Discussion about the Faithful & Lazy Servants

Sunday 02/17/19

Series: Walking the Talk

Message – Discussion about the Faithful & Lazy Servants

Podcast: Download (138.4MB)

Discussion about the Faithful & Lazy Servants

This week was our breakfast on the grounds week, so we ate & worshiped and then had discussion about the Parable of the 10 Minas we’ve been covering for the last 3 weeks. It all boiled down to the difference between the Faithful and the Lazy servants…and so that is what we covered.

There were no notes from which to work and so no notes to transfer onto the website.

Again, the take aways are…

Examine yourself – How? By the word and by invitation (invite Him).
1. PS. 139 “(23) Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my concerns. (24) See if there is any offensive way in me; lead me in the everlasting way.”
Be prepared for His return. – How? By doing business until He returns.
Be a surrendered servant.
Be a faithful servant.

Our focus verse is still in 2Peter 3:11-12,

“(11) Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, (12) looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, …”

MOST of Jesus’ parables were about stewardship in one way or another and our passage in Luke 19:11-27 is no different.

Let’s read it through once:

“(11) As they were listening to this, He went on to tell a parable because He was near Jerusalem, and they thought the kingdom of God was going to appear right away. (12) Therefore He said: “A nobleman traveled to a far country to receive for himself authority to be king and then return. (13) He called 10 of his slaves, gave them 10 minas (each), and told them, ‘Engage in business until I come back.’ (14) “But His subjects hated him and sent a delegation after Him, saying, ‘We don’t want this man to rule over us!’ (15) “At His return, having received the authority to be king, he summoned those slaves he had given the money to so he could find out how much they had made in business. (16) The first came forward and said, ‘Master, your mina has earned 10 more minas.’ (17) “‘Well done, good slave!’ he told him. ‘Because you have been faithful in a very small matter, have authority over 10 towns.’ (18) “The second came and said, ‘Master, your mina has made five minas.’ (19) “So he said to him, ‘You will be over five towns.’ (20) “And another came and said, ‘Master, here is your mina. I have kept it hidden away in a cloth (21) because I was afraid of you, for you’re a tough man: you collect what you didn’t deposit and reap what you didn’t sow.’ (22) “He told him, ‘I will judge you by what you have said, you evil slave! If you knew I was a tough man, collecting what I didn’t deposit and reaping what I didn’t sow, (23) why didn’t you put my money in the bank? And when I returned, I would have collected it with interest!’ (24) So he said to those standing there, ‘Take the mina away from him and give it to the one who has 10 minas.’ (25) “But they said to him, ‘Master, he has 10 minas.’ (26) “‘I tell you, that to everyone who has, more will be given; and from the one who does not have, even what he does have will be taken away. (27) But bring here these enemies of mine, who did not want me to rule over them, and slaughter them in my presence.'”

…Blessings!

I hope this message will bless you richly…not because I taught it, but because it reveals Christ. He alone is our blessing and if in any way – whether big or small, 100% accurate or even just partially so – I have revealed our great God and Savior to you in a relationally knowable way, then this was time well spent on both our parts.

We at Living Grace Fellowship encourage you to place your trust in Jesus Christ, deliberately choosing Him and bowing the knee to Him as your Master and Lord, so as to come to realize Him as your Savior.

You have a special place in God’s family & kingdom. The fact that you exist… that you are His creation, says you were in His heart, you are His delight!

If you do not know Him, please reach out to us. Give us a call at the number located on every page of this website or use our ‘Contact Us‘ page. We would be deeply honored, if you gave us the privilege of introducing you to the Lord. Neither money nor attendance at our church will EVER be mentioned.

If you HAVE been spiritually fed by this ministry and WANT to give, we truly appreciate that and you may do so here, but please understand that all the outreaches of this ministry are FREE for you and anyone to enjoy at no cost.

Blessings!

Pastor Mark

View posts by Pastor Mark

Hi my name is Mark and though I am opposed to titles, I am currently the only Pastor (shepherd/elder) serving our assembly right now.

I have been Pastoring in one capacity or another for nearly 30 years now, though never quite like I am today.

Early in 2009 the Lord revealed to me that the way we had structured our assembly (church) was not scriptural in that it was out of sync with what Paul modeled for us in the New Testament. In truth, I (like many pastors I am sure) never even gave this fundamental issue of church structure the first thought. I had always assumed that church structure was largely the same everywhere and had been so from the beginning. While I knew Paul had some very stringent things to say about the local assembly of believers, the point of our gatherings together and who may or may not lead, I never even considered studying these issues but assumed we were all pretty much doing it right...safety in numbers right?! Boy, I couldn't have been more wrong!

So needless to say, my discovery that we had been doing it wrong for nearly two decades was a bit of a shock to me! Now, this "revelation" did not come about all at once but over the course of a few weeks. We were a traditional single pastor led congregation. It was a top-bottom model of ministry which is in part biblical, but not in the form of a monarchy.

The needed change did not come into focus until following 9 very intense months of study and discussions with those who were leaders in our church at the time.

We now understand and believe that the Bible teaches co-leadership with equal authority in each local assembly. Having multiple shepherds with God's heart and equal authority protects both Shepherds and sheep. Equal accountability keeps authority and doctrine in check. Multiple shepherds also provide teaching with various styles and giftings with leadership skills which are both different and complementary.

For a while we had two co-pastors (elders) (myself and one other man) who led the church with equal authority, but different giftings. We both taught in our own ways and styles, and our leadership skills were quite different, but complimentary. We were in complete submission to each other and worked side-by-side in the labor of shepherding the flock.

Our other Pastor has since moved on to other ministry which has left us with just myself. While we currently only have one Pastor/Elder, it is our desire that God, in His faithfulness and timing, may bring us more as we grow in maturity and even in numbers.

As to my home, I have been married since 1995 to my wonderful wife Terissa Woodson who is my closest friend and most trusted ally.

As far as my education goes, I grew up in a Christian home, but questioned everything I was ever taught.

I graduated from Bible college in 1990 and continued to question everything I was ever taught (I do not mention my college in order to avoid being labeled).

Perhaps my greatest preparation for ministry has been life and ministry itself. To quote an author I have come to enjoy namely Fredrick Buechner in his writing entitled, Now and Then, "If God speaks to us at all other than through such official channels as the Bible and the church, then I think that He speaks to us largely through what happens to us...if we keep our hearts open as well as our ears, if we listen with patience and hope, if we remember at all deeply and honestly, then I think we come to recognize beyond all doubt, that, however faintly we may hear Him, He is indeed speaking to us, and that, however little we may understand of it, His word to each of us is both recoverable and precious beyond telling." ~ Fredrick Buechner

Well that is about all there is of interest to tell you about me.

I hope our ministry here is a blessing to you and your family. I also hope that it is only a supplement to a local church where you are committed to other believers in a community of grace.

~God Bless!