Preparing the Way of the Lord!
Friday, December 10, 2004
My Prayer Today
Heavenly Father, Keep me diligent to carrying out Your will! Never let me discouraged, nor let me doubt Your goodness. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit that I may be faithful to You and to advancing the cause of Your Kingdom. This I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
God’s Word Today
Matthew 25:14-30 (Due to the size of the passage, we focused on 25:1-13 Sunday-Tuesday; and 25:14-30 Wednesday-Saturday)
14“Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a trip. He called together his servants and gave them money to invest for him while he was gone. 15He gave five bags of gold to one, two bags of gold to another, and one bag of gold to the last—dividing it in proportion to their abilities—and then left on his trip. 16The servant who received the five bags of gold began immediately to invest the money and soon doubled it. 17The servant with two bags of gold also went right to work and doubled the money. 18But the servant who received the one bag of gold dug a hole in the ground and hid the master’s money for safekeeping.
19“After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money. 20The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of gold said, ‘sir, you gave me five bags of gold to invest, and I have doubled the amount.’ 21The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’
22“Next came the servant who had received the two bags of gold, with the report, ‘sir, you gave me two bags of gold to invest, and I have doubled the amount.’ 23The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’
24“Then the servant with the one bag of gold came and said, ‘sir, I know you are a hard man, harvesting crops you didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate. 25I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth and here it is.’
26“But the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! You think I’m a hard man, do you, harvesting crops I didn’t plant and gathering crops I didn’t cultivate? 27Well, you should at least have put my money into the bank so I could have some interest. 28Take the money from this servant and give it to the one with the ten bags of gold. 29To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who are unfaithful, even what little they have will be taken away. 30Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
Reflecting on God's Word
Is there anything that could cause you to doubt God’s goodness? If so, what do you think it would be?
A Deeper Exploration of God's Word
What did the third servant think of his Master? (25:24-25)
What did he do as a result? (25:24-25)
Understanding God's Word
What do we find out about God from this Scripture?
Applying God's Word to Our Lives
What do you need to do right now as a result of reading today’s Scripture?
Thoughts..."...You Are a Hard Man..."
How could the third servant have had such a different view of the Master from that of the first two servants? They trusted Him enough that they risked everything for Him. The third servant saw the Master as a hard man, one who “harvested crops He didn’t plant.” The perspective comes from the relationship. The first two servants knew and loved the Master. They knew that Master had their best interests at heart. The third servant obviously didn’t know the Master—he certainly didn’t know the Master’s heart. Based on this false picture of the Master, the servant drew false conclusions—and thus missed out on the celebration with the Master. As we’ll see tomorrow, he ended up separated from the Master, too!