Mt 25:21
His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and FAITHFUL servant
KJV

What is faithfulness? It was brought to my attention by Rev. Kenneth V. Reeves SEVERAL times in my life that when I stood before Jesus on the day of judgment, He would NOT say.. Lisa.. thou good and "prosperous servant". but the scripture says he will say, "well done thou good and FAITHFUL servant"...  What the world classisifes as faithfulness is not what the scripture classifies.  Here are a few things I have studied that burned in my heart again today as I worked. Hope it blesses and encourages you where ever you are called to work for the Lord and whatever your service may be.  Blessings!

Mt 25:21-45

21 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.

22 He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them.

23 His lord said unto him, Well done, 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.

24 Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed:

25 And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.

26 His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed:

27 Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury.

28 Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents.

29 For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.

30 And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:

32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:

33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:

36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.

37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?

38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?

39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?

40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:

42 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:

43 I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.

44 Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?

45 Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.

Study Helps

FAITHFUL, FAITHFULLY, FAITHLESS

1. pistos NT:4103, a verbal adjective, akin to peitho (see FAITH), is used in two senses, (a) passive, "faithful, to be trusted, reliable," said of God, e. g., 1 Co 1:9; 10:13; 2 Co 1:18 (KJV, "true"); 2 Ti 2:13; Heb 10:23; 11:11; 1 Pe 4:19; 1 Jn 1:9; of Christ, e. g., 2 Th 3:3; Heb 2:17; 3:2; Rv 1:5; 3:14; 19:11; of the words of God, e. g., Ac 13:34, "sure"; 1 Ti 1:15; 3:1 (KJV, "true"); 4:9; 2:11; 1:9; 3:8; 21:5; 22:6; of servants of the Lord, Mt 24:45; 25:21,23; Ac 16:15; 1 Co 4:2,17; 7:25; Eph 6:21; Col 1:7; 4:7,9; 1 Ti 1:12; 3:11; 2 Ti 2:2; Heb 3:5; 1 Pe 5:12; 3 Jn 5; Rv 2:13; 17:14; of believers, Eph 1:1; Col 1:2; (b) active, signifying "believing, trusting, relying," e. g., Ac 16:1 (feminine); 2 Co 6:15; Gal 3:9 seems best taken in this respect, as the context lays stress upon Abraham's "faith" in God, rather than upon his "faithfulness." In Jn 20:27 the context requires the active sense, as the Lord is reproaching Thomas for his want of "faith." See No. 2.

With regard to believers, they are spoken of sometimes in the active sense, sometimes in the passive, i. e., sometimes as believers, sometimes as "faithful." See Lightfoot on Galatians, p. 155.

Note: In 3 Jn 5 the RV has "thou doest a faithful work," for KJV, "thou doest faithfully." The lit. rendering is "thou doest (poieo) a faithful thing, whatsoever thou workest (ergazo)." That would not do as a translation. To do a "faithful" work is to do what is worthy of a "faithful" man. The KJV gives a meaning but is not exact as a translation. Westcott suggests "thou makest sure (piston) whatsoever thou workest" (i. e., it will not lose its reward). The change between poieo, "to do," and ergazo, "to work," must be maintained. Cf. Mt 26:10 (ergazo and ergon).

2. apistos NT:571 is used with meanings somewhat parallel to No. 1; (a) "untrustworthy" (a, negative, and No. 1), not worthy of confidence or belief, is said of things "incredible," Ac 26:8 (b) "unbelieving, distrustful," used as a noun, "unbeliever," Lk 12:46; 1 Ti 5:8 (RV, for KJV, "infidel"); in Tit 1:15 and Rv 21:8, "unbelieving"; "faithless" in Mt 17:17; Mk 9:19; Lk 9:41; Jn 20:27. The word is most frequent in 1 and 2 Corinthians. See BELIEVE, INCREDIBLE, INFIDEL, UNBELIEVER, UNFAITHFUL. (In the Sept., Pr 17:6; 28:25; Isa 17:10.).
(from Vine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, Copyright © 1985, Thomas Nelson Publishers.)

 

 

Posted by Lisa_Nor on Mon 20 Apr 2009 9:25:11 pm     | no comments

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I John 1:9  "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

"They took Jesus, and led Him away."
John 19:16

He had been all night in agony, He had spent the early morning at the hall of Caiaphas, He had been hurried from Caiaphas to Pilate, from Pilate to Herod, and from Herod back again to Pilate; He had, therefore, but little strength left, and yet neither refreshment nor rest were permitted Him. They were eager for His blood, and therefore led Him out to die, loaded with the cross. O dolorous procession! Well may Salem's daughters weep. My soul, do thou weep also.

What learn we here as we see our blessed Lord led forth? Do we not perceive that truth which was set forth in shadow by the scapegoat? Did not the high-priest bring the scapegoat, and put both his hands upon its head, confessing the sins of the people, that thus those sins might be laid upon the goat, and cease from the people? Then the goat was led away by a fit man into the wilderness, and it carried away the sins of the people, so that if they were sought for they could not be found. Now we see Jesus brought before the priests and rulers, who pronounce Him guilty; God Himself imputes our sins to Him, "the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all;" "He was made sin for us;" and, as the substitute for our guilt, bearing our sin upon His shoulders, represented by the cross; we see the great Scapegoat led away by the appointed officers of justice. Beloved, can you feel assured that He carried your sin? As you look at the cross upon His shoulders, does it represent your sin? There is one way by which you can tell whether He carried your sin or not. Have you laid your hand upon His head, confessed your sin, and trusted in Him? Then your sin lies not on you; it has all been transferred by blessed imputation to Christ, and He bears it on His shoulder as a load heavier than the cross.

Let not the picture vanish till you have rejoiced in your own deliverance, and adored the loving Redeemer upon whom your iniquities were laid.

">embed>www.youtube.com/watch

 

Posted by Lisa_Nor on Sat 11 Apr 2009 12:13:18 am     | no comments

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Revelation 2:10  "Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life."

 

Posted by Lisa_Nor on Fri 3 Apr 2009 3:43:54 am     | no comments

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For You and For Me
(by Roy Irwin)
 
You may find this hard to believe, but just about everyone has a scar somewhere on their body. And with every scar there is a story to go with it.
 
I learned this lesson at a gathering where most of the people did not know one another very well and appeared to have little in common. As you might expect, there was a lot of small talk as each person more or less kept to themselves. Then the hostess introduced an 'Ice Breaker' - a question meant to jump-start the conversation by getting everyone to participate. Each person was asked to share their personal "scar story" - a story about how they got a scar.
 
As we went around the room everyone shared their particular story; some were funny, some very serious. But with each story we learned more about the person. It became obvious that everyone had more in common than was first thought and the walls that had once separated us began to disappear, bringing us closer together as a group.
 
As I was remembering that meeting I was reminded of my own scars. I have three: one on my foot caused when running barefoot in a field as a child; one on my forehead from a college prank - it becomes more noticeable each year as my hair becomes less noticeable; and one on my hand, caused in a moment of anger just a few years ago...
 
For every scar there is also the memory of the pain that went with it.
 
I was trying to imagine what it would be like if Jesus shared about His scars. About how He was mocked and beaten. About how He suffered the cruelest form of death by being nailed to a cross. About how He lived a sinless life yet would bear your sins and mine. About how He knew since the beginning of time those events would take place, yet He came, willingly, to take our place - paying a debt He didn't owe because we owed a debt we couldn't pay - removing the sin that separates us from God.
 
One day we will see Jesus face to face. We will see His scars and know the truth from Romans 5:8: "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (NIV)
 
For you and for me.
 
"Dear Lord Jesus, thank you loving us so much that you were willing to die for us so that we could live with you for all eternity. Help us to see the world through the scars in your hands. Help us to live each day for you.
 
Amen."

Posted by Lisa_Nor on Tue 31 Mar 2009 11:22:35 am     | no comments

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ex 33:7-11

7 And Moses took the tabernacle, and pitched it without the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it the Tabernacle of the congregation. And it came to pass, that every one which sought the LORD went out unto the tabernacle of the congregation, which was without the camp.

8 And it came to pass, when Moses went out unto the tabernacle, that all the people rose up, and stood every man at his tent door, and looked after Moses, until he was gone into the tabernacle.

9 And it came to pass, as Moses entered into the tabernacle, the cloudy pillar descended, and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the LORD talked with Moses.

10 And all the people saw the cloudy pillar stand at the tabernacle door: and all the people rose up and worshipped, every man in his tent door.

11 And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle.
KJV

Study Helps for "departed".... Hebrew word is ..."muwsh"

OT:4185 muwsh (moosh); a primitive root [perhaps rather the same as OT:4184 through the idea of receding by contact]; to withdraw (both literally and figuratively, whether intransitive or transitive):
KJV - cease, depart, go back, remove, take away.
(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)
 

 

Posted by Lisa_Nor on Mon 30 Mar 2009 3:17:03 am     | no comments

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------