer will see His face. They’re about the joy of honoring Him with a life well lived.

Hold On to It

Jesus adds a warning: “Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown” (Revelation 3:11). Don’t let distraction, compromise, or quitting steal what God wants to give you.