What Manner of People should we be?

Sunday 01/20/19

Series: Walking the Talk

Message – What manner of persons should we be?

Podcast: Download (145.3MB)

What manner of persons should we be?

In keeping with our beginning focus of the year, I’m thing to teach on a parable Jesus taught about the kingdom.

The take aways did today is to examine yourselves in the light of these passages. Not being overly harsh nor too lenient, but allowing the Holy Spirit to do His inner work in you. Taking the words of God to shed light on our areas of darkness.

So the first takeaway is examine yourself
Second is to be prepared for His return. Too little is said about that – even by me in here, but it represented a great deal of the drive behind the diligence of the early church.
Third is to be a surrendered servant.
Fourth is to be a faithful servant.

These of course are not in order of importance and there is a fair amount of overlap between them but there they are… I’ll say them again…

Now we have a focus verse and a key passage.

Our ficus verse is in 2Peter 3:10-15,

“(10) But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. (11) Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, (12) looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? (13) Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. (14) Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; (15) and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation.”

Jesus spoke A LOT about stewardship – in fact in many ways it could be argued that this is pretty much ALL He talked about…and the parable we will be looking at today is certainly no exception! So our key passage is found in Luke 19:11-27 NKJV

“(11) As they were listening to this, He went on to tell a parable because He was near Jerusalem, and they thought the kingdom of God was going to appear right away. (12) Therefore He said: “A nobleman traveled to a far country to receive for himself authority to be king and then return. (13) He called 10 of his slaves, gave them 10 minas (each), and told them, ‘Engage in business until I come back.’

Some commentators saw this parable should not be compared to the parable of the talents because in that parable each servant received a different amount and the results seem different. I’m not as convinced of that.

Regardless, in this parable so far we have:

A Nobleman

A nobleman was a mature man who came from a good family and had a noteworthy rank in society.

The Nobleman in this parable was evidently “set apart” to become king over a kingdom, He left for a time for the express purpose of being crowned with authority to take up that position and rule.

This nobleman, of course, represented Jesus while in the flesh Who was going to go away and then return with authority to reign.

Acts 2:29-40 NKJV “(29) Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. (30) Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne, (31) he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. (32) This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. (33) Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear. (34) “For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: ‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, (35) TILL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES YOUR FOOTSTOOL.” ‘ (36) “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” (37) Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” (38) Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (39) For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.” (40) And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.”

Heb. 1:1-13 “(1) Long ago God spoke to the fathers by the prophets at different times and in different ways. (2) In these last days, He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things and through whom He made the universe. (3) He is the radiance of His glory, the exact expression of His nature, and He sustains all things by His powerful word. After making purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. (4) So He became higher in rank than the angels, just as the name He inherited is superior to theirs. (5) For to which of the angels did He ever say, You are My Son; today I have become Your Father, or again, I will be His Father, and He will be My Son? (6) When He again brings His firstborn into the world, He says, And all God’s angels must worship Him. (7) And about the angels He says: He makes His angels winds, and His servants a fiery flame; (8) but about the Son: Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, and the scepter of Your kingdom is a scepter of justice. (9) You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; this is why God, Your God, has anointed You, rather than Your companions, with the oil of joy. (10) And: In the beginning, Lord, You established the earth, and the heavens are the works of Your hands; (11) they will perish, but You remain. They will all wear out like clothing; (12) You will roll them up like a cloak, and they will be changed like a robe. But You are the same, and Your years will never end. (13) Now to which of the angels has He ever said: Sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies Your footstool?”

1Cor. 15:22-28 HCSB “(22) For just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. (23) But each in his own order: Christ, the firstfruits; afterward, at His coming, the people of Christ. (24) Then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when He abolishes all rule and all authority and power. (25) For He must reign until He puts all His enemies under His feet. (26) The last enemy to be abolished is death. (27) For He has put everything under His feet. But when it says “everything” is put under Him, it is obvious that He who puts everything under Him is the exception. (28) And when everything is subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who subjected everything to Him, so that God may be all in all.”

The 10 slaves represent those who were His servants and therefore part of His house.

A Mina was no small sum, it was worth about 1/3rd of a years income for a the average man.

Though it is not clear by a straightforward reading in English, it appears that there were 10 minas all together and they were distributed to all of His servants. Since it does not say otherwise, it is logical to assume that Jesus intended us to understand that each servant received 1 mina each.

His command was to engage in business until he returned to take His position as ruler in His kingdom. > This is the Key and central verse!

“Business” means to be busy and occupied. It is derived from another word which means to GAIN by doing business which was clearly His intent.

To what business could Jesus have been referring?

Forming Christ within – fruit or character change

Forming Christ without – be a living witness and share the gospel…be salt and light.

In Matt. 25 where is like you to turn now, the parable of the talents is taught, as is the parable of the 10 virgins. BOTH began with the words “Then the kingdom of been will be likened to…” and this parable started the same way. After HE taught these two parables He immediately went into another teaching that seems to be a sort of explanation of the former two parables and I believe they shed light on what is meant in our passage of Luke 19 by “do business until I return”. Starting in verse 30 in Matt. 25.

“30 And throw this good-for-nothing slave into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ 31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you took care of Me; I was in prison and you visited Me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or without clothes and clothe You? 39 When did we see You sick, or in prison, and visit You?’ 40 “And the King will answer them, ‘I assure you: Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’ 41 Then He will also say to those on the left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels! 42 For I was hungry and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty and you gave Me nothing to drink; 43 I was a stranger and you didn’t take Me in; I was naked and you didn’t clothe Me, sick and in prison and you didn’t take care of Me.’ 44 “Then they too will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or without clothes, or sick, or in prison, and not help You?’ 45 “Then He will answer them, ‘I assure you: Whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for Me either.’ 46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Here are a few examples :

Example of Jesus – Luke 2:41-50,

“(41) Every year His parents traveled to Jerusalem for the Passover Festival. (42) When He was 12 years old, they went up according to the custom of the festival. (43) After those days were over, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but His parents did not know it. (44) Assuming He was in the traveling party, they went a day’s journey. Then they began looking for Him among their relatives and friends. (45) When they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for Him. (46) After three days, they found Him in the temple complex sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. (47) And all those who heard Him were astounded at His understanding and His answers. (48) When His parents saw Him, they were astonished, and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for You.” (49) “Why were you searching for Me?” He asked them. “Didn’t you know that I had to be in my Father’s house engaging in His business?” (50) But they did not understand what He said to them.”

…Blessings!

I hope this teaching will challenge you and encourage you to place your trust in the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.

You have a special place in God’s family & kingdom. If you do not know Him, please use our ‘Contact Us‘ page and reach out so we may have the privilege of introducing you to the Lord. Neither money nor attendance at our church will be mentioned.

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Blessings!

Pastor Mark

View posts by Pastor Mark

Hi my name is Mark and though I am opposed to titles, I am currently the only Pastor (shepherd/elder) serving our assembly right now.

I have been Pastoring in one capacity or another for nearly 30 years now, though never quite like I am today.

Early in 2009 the Lord revealed to me that the way we had structured our assembly (church) was not scriptural in that it was out of sync with what Paul modeled for us in the New Testament. In truth, I (like many pastors I am sure) never even gave this fundamental issue of church structure the first thought. I had always assumed that church structure was largely the same everywhere and had been so from the beginning. While I knew Paul had some very stringent things to say about the local assembly of believers, the point of our gatherings together and who may or may not lead, I never even considered studying these issues but assumed we were all pretty much doing it right...safety in numbers right?! Boy, I couldn't have been more wrong!

So needless to say, my discovery that we had been doing it wrong for nearly two decades was a bit of a shock to me! Now, this "revelation" did not come about all at once but over the course of a few weeks. We were a traditional single pastor led congregation. It was a top-bottom model of ministry which is in part biblical, but not in the form of a monarchy.

The needed change did not come into focus until following 9 very intense months of study and discussions with those who were leaders in our church at the time.

We now understand and believe that the Bible teaches co-leadership with equal authority in each local assembly. Having multiple shepherds with God's heart and equal authority protects both Shepherds and sheep. Equal accountability keeps authority and doctrine in check. Multiple shepherds also provide teaching with various styles and giftings with leadership skills which are both different and complementary.

For a while we had two co-pastors (elders) (myself and one other man) who led the church with equal authority, but different giftings. We both taught in our own ways and styles, and our leadership skills were quite different, but complimentary. We were in complete submission to each other and worked side-by-side in the labor of shepherding the flock.

Our other Pastor has since moved on to other ministry which has left us with just myself. While we currently only have one Pastor/Elder, it is our desire that God, in His faithfulness and timing, may bring us more as we grow in maturity and even in numbers.

As to my home, I have been married since 1995 to my wonderful wife Terissa Woodson who is my closest friend and most trusted ally.

As far as my education goes, I grew up in a Christian home, but questioned everything I was ever taught.

I graduated from Bible college in 1990 and continued to question everything I was ever taught (I do not mention my college in order to avoid being labeled).

Perhaps my greatest preparation for ministry has been life and ministry itself. To quote an author I have come to enjoy namely Fredrick Buechner in his writing entitled, Now and Then, "If God speaks to us at all other than through such official channels as the Bible and the church, then I think that He speaks to us largely through what happens to us...if we keep our hearts open as well as our ears, if we listen with patience and hope, if we remember at all deeply and honestly, then I think we come to recognize beyond all doubt, that, however faintly we may hear Him, He is indeed speaking to us, and that, however little we may understand of it, His word to each of us is both recoverable and precious beyond telling." ~ Fredrick Buechner

Well that is about all there is of interest to tell you about me.

I hope our ministry here is a blessing to you and your family. I also hope that it is only a supplement to a local church where you are committed to other believers in a community of grace.

~God Bless!