Doing God’s work - waiting for his return
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Have you ever been in a situation where at work your boss has to go on a business trip and it just feels like the office space is a little less tense. There’s a little natural reaction of “Wa-hoo!” the boss is out, we can slack off a little bit. Feels like a Friday afternoon. Now it probably would also depend on the type of boss you were working for. Some are not that enjoyable, but when you got a good boss, you have a more natural desire to work harder I think. And you know when the boss comes back, they’re probably going to be expecting some status updates on the projects.
Our core verses for today will be Luke 19:11-13, which is the start of the “Parable of the Ten Servants”. The introduction will make a little more sense once we get into things. We’re not actually going to read through the whole parable. And this is similar to the “Parable of the Talents” in Matthew. Essentially the “boss” is leaving town, he entrusts some of his possessions to the servants, and when he comes back he checks to see what they had done with what they were given.
We’re going to focus on the first few verses, though.
And as they heard these things, he added and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear. He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.
Alright so let’s clear up some things here. Jesus is the nobleman in this Parable, we know Jesus ends up dying on the cross for us, He’s raised from the dead and ascends into heaven, a “far country” in the parable, He’s crowned king, and then it says he returns. So we know all the first stuff has happened, and now we’re waiting for that last part. To the readers during those ancient times they would be thinking “parousia.” Parousia is an ancient Greek term, and in Christian Theology it means the second coming of Jesus.
Luke has already written about the second coming of Jesus in the previous chapters, so his readers already have some understanding and can identify what’s going on here.
Now in the last part, after he’s distributed the ten pounds between his ten servants, it says “Occupy till I come”.
So what does this mean and how do we relate to it? How do we Occupy until Christ returns.
The Greek word for “Occupy” here is Pragmateuomai. It means to “do business” or to “trade”. The New Living Translation translates that last part as “Invest this for me while I am gone.”
So we can take Occupy, as saying “GET INVOLVED.” Be the light in a dark world, go the extra mile, be their for your neighbor, love your enemy, volunteer, work hard at your job, stand out from the crowd and don’t be stagnant.
We all have different abilities, interests, and resources. But we’re all called to do God’s work. Do God’s business. Which is hard when the world hates Him.
In Luke 19:14, the next verse it says
But his people hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We do not want him to be our king.’
So this is talking in reference to the ones who would be citizens of the nobleman’s Kingdom in the Parable. In that time people reading this or hearing the Parable would probably be thinking of Jews that have rejected Jesus. But we can relate to this in our current living as well, Jesus is ruler and King over all, but there’s plenty that do not claim Jesus as King of their life, or even acknowledge his existence.
So we must do his business before the second coming. When you stand out as salt and light in the world, people recognize it and they may just change. Actions speak louder than words. Often times even though the world may disagree with your beliefs, it’s hard to dislike someone that’s forgiving, loving, helpful, patient, joyful. When we live like Christ, manifesting His work within us, it’s contagious. And that Christ like attitude can be used anywhere. God’s business is to bring people to Christ and give them hope. God’s business isn’t only done in a Church. In fact most of it is probably done outside of the Church building, because that’s where were at most of the time. We are in the world, but are not of it.
Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
Occupying is not gathering as many material possessions as we can, it’s showing God’s love to whoever we can. Nothing wrong with being blessed with wealth while on this earth, it’s just not what we live for. And the more we gain the more we can give. We can never out-give God. We always seem to receive more blessings from our sacrifices of time and giving of resources.
We live in a world where so much is done online, and there are so many things we can interact with it can feel like we’re being active when we’re really not. So many times I’ve scrolled through Facebook and seen a post about a good cause or maybe a friend is going through an issue and I “Like it” or interact with the post in someway and it feels like “Awesome I did something”, when in reality I’ve done nothing. But it’s easy to get in a habit or mindset like that.
Or perhaps it’s listening to the Word of God or reading it, but not putting effort into living it, then something is majorly wrong.
But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.
We are blessed by what we “DO”. By doing God’s business in this world. We could listen to a sermon every day of the week, but we’d still only be a hearer. There’s always opportunities to do his business, in every situation just think “Occupy” how can I “Occupy” and do God’s business in this situation.
This reminds me of what is said in Matthew 7:21-23
“Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’
It’s easy to say we know God, but to live out the life is much more difficult. And this isn’t to say works are what saves us or that we need to be perfect. We know that is not the case. But those who truly believe what the Word says and that Christ is our savior, will act differently than that of the world. Not always perfect, we stumble, but in many instances we’d see a change. Which is why James says “Faith without works is dead.” It just doesn’t add up.
And it does not mean we’ve failed to do God’s business if someone we’re around a lot has not been saved. We are only to plant the seed, to show and tell them who God is. The rest of the work is up to God.
And if you can help bring one life to Christ, that is a call for celebration. In another Parable, which Jesus uses money again in the example, is in Luke 15:8-10
“Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Won’t she light a lamp and sweep the entire house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she finds it, she will call in her friends and neighbors and say, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost coin.’ In the same way, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels when even one sinner repents.”
Just one soul saved is a call for God’s angels to rejoice. God cares about every soul. And when Christ returns, all will be rewarded according to the works that have been done for the Lord. The business that has been carried out in His name.
At the end of the parable, the servants who brought a profit, we’re given many cities to govern. The ones who had gained nothing, the stagnant servant, had to give what he had to the other servants. And those who rejected the nobleman as their king, were executed.
God is a God of Love, but he is also a God of wrath. And his just judgement will fall upon everyone. We must “occupy” while we wait for the second coming. Every day is sacred. We are given time to do God’s business, with his resources, which will bless us and those around us when we follow through with His plan and commandments. Don’t just be a hearer, be a doer. Then when we come face to face with God, he won’t say I never knew you, he’ll say well done good and faithful servant and we’ll receive our reward.