Adjusting My Life

WHAT ON EARTH AM I HERE FOR? (PP)
Building My Character Through Commitment Part 3 of 4
Ephesians 2:10 (PP)

*Character is built through four life commitments. (PP)

We learn to LIVE THE VISION (PP) through commitments. We learn "With God all things are possible for one who believes" (PP) through commitments.

The first is a commitment to people: (PP) I need to commit myself to some people to grow with. In the first message we talked about "Why You Need a Church Home," a Church Family because the Christian life is not a Lone Ranger life.

You need people and you need to commit yourself to some other people, saying "This is going to be my family where I will give and receive and follow the fifty-eight "one anothers" (PP) in the New Testament -- love one another, care for one another, help one another, serve for one another, pray for one another, exhort one another and on and on. You first need to commit yourself to some people to grow with.

In the second message in this series, we talked about your need to commit yourself to some habits to grow by. (PP) The second commitment is to spiritual habits. There are some basic habits in the Christian life like daily time with God and things like that, that you need to deal with.

Today I want to talk about the third basic commitment you need to grow in character. You need a purpose to live for. (PP) I need a purpose to live for. I want us to look at (PP) "What On Earth Am I Here For?" If I were to go out on the street and ask the average person this question they'd say, "I have no idea."

I grow up, I go to school, I get a job, I make money, I retire, I die. Is that it? Is that all there is to life? What on earth am I here for?

The Bible makes it very clear that you're not here by accident, that there is a purpose and a plan for your life. Even before you were born, God planned what you were going to do. He has a purpose for you. You can get in that plan or you can get outside of it. He won't force it on you.

(PP) Ephesians 2:10 "We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do." God created us to do good works. Circle that. The word in the Bible for good works is called ministry or service. Ministry does not mean something a pastor does. (PP) The Bible says all of us are called to ministry. It just means we're to do good works. We're to serve God, we're to serve others. God planned each of us to do this. If you're not doing it you're out of God's plan.

Jesus told a story in Matthew 25. It is the parable the talents. Jesus gives seven life principles.
(3 X PP) *Read Matt. 25:14-30 Together.

1. Ownership. (PP)

Everything I have belongs to God. I don't own anything. The Bible says, "The earth is the Lord and the fullness thereof." We just get to use it for 50, 60, 70 years and then we pass it on to somebody else.

It's really kind of a rental. I've never seen a hearse with a U-haul behind it. You didn't bring it into the world, you're not going to take it out of the world, you just get to use it while you're here.

None of it really belongs to you, it belongs to God. Many things are being perverted but all that's in the world belongs to God. And God has entrusted us with property like the story of this man.

2. Allocation. (PP)

God has given me some talents -- that's the principle of allocation. The word "talent" comes from this story - Matt. 25. "To one he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability."

Here in the Bible the word "talent" simply meant money. It was about $1,000.00. The Bible tells this story of the master who goes away and he says, "I'm going to give my servants some money to take care of." He gives one guy 5 grand, another 2 grand, another 1 grand.

We're all given different amounts. We all have talents. We all have different talents. Everybody gets something but nobody gets the same thing and the amounts are different.

The point is there are no non-talent people. (PP) A talent is anything that God has entrusted to you. Ability, strength, skills, physical health, family, children, opportunities, business situations, brains, personality, the fact that most of you were born in a free country -- these are talents or gifts that God has given us.

"We each have been given different gifts, according to the grace given to us." You didn't deserve it. God just gave it to you.

1. Ownership.
2. Allocation.
3. Accountability.

God expects me to use my talents. He's made an investment in my life and He expects a return on it. He wants me to make the most of whatever I've been given. Matt. 25:19, "After a long time the Master of those servants returned and settled accounts." (PP) Circle that.

This is a parable and it's a story that's a parallel to the fact that one day, we're going to give an account to God for our life. (PP) One day God is going to do an audit on your life. (PP) That's one audit you're not going to miss. He's going to ask you this question. "What did you do with what you were given?" You need to be prepared to answer that.

4. Utilization. (PP)

It is wrong for me to bury what God gave me. The first guy goes out, takes his five talents and he doubles it. One hundred percent return. The second guy goes out and he does the same thing. He takes the two talents he's got, before the Master comes back he doubles his money. He made a wise investment and it doubled. The third guy comes along and he does zip, nothing. He buries it in the ground. He says, "Nothing ventured, nothing gained. I'm going to play it cautious, conservative. I'm going to sit on my talents and do nothing about it."

The Master's reaction is in verse 26. "His master replied, `You wicked, lazy servant.'" (PP) I'd say the Master is ticked! He's upset.

This is a parable of God. God is saying, "If you don't use your talent, it ticks Me off!" It's not a good deal. What do you do when you bury things? You put it out of sight. You don't want to see it anymore. You try to forget it. You want to pretend it doesn't exist. The third guy buried his talent and God says, "You wicked, lazy servant."

If you don't get anything else, get this: (PP) I cannot please God by playing it safe in life. God's given me some talents. He wants me to use them. In order to use them and invest them I've got to take risks. He wants me to take risks because that requires faith.

And the Bible says, "Whatever is not of faith is sin" and "Without faith it's impossible to please God." So the principle of utilization is: it's wrong for me to bury my talent that God has given me because He wants me to take risks.

Doing nothing with my talent is inexcusable. God would rather have me try to serve him and fail than do nothing. "I'd rather attempt to do something great and fail than to do nothing and succeed." (PP) You will always miss 100% of the shots you don't take.

When we die at least four words should be our epitaph, and on our tombstone: "At least he tried". (PP)

I may not reach all the goals and the dreams I believe God has given to me for my life but it really doesn't matter. I'm going to die trying. That's what counts.


Live the Vision (PP)
With God All Things Are Possible For One Who Believes



God says, "It all belongs to Me. I'm entrusting it to you for 50, 60, 70 years. You're to use what I've given you and one day you're going to give an account of whether you used it or not. I'm going to ask you `What did you do with what you were given?'" It's wrong to not use your talent.... to just bury it. Playing it safe will not work.

Which person is most likely to do nothing? The five talent person, the two talent person, or the one talent person?

The one talent. That's true today, too. Many of you would say this, "Because I'm not a superstar I won't do anything."

People say, "If it's worth doing, it's worth doing perfectly." I hate that sentence.

I say, "If ministry is worth doing, it's worth doing the best you can whether it's perfect or not." If you say, "If I can't do it perfectly, I won't do it" then you're never going to do anything.

Nothing in this world is perfect. You need to step out in faith. I meet a lot of bored Christians. Same place, same thing. The Christian life is not a relationship, it's a routine for them, a ritual.

Why? Nine times out of ten, the reason people have lost their spark is they're sitting on the sidelines. They're playing it safe. They're not using their talent. They're spectators while the game is being played -- the game of life. God says that won't cut it!

1. Ownership.
2. Allocation.
3. Accountability.
4. Utilization.

5. Motivation. (PP)

Why do we play it safe? Why don't we use the talents that God has given us? The answer is fear. (PP)

Fear keeps me from using my talents. "I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground." (PP) Circle "afraid" and "hid".

These are Satan's favorite tactics. "I could never do that. I'm not qualified. I have this fear of failure."

Remember in school when the teacher would ask a question and you'd think, "I think I know it, but I don't want to raise my hand because if I give the wrong answer I'm going to look dumb" so you didn't raise your hand. Self-consciousness. (PP)

It's fear that keeps us from using our talent. You say, "I failed in the past so I'll never try again." It doesn't matter where you've been. It matters what direction your feet are headed right now.

Peter and Judas were two disciples. They both committed the same sin. They both denied Christ. One of them went out, got depressed, and committed suicide. The other went out, repented of it and said, "I want to start over" and fifty days after Peter's biggest sin, God used him on the day of Pentecost to preach and 3,000 people were brought into the family of God on the day the church was born. Fifty days after Peter's greatest failure he has his greatest success. (PP) He kept on going.

Illustration
Get the picture: 1954 opening day of baseball season - Milwaukee Braves playing the Cincinnati Reds. Two rookies were in that game. The first was a guy named Jim Greengrass. He got up to bat four times and hit four doubles. Four for four, an incredible start to a career. But nobody remembers him.

Another guy started his career that day. He went 0 - 4. He struck out all four times in the first game. Hank Aaron had a slow start. But who do we remember?

Never let the fear of striking out keep you from taking a swing. You keep on going. You say, "What will other people think?" Don't worry about what other people think! The Bible says, "The fear of man is a snare." (PP) It's a trap.




Often we excuse ourselves by pointing to other people saying, "He/She's more talented. They've got all the ability. If only I had ability like so and so. If only I had the education/looks like so and so I'd serve God." No, you wouldn't because you're not using what you've got.

The point is: Just because I can't do the spectacular that doesn't excuse me to do nothing. (PP)

One day I'm going to stand before God and He's going to say, "What did you do with your life? What on earth did you think you were there for? I had a plan, I had some things for you to do. It's called a ministry. And I made you just right for it."

(PP) Matt. 25:24 "The man who had received the one talent came and said, `Master, I knew you were a hard man, harvesting where you haven't sown and gathering where you haven't scattered. I was afraid.'"

This guy is trying to make an excuse of not doing anything with his life by blaming the Master. He says, "It's your fault, God, that you didn't give me ten talents." God says, "You didn't use the one I gave you." Blaming God will not work. Blaming other people won't work. (PP) B - lame is how you spell blame -- Be Lame. (PP)

No one wants to accept responsibility today. Everyone wants to blame someone else. Who are you blaming for your failures? Who are you blaming for your lack of initiative? Who are you blaming for your lack of commitment?

Ultimately, you are blaming God. He is the One Who put you where you are. He is the one Who gave you what you have. He is the one who limited your ability. He is the one who let you down.

(PP)
1. Ownership.
2. Allocation.
3. Accountability.
4. Utilization.
5. Motivation.
6. Application. (PP)

If I don't use it, I'll lose it. (PP) Matt. 5:28, "Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten talents." That doesn't seem fair. Take the talent from the one who only had one and give it to the guy with ten. The rich get richer, the talented gets more talented. That's life.

What's the point here? The point is that God has the right to take away anything that I don't use for Him and there is a universal law here that if I don't use it, I lose it. (PP) If I refuse to exercise, I loose my muscles. If I refuse to think, my brain goes dull. If I refuse to practice, my talent dries up. If I don't use it, I loose it.

The converse is also true. That if I do use it, I get more. Whatever you need more of, start using what you have for the Lord and it will grow. (PP) Do you need more time? Use your time for the Lord. Do you need more energy? Use your energy for the Lord and watch it grow. Do you need more intelligence? Use what you've got for the Lord and watch it grow. Need more money? Tithe faithfully and watch what God will do! It's a principle. Use it or loose it!

7. Compensation. (PP)

If I use my talent wisely I will be rewarded. (PP) Matt. 5:23, "His Master replied, `Well done good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your Master's happiness!" Look at the rewards you could have.

1) Affirmation. (PP)

"Well done good and faithful servant!" How would you like to get to heaven one day and have God say that to you? (PP) "Good job! You did the best you could with what you had! Good job!"

That's what I'm living for. Not for anything else. I'm living my life for an audience of one. I want to stand before Jesus Christ one day and have him say, "Well done, Mike, you good and faithful servant."



2) Promotion. (PP)

(PP) "You've been faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things." I'll give you greater responsibility. You've used what you had, I'll give you greater responsibility.

The Bible teaches that earth is a testing ground. The amount of time on this side of eternity is nothing compared to the amount you're going to spend on the other side of eternity. How you use your life during this time will determine what God entrusts to you later on. If you've been faithful in a few things, you'll be given much. You'll be given more or less responsibility.

3) Celebration. (PP)

(PP) "Come and share your Master's happiness!" It's party time in heaven. Celebrate.

(PP) The fact is the happiest people in the world are those who are giving their lives for the purpose that God made them. God made you for a ministry. God has a ministry for you that is based on who you are. We're all part of the body of Christ and it's all important. It's like a jigsaw puzzle. (PP) We all have a part to contribute.

Let me ask a very serious question -- a pretest before the final exam. One day God is going to ask you, (PP) "What did you do with what I gave you?"

God is going to do an audit on your life one day. What's the bottom line going to show? When He says, "What did you do with the talent I gave you?" what are you going to say?

"I made a lot of money and I had a lot of fun and I developed a reputation among other people in the community." So what? Wrong answer! It doesn't count.

God's going to look at you straight in the eyes and say, "Did it ever occur to you, that I might have given you your talent, your freedom, your ability, and that I didn't mean for you to just use it all on yourself.

Did it ever occur to you that maybe I made you for a purpose greater than just to retire? Did it ever occur to you that maybe I wanted to use you to bless other people?"

As a pastor and your friend, I shudder to think of some of the excuses some of you are going to have to give God as you stand before our Savior with His pierced hands and try to explain why you did nothing in ministry.

Only one life... soon will be past...
only what's done for Christ will last. (PP)

Are you a spiritually committed person? What's your level of commitment?


*Five circles of commitment. (2X PP)

Each circle represents a level of commitment. Everybody is in one of these levels of commitment. At Glasgow Bible Church, we don't tell anybody where they are. It's a personal evaluation. We love and accept people regardless of their spiritual commitment.







The inner circle is called the core. (PP) It says ministry. People in the core are committed to ministry. They're the people I'm talking about. They're using their talents, their gifts and abilities for the Lord. At Glasgow Bible Church we have around 40 people in the church who are in the core.

The next group out is what we call the committed. (PP) These are godly people, they love the Lord, they're committed specifically to the habits for spiritual growth. They're committed to growth, but for one
reason or another, they have not found a ministry yet. Some of you are in this category. This is the committed group. Right now at our church there are some 10 people in that I circle that we can clearly identify.

The next group out is what we call the congregation. (PP) These people are committed to membership. (The core is committed to ministry, the committed are committed to maturity.) The congregation is all of you who are a part of Glasgow Bible Church. You've joined the church. You've said, I want to be a part of this family and the membership covenant. We're not interested in a big huge membership. That's not our issue here. These are actively involved at Glasgow Bible Church.

The next group out is the group that shows up on Sunday morning -- the crowd. (PP) The crowd is anywhere from 125-170, depending on the Sunday. Some in the crowd are believers, some are not believers. Some are seekers. They're on the way, looking, searching. The crowd is committed to attendance.

The outside circle is what I call the community. (PP) That's everybody in the whole community. Some of these folks show up Easter and Christmas, a couple or three times a year.

THE GOAL
The goal of our church is to help you grow in commitment so that one day when you stand before God you'll know the right answers. The first thing we want to do is get more of the community into the crowd. We want to get people who come once or twice a year to start coming every week.

Then we want to get the crowd into the congregation so that attenders become members, spectators become participators. We don't think Glasgow Bible Church is the only church; there are a lot of good churches right here in Glasgow. You just need to find some church and say "That's going to be my family and I'm going to be committed to it."

Then we want to get the congregation into the committed. You can take a class to help you understand the disciplines that will help you grow in the Christian life - such as discipleship or Experiencing God.

Then we want to get the committed into the core, where we help you find a place in ministry that best expresses what God made you to be, so that someday when God says to you, "What did you do with what you got?" you'll know the answer.

If you haven't committed your life to Christ, that's the first step. Open your life to Christ. Say, "Jesus Christ, I want to be in Your plan. You made me for a purpose."

If you've done that, find a church family and commit to it. This church or somewhere else. Once you've found a church family, get committed to the disciplines for spiritual growth.

My challenge to you is very specific. What's the next level of commitment you need to make? (PP) What's the next step God wants you to take? (PP)

Prayer:

Father, I've tried to present this as clearly and simply as I know how. I carry this burden knowing that one day, there will be those who stand before You and You'll say, "What did you do with what you were given?" and some will say, "All I did was sit on it. All I did was go to church and sit on it. I never used my talent." I, today, pray that I've made it clear enough that they'll understand that that won't work.

Thank You Lord, that fulfillment and meaning and purpose and significance and success in life come when we do what we were made to do, when we find the niche for which You've created us. Father, if there are some here today who have never opened their life to Christ, may they say "yes" to You. I pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.

*Sermon adapted by Pastor Mike Padgett
from Pastor Rick Warren for Glasgow Bible Church.