Know What You Need To Know
Steve Martin
"Make me know Your ways, O Lord; teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; for You I wait all the day.” Psalm 25:4-5, NASU
In this edition of “So What Do You Do?” I want to write of a common thought that has been held by believers in the Living God for far too long. It is that false misconception that being God is God, we are to just sit back, let Him do it all, and all will turn out all right.
It is the same thinking for many who think the local pastor is to do everything. No wonder they quit in droves.
Where in the Bible does it say that you and I are to go our merry way, seek our own pleasure daily, and care not about the world around us? How many pray the prayer, “Bless us four and no more?” Or to put it in these modern terms, “Me and my dog, O Lord, is who I care about today. Bless us two.”
I find it amazing that Christians in America have been so focused on their own prosperity and well-being that they don’t even know the names of other countries that exit is the world; how many are being martyred every day in other nations; or what is happening to the people and land of Israel, which the Almighty God speaks so much about in the full Bible – both in the Old and New Testaments, as we call it.
Stick my head in the sand. Pray a one-sentence prayer as I walk out the door. Be concerned only about my life and maybe my family, if I give them a thought today.
Just so you know, that is NOT what our Creator has made us to be, especially once we have acknowledged our sin, received His forgiveness, and have been shown to some degree at least His ways and purposes. If we are not involved in the lives of those He puts us in contact with every day, to be lights and salt in this earth, then why not just stop life now and go to heaven?
If our time here on this planet is to just live for ourselves, we are the ones who are missing the mark. And we will be held accountable for that. The time will come when everything we say and do with the time we have been given here will be looked over as we stand before our Creator on that day.
Jesus (Yeshua) spoke a very clear word to those who would listen, about what each of us do with what we have been given and entrusted with in our life. In this following passage of Scripture, He was speaking to His disciples - those who call themselves His followers. He did not mince words.
"For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey. Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. And likewise he who had received two gained two more also. But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord's money.
After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.
"So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, 'Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.' His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.'
He also who had received two talents came and said, 'Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.' His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.'
"Then he who had received the one talent came and said, 'Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.'
"But his lord answered and said to him, 'You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.
'For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'” (Matt 25:14-30, NKJV)
I encourage you to find out what your gifts and talents are (there are many ways to do that) and give yourself wholeheartedly for the purposes that the Lord has given you life to do with them.
There is far more to life than fulfilling your own pleasure and thrills.
Know what you need to know in order to fulfill that which you have been called to do. Don’t be among those who sit back, put in your 8 hours or whatever on the job, and then call it a day done.
Be one wanting to know His ways, always, and then share them with the world He has put you in.
Ahava and shalom,
Steve Martin
Founder/President
Love For His People ministry
Charlotte, North Carolina
Photo: With my grandson, Levi! I want to help make sure this world, for him and his generation, is safe and following hard after our Lord Jesus!
P.S. If you think I am stopping my regular messages, Now Think On This, have no fear! I certainly am continuing those, and they will appear on our current website, Love For His People, and our new one that will be in the works this summer, for its fall debut.
These messages will also be posted on our Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn pages. Yeah!
I ask for your support so we can continue, and reach more. Please donate online safely through our website, using PayPal or Givelify. Or you can use the DONATE buttons on the Love For His People website.
Contribution checks can be sent to:
Love For His People, Inc.
P.O. Box 414
Pineville, NC 28134
Todah rabah! (Hebrew – Thank you very much.)
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“Know What You Need To Know”, #3 - in the year of our Lord 06.30.19 – Sunday, 8:00 am
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