Faithfulness
Ps 12:1
Help, LORD, for the godly are no more;
The faithful have vanished from among men.
Matt 25:14-22… "Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his property to them. 15 To one he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. 16 The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more. 17 So also, the one with the two talents gained two more. 18 But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.
19 "After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. 20 The man who had received the five talents brought the other five. ’Master,’ he said, ’you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.’
21 "His master replied, ’Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
22 "The man with the two talents also came. ’Master,’ he said, ’you entrusted me with two talents; see, I have gained two more.’
(from New International Version)
Three aspect of faithfulness
1. Conviction
Matt 10:22… All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.
ILL) Two candidates… Two candidates for political office inadvertently scheduled simultaneous campaign rallies in the same park of a small New England town.
After a lengthy round of speeches, the candidates worked their way through
the crowd -- shaking hands, kissing babies and beaming mightily. Suddenly,
the skies opened and it began to rain.
One of the candidates fled to take shelter in a nearby restaurant along with
half a dozen regulars. The other candidate, however, continued to move
through the crowd -- shaking hands, kissing babies, etc.
"That man’s persistence," observed one of the natives, "sure makes it easy
to know who to vote for."
"Yep," another native agreed.
"Sure can’t see myself casting a vote for a man who hasn’t the good sense to
come in out of the rain."
- It’s no wonder the world is the way it is when people’s conviction on the
same events can be so different.
1) Conviction to accept from God what He wants to give:
Job 2:9-10… His wife said to him, "Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die!"
He replied, "You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?"
In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.
2) Conviction to keep a good reputation:
Prov 3:3-4… Never let loyalty and kindness get away from you! Wear them like a necklace; write them deep within your heart. Then you will find favor with both God and people, and you will gain a good reputation. NLT
3) Conviction for a day of worship:
Rom 14:5-7… In the same way, some think one day is more holy than another day, while others think every day is alike. Each person should have a personal conviction about this matter.
2. Confidence = comes with a clear conscience:
1 John 3:21-22… Dear friends, if our conscience is clear, we can come to God with bold confidence. And we will receive whatever we request because we obey him and do the things that please him. NLT
Joke: Bet on Goliath… An archaeologist was digging in the Negev Desert in Israel and came upon a sarcophagus containing a mummy.
After examining it, he called the curator of a prestigious natural-history
museum.
"I’ve just discovered the 3,000 year-old mummy of a man who died of heart
failure!" the excited scientist exclaimed.
The curator replied, "Bring him in. We’ll check it out."
A week later, the amazed curator called the archaeologist.
"You were right about the mummy’s age and cause of death. How in the world
did you know?"
"Easy. There was a piece of paper in his hand that said, ’10,000 Shekels on
Goliath’."
Confidence in God will bring faithfulness to your life.
Ps 31:23… Love the LORD, all his saints! The LORD preserves the faithful,
1) Confidence in the truth of the word:
Col 1:23… But you must continue to believe this truth and stand in it firmly. Don’t drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News. NLT
2) Confident to teach our children
Ps 78:5-7… For he issued his decree to Jacob; he gave his law to Israel. He commanded our ancestors to teach them to their children, so the next generation might know them--even the children not yet born--that they in turn might teach their children. So each generation can set its hope anew on God, remembering his glorious miracles and obeying his commands. NLT
3) Confident God will assist you in life:
Heb 13:6… That is why we can say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper,
so I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me? NLT
4) Confident Of our reward:
2 Tim 4:7-8… I have fought a good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. Now the prize awaits me--the crown of righteousness that the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that great day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his glorious return.
Heb 10:35… Do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord, no matter what happens. Remember the great reward it brings you! NLT
5) Confident he will answer our prayers:
James 1:5-8… But when you ask him, be sure that you really expect him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. People like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. They can’t make up their minds. They waver back and forth in everything they do.
3. Commitment
Prov 20:6… Many a man claims to have unfailing love, but a faithful man who can find?
1) Commitment to prove my faithfulness:
God has given to us his son. We accept his gift through salvation…
1 Corinthians 4:1-2…So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God. Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.
2) Commitment for the concern of others:
Rom 14:14-16…I know and am perfectly sure on the authority of the Lord Jesus that no food, in and of itself, is wrong to eat. But if someone believes it is wrong, then for that person it is wrong. And if another Christian is distressed by what you eat, you are not acting in love if you eat it. Don’t let your eating ruin someone for whom Christ died. Then you will not be condemned for doing something you know is all right. NLT
Closing
Illustration: Start with the little things of faithfulness
(From If you love me page 97)
• Boy with a new Job in a hardware store:
• Given the task of cleaning the attic storage box.
• Screws, nails, of all sized, hinges, bits of metal. All had to be sorted.
• He was told to put things in order.
• The attic was dusty and gloomy.
• The work seemed worthless and was tiresome
• No body was watching him and he was tempted not to work very hard.
But he determined to be faithful to the task and he began the separation of the many items. He divided the box into compartments and sorted out the articles carefully. It took three days.
When the owner inspected the work, he made this statement:
You will be assigned an important job at the counter. The attic job is a test to see if a boy is worthy to take real reasonability.
Rev 2:10… Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.
