As we serve our Master, God, it should be our desire to be faithful and honored by him. God made the two one. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus. Abraham was willing to sacrifice what was most precious to him, his home, even his beloved son, to follow God and trust in His plans. We are called to be stewards of everything taught in Scriptureto protect it and teach it to others. They will eat, but not have enough;They will play the harlot, but not increase,Because they have stopped giving heed to the Lord. As soon as he comes and knocks, they open the door for him. Paul previously taught the Ephesians about this power. Remember the word which You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, If you are unfaithful I will scatter you among the peoples; You shall not make for yourselves idols, nor shall you set up for yourselves an image or a sacred pillar, nor shall you place a figured stone in your land to bow down to it; for I am the Lord your God. 7 Ways God Will Evaluate Your Faithfulness - Pastors.com God chose to make him into a faithful servant of the gospel. Required fields are marked *. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being., This is true of every faithful servant; they operate in the power of God. The New Living Translation renders this verse as He will tear the servant apart and banish him with the unfaithful. How is God calling you to further develop humility in your life? For, behold, those who are far from You will perish;You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You. When a person sins and acts unfaithfully against the Lord, and deceives his companion in regard to a deposit or a security entrusted to him, or through robbery, or if he has extorted from his companion. Why? declares the, Furthermore, all the officials of the priests and the people were very unfaithful following all the abominations of the nations; and they defiled the house of the, For the lips of a priest should preserve knowledge, and men should seek instruction from his mouth; for he is the messenger of the, But as for you, you have turned aside from the way; you have caused many to stumble by the instruction; you have corrupted the covenant of Levi, says the, For when Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart away after other gods; and his heart was not wholly devoted to the. He suffered for the Ephesians, even risking his own life so they could hear the gospel and fulfill Gods plan for them. It appears that Ephesians 3:2-13 is a parenthesis to his original thought. Unless a person is humble, he will not be called a good and faithful servant. We are to be ready for Jesus will return when you least expect Him. There he will cry and gnash his teeth. In what ways do our lives parallel his? 1 Corinthians 13 is clear that no matter what our giftings or areas of service, if not motivated by genuine love, we are but a clanging noise. (Daniel 6:27), Job kept his eyes on God firmly. Faithful servants suffer willingly for Christ and others. Preparing for the Kingdom of God: The Unfaithful Believer Big Question: What marks of faithful servants can be discerned from Pauls description of himself and his ministry? He kept his eyes on Christ and fulfilled his mission even in tougher circumstance .i.e. Both versions are very similar, with minor variations. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Therefore we are to be also ready: for Jesus will come back at an hour no one knows. It shall come about if you ever forget the Lord your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I testify against you today that you will surely perish. Jesus looked at who the faithful and wise servant as being those people who gives them self up to the service of Christ. What the Bible says about Unfaithful Servants - Bible Tools Therefore, he was recognized as Father of All Believers., Noah was one of the righteous and blameless man among all the people of his time. How is God calling you to seek the glory of others? Apart from trials and difficulties, we are often too independenttoo strong for God to work through us. Paul knew he was a prisoner of Christnot of Rome or the Jews. Joanne Holstein is a Becker Bible Studies Teacher and Author of Guided Bible Studies for Hungry Christians. Holstein, Joanne (2015, January) The Parable of the Faithful and Unfaithful Servants:. Becker Bible Studies Library. Most likely they became spiritually lazy and therefore lacked power. All rights reserved. Good News Translation (Todays English Version, Second Edition)
In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to men in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to Gods holy apostles and prophets. This is also true of every faithful servant of the gospel. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you., However, when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. The word preach is euangeliz, which means to announce good news.3 Paul was called to proclaim the gospelthe good news of Christto all who would listen. 1 MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (1986). Why not offer it to your governor? Try it FREE. But the desire of the treacherous is violence. Saving a people from out of the world and uniting Jew and Gentile in the church were planned before time in order to teach the angels. A servant is very important person in any family. But like Adam they have transgressed the covenant; There they have dealt treacherously against Me. Second, he says, "I have plenty of time to put things right before the master comes." In 2 Corinthians 11:23-28, Paul describes much of his suffering. Watch ye therefore: for ye know not . For less than $5/mo. One of the things that stands out about Pauls testimony is that he says, I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of Gods grace (v. 7). Your sons shall be shepherds for forty years in the wilderness, and they will suffer for your unfaithfulness, until your corpses lie in the wilderness. For the house of Israel and the house of JudahHave dealt very treacherously with Me, declares the Lord. But as for you, you have turned aside from the way; you have caused many to stumble by the instruction; you have corrupted the covenant of Levi, says the Lord of hosts. Life will be like it was in the time of Noah. Before the flood there were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriages. Sometimes, he may actually call us to serve in areas where we are weak or even incompetent, so his power can be clearly displayed. Then he returns to his original thought in verse 14 with For this reason, as he shares his prayer for Gods church. This was true of Paul. B. Nor does the widows plea come before them. It shall come about if you ever forget the, But the wicked will be cut off from the land. God allowed David to be persecuted by Saul in preparation for his ascent to the throne. But through the church, they learn about Gods grace. Matthew 24:44-51; Luke 12:35-48. Christ says that apart from him you can do nothing (John 15:5). For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians and after Milcom the detestable idol of the Ammonites. It means not chasing after accolades, approval or even appreciation. Go and proclaim these words toward the north and say. The faithful servant is blessed (here the word blessed occurs for the last time in Matthew), because he is found . The Parable of The Faithful Servant and The Evil Servant Jesus warned us to be watchful for the Masters return,(Matthew 24:50). He began his reign aged 16 and was faithful for many years but then, due to becoming proud as a result of his fame and success, he became arrogant and disobedient. Show Humility. Not only do we learn about Pauls servanthood, but also, through his example, we learn about how we can be faithful servants. So Saul died for his trespass which he committed against the. 6. For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles (Ephesians 3:1 ). This manwas busily involved in working for his Master and faithful in the pursuit of his duties. Application Question: How can we allow Gods power to work through us? Paul willingly taught the truth even if it offended others and caused him suffering. Indeed, he followed whatever told to him by the Lord. His job began to suffer, (you cant be diligent in pursuit of the Masters business and pursue your own selfish, sinful desires at the same time.). Paul was commissioned to share these truths not only with the Gentiles but with everybody, and this is true for us as well. They turned aside quickly from the way in which their fathers had walked in obeying the commandments of the. Heb 5:12). We must have this mindset as well, not only about Christ, but also others. Usually precious things are rare; their very rarity increases their price; but here that which is most precious is also boundlessriches of compassion and love, of merit, of sanctifying, comforting and transforming power, all without limit, and capable of satisfying every want, craving, and yearning of the heart, now and evermore.4. For, behold, those who are far from You will perish; You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You. The Lord is going to judge and punish the selfish and unfaithful Christians (Revelation 21:8). Read our full disclosure here. Are you devoted to Gods Word? Peter Viney on "The Unfaithful Servant" - hiof.no The very reason Paul was in prison was because he taught that Gentiles now shared the same spiritual privileges as Jews. Even angels long to look into these things. (Ephesians 3:8-12). He says, Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Saving the best for last, Jesus was undeniable, the clearest and most beautiful example of true servanthood we have to emulate. amzn_assoc_search_bar = "true"; True humility is not thinking less of ourselves than others, its simply not considering ourselves at all. In reality, God protected Him and disclosed everything to him according to his need. Virgin Mary was another faithful servant of the Lord. The nations will know that the house of Israel went into exile for their iniquity because they acted treacherously against Me, and I hid My face from them; so I gave them into the hand of their adversaries, and all of them fell by the sword. (1 Samuel 3), When Mary was visited by an angel, telling her that she would become pregnant by the Holy Spirit and give birth to Gods son, her response was Behold the slave of the Lord. Faithful servants do nothing out of selfish ambition, but in humility consider others better than themselves. How is God calling you to develop this selfless mindset in order to be a faithful servantone who will be honored and rewarded by him? In fact, in 1 Timothy 1:15, he calls himself the chief of sinners. He is one of the perfect examples of obedience and submission. Serving the Lord can look like this, and it often does, but it isnt only this. 9. He called me to be faithful. Mother Teresa, Thanks God for ur written words in my language strong words for my spiritual strength, Your email address will not be published. Nevertheless, she trusted Gods words and His divine purpose. But the sons of Israel acted unfaithfully in regard to the things under the ban, for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah, took some of the things under the ban, therefore the anger of the Lord burned against the sons of Israel. If we truly want to be servants of God, then we must understand and expect that it will come at a cost. And as they learn more, they worship more fully.