part0023

Many people never accomplish very much for the Lord simply because they never try. In Matthew 25:14-30, Jesus told a parable about three servants that were given five talents, two talents, and one talent, respectively. The first two individuals both doubled what they had been given to end with ten and four talents. But the last servant was afraid of failing, so he did not do anything for his master with the one talent that he had been given. Therefore, in Matthew 25:26-30, the master called him wicked and lazy, and his single talent was taken from him and given to the one that had ten.

Concerning the matter of service to the Lord, the Apostle Peter gave the proper instructions for all Christians. In I Peter 3:15-16, he wrote, "But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have . But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander." Peter was saying that all Christians are called into the Lord's service and that they should always be ready to share their hope in Christ with others.

In Acts 8:4-8, Philip the evangelist had been preaching the gospel and sharing his hope in Christ with those in Samaria, and many were getting saved. Then, in Acts 8:26-40, he was told to go south to the road between Jerusalem and Gaza, and like any faithful Christian, he trusted his Lord and went. Once he got there, he found an Ethiopian eunuch who was reading Isaiah 53:7-8, but the eunuch did not understand what he was reading. So, in the conversation that followed, Philip shared his hope in Christ with the eunuch, and the eunuch became a Christian, too. Philip had only been doing what he was told to do with the talent that he had been given. But his efforts were blessed, the eunuch was saved, and he became the first missionary of the New Testament church.