Saturday, June 28, 2008

You Got the Goods!

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"He delivered unto them his goods.” (Matthew 25:14)

Few things are more frustrating to people than to be faced with a task and not be given the time, the training, or the tools to get the job done. And few situations are more likely to produce this frustration in a person than the general state of affairs in contemporary church life.

While the sermons are theologically sound, verbally astute, and passionately presented—more often than not they end up being completely useless. At least when it comes to really training and equipping men and women to actually make a difference in their daily world.


The disciples said to Jesus, “Lord, teach us to pray.” And Jesus did so. On another occasion Jesus said to His disciples, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” They followed, and Jesus delivered on His promise. These two occasions show us that the desire to be taught the things of the Spirit is strong in the heart of godly men and women, and that Jesus is more than accommodating.


Furthermore, Jesus doesn’t just train us, He also entrusts us with the resources to get the job done. As the scripture says, “He delivered unto them his goods.”


How strange it must have been for a fisherman named Simon Peter to be called by an itinerant rabbi named Jesus, to follow Him so as to become a “fisher of men.” In his later years Peter wrote, “His divine power has given unto us all things that pertain to life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3). He was writing from personal experience. Jesus called him, trained him, trusted him, and entrusted him with the high privilege of presenting the Gospel to ordinary men and women with extraordinary results—thousands were saved!


Peter had no idea that first day he met Jesus just how radically different his life would become in a few short years. The same is true of you. Your life matters to God far more than you may realize. And by placing it fully in His hands, trusting Him to keep you in step with His Spirit, you can do whatever the Lord has called you to do—for He has also given you everything you need to get the job done.

You got the goods!

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