areliablefaith

Matthew 25

Jesus is in His last week on earth in human form, and He is ratcheting up His teaching. Parable after parable, He drives home the key points of His whole ministry so they will resonate long after He’s gone.

Today I see being and doing.

When I first came to faith, one thing that helped me grasp this new life was understanding my identity. It was in Christ. I had been adopted into God’s family. Most of what I needed to do was simply live out that reality: be the child God created me to be and the man He called me to be. That weekend I gave my life to Christ, I realized that being comes before doing.

In today’s parables, Jesus gives us several things to be, and then one thing to do.

1. Be Prepared

In the parable of the ten virgins, five were wise and five were foolish. The difference was preparation: “the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps” (Matthew 25:4). They knew the bridegroom was coming but didn’t know when, so they prepared for the possibility that it might be a while. The foolish simply weren’t thinking ahead.

For us, preparation comes through reading the Word, through prayer, and through Christian fellowship. We prepare now for the doing that will come in time.

2. Be Ready

All ten virgins dozed off. But when the cry went out that the bridegroom had arrived, the five who brought extra oil were immediately ready. They leapt up, trimmed their lamps, and went in to the wedding feast.

Preparation makes readiness possible. When we are ready, the Lord will present opportunities, and we are to step into them. “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour” (Matthew 25:13).

3. Be Filled

Oil in Scripture is frequently connected with the Holy Spirit. At this point in the story, Jesus has not yet been crucified, raised, or poured out the Spirit on the apostles, but that day is coming soon. To me, the oil represents being filled with the Holy Spirit.

We don’t talk about being Spirit-filled very often, but it is in fact the way to live the Christian life and the way God’s purposes are accomplished: being led by the Spirit, filled with the Spirit, and allowing Him to direct our words, our thoughts, and our actions (Ephesians 5:18).

4. Be Active

This last be is also the do. In the parable of the talents, the master entrusted his servants with money, a significant amount, even the single talent. He gave to each according to his ability, recognizing that those under him had different capacities. And he expected each of them to be active with what he’d been given.

The servants with five and two talents put them to work, doubled them, and were not only rewarded but praised: “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21). The third servant dug a hole, buried his talent, and went off to who knows what. He was inactive with what the master gave him, and he was condemned, cast into the outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth. He lost his place under the master because he did nothing with what he’d been given.

That should strike home for those of us in the affluent West. God has called us to be active with what He has given us, so that the kingdom advances, the gospel goes forth, and lives are transformed as people enter a relationship with God the Father through Jesus Christ the Son, empowered by the Holy Spirit.

The Progression

There is a real progression here. Prepared, ready, filled, active. It equips us and sends us out into the world to do what God has called us to do, what He saved us to do, what He purposed for us before the foundation of the world: “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10).

And that is good news.

Which of the four is weakest in your life right now: prepared, ready, filled, or active? And what has God put in your hands that might still be buried in the ground?

Be blessed today, and serve someone well. In Jesus’ name.