WELL DONE GOOD AND FAITHFUL SERVANT

PROCLAMATION

“And his lord said unto him, ‘Well done, thou good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things; enter thou into the joy of thy lord.’ ”  Matthew 25:21 and 23 (KJV)

 

EXPLANATION

These words are from the gospel, the good news regarding Jesus, The Christ, which were spoken by Christ according to the Apostle Matthew.  As Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives, He continued to speak to His disciples and unto the crowd.  He told them the Parable of the Ten Virgins (Matthew 25:1-13), the Parable of the Bags of Gold (Matthew 25:14-30), and He also told them about separating The Sheep and The Goats. (Matthew 25:31-46)  Five of the ten virgins were wise and prepared ahead of time, and five were foolish and did not prepare and so they were not ready when the time came for them to leave.  Two of the three servants used wisely what their master had given to them and were rewarded with “Well done …”  While the one servant, who did nothing with that which he was given, was punished.  When The Son of Man comes He will separate the sheep, His people, from the goats, all other people. (Matthew 25:31-34)  Those who treated needy people kindly will be rewarded, and those who didn’t will be punished.  He said, “… As ye have done it unto one of the least of these, My brethren, ye have done it unto Me.” (Matthew 25:35-40)

 

APPLICATION

We ought to get ready now for the return of Christ.  Delaying and procrastinating may cause us to be left behind like the five foolish virgins.  We all have God-given abilities and gifts which we need to use to His glory.  We should give at least one tenth of our time, talent, and treasure to the kingdom building efforts here on earth while we are able to do so.  When the time comes, we will be rewarded for our work. (Matthew 16:27)  We also need to be very careful regarding how we treat people, especially God’s people.  Christ said, as you have done it to them, you have done it to Him. (Matthew 25:40)  But He also said, whatever you did not do for those of His people who were in need, you did not do for Him. (Matthew 25:45)  This clearly states that we can sin by omission as well as by commission.  When we don’t do that which we should do, we also sin.  Doing nothing can be sinful when we have the opportunity to help someone and we don’t.  Let us not waste our God-given abilities and gifts, let us work to the glory of God.