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Matthew 25:14-30 ESV
The Lord gave each one of us life, and gifts and talents, our portion, our part in this world. And to some people he gave more than he gave to others. And what we do with what we have been given is up to us. But the Lord chooses what portions he has for us in this life. And it is my understanding that he doesn’t usually let us see into the future and to what all could be ours to have lest we be greedy and try to take it for ourselves, i.e. to fake it, to pretend as though we have more than we actually have, perhaps out of jealousy of those who have more.
What we start out with and what we end up with does depend on the Lord, to some extent, for he is the giver of life and of gifts and talents. But it also depends on what we do with what we have been given, even if we have been given little. Do we use what he has given to us for his purposes and for his glory? Or do we bury it and do nothing with it and go our own way and do what our evil hearts desire, instead? – Like Judas did when he betrayed Jesus to death, and like Cain did when he killed his brother Abel out of jealousy. But neither could not stop God’s will from being accomplished.
And this isn’t just about gifts and talents and/or about material wealth. This is about the life we have been given. So, this includes our upbringing, our experiences in life, our trials and our tribulations, our persecutions, times when we had little, and times when we had plenty, etc. What did we do with all of that? And I am including upbringing that was not godly, either, but that was abusive and neglectful and painful physically and emotionally. What did we do with all that we have been given in this life?
Did we use our experiences, good or bad, to grow in our walks of faith with the Lord, or to even believe in Jesus Christ in truth? Or did we allow ourselves to become bitter and angry and resentful like Cain did? And did we reject the Lord? Or did we fake our Christianity while still rejecting the Lord? For some people do that. They want to appear “Christian” outwardly to others but while they are living in secret and deliberate and habitual sin against God and against other humans.
But the Lord gives us what he gives us, and he allows in our lives what he allows in our lives for our good, so that he can make us into the people he wants us to be in order that we might do and be that part in the body of Christ which he designed specifically for us to do and to be for his glory and purposes. But we have the choice to use what we have been given for good or for evil, and to use it for good, and to produce good fruit, or to bury it and to not use it at all.
But if we reject what we have been given, and so we bury it, and we do not let it produce good fruit in our lives, then when our Lord returns, or when we die, we will be cast into the outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, for we refused God and his will and purpose for our lives, and we made all sorts of excuses for why we buried what was given us so that it did not produce good fruit in us. But we have no excuse if we reject our Lord and his will and purpose for our lives and we go our own way, instead. And if we continue in deliberate sin, heaven is not our home.
[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]
For Our Nation
An Original Work / September 11, 2012
Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Trust Him with your life today.
Make Him your Lord and your Savior.
Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of your sin;
Cleanse your heart, made new within.
Men betraying: Our trust fraying.
On our knees to God we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us answers
That are only found in Him.
God is sovereign over all things.
Nothing from His mind escaping.
He has all things under His command,
And will work all for good.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Men deceiving: We’re believing
In our Lord, and interceding
For our nation and its people
To obey their God today.
He is our hope for our future.
For our wounds He offers suture.
He is all we need for this life.
Trust Him with your life today.
The kingdom of heaven “will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money.
“Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’
“And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’
“He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours.’
“But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’”
The Lord gave each one of us life, and gifts and talents, our portion, our part in this world. And to some people he gave more than he gave to others. And what we do with what we have been given is up to us. But the Lord chooses what portions he has for us in this life. And it is my understanding that he doesn’t usually let us see into the future and to what all could be ours to have lest we be greedy and try to take it for ourselves, i.e. to fake it, to pretend as though we have more than we actually have, perhaps out of jealousy of those who have more.
What we start out with and what we end up with does depend on the Lord, to some extent, for he is the giver of life and of gifts and talents. But it also depends on what we do with what we have been given, even if we have been given little. Do we use what he has given to us for his purposes and for his glory? Or do we bury it and do nothing with it and go our own way and do what our evil hearts desire, instead? – Like Judas did when he betrayed Jesus to death, and like Cain did when he killed his brother Abel out of jealousy. But neither could not stop God’s will from being accomplished.
And this isn’t just about gifts and talents and/or about material wealth. This is about the life we have been given. So, this includes our upbringing, our experiences in life, our trials and our tribulations, our persecutions, times when we had little, and times when we had plenty, etc. What did we do with all of that? And I am including upbringing that was not godly, either, but that was abusive and neglectful and painful physically and emotionally. What did we do with all that we have been given in this life?
Did we use our experiences, good or bad, to grow in our walks of faith with the Lord, or to even believe in Jesus Christ in truth? Or did we allow ourselves to become bitter and angry and resentful like Cain did? And did we reject the Lord? Or did we fake our Christianity while still rejecting the Lord? For some people do that. They want to appear “Christian” outwardly to others but while they are living in secret and deliberate and habitual sin against God and against other humans.
But the Lord gives us what he gives us, and he allows in our lives what he allows in our lives for our good, so that he can make us into the people he wants us to be in order that we might do and be that part in the body of Christ which he designed specifically for us to do and to be for his glory and purposes. But we have the choice to use what we have been given for good or for evil, and to use it for good, and to produce good fruit, or to bury it and to not use it at all.
But if we reject what we have been given, and so we bury it, and we do not let it produce good fruit in our lives, then when our Lord returns, or when we die, we will be cast into the outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, for we refused God and his will and purpose for our lives, and we made all sorts of excuses for why we buried what was given us so that it did not produce good fruit in us. But we have no excuse if we reject our Lord and his will and purpose for our lives and we go our own way, instead. And if we continue in deliberate sin, heaven is not our home.
[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]
For Our Nation
An Original Work / September 11, 2012
Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Trust Him with your life today.
Make Him your Lord and your Savior.
Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of your sin;
Cleanse your heart, made new within.
Men betraying: Our trust fraying.
On our knees to God we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us answers
That are only found in Him.
God is sovereign over all things.
Nothing from His mind escaping.
He has all things under His command,
And will work all for good.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Men deceiving: We’re believing
In our Lord, and interceding
For our nation and its people
To obey their God today.
He is our hope for our future.
For our wounds He offers suture.
He is all we need for this life.
Trust Him with your life today.
