Investing the Gospel

[0:00] Luke's Gospel, chapter 19, and we'll begin reading at verse number 11. I've entitled the message, Investing the Gospel. Investing the Gospel.

[0:12] Let's look at this together from God's Word, Luke 19 and 11. The Bible says, He said, The first came before him, saying, The second came, saying,

[1:16] And he said to him, Then another came, saying,

[2:23] Slaughter them before me. I want to ask you a question this morning. How's your gospel investments going?

[2:37] How's your gospel investments going? Your first core as a church, as we just rehearsed that together, is gospel focused.

[2:48] Lakeside Bible Church is gospel focused. That's your desire, your aim, a core conviction of who you are. Gospel focused. So in light of that, how's your gospel investments going?

[3:06] This is the question for our consideration today. In what ways are you investing the gospel right now with your life?

[3:20] You might find in your Bible above this paragraph in Luke 19, a header such as the parable of money usage. Some translations say the parable of the 10 pounds, or as it is in my Bible, the parable of 10 minas.

[3:39] Now that header in and of itself, which is not scripture, by the way, might cause you to think that this is a simple lesson on financial stewardship.

[3:49] But that's not it at all. Jesus is using a parable involving financial investments as a simile for a much more significant investment than just dollars and cents or pounds and minus.

[4:10] This is about your life actively investing the gospel or as we look at it collectively and corporately as a church this morning.

[4:23] This text is about Lakeside actively investing the gospel. For five years now, you have existed in this community on the Lakeside of Charlotte, assembling together as a church to preach the Bible and to invest the gospel in every home in this area.

[4:47] My challenge to you today is to encourage you to continue investing the gospel. That for the next few months and the next year and the next five years and as the Lord continues to use this congregation, I not only want you to look back and celebrate what God has done in five years, I want you to look forward and say, let's increase our investments.

[5:12] Let's be more active than ever investing the gospel. Let's take a look at our strategies and evaluate if our strategies are effectively being used to invest the gospel here where we are and what God wants us to do in the community.

[5:28] That's what this parable is ultimately about. It's not about money per se. It's not about financial investments and stewardship, although those things are important and certainly discussed in scripture.

[5:42] This particular text is about investing the gospel. So I want you to see a couple of things, all right? Here's the first thing I want you to see. If you'd like to take notes, feel free to write down these outlines in your handout there.

[5:55] I'll tell you as we go along, all right? Number one, the first thing we see is that Jesus addresses their expectations. Jesus addresses their expectations.

[6:06] Verse 11, as they heard these things, he proceeded to tell a parable because he was near to Jerusalem and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately.

[6:19] So in this context of Jesus' ministry, crowds have been following and observing Jesus for a long time now. They believe that he is Israel's Messiah who has come from God.

[6:32] They also knew very well the Old Testament scriptures which prophesied that the Messiah would reign as king over all the earth from Jerusalem.

[6:44] So the closer Jesus gets to Jerusalem in his earthly ministry, the more excited they are as they expect in just a matter of days, Jesus is going to overthrow all government entities and bring God's perfect kingdom to this earth.

[7:05] They supposed that to be the case and they expected this to happen as soon as Jesus gets to Jerusalem. And one of the reasons why that was at the forefront of their minds is because of the many Old Testament prophecies that spoke of the Messiah's work.

[7:22] One particular text in Zechariah chapter 14 says this, On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives and the Mount of Olives shall be split into two from east to west.

[7:36] Then the Lord my God will come and all the holy ones with him. On that day there shall be no light, cold, or frost and the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day the Lord will be one and his name one.

[7:53] Well, it sounds like this may be coming to fulfillment, at least in their ears it did. Scriptures like this were on their minds. They're expecting the restoration of David's throne and the elimination of all kingdoms.

[8:07] All kingdoms except God's kingdom. But they can't seem to grasp as Jesus taught them again and again that before the full and perfect kingdom of God is established on earth, the Messiah must die.

[8:29] He must rise again so that his primary mission is accomplished. The mission of God's gospel work going throughout the world.

[8:41] saving his people from their sins. Yes, he will one day establish the completed and full kingdom of God upon this earth.

[8:55] But that was not to be done yet. So to address their expectations, he tells them a parable.

[9:05] A parable to prepare them for what will soon be his departure and delayed return.

[9:16] By the way, it is in that interim period that you and I live right now. Between the already and the not yet.

[9:30] Between the king's departure and the king's return. Where are we on God's timeline of prophetic events? Well, the king has departed into heaven where he sits on the right hand of the throne of God interceding on behalf of his people.

[9:47] And now we are waiting for the king to return. And when he returns, he will establish fully and finally his perfect kingdom on this earth.

[9:57] But it was not happening at that moment that they supposed it was going to happen. Verse 12, Jesus says, therefore, he tells this parable again to address this issue, that a nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and then return.

[10:16] So again, on the backdrop of their expectation, Jesus is saying, look, the king is going to be leaving soon to build and complete his kingdom, but he will return and bring it fully to this earth just as you expect.

[10:31] But it's not happening when you think it's going to happen. It will, however, happen. Now, before I move on, I think it's very important that as we talk about investing the gospel and the gospel kingdom of God that we be reminded of the full message of Christ's gospel.

[10:51] What is the gospel? The gospel is a word that means good news, the good news of God, the gospel of God, and here it is, that God, in the form of Jesus Christ, came from heaven for us.

[11:08] He lived sinlessly on this earth for us. He died sacrificially as our substitute on the cross for us.

[11:20] He rose again from the dead three days later for us. He ascended back to heaven and is interceding for us at this moment for us.

[11:34] And one day, one day, He will come again for us. And when He comes again, all the kingdoms of this world will become His.

[11:45] And He will rule and reign on this earth, a new earth, forever and ever. Friends, this is the gospel. And we must understand the full message of the gospel. The gospel is not just that He came the first time.

[11:56] It's not just that He died. It's not just that He rose again. It's also that He is coming back. He will return and His kingdom will be perfectly established on this earth forever and ever.

[12:13] So Jesus is addressing their expectation here. They think the kingdom is coming back in just a matter of days as He, the believed Messiah, is making His way to Jerusalem.

[12:24] But Jesus says, no, I need to tell you a story to help you understand. It's not happening when you think it's going to happen. In fact, I'm going to leave and I'm going to be gone for a while.

[12:35] And as I'm gone, there's some important things I need you to do before I come back. That leads me to the second thing I want you to write down in your notes. The first thing is that Jesus addresses their expectation.

[12:46] The second thing that Jesus does here is He speaks of their devotion to the king's mission. Jesus speaks of their devotion to the king's mission.

[13:01] So again, let's go back to the parable. Verse 13, the king is leaving for the far country and as he does, he calls ten of his servants and gave them ten minas.

[13:12] And he said to them, engage in business until I come. But his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him saying, we do not want this man to reign over us.

[13:25] What Jesus does here in this parable at the very beginning is He presents two groups of people. The first group is the king's servants and the second group is the king's enemies.

[13:36] There are two groups of people that exist in this world today. And perhaps even in this room. There are the king's servants and there are the king's enemies.

[13:48] And that's how he outlines them here in the text. Let's start with the king's servants. They are given here a responsibility while they wait for the king to return.

[14:00] And in the parable, the responsibility comes in the form of, notice this, one mina. One mina. Now this is how we know Jesus is not referring to talents or abilities in this parable as He does in other parables.

[14:21] Because the minas here are equally given to the ten servants. One mina per servant.

[14:33] Now when Jesus uses talents and abilities in other parables and other places of the scripture, He often divvies those out if you will in different quantities.

[14:47] Somebody might get five, another two, and someone over here eight, and another person one. But this is different. This is how we know it has nothing to do with skills or talents and abilities.

[14:57] There's something of equality being spoken of here. Ten servants and every servant gets the same amount. One mina per servant.

[15:09] Now financially speaking, a mina back in this day was worth about three months of salary. And the king wanted his servants to each take the same amount of money, three months of salary, and use it to invest in the building of his kingdom until he returned.

[15:31] So again, look at the parables. The characters are clear. Jesus is the king, right? The servants are his people, believers. And let me ask you this question.

[15:41] Think for yourself for a moment. What is the one same and equal gift that Jesus has given to all his people?

[15:53] the gospel? The gospel. The gospel. That is the one same and equal gift that all of his people has received.

[16:06] So this is not abilities. This is not skills. This is not talents. Like, some can sing and others of us, we just, we're barely hanging on for the ride, right? Some people have the gift of teaching.

[16:17] Others would be deathly afraid to stand up in front of other people. We can talk about skills and talents and gifts. That's not what we're talking about here. We're talking about the one same and equal gift that God has given every single one of his people.

[16:29] And that one same and equal gift is the gift of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Nobody in this room has more gospel than someone else. Nobody in this room who follows Christ has less gospel than someone else.

[16:45] We all have the same equal amount of gospel. God has saved us. He has chosen us. He has called us to himself. He has redeemed us, adopted us.

[16:55] We are all equally the same his people. And that's what Jesus is emphasizing here. You've all received the same gospel.

[17:07] Now go and individually, each one of you, invest the gospel as my servants until I return. You see, the gospel work of saving lost sinners and conforming them into the image of Jesus Christ.

[17:23] That is the king's mission. That's the king's mission. And he is calling you and I to devote our lives, our lives, not just our Sundays.

[17:36] Oh, get this. Not just our Sundays. He is calling us to devote our lives as his servants to investing in that gospel work.

[17:50] So I'll go back to the question at the beginning on your fifth anniversary. In what ways is your life busy investing your mina?

[18:03] In what ways is your life busy investing the gospel? Perhaps for some of us it may even begin today by making a decision to devote yourself to becoming a gospel member of this particular fellowship.

[18:19] To help this church collectively together invest the gospel through its various ministries. Oh, friends, there is so much work to do, so much gospel work to do.

[18:29] But we need more gospel investors who will take what Jesus has given them in his free gift of grace and start working that investment for the kingdom of God.

[18:44] So maybe it begins for some of us there, joining the fellowship, seeing how I can serve in the life and ministry of Lakeside. What about at home with your family? What gospel investments are you making with your family?

[18:58] In the life of your children, your grandchildren, spouses? What about bringing the lost to hear the gospel? I am often challenged with the thought of whether or not I work really hard.

[19:11] Do I work really hard week after week getting unbelievers to Laurel Baptist Church so that they might see the gospel and hear the gospel?

[19:22] I have been working really hard on one particular couple. I helped run the baseball league in the town of Harrisburg. So there's one particular coach I've been praying about and working with for about two years now.

[19:36] When are you going to come visit? When are you going to come visit? When are you going to come visit? Guess when he texted me and told me he was going to come visit? Last night. Last night. Hey man, we're coming tomorrow.

[19:47] I'm like, oh. I hope he's there this morning. I'm going to find out soon. My father's preaching. I hope he comes back next week. But no, honestly, are we working hard to invest the gospel by inviting our friends and family to come and hear the gospel message of Jesus Christ?

[20:12] Oh, listen to this statement by Richard Baxter, an old Puritan pastor. There's a book he's written called The Reformed Pastor. It's a small little encouraging book for men of God like myself.

[20:22] I read it annually. Listen to this statement he made. He said, we have greater work here to do than securing our own salvation. We are members of the church and we must labor to do good.

[20:37] We are trusted with our master's mission to do our best to propagate his truth and grace and church and to bring home souls and honor his calls and edify his flock and further the salvation of as many as we possibly can.

[21:01] What's he talking about? There's more to do than just believe the gospel. We as his servants are called to invest the gospel.

[21:16] Can I just spend a few moments being very transparent and frank? The work that the king has given us to do, it's challenging work.

[21:27] It's not easy. And let me be the first to tell you that it often requires a great deal of sacrifice. It's hard work to invest.

[21:42] Requires much. But it's also significant work. Because we're talking about eternity here. And until he returns, it will be an ongoing work.

[21:58] That is, it's an unfinished task. But the finish line is not here on earth. The finish line is when the king comes. Think about it in terms of your anniversary as a church family because I think it's so important to remind ourselves of this on the day like today.

[22:19] What God has given you to do in this community. Look right here. It is not easy. It's not easy. Not this kind of church.

[22:30] Not a church that preaches the gospel. Not a church that lives by the Bible. That's not easy to do. It requires sacrifice. And it requires sacrifice from more than the pastor. And more than the leaders.

[22:42] It requires sacrifice from all of us. But listen to me. Nothing is more important. Nothing is more important than this. Because what God has given you to do is eternally significant.

[22:56] That is already in five years heaven has been impacted by Lakeside Bible Church. Already. It's easy to get caught up about where we meet and what side of town we may be on and all these kind of physical needs.

[23:13] But really it's about eternity. It's investing in eternity. And heaven is already impacted by what you've done in five years. The baptisms. The salvations.

[23:25] What the Lord is doing. It's eternally significant. But I need you to know that what you're doing here will never be a completed work. Not until Jesus declares it finished.

[23:41] By his return. I don't know about you but I'm a task oriented person. I govern my life by task list.

[23:51] To do list. And my OCD personality gets a little bent out of shape when I can't check that box off at the end of the day.

[24:04] Sometimes even erroneously so my mind gets so focused on checking it off the list completing the task. Well that's a hard thing to be fixated on when you're involved as the Lord's servant.

[24:22] We have a task list but only he listen only he gets to check off the box. Only he gets to determine when it's finished.

[24:34] When it's completed. We have to keep working it. We have to keep investing it. We're servants. And we need to be busy serving. Well that's the king's servant.

[24:45] Let me just mention briefly the king's enemies and I'll give you the last point. We'll wrap this up. Again he mentions two groups of people. The king's servants. The second group of people is the king's enemies. And I think what Jesus is doing here is he's trying to show us that there is a group of people who do not want them to be their king.

[25:01] Think about that. The king's servants are those who want Jesus as their king. But the king's enemies are those who do not want Jesus as their king. They hate him.

[25:12] And the rejection of him is emphatically clear. Look at verse 14. We do not want this man to reign over us. Do you know that that very statement right now right there in verse 14 that is the ultimate reason why lost sinners remain lost.

[25:31] That's the reason. It's not that they remain lost on account of insufficient evidence for the reality of Jesus. Nor does it have anything to do with the perceived injustices of those who profess to know and follow him.

[25:48] No, no, no. Lost sinners remain lost because they do not want Jesus to rule their lives. They don't want Jesus as their lord and king.

[25:58] And the king calls them rebels. Oh, may you and I not be numbered among those rebels. The king's enemies who reject his lordship.

[26:11] Instead, may we commit ourselves as servants of the king, a servant who has received the gospel and is devoted to the king's mission of building his kingdom by investing the gospel.

[26:23] Here's the third thing you can write down. Let's follow him in sequence. You ready? The first thing in the text, Jesus addresses their expectations. Secondly, Jesus speaks of their devotion to the king's mission.

[26:36] And then thirdly, Jesus prepares them for a coming day of reckoning. Jesus prepares them for a coming day of reckoning. So the parable continues.

[26:46] Okay, look at it. Verse 15. When he returned, having received the kingdom, he ordered these servants to whom he had given the money to be called to him that he might know what they had gained gained by doing business.

[26:59] In other words, the king returns, and when he returns, he summons all of his servants to stand before him and give an account for how they invested what he had given them.

[27:10] Spiritually speaking, I gave you the gospel. Now I want to see, since I'm back, how you invested the gospel that I gave you.

[27:20] That day's coming for all of us, by the way. It's not a day where sin is judged. Don't misunderstand. It's not a day where sin is judged.

[27:30] Sin is judged on the cross. It has already been judged in Jesus. But it is a day where our work for Christ, our investments, will be revealed. 1 Corinthians 3.

[27:41] Each one's work will be made known. In other words, each one's investments will be made known. For the day will disclose it because it will be revealed by fire. It will test what sort of investments he has made.

[27:55] So verse 16 says, the first came before him and said, Lord, your mina has made 10 minas more. And he said to him, well done, good servant. You've been faithful in a very little. You'll have authority over 10 cities.

[28:07] The second came saying, Lord, your mina has made five minas. And he said to them, now you're going to be over five cities. You see what's happening here? You follow in the sequence? These two servants took their one mina invested it and what happened?

[28:21] It multiplied. The point is, they worked it. They invested what the king had given them and it pleased the king that they had done so. And he responded to them by giving them a generous reward.

[28:35] Remember, it's not about money, it's about the gospel. I noted several things about these particular servants just by how the Lord rewarded them. I noted here that they were not lazy, apathetic, or casual with their gift.

[28:52] They intentionally, urgently, and faithfully invested it. I have a friend who is deep into financial investments. Some of you may be into that.

[29:05] I went to visit him in Nashville a couple of weeks ago and we're sitting in his office. He said, I want to show you what I'm learning. And he's showing me all the lines and the pre-investments and how to click on it when you buy it and what to click when you sell it.

[29:17] And he shows, and all I, I mean, he sees dollar signs on this graph. All I see is lines going everywhere. I have no idea what's going on, but by the end of the day he had pocketed about $700 through his investments.

[29:29] I'm like, man, I need you to start handling my money. Some of you get that. I don't get that. But I think one of, all of us at least understand that to be that glued into it, you can't be lazy, apathetic, or casual.

[29:44] You gotta be intentional. You gotta be faithful. You gotta be urgent. You gotta be ready. Always investing it. That's what these servants did. Notice also that they humbly took no credit for how their mina had multiplied.

[30:00] Do you notice what he said in verse 19, or actually both of the servants, one in 16, one in 19. The servants said, your, mina has made more minas.

[30:14] That's the servant talking to the king. That's the believer who is serious about investing in the gospel talking to Jesus. He didn't say, my mina did this.

[30:29] Your mina did this. Friends, the gospel grows by its own power. Our responsibility is simply invest it and the gospel will grow the kingdom and all the glory and credit is going to go to the king and his gift.

[30:48] It's not us looking around saying, look what my church in Lake Norman did. No, Lord, look what your church is doing as we invest the gospel in this community.

[30:59] I wrote down also that they were commended and rewarded on account of their faithful work. Jesus says to them, well done, good servant.

[31:09] Speculation is often circled about these cities. What do the cities mean? It may very well speak of the generosity of the various degrees of reward that God will give his servants in the new heaven and new earth.

[31:22] I don't intend to spend much time on that this week other than God rewards accordingly as he sovereignly determines. But then notice this in verse 20.

[31:34] Another came and said, Lord, here is your mina which I kept laid away in a handkerchief. For I was afraid of you because you were a severe man. You take what you did not deposit and you reap what you did not sow.

[31:45] So for the young people in here who do not know what handkerchiefs are, they are very elegant tissues. And the imagery is he had a little cloth, a handkerchief, some tissues in his pocket.

[32:01] He took the mina, put it in the handkerchief, and maybe he kept it, maybe he buried it. The point is he did nothing with it. He had nothing to show for when the king came back.

[32:13] The only thing he had to give the king was the mina that was already given to him at the very beginning. But that's not what the king requested. He did not want the servant to inactively sit in isolation keeping the gift to himself.

[32:29] It was given to him to invest. And of course the excuse is absolutely bogus. He actually blames the king for his failure to invest.

[32:42] Accusing the king of being a lord who takes but never gives. A lord who is selfish but never generous. I mean how can any of us this morning say that the lord is not good, that he's not gracious, that he is not generous toward us, that he doesn't deserve our investments.

[32:58] The servant was the one who was unfaithful not the king. So the king says in verse 22 and verse 23 if what you're saying is true then why didn't you just put the mina in the bank?

[33:14] Well the reason he didn't is because he was too lazy to do even that. Or at the very least he allowed his emotions and feelings to immobilize him. Either way Jesus called him a wicked servant.

[33:28] A wicked servant. Because look right here. He didn't invest the gospel. Now brothers and sisters we should shudder at the thought.

[33:44] We should shudder at the thought that Jesus might consider any one of us as wicked servants. So Jesus takes the mina from that wicked servant and he gives it to the one who has ten minas.

[34:05] The age old question is whether or not this wicked servant was truly a Christian or not. Was he truly a saved man or not? That's the age old question. And to provide you an answer in relation to what I think here it is you ready?

[34:20] I don't know. That's my answer. There does seem to be however a clear distinction in the parable between those who are his and those who are not his.

[34:32] And as we see in verse 27 the wicked servant is not among those who are not believers in the parable. I think a hint to where his standing with Christ may be could be looked in other scriptures to inform us.

[34:51] 1 Corinthians 3 for example says if the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives he will receive a reward if anyone's work is burned up he will suffer loss though he himself will be saved as only through fire.

[35:04] It's just a little insight but it does suggest that there are those and this is the point there are those who barely get in so to speak. There are those believers who just barely cross the line.

[35:20] they will not have any rewards to enjoy in eternity and on the day of the king's return they will experience great loss but they themselves will be saved.

[35:33] But then and this is how we close then there there are those believers whose devotion to the gospel is so strong that when the king returns they will receive a generous reward from God making the kingdom of God for that Christian so much sweeter.

[35:56] It reminds us today that as we wait for his return there is much more to do. If we are inactive sitting on our hands keeping to ourselves the gift God has given us while not investing it in the church investing it in the community investing it in our families and throughout the context of our lives I pray today that we will wake up to the reality that such inactivity is disobedient to the king's commands.

[36:27] And on the day of reckoning he will address it. You've been put here not only in a location but you've been put here in a location with a trust.

[36:45] The gospel will be and again I ask you the question for self-evaluation in what ways and with what kind of urgency and sacrifice and strategy are you investing it?

[36:57] All of those are important. Urgency. Not casual investments. Urgent investments. Sacrificial investments.

[37:08] Not convenient investments. Strategic investments. Not just we'll cross the bridge when we get there. But no organizing, strategizing, doing what we can to invest the gospel.

[37:22] Lakeside there is so much more to do and I want to encourage you this morning to keep investing the gospel. I want to encourage you who are not a part of this fellowship to prayerfully join this congregation of believers and help them invest the gospel.

[37:39] We don't always know when returns on investments come in. Financially or spiritually. We don't always know that. But here's what I can guarantee you and I want you to think about this verse.

[37:55] Jesus when he sent his disciples out before his ascension in Mark 16. The Bible says that the disciples went everywhere preaching the gospel. They went everywhere investing the gospel and the Lord worked with them.

[38:17] Lakeside go today in this community wherever you live Cornelius Davidson Huntersville Mooresville wherever you reside as you go go investing the gospel knowing that the Lord has committed himself to work with you to go before you to work with you to use you until he returns.

[38:53] Well I don't think we can pray without at least drawing quick attention to verse 27. because we've talked a lot about the king's servants let's close by addressing the fate of the king's enemies.

[39:12] Verse 27 it says it's for those enemies of mine who did not want me to reign over them bring them here and slaughter them before me. It's quite a picture isn't it? The point is that day of reckoning is not only to address the work of the king's servants but it will also be a day when the king's enemies will be fully and finally condemned.

[39:34] And here's the message. Reject the king and you will have no place in his kingdom. Wherever your heart may be before the Lord today maybe you are convinced and assured that you are a follower of his but maybe you're exploring maybe you're interested maybe you're trying to figure this whole Jesus is Lord thing.

[39:57] I need you to understand this as you go home and meditate on the scripture today. To reject Jesus as king is to have no place at all in his kingdom today, tomorrow and forever.

[40:12] The first step for gospel investment is to receive the gospel and that is to receive the gospel by making Jesus your king. By trusting him as your Lord and Savior who took your place, died for your sins and longs for you to be his.

[40:30] You don't have to become Jesus by first becoming a part of the church, giving money to the church, all of those things. It's by faith and trust in Christ.

[40:41] Put your faith and trust as Christ, as the king. The king who is coming again and become his and allow him to show you and teach you through the wonderful gift of his church how to invest the gospel in your life, in your family and in this world.

[41:03] So my prayer for all of us, from those from Laurel, from those from Lakeside, my prayer today is Lord make us faithful servants who invest the gospel.

[41:17] Thank you.