Thanks for joining us on this journey of building a consistent habit of reading our Bibles every day. The Bible reading plan we are using this year can be found here: One Year Bible or here on the Bible app. As always, if you miss a day, don’t feel compelled to go back and catch up. Just skip it and start back on today’s date. I am reading the NLT this year, but feel free to use whatever version you prefer. Now here are some thoughts from today’s readings:
“‘Yes,’ the king replied, ‘and to those who use well what they are given, even more will be given. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away
– Luke 19:26
I believe this story of the master handing out minas (or talents, or pounds, or whatever your version of the Bible uses) is actually about people. God desires us to use what He has given us to help bring more people into the kingdom of God. Notice a few things here: first, everyone who won more minas was rewarded. He never judges us verses someone else’s ability to reach others. Second, though, notice that there was still a greater reward for the one who reached more.
We should be encouraged by the first idea. God would have celebrated the wicked servant if he had won one person (mina). What angered God was that he didn’t even try. He could have at least thrown his efforts into the bank (the church) and gotten interest. But he just buried it.
We also shouldn’t pretend like the one who got 10 people and the one who got 5 people are on the same level or deserve the same we reward. If we are a five people person or a one person person, we should celebrate the one who won ten because we know that brings joy to the heart of God, not to mention the joy we should get ourselves from people being saved from hell! This can be tough! It’s easy to criticize those we see as successful, when we should be celebrating the team victory. Jealousy has no place on the Lord’s team, and neither does complacency.