The Talents
Matthew 25:23
His master replied ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful over a few things. I will make you ruler over many things: enter into the joy of thy lord.
Isn’t that the objective for all of us? To stand before Jesus in judgment and hear “Well done, good and faithful servant?”
It is something that I strive for! We are to try our best to emulate Jesus in our temperament and use our gifts to serve Him as best we can.
- Are you a musician? Play on!
- Are you an artist? Create on!
- Have great people and organization skills? Get out there, roll up your sleeves, and game on!
Let’s put our faith in action to achieve small things that lead to greater accomplishments.
Our reward in heaven is great to “enter the joy of the Lord.” Of course, it is not easy to make our way to serve Christ. It takes effort and determination on our part to make step after step to serve Christ in our own way. That’s why we should ask God to send the Holy Spirit, to fortify us!
The fruitfulness of our labors is the assurance of our future reward to share in God’s joy by remaining faithful in our efforts to apply the God given abilities that we have been blessed with.
So when the going gets tough, take that deep breath and refocus. Our time on this earth is brief; life in heaven is eternal. Jesus tells us his kingdom is not of this world. Keep your eyes on the prize! The distractions among us are many, but so are the needs of our brothers and sisters.
We are being watched not only by God above, but by those around us. When you do good, it is seen by a Christian brother or sister who will be heartened and likely offer you encouragement. It is just as likely that you will be witnessed by the unchurched, who are many! Those people will surely ask you why? Why are you acting with love and kindness?
And you can say, “One day, I want to hear ‘Well done, good and faithful servant!’” as you encourage them to do likewise in the name of Jesus Christ.
Let us pray:
God in Heaven, send your Holy Spirit to work through us to give us the strength and determination to talk the talk and walk the walk in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ, the Messiah! Amen.
This devotion was written and recorded by Sam Barto.
Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.
If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.
First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.
