Thursday September 11, 2014

Read: Matthew 25:14-30

It is important to be able to trust those who look after our investments. Time and time again we have seen advisors and investors misuse the finances of those who have trusted them to disastrous results. We feel a strong sense of injustice towards those who should have been trustworthy in their use of the funds of others but instead have abused their position for their own gain. Rightly, we expect those whom we entrust with our investments to be trustworthy and faithful.

This is what Jesus is talking about in Matthew 25 in what is known as the parable of the talents. Jesus is talking about His return and the judgment that will come at that time. He is exhorting his followers to be alert and to be faithful in the way that they live up to His return. He tells them this parable to teach them and to illustrate His point.

The parable begins with a master who trusts his investments and property to a number of servants before a trip. To one he gives five talents, to another two talents and to the third one talent. A talent was no small thing to entrust to someone. A talent was a measurement of weight which, in the currency of the day, was probably the equivalent to 20 years of wages for a labourer. This is a very large sum of money that the master has entrusted to his servants. It is little surprise that he expects them to be faithful with his investment.

The servant with the five talents went to work with his master’s money, faithfully using it to increase his investment. The servant with the two talents did the same, working hard to increase the masters investment. But the third servant was afraid and buried his master’s money in the ground for fear of losing it. The results were as expected. Those who were faithful with their master’s investment were commended and rewarded for their hard work. The third servant met with the master’s wrath and punishment for being lazy and unfaithful with what he had been given.

In the same way that the master entrusted these servants with much we have been entrusted with much as followers of Him. As we have seen He has given each and every one of us gifts for use to build up the church, knowledge of who He is and what He has done and a message of life and hope for all those who will turn and put their faith in Him. We have been entrusted with much. The question that remains for us is how will we use what we have been given? Will we be faithful and trustworthy stewards, using the investment that God has entrusted to us for the sake of His kingdom and glory? Or will we be untrustworthy, using what we have been given for our own gain or simply letting it go to waste?

What a challenge this gives to all of us to be faithful with what God has given us and to use our lives for the service and growth of His kingdom. We cannot merely be passengers, sitting idly by, waiting for others to serve us. Instead we are called to faithfully serve, using all that we have been given for the sake of the Kingdom and for the sake of other believers. Let us be faithful with all that God has provided us.

Prayer:

Use the Bible passage from today and the reading notes to write down your prayer points before you pray.

Adoration:

Confession:

Thanks:

Supplication:

¥ Pray for the Committee of Management at your church as they seek to be faithful with the resources that God has provided your church. Pray that He would give them wisdom and guide them to make the best decisions for the growth of His Kingdom.

¥ Pray for the Darling Downs Presbytery as they seek to make decisions to grow the Presbyterian church on the Darling Downs and to reach those who have not yet heard the gospel.

 Worship Moment:

Worship isn’t just about Sonday morning. Every time we use our gifts and talents for the Kingdom we are worshipping God. Let’s get out and worship God together.

 Discussion Questions For Families and Groups

1. What do you think it looks like to faithfully use what God has given you for His kingdom?

2. How can you encourage and remind one another to be faithful servants with all that God has provided you?

 Discipleship Moment For Girls

Intro:  It’s important to take care of other people’s things. When you borrow something from a friend do you try extra hard to look after it?

Share:  A time when you borrowed something from a friend. What was it? Did you look after it?

Read:  Matthew 25:14-18. Jesus told a story about someone who lent some money to his servants. What did they do with the money? Who did the right thing? Who did the wrong thing? What did they do wrong? God trusts us with gifts and skills. How can we look after them well?

Pray Together: Pray that God would help us to use His gifts well.

 Discipleship Moment For Boys

Intro:  It’s important to take care of other people’s things. When you borrow something from a friend do you try extra hard to look after it?

Share:  A time when you borrowed something from a friend. What was it? Did you look after it?

Read:  Matthew 25:14-18. Jesus told a story about someone who lent some money to his servants. What did they do with the money? Who did the right thing? Who did the wrong thing? What did they do wrong? God trusts us with gifts and skills. How can we look after them well?

Pray Together: Pray that God would help us to use His gifts well.