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Serve God Diligently

11/29/2014

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Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his property to them. To one he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more. So also, the one with the two talents gained two more. But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.

After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The man who had received the five talents brought the other five... His master replied, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.”

The man with the two talents also came. “Master,” he said, “You entrusted me with two talents; see, I have gained two more.” His master replied, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.”

Then the man who had received the one talent came. “Master,” he said, “I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.”

His master replied, “You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then, you should put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.”        - Matthew 25:14-30

We are not only called to be prepared to serve but we are also expected to serve diligently when we are called. God will never give you more to do than you are capable of handling and he will not expect more from you than faithfulness – but he does demand faithfulness.

Prayer: Lord, help me to always serve you well. Amen.

Principle:  God will never give you more to do than you are capable of handling and he will not expect more from you than faithfulness – but he does demand faithfulness.


Affirmation:  I am careful not to let the fear of loss override my commitment to faithful and diligent service.


Reflection:  This parable is about faithful and diligent service. Notice this; the master was not demanding that the one talent man produce like the five talent man. He was just calling him to serve diligently. Good people who are not faithful servants do not receive the master's best. Read the rest of this story in Matthew, verses 28-30, to see the attitude the master has about those who fail to serve well.

    What did you get from this devotion on serving God diligently?

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Many Invited, But Few Are Chosen

11/18/2014

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Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.

“Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’

“But they paid no attention and went off – one to his field, another to his business. The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.

“Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, both good and bad, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.

“But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. ‘Friend,’ he asked, 'how did you get in here without wedding clothes.’ The man was speechless.

“Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ For many are invited, but few are chosen.” – Matthew 22:1-14

There are three groups of people in this story. The first are the ones who should be at the feast but refuse to come – those are the ones who reject Christ. The second are the ones who accept Christ and enter the feast. The third are those who pretend to accept, and join the banquet (or the church), but they aren’t true believers. Let’s be sure we’re in the right group.

Prayer:  Lord, grant me faith to wear the wedding garment.

Principle:  Those who reject God's plan and his Christ outright are bypassed; those who respond to God's call, yet do not submit to his lordship are put out; Only those who are clothed with His righteousness will be participants in the kingdom.

Affirmation:  I have been clothed with God's righteousness through faith in Christ.

Reflection:  The meaning of this parable is very clear. There are some who totally reject the message of the kingdom and Christ and they are the most obvious. Then there are those who accepted the idea of Christ, but for whatever reason they never submitted to him. Finally, there are those who hear, believe, embrace and are changed by God's grace. 


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House of Prayer – Or Den of Thieves?

11/13/2014

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 Then he entered the temple area and began driving out those who were selling. “It is written,” he said to them, “My house will be a house of prayer’; but you have made it a den of robbers.” – Luke 19:45-46

Religion is a powerful thing. It goes to the core of who we are. Unfortunately, there are those who know that and who tend to take advantage of our commitment to the faith which guides us. Those are the ones who profit from faith of others.

That was what Jesus saw when he entered the temple. There were merchandisers there exchanging money and charging horrendous fees. Some were selling blemished and inferior animals for sacrifice at exorbitant prices. Jesus was angered by the blatant greed of these people who were taking advantage of the poor people who came to worship.

I can’t help but think of the merchandising that takes place today in the name of the Lord. It seems the simpler the faith the easier it is for charlatans to take advantage of the faithful. People are promised blessings if they buy a certain cloth, or holy water from Israel. Some have even sold what they called slivers of wood from the actual cross of Jesus.

Not all merchandising is that blatant. In a place where I formerly lived I used to get a glossy advertisement from an area church about every 3 months. It would talk about the great programs and events and not even mention Jesus, God or heaven.

Jesus said, “My house will be a house of prayer.” Perhaps if we had more prayer in the house we would have less need for glossy advertising and meaningless fundraisers.

Jesus said, “I will build my church.” When we take it upon ourselves to do his job we come off seeming like a tinkling symbol or sounding brass. When we seek him to reveal his way of building the church he will build it through us.

 Prayer: Lord, help me to seek your way and not to rely on my own ingenuity. In Jesus name, amen.

Principle:  Jesus said, “I will build my church.” When we seek him to reveal his way of building the church he will build it through us.

Affirmation:  I am purposed to seek God to use me in building his church and to reveal his way to me so that I will not do it my way.

Reflection:  These few verses do not tell the whole story of what was taking place in the temple courts. They were selling inferior animals at exorbitant prices to be used as sacrifices. They were also cheating the people when they exchanged monies from other places. Can you see a parallel in any ministries today? Have you heard of any scams to get money from sincere believers?


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Investing In The Kingdom of God

11/6/2014

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While they were listening to this, he went on tell them a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once. He said: “A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. “Put this money to work” he said, “until I come back.” – Luke 19:11-13

 
This parable is told to warn the people that they must be faithful with the gifts God gives them until he returns. You can read the whole story in Luke 19:11-27, but I’ll just give you the basics. This wealthy man was about to embark upon a long trip and knowing he wouldn’t be back for many months and perhaps years, he distributed a portion of his wealth among 10 of his servants instructing them to use it to make a profit so that when he returned his money will have earned him a tidy profit.

Some of the servants did well and were able to give their lord a nice profit and to reward them he gave them the governorship of portions of his kingdom. However, there was one servant who was fearful and hid the money so that he wouldn’t lose any of it.

His master’s response surprised him. “You knew, did you, that I am a hard man… why then didn’t you put my money on deposit, so that when I came back, I could have collected it with interest? Then he said to those standing by, ‘take his [money] away from him and give it to the one who has ten [portions of money].”

Hidden gifts bring no glory to the kingdom of God. God gives gifts for the purpose of advancing his kingdom. How have you been using your gifts?

Prayer:  Help me Lord to be diligent in my service to you. In Jesus name, amen.

Principle:  Hidden gifts bring no glory to the kingdom of God. God gives gifts for the purpose of advancing his kingdom.

Affirmation:  I use the gifts God has placed in my life for his purposes in advancing the kingdom.

Reflection:  What do you think would have happened to the unfaithful servant if he had invested the money and lost it all? Can you identify with this servant? What is Jesus trying to tell us? Can you honestly say that you are using the gifts that God has invested in you to the best of your ability?

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