MAKE YOUR LIFE COUNT

MAKE YOUR LIFE COUNT
Matthew 25:19-23:

Introduction:  Count means; to consider or regard, to have value, to depend on


There are 3 Points to make your life count:


I.-  Proclaim everything comes from the Master
II- Persevere according to the expectations of the Master
III - Present fruitful work to the Master


I.-  Proclaim everything comes from the Master

      
A. To make our life count, first of all, we   must begin with the right relationship with Jesus as our personal Lord and   Savior and Master of our life. It is a life of surrender and intimacy with God.
B.  “Master, you entrusted me with…” – the first two servants acknowledge and proclaim that God owns what they have; they are just stewards of what was given to them. God owns our life, He entrusted us with this gift along with the power of choice to proclaim that we are His.
C.  God entrusted us with material things, relationships, position, health, time, money, prestige, etc. We can tell if we are losing sight of the right mindset that all of these are God’s, when we easily get upset when they are taken away from us, because we begin to think that we deserve to keep them.

II- Persevere according to the expectations of the Master

A. As an overflow of our surrendered life, we will persevere when we face challenges not for our own sake, but according to God’s expectations.

B. Many people persevere but not according to the Master’s expectations. They work hard for things that will not count for eternity.

C. God’s expectation of what He has entrusted us is clear, as the Master in the parable says, “Put this money to work (Luke 19:13)”. Don’t just keep what God has entrusted you, make it grow.

D. Persevere with the idea of gaining. Our gains will not always be material, but mostly for our own character development.

E. God allows challenges in our life; when we persevere according to God's expectations, we will gain Christ-likeness which is worth it (James 1:4).

           III - Present fruitful work to the Master

A. When we have a life of surrender to  our Master and have persevered according  to God’s expectations, at the end when we   face our Master, we will be able to present   Him with fruitful work.

B. “Only one life t ‘will soon be past. Only what’s done for Christ will last.” – Charles Thomas Studd. At the end of our life, what will only count is what we have done for Christ.

C. “So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God (Romans 14:12).” The Lord’s desire is for all of us to be excited about our last day to hear Him say to us, “Well done my good and faithful servant…come and share in your Master’s happiness.”

D. We will reap the rewards or consequences of what we have done or have not done, similar to what happened to the first and second servants in the Parable of the Talents.

E. To be able to present fruitful work to the Master, we must begin with the foundation choice to surrender our life to Christ, pursuing intimacy with Him more than anything else. Our first priority is to know Him more through prayer, quiet devotion and reading His word and the rest will follow.

This message is courtesy of our Pastor: Jose Felicia of GCBC (Guindulman Christian Bible Church) Located at Sawang, Guindulman Bohol Philippines 6310