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Friday, August 11, 2006
Homegroup: Working Your Talent For the Glory Of God
Hi guys and gals. Here’s a summary of my sharing on Friday in case you missed it.
WORKING YOUR TALENT FOR THE GLORY OF GOD
Parable of the Servants and Talents, Matt 25:14-30
Everyone of us has “Talents” given to us by God. By Talents, I refer to resources – money, time, abilities, talents, etc. Nobody can claim to have nothing to offer God. The bible teaches us that everyone has a spiritual gift, which can be used to build up the body of Christ. Our responsibility is to discover our gift, to fan it into flame and to exercise it.
OUR TALENTS ARE GOD’S PROPERTY
“The master entrusted his property to them”
In this parable of the 3 servants, Jesus teaches us that all our Talents are God’s property entrusted to us. They are not ours to begin with. He gives us Talents so that while he is away, we have something to work fruitfully with. Not for our own pleasure, or for our own interest, but for the interest of the Master. It is God who gives us our abilities, money, time etc. All these come from Him and belong rightly to Him. And they are to be used for the interest of God while we are here on earth, while waiting to meet him again. Use your Talent for God’s glory! That’s the reason God gives you resources : for His glory!
WHAT IF WE HAVE LESS TALENT THEN OTHERS?
Now, some of us think we are untalented, poor, have a bad lot in life etc. When we see the second servant who received only two Talents, we ought to remind ourselves that this servant did not compare his lot with the one who was given 5 talents. He did not gripe, sulk or indulge in self-pity. Instead, he worked faithfully with what he had, and the master rewarded him with another 2 talents. (God multiplies our talents as we use whatever we have for him!) God’s commendation of the second servant is exactly the same as the servant who brought the master 5 more talents. They were both called “Good and Faithful servants”. God is more interested in our faithfulness then in our fruitfulness. In fact, God demands more from those who have more, so those with less can rest easy that we are not asked to bear as much fruit as those with more. So be grateful for whatever God has given us, do not compare with others, and simply work your talents faithfully for the glory and God.
WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM THESE GOOD AND FAITHFUL SERVANTS?
V16 “he went at once and put his money to work and gained 5 more”
1. Good Attitude. He was positive about the task assigned to him, and went to work on it straightaway. How often do we drag our feets in doing the tasks we are asked to do? Often it is because we don’t really want to do it! In this world, those with good attitudes succeed in life. They get employed, promoted, and favoured by those above them. That’s how the characters Joseph and Daniel were promoted and became so influential, for the glory of God.
2. Initiative. The servant wasn’t told how to make money. He had to find out how himself. This probably took research and effort to figure out the best investments available. Similarly, do not just do whatever is told to you to be done. Take initiative to find out how to work your talent to the max. if you are learning how to play drums, do your research, study drum players, look up websites on drum techniques etc…. Do more then just what your teachers tells you. That’s how you will be seen as being a good and faithful steward of your talent.
LAZINESS is WICKEDNESS
Not using our talent for God’s glory is a sin. God calls it laziness! That was the problem with the 3rd servant. God called him a wicked servant! I pray that none of us will face God on that Day of Judgement and answer his question “What have you done with the resources I gave you to bring glory to Myself?” with a sheepish “err…not very much?”.
As a homegroup we are embarking on a journey, an adventure. One that will require all our efforts and resources. No doubt, this will be an opportunity for you to work your talent for the glory of God. For those that have never used your abilities to glorify God, I pray you will begin to. For those that do, but have done so in an feet dragging way, may you develop an “at once” attitude and initiative.
HOW CAN I GLORIFY GOD IN MY TALENTS?
Some talents are less obviously useful in the church context. How does fencing help me glorify God, you may ask for example? Let me suggest 2 ways: 1) by doing it with a spirit of excellence; 2) by using your influence in this fencing arena to build bridges and sow seeds. Ha…you may even want to start a Beginners Fencing Course in church by which you can reach out to those interested in fencing. Use your creativity and follow the Spirit’s promptings in your heart.
May God be glorified ultimately through our Talents! Live to Glorify Him. Amen!
Together with you for His glory,
Hsia Pin
the alleged @ 6:19 PM
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Homegroup 05/08/2006
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