Serving The Lord In Light Of His Coming

“SERVING THE LORD IN LIGHT OF HIS COMING”

Text: Matthew 25:14-30

Introduction: Romans 12:11 “Not slothful in business;

fervent in spirit; serving the Lord”

 TEV – “Work hard, and do not be lazy. Serve

the Lord with a heart full of

devotion”

 NIV – “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your

spiritual fervor, serving

the Lord”

 PME – “Let us not allow slackness to spoil our

work and let us keep the

fires of the Spirit burn-

ing, as we do our work

for the Lord”

 JB – “Work for the Lord with untiring effort

and with great earnestness of

spirit”

Jesus gave to us the parable of the talents as a means to encourage us and to urge us to be faithful in our work for Him until He comes again. The man

traveling to a far country, in the parable, represents our Lord, who is the absolute owner and proprietor of all persons and things. The servants represent Christians who are born in His house, purchased with His blood and employed in His work.

There is work to be done! This is not an hour in which we can afford to take our ease. This is an urgent hour and these are perilous times. We are living on the brink of eternity. The coming of Christ is imminent!

Luke 14:21 “Go quickly into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in hither the poor, maimed, halt and blind”

Rev. 3:11 “Behold, I come quickly”

The man traveling into a far country intended to be away for a while. Jesus physically left this earth but He furnished the church with everything necessary to carry on. We have been entrusted with gifts and callings to accomplish His work. The Lord is soon coming and we must serve Him with all diligence in light of His coming!

I. WE HAVE THE GOODS!

A. The master “delivered unto them his goods”

a. I Tim. 6:20 “O Timothy, keep that which is

committed to thy trust”

b. II Tim. 1:14 “That good thing which was committed

unto thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in

us”

B. We must not:

- Sell out through compromise!

- Squander it away carelessly!

- Trifle with His gifts!

C. “Straightway He took His journey”

a. The question must have come to them

immediately, “What can I do?”

D. Many people have to be supervised in order to get

them to work!

a. How many students will remain busy when the

teacher leaves the room?

b. How many employees will remain busy when the

supervisor is not around?

c. How many today have rose up to play, thinking

that the Lord has delayed His coming?

E. We should be asking, “What can I do?”

a. Job 7:20 “What shall I do unto Thee, O Thou

preserver of men?”

b. Ps. 116:12 “What shall I render unto the Lord

for all His benefits unto me?”

c. John 6:28 “What shall we do, that we might work

the works of God?”

d. Acts 9:6 “Lord what wilt Thou have me do?”

F. When you ask the Lord what He would have you do,

you can be assured that He will not ask you to do

anything that you are not capable of doing.

a. Jesus said of Mary, “She hath done what she

could”

b. She took an alabaster’s box of spikenard valued

at 300 pence (A year’s wages) and broke it open

and anointed Jesus.

G. While the servants with 5 talents and 2 talents

were already busy investing in kingdom work, the

servant with one talent took his ease and buried

his talent.

a. He had willfully hid his talent in the earth.

b. He wanted no yoke, burden or responsibility.

c. What a weariness it is!

H. He suffered from a condition that is so prevalent

today!

a. Just like those that have hung their harps on

the willows.

b. It is the spirit of Laodicea of lukewarmness,

laziness, and lethargy.

II. WE HAVE THE ABILITY!

A. The greatest energy shortage in the church today

is the unused potential within believers.

a. Did you know that the average person only uses

about 10% of their potential?

B. It will be a great day when we discover our

potential!

a. Our talents are not just a coincidence!

b. We are more than a number and a statistic that

is lost in a sea of humanity.

c. We are special in God’s eyes and He has gifted

us according to our ability.

d. We have shoes that no one else can fill.

e. Enormous amounts of potential waiting to be

developed.

C. We must give all that we have and all that we are

to God!

a. If we think little of ourselves then we will