Rewards and Motivation: Paul’s Passionate Pursuit of God In 1 Corinthians

Historically, theologians and church leaders have had difficulty with the Bible’s use of rewards to motivate godly living. This has troubled them because it seems that God’s response when people meet the conditions for receiving these rewards would encourage self-centered pride. Paul clearly presents rewards as incentives; so investigating his writings will be profitable, because, while promoting rewards, he also insists upon selflessness, humility, and the obedience of faith as proper ways to engage with God’s grace. For Paul the primary reward the gospel offers is fellowship with God, experienced as displays of grace. In “Rewards and Motivation” Ruth Fuller shows that to desire these is to desire what God himself delights to give; thus self-interest both pleases him and is essential to loving others selflessly. These rewards represent how much someone delights in God. They are tokens which testify to the inestimable value of God and represent his glory rather than the recipient’s.