Respond by Investing
Written by Ed Allen
Saturday, 10 January 2004 19:00
Last week we said that the key to spiritual vitality is living in response to God's grace. What does that mean?
In terms of our resources it means, first of all, understanding that all that we have has been entrusted to us by God.
1. Matthew 25:14-15
2. I love words! This week I had fun looking at the word paradidomi If we trace this word in the NT, find that it is critical to Jesus' understanding of his life and his ministry. It means, "to hand something over to someone, particularly power or authority." In our context it is almost always passive
a. Matthew 11:27
b. 10:17
c. 17:22
d. 20:18
e. 24:9-10
3. Jesus saw his life and ministry as "handed over." He did not feel like a victim or think of himself as powerless. He simply saw the Father as sovereign over all things and then committing things to him.
4. So with us. Our time, talent and treasure are not our own. They are gifts to us from God. This is the Biblical view. The alternative view, the view favored by our cultures, seems to be empowering, but actually enslaves us. Think about it:
a. If I think that I have earned what I have, or that I need to earn what I have, then:
i. I may try to hoard my resources. I could become narrow and stingy.
ii. I may grow bitter because I don't have more resources. I could become jealous and envious of those who do have more.
iii. I may feel anxious or worried about getting more and keeping safe what I have. I will be driven to seize every opportunity because it all depends on me.
iv. The result ? : selfishness, stinginess, bitterness, jealousy, anxiety, drivenness and worry.
b. If I have a lot of resources - and we in Northern Virginia do - and if I feel like I have earned those resources, then
i. I may feel terribly insecure about what I have. What if it goes away? How do I protect it?
ii. I may feel proud of my stuff, or full of myself.
iii. The result: insecurity and pride.
5. But these are not the kind of people we want to be. Understanding the truth that all that I have has been entrusted to me by God frees me from the slavery of selfishness and miserliness and bitterness.
6. But the message "you have to earn it" is everywhere. Some of you may feel like you have heard that message from our culture. Indeed, you have! Some of you may feel like you heard it from your parents. Some of you may have even heard it from the church. But this message is wrong.
a. James 1:16-18
b. Deuteronomy 8
7. You have not earned it! You cannot earn it! You do not have to earn it! All that God gives, He gives freely by His grace.
a. And all that He asks of you is your heart!
b. Receive what He offers in grace.
8. God has given us all that He has given because He intends to use us mightily. He has invited us to join Him in a great adventure and He wants us to use the resources that He has entrusted to us to make that adventure a success. Sometimes in our longing for more or different resources from the ones that we have, we miss what God wants to do with what He's given us.
Living is response to God's grace, secondly, means to use our resources with wisdom.
1. Matthew 25:16-18
2. Note the wisdom of the first 2 servants. They "put his money to work."
3. Invest your resources where they can do the most work.
Living in response to God's grace means using our resources with purpose.
1. Matthew 25:18-27
2. The third servant is condemned because he lacked purpose in the use of the resources entrusted to him. He did not steal the money. He did not lie about it. He did not loose any of the money. He simply did not think about it enough. He did not plan. He had no purpose. And for this, he is called a wicked, lazy servant.
3. You may accuse the master of being too hard on the servant, but you cannot miss Jesus' meaning. We will be held accountable for the purposeful use of what God has given us.
a. If we exercise our resource with purpose, we will be rewarded.
b. And look at the generosity of the reward. The first 2 servants are welcomed into the happiness of the master. In other words, the master's says all that is mine you can now enjoy. Nothing is too good for them
c. But for the servant who lacked purpose - he is thrown out.
The way we use our resources reflects the way we think about God.
1. The third servant's view of the master:
a. Harsh
b. And wrong
2. Contrast this view with the reality of the master's abundant generosity to the first 2 servants.
a. God longs to be gracious to us.
b. He expects us to deal wisely and purposefully with what He gives.
SOME APPLICATIONS TO SPUR YOUR THINKING:
- Cook this year (this month) so as not to have left-overs.
- Invest some discretionary income in God's name, for God's purposes. Invite your children to help you monitor this investment and decide where to use it.
- Fast 2 meals per week. When you fast set aside $5 for each meal. At the end of the month, take the cash and put it in a Savings account. At the end of the year seek God's purpose in using it for His highest glory.
- Read a book on the wise use of resources. Suggestions: Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, or Ordering Your Private World.
- Once per week, cook extra and give it to a neighbor. Tell them you believe God has asked you to serve your neighborhood this year.
- Let your teenager balance your checkbook for a few months.
- Designate one day per month to each of your children. Make it their day. They tell the rest of the family what to do.
- Pray, and decide what you will give. Do not give to the church (or anywhere else) accidentally. Give with a purpose.