June 28, 2012
The "always be ready" message continues with the story of the ten bridesmaids. Five were foolish and five were wise. Five were prepared and five were not. The five prepared represent people who have heard the "good news," accepted it, and lived it. The oil represents the Holy Spirit. When Christ comes again, they are ready and prepared. The five unprepared "appeared" prepared. They were there, but they had no oil. It was appearances only. Oil doesn't come from a Christian heritage. It doesn't come from going to church or leading a Bible study. It only comes from a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. The unprepared try to borrow oil from the prepared. It doesn't work that way. It has to be your own. When the bridegroom came (the bridegroom is Jesus and the church is the bride) it was too late. The door was closed and locked. The unprepared heard Jesus say, "I tell you the truth, I don't know you." (Matthew 25:12) I can't imagine the horror of hearing those words reverberate through your mind for eternity. Be prepared! Don't wait! Matthew 25:13 - "So always be ready, because you don't know the day or the hour the Son of Man will come."
The story of three servants. God has entrusted us (man) with doing His work. The more we are faithful, the more He gives us to do. What He wants is our faithfulness and productivity in furthering HIS Kingdom. If we truly believe it is—Good News—then we should not want to keep it to ourselves. Jesus/God clearly shows His disdain for the one who was afraid and did nothing to further God's Kingdom. Matthew 25:30 - "Throw that useless servant outside, into the darkness where people will cry and grind their teeth with pain." The heart of that servant was revealed. He "appeared" to be God's servant, but he was not.
The contrast between the sheep (those who follow their shepherd Christ) and the goats (those who do their own thing) runs through out these chapters in Matthew. God's words are strong for those who have followed their own path. "Throw them out... I never knew you... lock the door... punishment forever..."
Oh, the consequences for the choices we make. The King will judge ALL people. As followers of Christ, our lives should be marked with service until the day Christ returns. Matthew 25:40,45 - "I tell you the truth, anything you did for even the least of my people here, you also did for me... I tell you the truth, anything you refused to do for even the least of my people here, you refused to do for me." (emphasis mine) The chapter ends with another contrast. "These people will go off to be punished forever, but the good people will go to live forever."
I have to think of all the care we are doing for my husband's brother. We do the things we do not out of a sense of duty or to fulfill what God is saying here. We do it because of our hearts. We do it because it is the right thing to do. Our hearts, the core of who we are, would never let us abandon the "least of these" no matter how difficult, emotional draining, or physically exhausting it may be. Our desire is to have our hearts be like the heart of God.
Addendum: 1/1/16 ~ Matthew 25:21 - "Come and share my joy with me." Matthew 25:23 - "Come and share my joy with me." Matthew 25:34 - "Come....receive..." What joy there is in seeing the hand of God at work in your life. JOY—even in the midst of pain and suffering. While we have been under this threat of destruction and "the storm" for nine years now, it is not a trial, it is a trail. It is an opportunity to follow HIS path. We are the recipients of a Blessed Event, and for that we are eternally grateful. Thank you, Lord!! Thank you, for sharing YOUR joy with us.
Next Entry: Matthew 26:1–75
The "always be ready" message continues with the story of the ten bridesmaids. Five were foolish and five were wise. Five were prepared and five were not. The five prepared represent people who have heard the "good news," accepted it, and lived it. The oil represents the Holy Spirit. When Christ comes again, they are ready and prepared. The five unprepared "appeared" prepared. They were there, but they had no oil. It was appearances only. Oil doesn't come from a Christian heritage. It doesn't come from going to church or leading a Bible study. It only comes from a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. The unprepared try to borrow oil from the prepared. It doesn't work that way. It has to be your own. When the bridegroom came (the bridegroom is Jesus and the church is the bride) it was too late. The door was closed and locked. The unprepared heard Jesus say, "I tell you the truth, I don't know you." (Matthew 25:12) I can't imagine the horror of hearing those words reverberate through your mind for eternity. Be prepared! Don't wait! Matthew 25:13 - "So always be ready, because you don't know the day or the hour the Son of Man will come."
The story of three servants. God has entrusted us (man) with doing His work. The more we are faithful, the more He gives us to do. What He wants is our faithfulness and productivity in furthering HIS Kingdom. If we truly believe it is—Good News—then we should not want to keep it to ourselves. Jesus/God clearly shows His disdain for the one who was afraid and did nothing to further God's Kingdom. Matthew 25:30 - "Throw that useless servant outside, into the darkness where people will cry and grind their teeth with pain." The heart of that servant was revealed. He "appeared" to be God's servant, but he was not.
The contrast between the sheep (those who follow their shepherd Christ) and the goats (those who do their own thing) runs through out these chapters in Matthew. God's words are strong for those who have followed their own path. "Throw them out... I never knew you... lock the door... punishment forever..."
Oh, the consequences for the choices we make. The King will judge ALL people. As followers of Christ, our lives should be marked with service until the day Christ returns. Matthew 25:40,45 - "I tell you the truth, anything you did for even the least of my people here, you also did for me... I tell you the truth, anything you refused to do for even the least of my people here, you refused to do for me." (emphasis mine) The chapter ends with another contrast. "These people will go off to be punished forever, but the good people will go to live forever."
I have to think of all the care we are doing for my husband's brother. We do the things we do not out of a sense of duty or to fulfill what God is saying here. We do it because of our hearts. We do it because it is the right thing to do. Our hearts, the core of who we are, would never let us abandon the "least of these" no matter how difficult, emotional draining, or physically exhausting it may be. Our desire is to have our hearts be like the heart of God.
Addendum: 1/1/16 ~ Matthew 25:21 - "Come and share my joy with me." Matthew 25:23 - "Come and share my joy with me." Matthew 25:34 - "Come....receive..." What joy there is in seeing the hand of God at work in your life. JOY—even in the midst of pain and suffering. While we have been under this threat of destruction and "the storm" for nine years now, it is not a trial, it is a trail. It is an opportunity to follow HIS path. We are the recipients of a Blessed Event, and for that we are eternally grateful. Thank you, Lord!! Thank you, for sharing YOUR joy with us.
Next Entry: Matthew 26:1–75
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