Thank you so much for your thoughtful post. I do agree with you that someone could read these verses and think Christianity is a brownie-points system. That’s not a strange reading, and Jesus’ language does invite the question, but only where we look at verses in isolation.
Where I think the disagreement is, is what kind of “reward” Jesus is talking about — and whether “reward” is doing the work of getting you into heaven, or something else. Because when you read these passages in context, Jesus consistently assumes people are already inside the relationship, and he’s talking about faithfulness within it, not earning entry. Let me try to show what I mean, passage by passage.
Matthew 6:19–21 — This sounds like classic points language at first glance — but notice what Jesus actually ties treasure to: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (NIV). Noticeably, Jesus doesn’t say: “Store up treasure so you can get into heaven.” He says: “What you treasure shows where your heart already is.” So treasure isn’t a currency that buys heaven — it’s a diagnostic of allegiance. If this were about earning entry, Jesus would be teaching a salvation strategy. Instead, he’s teaching what a transformed / saved heart values. That’s why, a few verses later, he warns that religious actions done for show receive no reward at all (Matthew 6:1).
Colossians 3:24 — This verse actually cuts against a works-based system. “You will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.” (NIV). An inheritance, by definition, isn’t earned; it’s received by virtue of belonging. Paul isn’t telling people how to qualify as heirs; he’s encouraging people who already are heirs to serve faithfully, even in unjust circumstances. If Paul meant “you earn heaven by working hard,” calling it an inheritance would be a strange and misleading word choice.
Revelation 22:12 — This is probably the strongest-sounding verse, but Revelation itself tells us how entry is decided before this verse. Just a few verses earlier: “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life.” (Revelation 22:14, NIV) And elsewhere in Revelation: “Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:15, NIV). The Book of Life determines who belongs already. So when Jesus says his “reward is with him,” he’s not saying, “I’ll decide who gets in based on works.” He’s saying, “I’m coming to set things right for those who are already mine.
2 Corinthians 5:10 — This one sounds strange, until you notice who Paul is talking to. This letter is written to believers, ie the same people Paul elsewhere says face “no condemnation” (Romans 8:1). So this judgment cannot be about salvation. Paul even spells this out elsewhere: “If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved.” (1 Corinthians 3:15, NIV). Saved, despite poor works. That alone makes “works get you into heaven” impossible within Paul’s framework.
Luke 6:23 — This one actually challenges the brownie-points idea in a different way. The “reward” is given for being hated, excluded, insulted or rejected. Those aren’t moral achievements. They’re costs of allegiance. Jesus isn’t saying, “Congratulations, you’ve accumulated virtue.” He’s saying, “If loyalty to God costs you everything now, God will not forget you.” That’s not wages; it’s justice. And he explicitly grounds it in identity: “That is how their ancestors treated the prophets. Prophets weren’t earning their way into God’s favour. They were persecuted because they already belonged to God.
Matthew 10:42 — If salvation were the reward here, then eternal life could be earned with a glass of tap water and moral seriousness collapses. Jesus deliberately chooses a trivial act to make the opposite point: God notices faithfulness, not because it merits heaven, but because relationship matters. This verse doesn’t help as a salvation economy, but it makes sense as reassurance that nothing done in loyalty to Christ is invisible.
Matthew 16:27 — This sounds decisive until you read what comes immediately before it: “Whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” (v.25) Jesus isn’t describing a merit ladder. He’s describing total self-surrender. The “reward” is God publicly affirming that losing your life for Christ was not foolish or wasted. Again, this is justice and restoration, not entry.
So, I’d agree that the Bible talks constantly about reward. But I don’t think it ever talks about earning heaven via works or deeds. Instead, it consistently says you don’t earn belonging, you receive it. You are brought in by grace, and because God is not indifferent, nothing done in love or faithfulness is meaningless. If Christianity were really about earning heaven, Jesus’ death is unnecessary. If Jesus’ death is necessary, then reward must mean something other than “getting in.”