WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.710 --> 00:00:03.109 Jesus talked more about money than he did heaven or hell. 2 00:00:03.229 --> 00:00:06.389 Did you know that? He talked more about money than 3 00:00:06.410 --> 00:00:08.699 heaven or hell. Why? Because we spend more time thinking 4 00:00:08.710 --> 00:00:12.000 about money than heaven or hell. We spend much of 5 00:00:12.060 --> 00:00:14.560 our time thinking about how to get it, how to 6 00:00:14.619 --> 00:00:16.949 make it, how to save it, how to spend it, 7 00:00:17.199 --> 00:00:19.640 how to invest it, how to protect it, how to, 8 00:00:20.079 --> 00:00:25.480 you know, insure it, and all the other things. And 9 00:00:25.839 --> 00:00:29.649 it dominates much of our lives. And so Jesus had 10 00:00:29.670 --> 00:00:32.520 a lot to say about money management. He also told 11 00:00:32.560 --> 00:00:36.020 us that money management is a spiritual discipline, that God 12 00:00:36.060 --> 00:00:40.340 is actually watching how I handle my wealth to see 13 00:00:40.679 --> 00:00:43.100 what he can trust me with, with true spiritual riches 14 00:00:43.600 --> 00:00:47.869 in heaven. Jesus, when he told the parables, you know, 15 00:00:47.909 --> 00:00:50.810 the stories, the famous stories of Jesus, over half of 16 00:00:50.850 --> 00:00:54.829 the parables Jesus told deal with material possessions. So there's 17 00:00:54.850 --> 00:00:57.390 a lot of material in the on how to get 18 00:00:57.469 --> 00:00:59.429 out of debt, how to stay out of debt, how 19 00:00:59.469 --> 00:01:03.299 to control money instead of having it control you. Now, 20 00:01:03.700 --> 00:01:07.599 this weekend, before we begin Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, I want 21 00:01:07.659 --> 00:01:10.719 us to look at Matthew chapter 25. If you have 22 00:01:10.760 --> 00:01:13.280 a Bible, you might want to open to Matthew chapter 25. 23 00:01:13.280 --> 00:01:15.939 We're just going to look at the story that Jesus 24 00:01:16.000 --> 00:01:18.459 told there. If you don't, pull out your message notes 25 00:01:18.700 --> 00:01:20.250 and all of the verses we're going to look at 26 00:01:20.629 --> 00:01:25.329 are there. This is called the parable of the talents. Now, 27 00:01:26.409 --> 00:01:30.109 Many people misunderstand this parable because it has the word 28 00:01:30.189 --> 00:01:32.560 talent in it. And when we hear the word talent, 29 00:01:32.579 --> 00:01:37.659 we think of gifts, abilities, your shape, your personality, your 30 00:01:37.700 --> 00:01:40.299 spiritual gifts, your heart, the things you love to do, 31 00:01:40.340 --> 00:01:43.739 what you're naturally good at. The word, the English word 32 00:01:43.819 --> 00:01:47.859 talent actually comes from this chapter in the Bible. Before 33 00:01:49.040 --> 00:01:52.709 there was this, Jesus told this story, the word talent 34 00:01:52.750 --> 00:01:58.010 didn't exist. But a talent is actually a measurement of money. 35 00:01:58.989 --> 00:02:02.250 And while this does have application to your talents, your gifts, 36 00:02:02.299 --> 00:02:05.819 your abilities, this is actually a parable, a story about 37 00:02:05.879 --> 00:02:10.840 money management. A talent was a specific weight of gold. 38 00:02:11.460 --> 00:02:13.979 And there was a Babylonian talent, there was a Greek talent, 39 00:02:14.020 --> 00:02:16.360 and there was a Roman talent, which was a specific 40 00:02:16.439 --> 00:02:19.460 amount of money. So we're gonna look at it. Now 41 00:02:19.560 --> 00:02:24.379 in this chapter, we're gonna start in verse 14. We 42 00:02:24.400 --> 00:02:27.960 have the story of a rich businessman. And Jesus tells 43 00:02:27.979 --> 00:02:31.159 the story of a guy who's very, very wealthy. We 44 00:02:31.199 --> 00:02:35.120 can know that by what he gives his servants to 45 00:02:35.159 --> 00:02:37.120 take care of. And he says, I'm gonna go away 46 00:02:37.159 --> 00:02:38.919 on a trip. And I'm gonna be gone for a 47 00:02:38.939 --> 00:02:41.780 long time, so I'm gonna put you in charge of 48 00:02:41.939 --> 00:02:46.240 my property. And he divides up his wealth. You know, 49 00:02:46.259 --> 00:02:49.180 in those days, there weren't any banks. And so you 50 00:02:49.199 --> 00:02:51.969 didn't keep your money in a bank. So he's got 51 00:02:52.009 --> 00:02:54.129 all of his wealth at home and he divides his 52 00:02:54.210 --> 00:02:56.909 wealth up among his three servants. And he says, I 53 00:02:57.129 --> 00:02:59.490 expect you guys to make the most of this. And 54 00:02:59.509 --> 00:03:02.500 when I come back, we'll see what happens. And so 55 00:03:02.539 --> 00:03:06.120 he's gone for a long time. And later the businessman 56 00:03:06.180 --> 00:03:08.259 comes back home and he says, okay, give me an account. 57 00:03:08.319 --> 00:03:12.780 What'd you guys do with my money? And they tell 58 00:03:12.819 --> 00:03:14.759 the story and two of the guys have a good report. 59 00:03:14.780 --> 00:03:17.250 One of the guys has a bad report. And then 60 00:03:17.310 --> 00:03:20.030 Jesus draws some spiritual truths out of this. Out of 61 00:03:20.069 --> 00:03:27.669 this story, We learn seven foundations for financial fitness. If 62 00:03:27.710 --> 00:03:29.610 you ever needed to take notes, you need to take 63 00:03:29.650 --> 00:03:34.530 notes this weekend. Because these are foundations that base the 64 00:03:34.569 --> 00:03:37.659 stability of your life on in order to become all 65 00:03:37.680 --> 00:03:40.120 God wants you to be. Now let's look at it together. 66 00:03:40.219 --> 00:03:44.659 They're on your outline. In Matthew 25, verse 14, we 67 00:03:44.699 --> 00:03:47.379 see the beginning of the story. And it says this. 68 00:03:48.319 --> 00:03:51.379 The kingdom of heaven, Jesus said, will be like a 69 00:03:51.460 --> 00:03:56.319 man going on a journey, this businessman. And he called 70 00:03:56.400 --> 00:04:01.770 his three servants together and he entrusted his property to them. Now, 71 00:04:01.789 --> 00:04:03.509 if you're taking notes, I want you to circle the 72 00:04:03.550 --> 00:04:07.530 word his there on that verse. It says he called 73 00:04:07.830 --> 00:04:13.289 his three servants together and entrusted his property to them. 74 00:04:13.650 --> 00:04:16.449 It's not the servant's money. It's the master's money, but 75 00:04:16.500 --> 00:04:18.899 he's giving it to them to take care of. This, 76 00:04:18.939 --> 00:04:22.670 by the way, is called stewardship. You've heard this word before, 77 00:04:22.689 --> 00:04:27.610 a steward or stewardship. That's the old English word for manager. 78 00:04:28.350 --> 00:04:30.990 Any of you who are managers or involved in management 79 00:04:31.129 --> 00:04:33.930 in a business are actually stewards. A steward is a 80 00:04:33.970 --> 00:04:37.579 manager and stewardship simply means management. We are called to 81 00:04:37.600 --> 00:04:40.379 be stewards of our time, manage your time. We are 82 00:04:40.420 --> 00:04:43.379 called to be stewards of our influence. We are called 83 00:04:43.399 --> 00:04:46.420 to be stewards of our health, of our minds, of 84 00:04:46.500 --> 00:04:50.089 our relationships, of our opportunities. Everything you have you were 85 00:04:50.110 --> 00:04:54.149 to be a steward of or a manager of. Now, 86 00:04:55.250 --> 00:05:00.399 he says here, he entrusted his property to his servants. Now, 87 00:05:00.920 --> 00:05:04.040 this is the first law of financial freedom, and it 88 00:05:04.100 --> 00:05:06.300 is this. The law of possession is this. You might 89 00:05:06.319 --> 00:05:11.480 write this down. Everything I have belongs to God. I 90 00:05:11.519 --> 00:05:13.879 need you to settle that one right up front. It's 91 00:05:13.980 --> 00:05:18.689 not my money. It all belongs to God. You say, 92 00:05:18.689 --> 00:05:21.779 wait a minute. But I worked for this. Where do 93 00:05:21.800 --> 00:05:23.620 you think you got your body to work for? Where 94 00:05:23.639 --> 00:05:25.160 do you think you got your mind to work for? 95 00:05:25.180 --> 00:05:27.360 Where do you think you got your energy to work for? 96 00:05:27.399 --> 00:05:29.139 Where do you think you got your intelligence to work? 97 00:05:29.459 --> 00:05:32.800 Everything you have is a gift from God. So you 98 00:05:32.839 --> 00:05:36.949 don't really own anything in life. It's all on loan. 99 00:05:37.009 --> 00:05:38.709 Someday I'm gonna write a book and the first sentence 100 00:05:38.750 --> 00:05:41.350 of the book will be, what you think you own 101 00:05:41.870 --> 00:05:46.189 is really on loan. You see, I didn't own anything 102 00:05:46.230 --> 00:05:49.550 before I was born. I didn't bring anything into the world. 103 00:05:49.870 --> 00:05:51.589 I've been there at the birth of all my babies 104 00:05:52.089 --> 00:05:55.019 and grandbabies. None of them came in carrying a satchel 105 00:05:55.040 --> 00:05:58.879 full of money. You didn't bring anything into the world. 106 00:05:59.459 --> 00:06:01.519 And I've been there at the other end too at 107 00:06:01.560 --> 00:06:04.569 the funerals. Nobody takes it out with them. You never 108 00:06:04.610 --> 00:06:09.730 see a hearse driving a U-Haul with it. So you 109 00:06:09.930 --> 00:06:13.819 only get to use it while you're here. It's God's money. 110 00:06:14.699 --> 00:06:17.819 God loaned it to somebody before you. He's loaned it 111 00:06:17.879 --> 00:06:20.139 to you for 80 years, and he's going to loan 112 00:06:20.180 --> 00:06:22.910 it to somebody else after you die. You don't own it. 113 00:06:23.699 --> 00:06:28.790 It's all under management. The master owns it all. God 114 00:06:28.889 --> 00:06:34.470 is the owner. Now, this is really important because we 115 00:06:34.490 --> 00:06:38.550 tend to forget it. We forget, and when we forget it, 116 00:06:38.810 --> 00:06:40.589 you know what is the sign that you've forgotten that 117 00:06:40.610 --> 00:06:43.569 it's God's and not yours? When you think it's yours, 118 00:06:43.889 --> 00:06:48.449 you worry about it. Worry is the sign that you 119 00:06:48.490 --> 00:06:53.819 think it's all yours. Now, let's say you had a 120 00:06:53.839 --> 00:06:56.180 beach house and you said, Rick, I'm going to Spain 121 00:06:56.220 --> 00:06:57.600 for a year and we're going to let you and 122 00:06:57.660 --> 00:07:01.259 Kay use our beach house for a year. So we 123 00:07:01.379 --> 00:07:02.939 use your beach house for a year. And then you 124 00:07:02.959 --> 00:07:04.379 call up a year later and go, you know what? 125 00:07:04.699 --> 00:07:06.160 We think we're gonna stay, we're having a good time, 126 00:07:06.180 --> 00:07:08.199 so we're gonna stay another year in Spain. Use our 127 00:07:08.259 --> 00:07:11.120 beach house for another year. And so then on the 128 00:07:11.160 --> 00:07:12.660 third year, you call up again and say, hey, go 129 00:07:12.680 --> 00:07:14.579 ahead and use it for a third year. By this time, 130 00:07:14.639 --> 00:07:17.879 I'm starting to think, this is mine. You come home 131 00:07:17.939 --> 00:07:19.759 about year four and you say, I'm ready to move 132 00:07:19.800 --> 00:07:21.899 back in. I say, what do you mean? You're not moving, 133 00:07:21.930 --> 00:07:25.649 this is my house. You know, possessions, nine-tenths of the law. 134 00:07:26.829 --> 00:07:30.250 It's mine now. And we tend to think because God 135 00:07:31.259 --> 00:07:33.379 has loaned it to us for an extended period of 136 00:07:33.420 --> 00:07:36.060 time that it's ours. It's not. Now, if you would 137 00:07:36.100 --> 00:07:38.939 remind yourself of this first truth every day, you'd worry 138 00:07:38.980 --> 00:07:41.639 a whole lot less. Now, in the next verse, verse 15, 139 00:07:41.639 --> 00:07:45.519 it says, this master, he loans his money out. He says, 140 00:07:45.540 --> 00:07:48.300 to one servant, he gave five talents of money. And 141 00:07:48.379 --> 00:07:52.860 to another, he gave two talents of money. And to another, 142 00:07:53.319 --> 00:07:57.860 it says he gave one talent of money. Now, what's 143 00:07:57.879 --> 00:08:01.399 he talking about here? Well, a talent... Literally, a Roman 144 00:08:01.439 --> 00:08:07.399 talent is 71 pounds of gold. Think about that. This 145 00:08:07.459 --> 00:08:11.519 is not a small amount. He's really trusting. And God 146 00:08:11.540 --> 00:08:14.439 has made a huge investment in you. We'll talk about 147 00:08:14.490 --> 00:08:18.250 that later. But the first law, the law God possesses everything. 148 00:08:18.629 --> 00:08:21.310 It all belongs to him. And then this is the 149 00:08:21.370 --> 00:08:24.980 second law. And it says he gives five talents to one. 150 00:08:25.709 --> 00:08:28.209 two talents to another, and one talent of gold to 151 00:08:28.250 --> 00:08:30.509 another guy, each according to his ability that he left 152 00:08:30.569 --> 00:08:33.200 on his journey. This is the law of allocation. And 153 00:08:33.220 --> 00:08:39.159 it is this. God has loaned me money. I just 154 00:08:39.200 --> 00:08:42.059 talked about that. You don't really own it. He's loaning 155 00:08:42.120 --> 00:08:45.299 it to you for 30, 40, 50, 60, 80, 90, 156 00:08:45.299 --> 00:08:49.580 at the most 100 years. Now you notice in this 157 00:08:49.620 --> 00:08:52.759 story that Jesus tells, everybody gets a different amount. That's obvious. 158 00:08:53.539 --> 00:08:57.799 We're not all equally wealthy. We're not all equally, you know, 159 00:08:57.820 --> 00:09:01.659 have the same economic status. It says some guy get 160 00:09:01.759 --> 00:09:04.919 one talent, some guy gets two talents, some guy gets 161 00:09:05.279 --> 00:09:08.539 five talents of gold. But the point is this, everybody 162 00:09:08.559 --> 00:09:13.379 gets something. Now, there are no no-talent people in the world. 163 00:09:14.620 --> 00:09:17.980 If you're breathing, that is a blessing. If you are alive, 164 00:09:18.299 --> 00:09:22.759 that in itself is a blessing. Now, everybody gets something. 165 00:09:23.159 --> 00:09:25.269 And they all began to go out. Now notice the 166 00:09:25.309 --> 00:09:27.889 next verse, verse 16 there in your outline. The man 167 00:09:27.950 --> 00:09:33.110 who had received the five talents went at once and 168 00:09:33.250 --> 00:09:38.110 put his money to work and gained five more talents 169 00:09:38.149 --> 00:09:41.049 of gold. And so the one with the two talents 170 00:09:41.210 --> 00:09:45.889 also doubled his money. But the man who had received 171 00:09:45.929 --> 00:09:48.409 the one talent went off, dug a hole in the 172 00:09:48.450 --> 00:09:52.659 ground and just hid his master's money. Now there's a 173 00:09:52.679 --> 00:09:54.340 couple things I want to point out here. And the 174 00:09:54.360 --> 00:09:58.629 first is this. Money is a tool to be used. 175 00:09:59.289 --> 00:10:04.690 You put it to work. You use money and you 176 00:10:04.789 --> 00:10:08.309 love people. Now if you get that reversed, you're going 177 00:10:08.330 --> 00:10:11.230 to be in trouble. Because if you start loving money, 178 00:10:11.730 --> 00:10:17.230 you will use people. No. People are to be loved first. 179 00:10:17.559 --> 00:10:21.350 Money is to be used. You are to never love money. 180 00:10:21.529 --> 00:10:23.029 You are to use it. It is a tool to 181 00:10:23.049 --> 00:10:24.870 be used. You say, well, wait a minute. Isn't money 182 00:10:24.909 --> 00:10:26.970 the root of all evil? Isn't that what the Bible says? No, 183 00:10:26.990 --> 00:10:28.929 that's not what the Bible says. The Bible does not 184 00:10:29.029 --> 00:10:30.870 say money is the root of all evil. It says 185 00:10:31.190 --> 00:10:34.980 the love of money is the root of all evil. 186 00:10:35.960 --> 00:10:38.620 Money is totally neutral. It can be used for good 187 00:10:38.720 --> 00:10:42.500 or bad. It can be used by Hitler to bomb Europe. 188 00:10:43.169 --> 00:10:46.570 Or it could be used by churches to spread good 189 00:10:46.629 --> 00:10:50.850 news and feed the hungry. You can use it on 190 00:10:50.929 --> 00:10:53.820 very selfish centered purposes or you can use it for 191 00:10:53.860 --> 00:10:57.960 very unselfish purposes. You can use it to create businesses 192 00:10:58.120 --> 00:11:01.299 and products that bless the entire world. Money is a 193 00:11:01.399 --> 00:11:04.120 neutral thing. It's neither good nor bad. It's what you 194 00:11:04.200 --> 00:11:08.159 do with it. But he says, put your money to work. 195 00:11:08.659 --> 00:11:10.919 One of the things we're gonna learn in the next 196 00:11:11.539 --> 00:11:15.250 several weeks together is how to put your money to work. 197 00:11:15.649 --> 00:11:18.879 The reason why most people are in debt and the 198 00:11:18.909 --> 00:11:22.179 reason why most people never get out of debt is 199 00:11:22.220 --> 00:11:25.000 because they are always working for their money instead of 200 00:11:25.059 --> 00:11:29.100 having their money work for them. You gotta reverse this. 201 00:11:29.259 --> 00:11:31.019 This is a whole different way of thinking about money. 202 00:11:31.860 --> 00:11:34.850 You gotta learn how to put your money to work 203 00:11:35.029 --> 00:11:38.389 for you instead of you working for money. If you 204 00:11:38.429 --> 00:11:42.240 work for money, you will always be needing more. You 205 00:11:42.269 --> 00:11:45.620 will always be in debt. But if you learn how 206 00:11:45.659 --> 00:11:49.700 to make money work for you, then money becomes your servant. 207 00:11:50.000 --> 00:11:52.919 Money is a wonderful servant. It is a terrible master. 208 00:11:54.159 --> 00:11:56.240 It is a terrible master. And you know it's a 209 00:11:56.279 --> 00:11:58.879 master when it's causing stress in your life. Then it's 210 00:11:58.960 --> 00:12:03.259 mastering you. It's controlling you. Now, he says he gives 211 00:12:03.320 --> 00:12:05.440 the money out to these three servants. One goes out 212 00:12:05.480 --> 00:12:07.080 and invests it, puts it to work. The other goes 213 00:12:07.120 --> 00:12:09.250 out and puts it to work. The third guy goes 214 00:12:09.279 --> 00:12:11.870 and hides it in the ground. Here's the point. You 215 00:12:11.929 --> 00:12:14.759 get to choose what you do with what God gives you. 216 00:12:16.440 --> 00:12:20.139 You don't get to choose what you're given. Some people 217 00:12:20.159 --> 00:12:22.559 are given one talent. Some people are given five talents. 218 00:12:22.610 --> 00:12:25.009 Some people are given 10 talents. Some people are given 219 00:12:25.049 --> 00:12:30.470 two talents. There's just different amounts. But you do get 220 00:12:30.509 --> 00:12:33.620 to choose what you do with it. And what you 221 00:12:33.669 --> 00:12:47.500 do with it is what God is watching. Today I've 222 00:12:47.539 --> 00:12:50.019 got a quick note from a listener in Minneapolis. His 223 00:12:50.059 --> 00:12:52.659 name is Bill. And Bill wrote to me, Rick, I 224 00:12:52.700 --> 00:12:54.840 want to let you know that I prayed with you 225 00:12:54.879 --> 00:12:59.019 this morning accepting God into my life. Wow, that's great. 226 00:12:59.480 --> 00:13:01.720 Daily Hope has become the way that I start each 227 00:13:01.779 --> 00:13:05.860 day listening to your podcast. So much has changed in 228 00:13:05.899 --> 00:13:08.840 my life over the past year. I had a job loss. 229 00:13:08.879 --> 00:13:11.450 I had a transition. I had a divorce. My dad 230 00:13:11.500 --> 00:13:16.610 passed away. Cancer and my faith all in the same year. 231 00:13:17.779 --> 00:13:19.769 I'm so thankful for all that you do. Well, Bill, 232 00:13:20.009 --> 00:13:22.169 I want to tell you, I know you've been going 233 00:13:22.210 --> 00:13:24.990 through some really tough times this past year, but there's 234 00:13:25.029 --> 00:13:28.129 no greater news than hearing that you've accepted Jesus into 235 00:13:28.149 --> 00:13:30.350 your life and the fact that God used the Daily 236 00:13:30.389 --> 00:13:34.389 Hope podcast to lead you to him is such a blessing. 237 00:13:35.190 --> 00:13:36.929 And I want you to know that as you continue 238 00:13:36.970 --> 00:13:40.129 to study God's word every day, you're going to find 239 00:13:40.429 --> 00:13:43.350 that your faith is growing and you'll see God actively 240 00:13:43.470 --> 00:13:46.509 working in your life. I really am as excited today 241 00:13:46.809 --> 00:13:49.110 to think about what the next year is going to bring. 242 00:13:49.370 --> 00:13:51.990 Year two in your life will be very different than 243 00:13:52.009 --> 00:13:55.600 the last year. And to the rest of you, all 244 00:13:55.620 --> 00:13:58.320 of our Daily Hope listeners, I just want to thank 245 00:13:58.379 --> 00:14:01.120 you because we're able to provide the Daily Hope podcast 246 00:14:01.460 --> 00:14:05.960 to people like Bill because of your generous support. Thank you, 247 00:14:06.000 --> 00:14:08.059 thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. Thank you 248 00:14:08.100 --> 00:14:11.269 for helping us share the good news all around the world. 249 00:14:11.690 --> 00:14:13.929 We love you. And imagine what it's going to be 250 00:14:14.490 --> 00:14:16.289 to get to heaven and see all these people who 251 00:14:16.330 --> 00:14:19.809 came to know Christ because of your giving. God bless you. 252 00:14:21.330 --> 00:14:24.450 You can join us in bringing hope to others. Just 253 00:14:24.509 --> 00:14:32.159 scan the QR code or go to dailyhopetv.com. Now, when 254 00:14:32.200 --> 00:14:34.559 you get to heaven one day, God is not going 255 00:14:34.580 --> 00:14:38.399 to say, why weren't you more like your brother? Why 256 00:14:38.419 --> 00:14:40.590 weren't you more like your dad? Why weren't you more 257 00:14:40.610 --> 00:14:44.009 like your mother? Why weren't you more? No. You are 258 00:14:44.049 --> 00:14:46.940 only responsible for the talents you've been given. And I'm 259 00:14:46.980 --> 00:14:49.940 talking about not just money, but your time and your 260 00:14:49.980 --> 00:14:53.639 abilities and all these other different things. When you get 261 00:14:53.659 --> 00:14:56.340 to heaven, God is never gonna compare you to anybody else. 262 00:14:57.919 --> 00:14:59.740 And you can't say, well look, you only gave me 263 00:14:59.840 --> 00:15:03.139 one talent, you gave that guy five talents. God isn't 264 00:15:03.159 --> 00:15:06.220 gonna say, who you talking about? God wants to know 265 00:15:06.360 --> 00:15:10.029 what did you do with what you were given. What 266 00:15:10.110 --> 00:15:12.629 did you do with what you were given? Not what 267 00:15:12.669 --> 00:15:16.220 I gave somebody else, but what I gave you. So 268 00:15:16.240 --> 00:15:18.700 God says, you get to choose what you do with 269 00:15:18.740 --> 00:15:21.600 the money I gave you. Now, what can you do 270 00:15:21.620 --> 00:15:24.710 with that money? You can waste it. And there are 271 00:15:24.730 --> 00:15:27.379 plenty of ways to waste it. You can spend it. 272 00:15:28.470 --> 00:15:33.470 You can use it. You can invest it. You know, 273 00:15:33.490 --> 00:15:36.279 they're all different. You could hoard it. There are lots 274 00:15:36.320 --> 00:15:38.120 of ways, and God lets you choose which way you 275 00:15:38.139 --> 00:15:39.690 want to do it. But you will have to give 276 00:15:39.710 --> 00:15:42.250 an account one day for the reasons you chose to 277 00:15:42.309 --> 00:15:45.090 do what you did with the money he loaned to 278 00:15:45.149 --> 00:15:48.889 you while you were alive. This is a test. One day, 279 00:15:48.909 --> 00:15:51.320 you're going to have to explain it. And that's why 280 00:15:51.360 --> 00:15:54.539 in verse 19 it says, After a long time, the 281 00:15:54.659 --> 00:16:00.159 master of the three servants returned to settle his accounts. 282 00:16:00.279 --> 00:16:05.830 Circle the word accounts. He said he returned to settle 283 00:16:06.830 --> 00:16:09.990 his accounts. This is the next law, the third law. 284 00:16:10.429 --> 00:16:14.220 And the third law is the law of accountability. And 285 00:16:14.240 --> 00:16:18.659 the law of accountability is this. One day, God will 286 00:16:18.779 --> 00:16:23.639 audit me. One day, God is going to audit me. 287 00:16:23.840 --> 00:16:27.360 He's going to come and settle accounts. There's gonna be 288 00:16:27.399 --> 00:16:30.720 a final exam on the life God gave you. It 289 00:16:30.759 --> 00:16:34.139 will be a life audit, not by the IRS, but 290 00:16:34.200 --> 00:16:39.220 by the G-O-D. And the difference between the IRS and 291 00:16:39.240 --> 00:16:43.139 the G-O-D is God has all the records. You don't 292 00:16:43.179 --> 00:16:46.649 have to bring any to that audit. He's already got it. 293 00:16:47.129 --> 00:16:50.029 He's seen everything you've ever done with your time, with 294 00:16:50.070 --> 00:16:53.429 your words, with your money, with your life. The times 295 00:16:53.450 --> 00:16:55.549 you used it for good and the times you just 296 00:16:55.590 --> 00:16:58.570 flat out blew it But you will give an account 297 00:16:58.690 --> 00:17:00.950 one day. And it is foolish to go through life 298 00:17:01.009 --> 00:17:02.889 thinking that I'm not gonna have an audit at the 299 00:17:02.909 --> 00:17:05.869 end of life. You think God would create you, put 300 00:17:05.890 --> 00:17:08.059 you on this planet, and then at the end say, 301 00:17:08.279 --> 00:17:11.420 now what'd you do with your life? I put you, 302 00:17:11.480 --> 00:17:13.319 I created you, and I made you for a reason. 303 00:17:14.539 --> 00:17:17.839 And so there's gonna be this audit. God has made 304 00:17:17.880 --> 00:17:21.220 an investment in you. He has given you certain gifts, 305 00:17:21.519 --> 00:17:25.980 certain abilities, certain opportunities. He's given you certain resources. He's 306 00:17:26.000 --> 00:17:28.759 given you a certain heritage. He's given you certain freedoms. 307 00:17:28.779 --> 00:17:31.559 He's given you a certain amount of intellect and intelligence 308 00:17:31.880 --> 00:17:34.789 and energy. And God's going, what'd you do with all 309 00:17:34.809 --> 00:17:38.430 that stuff? Well, I made a lot of money, retired, 310 00:17:38.470 --> 00:17:42.269 and died. Ah, wrong answer. You think I put you 311 00:17:42.329 --> 00:17:45.910 on earth to live for yourself? I mean, come on. 312 00:17:47.089 --> 00:17:49.069 I mean, really, come on. You think I put you 313 00:17:49.109 --> 00:17:54.130 on earth to live simply for yourself? And to stockpile 314 00:17:54.170 --> 00:17:55.470 a bunch of things that you're not gonna take with 315 00:17:55.490 --> 00:17:59.029 you anyway when you die? Life is not in the 316 00:17:59.150 --> 00:18:02.109 acquisition of things. You've seen that bumper sticker, he who 317 00:18:02.130 --> 00:18:05.950 dies with the most toys wins. No, the sticker should say, 318 00:18:06.009 --> 00:18:10.369 he who dies with the most toys still dies. And 319 00:18:10.390 --> 00:18:13.119 he wasted his life because life is not about the 320 00:18:13.359 --> 00:18:15.559 acquisition of things because you're not taking any of it 321 00:18:15.599 --> 00:18:21.799 with you. It all belongs to God. God has loaned 322 00:18:21.819 --> 00:18:24.910 it to me. He's watching what I do with it. 323 00:18:24.980 --> 00:18:27.430 And one day I'm going to give an account of 324 00:18:27.490 --> 00:18:31.910 how well I used the money, the resources, the time, 325 00:18:31.970 --> 00:18:35.509 the energy, all things that God gave me. The Bible 326 00:18:35.549 --> 00:18:39.349 says this here on the screen, Romans 14, 12. Each 327 00:18:39.410 --> 00:18:44.200 of us will give an account of himself to God. Now, 328 00:18:44.220 --> 00:18:49.920 you know, it's fun to be irresponsible, but you can't 329 00:18:49.940 --> 00:18:52.900 be irresponsible your entire life. My guess is that when 330 00:18:52.920 --> 00:18:55.720 you got out of high school, You either A, went 331 00:18:55.759 --> 00:18:57.400 off and tried to get a job, or you went 332 00:18:57.420 --> 00:19:00.460 off to college. And either way, whether you went to 333 00:19:00.500 --> 00:19:02.400 college or went to work, there's probably a few years 334 00:19:02.440 --> 00:19:05.329 in there you were just slacking around. You're thinking, I'm 335 00:19:05.390 --> 00:19:07.930 out of the house, I'm gonna have some fun. And 336 00:19:07.970 --> 00:19:10.589 you're kind of irresponsible. You sleep in, you don't really 337 00:19:10.630 --> 00:19:13.609 try to get a job. You're watching cartoons, eating Cocoa Puffs, 338 00:19:14.730 --> 00:19:18.859 and playing video games, and things like that. But at 339 00:19:18.900 --> 00:19:21.609 some point, you have to wake up and go, excuse me, 340 00:19:21.640 --> 00:19:25.539 I gotta get a life. I cannot be irresponsible my 341 00:19:25.619 --> 00:19:28.099 entire life. It might work for a year or two, 342 00:19:28.559 --> 00:19:31.609 but the master's gonna come back and I'm gonna give 343 00:19:31.619 --> 00:19:35.769 an account. And irresponsibility never lasts. It always catches you 344 00:19:35.869 --> 00:19:38.210 in the end. And that's what happens to people when 345 00:19:38.230 --> 00:19:41.650 they get in debt. We are financially irresponsible and it 346 00:19:41.710 --> 00:19:44.730 eventually catches up with us. And the chickens come home 347 00:19:44.769 --> 00:19:51.450 to roost. Right now, America is really, in the results 348 00:19:51.769 --> 00:19:56.269 of decades of overspending. And how the most blessed and 349 00:19:56.470 --> 00:20:01.099 most prosperous and the most wealthy nation in the world 350 00:20:01.470 --> 00:20:03.859 can be on the verge of bankruptcy isn't amazing, but 351 00:20:03.890 --> 00:20:05.539 it can happen. All you have to do is just 352 00:20:05.559 --> 00:20:07.980 spend trillions and trillions and trillions of dollars and keep 353 00:20:08.000 --> 00:20:13.200 spending it. You cannot be irresponsible forever. At some point, 354 00:20:13.420 --> 00:20:16.839 you have to kind of man up. Now, the law 355 00:20:16.859 --> 00:20:19.420 of accountability says that one day God's going to say, 356 00:20:19.460 --> 00:20:21.730 what'd you do with what I gave you? Now, notice 357 00:20:21.769 --> 00:20:24.650 these three guys have three different responses. The first guy, 358 00:20:25.410 --> 00:20:27.490 he's got a good report. He's got a good ROI, 359 00:20:27.549 --> 00:20:31.230 return on his investment. And in verse 21, 20 and 21, 360 00:20:31.230 --> 00:20:35.289 it says, the man who had received five talents, okay, 361 00:20:36.289 --> 00:20:38.710 brought the others. Remember, this is about nine million bucks. 362 00:20:39.000 --> 00:20:44.019 Brought the other five he had made. And master, he said, 363 00:20:44.259 --> 00:20:47.859 you entrusted me with five talents. See, I've gained five more. 364 00:20:49.420 --> 00:20:52.130 His master replied, well done, good and faithful servant. Well, 365 00:20:52.170 --> 00:20:55.710 I guess so. He's got 100% return. I'd be happy 366 00:20:55.769 --> 00:21:00.869 for a tenth of that today. Wouldn't you? I mean, 367 00:21:00.869 --> 00:21:04.819 100% return. He doubled his investment. I mean, this guy 368 00:21:04.839 --> 00:21:08.880 bought Google. You know, Okay, he clearly, he got in 369 00:21:08.960 --> 00:21:11.009 on the front end of Amazon or something and his 370 00:21:11.049 --> 00:21:15.269 stock has really soared. He doubles investment, 100% return. Same 371 00:21:15.289 --> 00:21:17.950 thing with the second guy. Second guy has another good 372 00:21:17.990 --> 00:21:21.730 return and a good report to share. Verse 22, that 373 00:21:21.799 --> 00:21:24.839 servant who was given two talents of money also came 374 00:21:24.880 --> 00:21:29.319 and said, master, you entrusted me with two talents. Now, see, 375 00:21:29.640 --> 00:21:33.240 I have gained two more. He's doubled his. And his 376 00:21:33.279 --> 00:21:37.130 master replies to him, well done, Good and faithful servant. 377 00:21:37.130 --> 00:21:41.309 100% return on investment. Now the third guy does not 378 00:21:41.349 --> 00:21:44.170 have a good story to tell because he has not 379 00:21:45.170 --> 00:21:48.880 used what God gave him wisely. And he doesn't have 380 00:21:48.900 --> 00:21:50.900 a good report. In verse 24, then the man who 381 00:21:50.940 --> 00:21:56.519 had received the one talent came and said, Master, I 382 00:21:56.579 --> 00:21:59.259 knew that you are a hard man. Now notice he's 383 00:21:59.279 --> 00:22:01.859 turning the tables. He's trying to put the blame on 384 00:22:01.900 --> 00:22:05.250 his boss. Master, I knew that you are a hard man. 385 00:22:06.500 --> 00:22:08.779 harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you 386 00:22:08.819 --> 00:22:13.119 haven't scattered seed. So I was afraid. You know, I 387 00:22:13.140 --> 00:22:16.079 was afraid of losing your money. And I went out 388 00:22:16.359 --> 00:22:20.259 and I hid your talent in the ground. I buried it. 389 00:22:21.049 --> 00:22:24.829 Just buried it. Now here it is. Here's what belongs 390 00:22:24.869 --> 00:22:28.890 to you. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. And what is the 391 00:22:28.930 --> 00:22:35.849 master's reply to the servant? You wicked, lazy servant. Now 392 00:22:35.869 --> 00:22:37.869 let's just Tear this apart a minute, because this story's 393 00:22:37.910 --> 00:22:42.700 in the Bible for a reason. This guy buries what 394 00:22:42.740 --> 00:22:44.460 God has given him. He does nothing with it. He 395 00:22:44.480 --> 00:22:48.460 doesn't use his talent. And then he blames his master 396 00:22:48.500 --> 00:22:50.359 for his own mismanagement and for his failure. He says, 397 00:22:50.400 --> 00:22:54.039 I'm a victim. We've got people doing this today. They 398 00:22:54.059 --> 00:22:59.240 mess up their lives, and they mess up their lives, 399 00:22:59.289 --> 00:23:02.549 and they don't know what to do. So they blame 400 00:23:02.710 --> 00:23:05.930 the government. or they blame the boss, or they blame 401 00:23:05.950 --> 00:23:10.039