The Day
February 24, 2001
Introduction:
Skit about Parable of the Talents
Need 15 coins & 4 ‘volunteers’. Skit is about 5 minutes in length.
The three volunteers walk up to the Master.
Master: I want to give each of you something, according to your ability. Handing 5 coins to
servant #1 Here, take these 5 coins. Then handing 2 coins to servant #2, Here you take
these 2 coins. Then handing 1 coin to servant #3, and you, take this one coin. I must go
on a long journey, but I will return some day. Master walks away.
Servant #1 I know what I will do with my 5 coins. I will start a business and help people all over
town. I’m sure my business will do very well. Servant #1 walks to teacher and gets
5 more coins.
Servant #2 I know what I will do with my 2 coins. I will invest them and earn much interest.
Servant #2 walks to teacher and gets 2 more coins.
Servant #3 I know what I will do. I do not want to lose my coin, so I will bury it in the backyard,
so nobody will steal it. Servant #3 hides under a table
The Master returns home
Master Looking at servant #1 Well, tell me, what have you done with the 5 coins I gave you
so long ago?
Servant #1 Look, you trusted me with 5 coins, and I built a nice business using them. See, here are
5 more coins, 10 in all.
Master: Well done good and faithful servant. You have been faithful with a few things. I will put
you in charge of many things. Come share in my happiness. Then look at servant #2
Well, tell me, what have you done with the 2 coins I gave you so long ago?
Servant #2 Look, you trusted me with 2 coins, and I have invested them. Look here I have
gained two more, 4 in all.
Master Well done good and faithful servant. You have been faithful with a few things. I will
put you in charge of many things. Come share in my happiness. Then looking at
servant #3 Well, tell me, what have you done with the 1 coin I gave you so long
ago?
Servant #3 I was very afraid because you are a hard man, using what others have, so I hid
the money where nobody could find it, so here it is.
Master You wicked, good for nothing, lazy servant! If you know I use what is not mine,
you should have at least put the coin in the bank in order to earn interest.
Everyone who uses what he has will be given even more, but anyone who does
use what is given to him, it will be taken away. So now give your coin to the
servant who has 10 coins, and live in darkness.
Servant #3 gives the 1 coin to servant #1, then goes back under the table.
Let’s discuss this for a bit. What are some of the lessons that we might get from this? (Open discussion- hoping for something about ‘day of reckoning’.)
What about accountability? Day of reckoning? Day of judgment?
This short skit speaks to the idea of the day of reckoning that always comes in life. For the 3 servants, there came such a day- they knew it would come because the master had said that he’d eventually come back. And knowing that, they all acted and, in the end, had slightly different outcomes because of their actions.
How do you feel about ‘the day of reckoning’? How do you feel about the idea that there is always a reckoning to be made in life, and that is something we all look forward to? How are you approaching The Day, in your life?
Paul speaks of The Day and directs us to some very important ideas to keep in mind as we look ahead to it. You might think of it as The Day of the Lord, or as Judgment Day, or as the Day of Reckoning. Whatever term you apply, it’s still a reality for us.
I remember something that happened in church one day when I was little. (Describe the squabble between my sister and I over a leather-bound hymnal that someone had left in the pew. We made a scene in our little United Church of Canada in Carroll, Manitoba, and we knew there was a reckoning to come when we got home. I still remember the looks and the wooden spoon! That hurt, but I, thankfully, learned how to behave in church- in God’s house!)
Let’s look together at some key ideas in 1 Corinthians 3, which prepare us for The Day!
I believe some of the ideas that Paul presents to us are very difficult for us in Canada in 2001. (I heard an interesting Commentary on Monday morning when returning from driving my daughters to school. There has been a great deal of comment about human rights in China, especially around our Prime Minister’s recent trade visit to China. There was incredible comment and pressure for him to chide Chinese officials about their apparent human rights’ records. However, this commentator, a Chinese lady, described the difference in cultures and religion. In the Chinese nation and Confusianist doctrine, the individual is not all important. The community is, and with so many people, sometimes it is necessary to decide in favour of the more as opposed to the individual. This is foreign to our way of thinking where we are so steeped in the importance of the individual.) Paul challenges the Corinthians, and us, with ideas that are from a different culture than ours. He challenges from God’s culture. This is significant. And it has to do with how we approach the key reality that he is bringing focus on- The Day! This is a reality that people would like to deny or to avoid, oftentimes, in our age where people don’t want to take responsibility for actions.
1 Cor. 3.5- what’s the key idea here? Discuss again. (God did the giving- refer to other translations.) Paul keeps coming back to God! He keeps a very sharp focus in this entire letter to these early Christian forebears of ours! He doesn’t allow them to get far away from the point. He doesn’t allow us to get far away from the point.
v. 6- what’s the key point, again? (God gave increase.)
v. 7- what’s the key point, again? (God is the one who is somebody, because He gives the growth.)
v. 8- they had been arguing about which under-gardener was more important. However, each simply had his role in the whole process but didn’t contribute all that much by comparison to where the real source of everything came from. In their minds, it was about ‘them’, or ‘me’ and not all about God. Paul is pointing them, and us in contemporary evangelical Christianity, to this.
v. 9- who is key party? Three times in one short verse, we see this. This tells us clearly that NOTHING given by God- NOTHING!!!!- is meant to be independently used up! These days people get into all sorts of selfish ‘my ministry’ stuff. That is NOT what the life of the Christian church is all about. It’s about BODY LIFE- communal life- working together as a unit not as a bunch of individuals.
And see the joy that Paul felt and the security he felt in this reality! In verse 10, he declares his joy at getting to be involved in the building. Because of God’s grace, he got to be involved in helping to build the church of God and Christ!
v. 11- Acts 4.12-only foundation is Jesus Christ. No other foundation will produce the church. So, this is fundamental. I look back at over 30 years walking with the Lord, now, and see that through all my wanderings, always one thing was solid and in place- and that was the foundation of Jesus Christ. I believed some unusual things at some points in my journey, but above all, my salvation was sealed in Jesus Christ. I wandered into all sorts of doctrinal arguments, even, but was soundly in God’s care all the way through. I hope that’s what you see, too! Having been committed to Christ and baptized into God’s family, no matter where you’ve wandered over the years, as long as you were building on this foundation, you’ve been going the right direction! We can’t be the Christian church without this foundation.
Again, let’s make sure our individual walks are not about ‘me’ but about ‘God’. I hear from time-to-time arguments about some things that are rather surprising. Some are upset about worship and don’t feel like they get anything much from worship. Hey, since when is worship about ‘me’? Worship is about ‘God’! Some get upset because some things are not happening as they see they should be. Again, since when is church life about ‘me’ and ‘my perspective’ and not about ‘God’ and His careful working with people. The Christian life is NOT about ‘me’! It’s about a different focus. Over the years, we’ve learned that there are essentially two ways of life- the way of give and the way of get. And there’s nothing more ugly than the ‘get’ way coming into the church- the way that focuses on the human and the person and the self rather than on God. This happens in doctrine, and is unsettling sometimes. There’s a doctrine around telling you and me that we’ve not been baptized properly because we were baptized into the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, AS JESUS taught, and not into the name of Jesus alone, as we see some examples of in the book of Acts. Two reasons why this is a heresy. 1. It does poor exegesis of what is happening in the record of Acts where the emphasis is on this different way that God has manifested Himself-and there is a focus on Jesus, but that doesn’t deny what Jesus said. 2. It attempts to deny the trinitarian God, too, which Jesus clearly pointed to in His instructions and which scripture does teach. This heresy is all about ‘me’- about some setting themselves up as different and having this special knowledge that others don’t have, rather than focusing on God and what God says and wants. There’s nothing more ugly than when the ‘me’ becomes more important than the ‘thee/God’ in the church!
Salvation is not at issue in the verses that follow. Salvation is a gift, freely given by God. It’s not a gift to be easily taken back, if, indeed, it is ever taken back. Once saved, however, we are to go forward in works of incredible gratitude- appreciation- to our heavenly Father for what He has done in our lives. Oh, the excitement of the manger… of the cross… of the grave… of the empty tomb! What can we do about this?
So, from salvation, we go on to build, as we enter partnership with God in the work of the Kingdom. That’s what we’re doing here today- Kingdom work. This isn’t the work of Dennis Lawrence, or the work just of the Worldwide Church of God but it is the work of the Kingdom of God that goes on here. Jesus is here working hard- and I’m afraid he likely has to work extra hard because of this messenger! (Hopefully, a bit of humor, in that.)
v. 13- the Day- compare this with 1 Cor. 4.5. There IS a day coming that will manifest, declare, reveal, and try what we’ve done. The next verses are tremendously encouraging, too! Often people don’t see the encouragement that is here.
v. 14, 15- discussion of reward and loss, but not loss of salvation. In fact, Paul is very clear that the salvation of the individual is not the question- ‘but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.’ Maybe it won’t be easy and maybe he will see a lot of what he thought he was doing for the Lord not having been, and maybe a reward he thought he’d have isn’t it. But he will be in the Kingdom! Remember, to be in the Kingdom of God is of primary importance. Remember what Jesus said: Matt. 11.11- the least anyone that is in the Kingdom is greater than the greatest person on earth. If we find, when we get to the Kingdom, that some of what we thought was so important here is really not, I don’t think any of us will reject being in the Kingdom, do you? God allows us our little foibles and even our mistakes as we go forward in His work. But He’s so much greater than we are that those mistakes don’t really matter. And we ought not get all bent out of shape if a church makes a mistakes, or a minister makes a mistake, or a church leader here or nationally or internationally makes a mistake and we find out we didn’t do what was most important. Hey, for years, we had a wonderful youth program in our church, but then we realized that we didn’t put it firmly on the foundation of Jesus and we’ve abandoned it in favour of a better approach now. I’ve had manuals I’ve read and approaches I’ve taken that have been burned up, now, and I’m better for it all! It wasn’t a waste, really. It just wasn’t as profitable as would have been ideal. If that proves to be true on an even grander scale when I get to the Kingdom, I tell you, that I’m going to rejoice at being in the Kingdom! To be a doorkeeper or to sweep a hearth in the Kingdom is better than not being in the Kingdom!
Philips puts this passage this way: “He personally will be safe, though rather like a man rescued from a fire.” This isn’t referring to purifying fire or purgatory or anything like that. The fire reveals the quality of work done here on earth; it is not a means of improving the character of him who did it.
So, back to the skit we saw. The fire came. The day came. The judgment came. The reckoning came. Accountability is so important. God gives to us and we are responsible to do with what he gives us to do with! Let us never forget this! And it is something to anticipate. If we’re doing- and don’t let your legalistic minds block you with “oh, I’m not doing enough” type of self-talk- then we’ll have a glorious future. Don’t allow worldly wisdom to get in the way!
That’s what the next few verses point to. Can’t you see it?
v. 16- 19- don’t get into all sorts of comparisons and arguments about under-gardeners or levels of construction workers. Our wisdom just doesn’t ‘cut it’. To glory in men, ministries, days, traditions- is to defile the temple of God. God’s wisdom doesn’t take us there. Don’t glory in yourself- ‘oh, I know what we need to be doing.’ Don’t set yourself up or anyone else up, for that matter. Set up God!
Conclusion
The ‘so what?’ of this message has to do with the awareness we have in our lives. We are meant to live with the awareness of a day of accountability and of reckoning. And it’s something for us to look forward to, not in fear or apprehension, but in hope and anticipation knowing the great good to come.
v. 21-23- Great confidence that Paul pointed toward- confidence in God, who is the focal point of everything for the Christian.
Keep the focus on God and everything will fall into place and will turn out well for you. Maybe you’ve been guilty of focusing on some particular ‘pet’ belief. Maybe you’ve been guilty of exalting some particular practice that you believe is incredibly important. Maybe, in some way, you’ve been putting the emphasis on ‘me’ rather than on ‘Thee’ in your faith and practice. Well, CHANGE that and put the focus where it belongs! And be honest about it, too! There’s nothing more cleansing than going to God and letting Him know that you want Him at the centre, rather than you and whatever belief or practice or habit you might have put in front of Him! He’s waiting for you to crawl back up on that altar and to be a living sacrifice again!
Paul focuses not just the ancient Corinthians, but us, here in 2001. Oh, can we ever thank God enough for using the eloquence and the ability of Paul to do this? Think of the benefit to us today! Put the focus on God and allow everything to turn out well for you, according to God’s plan for your life!
