KJV - Luke 19:12 He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. (13) And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come. (14) But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us. (15) And it came to pass, that when he was returned, having received the kingdom, then he commanded these servants to be called unto him, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. (16) Then came the first, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds. (17) And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities. (18) And the second came, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds. (19) And he said likewise to him, Be thou also over five cities. (20) And another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin: (21) For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up that thou layedst not down, and reapest that thou didst not sow. (22) And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow: (23) Wherefore then gavest not thou my money into the bank, that at my coming I might have required mine own with usury?
When it comes to sporting events, there are two basic groups of people: The Participants (the players, coaches referees etc.) and the Fans: those that sit back and watch. The participants do all of the “work” putting on a show for the fans to see. Often in our society, the fans live vicariously through the players that they watch. In doing so, fans can get irate at those actually doing the work because, in their minds, they could have done it better. In reality many of those spectators just doing the watching, could NEVER do what the players do.
In our text today, Jesus describes these same two kinds of people that claim to be followers of him: The Doers and the Watchers. He tells of a nobleman that takes a trip to a far country and leaves his business to 3 servants. The first two servants were Doers. Each took what was given for them to manage and invested it to benefit their master upon his return. Due to their responsible stewardship, they were rewarded handsomely for their effort. One important point to note is that our Lord did not require the same results for everyone. Instead, he only expected results based upon their individual abilities and talents.
The third servant was just a watcher. He simply did nothing. He claimed that he did nothing because he was afraid....but in the end....he still did nothing. What was Jesus’ reaction to the one man that did nothing. Jesus called him wicked! The words “Wicked” and “Evil” have all but been struck from our modern day language. Most people think its too judgmental. Many think the words are too absolute (How can we possibly attribute such an absolute characteristic to anyone with different values). If those words are used, they apply only to the most extremes like Adolf Hitler. But Jesus uses the word “Wicked” to describe a man that DID NOTHING. We are NOT to assume that he was wicked for some other reason. He was being compared to the others for only one thing. We are to assume then, that all other aspects of his life were comparable to the other servants. The ONLY difference was his lack of action!
Are we required to DO something once we become Christians? Jesus says we do.
In fact, Jesus calls us wicked if we don’t. We do not “DO” in order to gain or earn salvation....We must DO because we HAVE salvation! We must “DO” because Jesus “DID”! We must “DO” because God “DID”!
James 1:22-25 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. (23) For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: (24) For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. (25) But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.
There is an old saying among groups like religious organizations: 20% of the people do 80% of the work. If that is true, there are a LOT of spectators! Doing the bare minimum to get by is not a reasonable attitude. Having our names on a church roll is not enough. Wearing a crucifix around your neck everyday is not enough. Just occupying a pew on Sundays is not enough....Even if it is every week. There is more for each of us to do.
Christianity is NOT a spectator sport. We MUST be the participants not the watchers!
Reflecting His SON,
Dennis Hogan
Minister, North Hardin Church of Christ
1804 Sam Stewart Dr.
Radcliff, KY 40160
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I agree! Our assemblies are like the huddles in a football game, our daily walk in Jesus is like the plays of the game. What team would win if it never huddled? It would be disorganized and disheartened. But also what team would ever win that thought huddles were all you did to play football?
ReplyDeleteSteve Singleton
www.deeperstudy.com