Fully Known
OPENING PRAYER:
Dear Lord, please help me to be mindful that you are with me always. Help me to live in this world focused fully on you, and to live according to your commands.
READ:
“Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more. So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.
“After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’
“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!’
“The man with two bags of gold also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.’
“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!’
“Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’
“His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.
“’So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. And throw what worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ Matthew 25:14-30
“It is written: “’As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.’
So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.” Romans 14:11-12
“The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.
By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved – even though only as one escaping through the flames.” 1 Corinthians 3:8-15
“So, we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body whether good or bad.” 2 Corinthians 5:9-10
REFLECT:
I am home more of the time than my wife. She likes a neat and tidy house, and I like to please her. My normal mode of operation is to live in the space while she is away in my natural, untidy ways. When I get the text indicating she’s on her way home I get right to putting everything in order just the way she likes it. The house is normally put together whenever she returns; no harm, no foul. But what if I don’t know when she will return?
When we make choices that are outside of what is our best we risk judgment. In the case of an untidy house, that judgment will be temporary and fleeting. When it comes to how we live in relation to the gifts given to us by God and the commands he desires us to follow, the consequences are eternal. Accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior is all that is required to achieve salvation, but our actions do matter to God. He sees us always and knows our hearts. Seek to honor and please him each and every day.
APPLY:
Does God feel distant from you? Do you have a hard time believing he knows what you’re always up to, or that he even cares? If so, try making his presence in your day-to-day life more tangible. For example, I place my bible on a stool next to my desk chair at work. It’s a constant reminder that I’m with God and God is with me in everything that I do.
CLOSING PRAYER:
Thank you Jesus for being my savior. Thank you for loving me and accepting me with the full knowledge of just how broken I am.
WORSHIP: