First of all, Jesus says in chapter 24 verse 4-5 – “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many.” Then again in verse 10 – “At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other,11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.” And again in verse 23 – “At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.  See, I have told you ahead of time.”    
      He gave this same warning in Luke 21:8 Jesus said “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them.” Also in writing to the Churches, he says in Revelation 3:3 – “Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.”     
     Let me make this a little more personal; Read these scriptures with the thought that Jesus is speaking to you. “Watch out that no one deceives you! For many will come in my name…and will deceive many. Many false prophets will appear and deceive many people!…and will perform many great signs and wonders to deceive even the elect! Watch out that you are not deceived!”     
     You don’t have to worry about anyone else, you are not to be deceived! How can we not be deceived? He says “Remember what you have received and heard; hold it fast!” It is hard to be deceived if you know the truth. It is hard to be deceived if you know God’s Word. It is hard to be deceived if you know the signs and the seasons and the “birth pains,” and these are the things to “watch” for. Don’t look at and listen to others, even prominent preachers and teachers or even me! Know for yourself the things that determine the last days.    
      Satan is called the “great deceiver!” and the “father of lies!” (John 8:44) He will use what-ever means he can to deceive people, even God’s people! So how do you know what is real and what is fake? What is truth and what is a lie? Let me take you to Acts 17:11 – “Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true!” That’s it! If you want to know if what someone said; or if they themselves are true; examine the scriptures!…And, keep watch!     
     Second, in all three parables we find a reward and a consequence. In the parable of the home-owner, we find the reward in verses 46-47 – “It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. 47 Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.” We find the consequence in verse 51; “He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”     
     In the parable of the Ten Virgins, we find the reward in chapter 25 verse 10 – “The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.” We find the consequence in verse 11 – “Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’ “But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.”     
     In the parable of the Bags of Gold, we find the reward for the two good servants in verse 21 – “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!” And, we find the consequence in verse 28 – “So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Who-ever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”     
     The wording of the five foolish virgins in our text is all too familiar to our reading of Matthew’s Gospel – “Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’ “But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.” Matthew 7:21-23 – “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.  Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!” (Emphasis mine)     
     The homeowner put his servant in charge while he was gone; “Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns.” He probably gave him specific instructions and expectations while he was gone. Jesus did so as well. In Matthew 28:16 – “Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”     
     In the Book of John, 13:34-35 Jesus said; “A new command I give you: love one another.  As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”     
     So, this then begs three questions; Are we keeping watch? Are we doing what we are supposed to be doing? Are we looking forward to hearing the words “Well done, Thou good and faithful servant?” Don’t leave it up to the preachers. We are all called to be witnesses of what God has done and is doing in our lives. We have all been given the “ministry of reconciliation” and we best be about the Father’s business!

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Rev Fred

Don’t Worry, Be Happy

Matthew 6:25-34

    “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?  Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?  Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?  “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.  Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.  If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith. So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.  But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

    Once more we must look at what preceded this word “therefore” – Because this is part of the “Sermon on the Mount” we can go all the way back to chapter five of Matthew and make a list. First of all, Jesus is saying;

(because) you are the salt of the earth;

(because) you are the light of the world;

(because) you are called to think differently about the Law; murder and anger; adultery, lust, and divorce;

(because) your word is your bond;

(because) you are called to triumph over evil with good;

(because) you are to be anonymously generous;

(because) you are to be a person of prayer and fasting;

(because) you are storing up treasures in heaven and not on earth; and finally, (because) you cannot serve two masters; therefore, do not worry!

    We all have to admit that worry is a common temptation in life, and for many it is their favorite pastime! America, which is the most affluent country in the world, is also the most worry filled society in the world. For the Christian, this is contrary to the Word of God.

    If we worry constantly, what kind of faith do we manifest? If you are a child of God and believe that God can redeem you through Jesus Christ His Son; break the shackles of sin in your life; save you from Hell and carry you to heaven, where He has prepared a place for you; adopt you into His Kingdom; and promise eternal life; how can we not believe and trust Him for the next couple of days? Pretty ridiculous isn’t it? It shows an embarrassing lack of faith. When we worry we are choosing to be mastered by our circumstances rather than the truth of God. This is characteristic of non-believers is what Jesus says.

    The poet Robert Frost wrote; “The reason why worry kills more people than work is because more people worry than work!”

    Worry can paralyze you, making you too upset to accomplish anything! It constantly tries to take you into tomorrow until you find something to worry about. Refuse to go along for the ride! Jesus says that we have enough to deal with today. Don’t let tomorrow’s worry steal today’s joy!

    Now, let me add a couple of disclaimers here. First, don’t worry doesn’t mean don’t plan. We must plan for the future and prepare for the future, to do otherwise would be foolish. Second, don’t worry doesn’t mean don’t be concerned. We need to have a healthy degree of concern about future. However, there is a big difference. Concern is when you can do something to help a situation, so you do what you can. Worry is when you can’t do anything, but you still don’t want to leave it up to God. We need to let God’s track record in Scripture and in our own lives assure us that worry is needless because of God’s endless bounty and love for us; worry is senseless because of God’s multitude of promises; and it is useless because of its impotence to add even one minute to our lives or one inch to our stature! Sooooo…

Don’t worry, be happy!