“The Lord replied, ‘Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his household servants, to give them their allowance of food at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master finds at work when he returns. I tell you the truth, the master will put him in charge of all his possessions.’” —Luke 12:42–44
A very important question for each one of us is this: What is the task the Lord has placed in my hands at this particular time?
Could the task be extraordinarily difficult, requiring His all achieving power and our diligence and perseverance to carry it out? Could the task be extremely boring and mundane, requiring the same all achieving power and our diligence and perseverance to finish it well?
Oftentimes life’s work can become quite daily. A great verse to memorize is the wonderful command in Colossians:
“Whatever you are doing, work at it with enthusiasm, as to the Lord and not for people, because you know that you will receive your inheritance from the Lord as the reward. Serve the Lord Christ.” —Colossians 3:23–24
Our heavenly Father, who judges without favoritism or partiality, will repay each and every person in full when He comes again. When we work as unto Him, all our efforts become set apart for God’s glory. We are told in Isaiah:
“Look, the Sovereign LORD comes as a victorious warrior; his military power establishes his rule. Look, his reward is with him; his prize goes before him.” —Isaiah 40:10
Jesus said:
“But as for that day or hour no one knows it—neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son—except the Father. Watch out! Stay alert! For you do not know when the time will come. It is like a man going on a journey. He left his house and put his slaves in charge, assigning to each his work, and commanded the doorkeeper to stay alert.” —Mark 13:32–34
Jesus’ message is for each generation to be watching, waiting, and working until His return or our own homegoing. Paul gives us a wonderful charge:
“And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem without knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit warns me in town after town that imprisonment and persecutions are waiting for me. But I do not consider my life worth anything to myself, so that I may finish my task and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the good news of God’s grace.” —Acts 20:22–24
Life is not nearly long enough for everything! As believers, we must be focused on the things of God! We must stand firm in our commitment to Him and remain unencumbered by things that might keep us back from attaining our goal. This is the lesson of Hebrews 12:1–3:
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, we must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us, keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy set out for him he endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. Think of him who endured such opposition against himself by sinners, so that you may not grow weary in your souls and give up.”
Become More
Just as surely as there are always consequences to sin, there are always blessings to obedience. In our verses for today, Jesus speaks of the rewards of the faithful. Scripture has many illustrations regarding rewards in the here and now and also our future eternal rewards. Jesus assures us that we will be rewarded according to our actions:
“For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.” —Matthew 16:27
Paul echoes the same principle in Ephesians:
“Obey with enthusiasm, as though serving the Lord and not people, because you know that each person, whether slave or free, if he does something good, this will be rewarded by the Lord.” —Ephesians 6:7–8
Further Reflections
“If by doing some work which the undiscerning consider ‘not spiritual work’ I can best help others, and I inwardly rebel, thinking it is the spiritual for which I crave, when in truth it is the interesting and exciting, then I know nothing of Calvary love.”—Amy Carmichael
“Let us work as if success depended upon ourselves alone, but with heartfelt conviction that we are doing nothing, and God everything.” —St. Ignatius Loyola