On a scale of one to ten, how generally faithful are you? Be honest with yourself. Do you think your answer matches the Lord’s judgment of you? How faithful are you to your family – to your spouse and children – to your parents? Are you respectful? Obedient? Available? Diligent with the family finances? With your time? And how faithful are you to the Lord and to your church, which perhaps ought to be two separate questions. I’m not going to tell you that these questions will be asked when we stand before our Saviour at His bema judgment. But I’m sure that the Lord knows exactly how faithful you are AND how hypocritical you are in your appearance of faithfulness. We all can learn how to appear to be certain things, like faithful, and yet that appearance may not really be true. We may appear to be faithful in an outward way, but our hearts may not be in full agreement.
This afternoon, I’d like again to encourage your faithfulness, but not with Biblical exhortations or declarations. Today it is not so much – “Moreover it is REQUIRED in stewards that a man be found faithful.” And we won’t be directly considering the many Biblical examples we have. Rather – I’d like to point you toward some of the obvious – and not so obvious – blessings in being faithful.
We start with the most direct Biblical statement I could find: “A faithful man shall ABOUND with blessings.” Like most of the Proverbs, this is a verse containing a contrast between two opposing ideas. “A faithful man shall abound with blessings: but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent.” In this case the opposite or “faithfulness” is not “unfaithfulness” or “unreliability.” In this case the opposite of faithfulness is described as “haste to become wealthy.”
A man may become rich through the blessing of God, as did Job and as Abraham and his grandson Jacob did. But the man who wants those riches immediately, will often break rules to get those riches. In other words, he will sin against God by cheating his neighbor, making an inferior product, short-weighing the goods he sells, or he may even steal the wealth of others. As Paul said to Timothy, “The love of money is root of all evil.” In contrast to the man who loves and yearns for wealth, there is the Christian who loves his Lord and who faithfully serves Him without the expectation or hope of ever becoming rich. That man will abound with blessings, which may or may not be passed on to his children when he’s gone. He may die with a large bank account to leave to his heirs, or he may die relatively poor, but with hundreds of friends whom he has helped throughout his life.
As I was thinking about our subject, I realized that the blessings of faithfulness may have two different sources. Some of the blessings of this verse come naturally, while others are clearly and directly from the Lord. Using our imaginations, let’s begin by separating the two.
Picture a man – a missionary in a distant, third-world country – who is suffering from gall stones. (Having never had this problem, while some of you have, I ask that you be lenient with me here.) The man in my imagination has learned by experience that eating certain fatty foods causes him great grief. But when he is faithful to maintain a proper diet, he can keep himself relatively free from pain. When people see his eating habits, they may think he is avoiding fatty foods, trying to loose weight. For them, to eat well for six days and then eat one terrible meal does them little harm. But for our friend with the gall stones, he may faithfully eat fifty proper meals, but on his fifty-first, he gives in and has a fatty hamburger, later that day experiencing serious pain. Faithfully eating well naturally produces good results; but one instance of unfaithfulness produces trouble.
That may be an illustration of the natural blessing of faithfulness, but let’s imagine a divine blessing. In this day of medical and surgical opportunities, the Lord might not usually offer this option. But let’s say that our friend faithfully prays for a miraculously healing his gall bladder problem. Let’s say he sincerely yearns for the Lord’s glory in his healing; it is not about himself, but God. He doesn’t want to have to leave the mission field; he doesn’t have someone to replace him. Let’s say that it is not reasonable for him to return to the States for surgery and recovery. So for months he faithful pleads with the Lord, asking for an increase in his faith. For months he prays that God would heal him. And then more than a year later he sees an American surgeon and is informed he no longer has his old problem. In this case the blessing to the man’s faithfulness in his ministry, in prayer and to the Lord’s glory is clearly divine, not natural.
In my preparation for this message I jotted down twenty-two Biblical blessings bestowed on faithfulness. In my consideration and love for you, I won’t consider them all this afternoon. As I looked at them, there were eleven which I marked as natural and eleven which were divine in origin. An even split. Since you are all satiated with food, and you are ready for naps (two of the problems with having these fellowship meals every week)… And since I have two points but with twenty-two sub-points, I’ve decided to look at only half of them today. Rather than a two hour message, we’ll have one hour today and another hour later.
Today let’s consider some of the natural blessings which flow out of various kinds of faithfulness.
In other lessons we looked at scriptures in which FAITHFUL WORKMEN were given opportunity to use their SKILLS for the glory of the Lord.
For example, some of them were enabled to repair the house of the Lord. “Moreover (the leaders of the nation) reckoned NOT with the men into whose hand they delivered the money – to be bestowed on workmen – for they dealt FAITHFULLY.” “There was NO reckoning made with them of the money that was delivered into their hand, because they dealt FAITHFULLY.” When God’s people prove themselves to be faithful, in no matter what area of service, they earn the right to freely get on with the work. Faithful workers should not to be micro-managed – they don’t need to be micro-managed.
And as we saw with Nehemiah’s brother, the brother’s earlier faithfulness resulted the blessing of leadership. “I gave my brother Hananiah… charge over Jerusalem for he was a faithful man and feared God above many.” The Lord Jesus in several parables rewarded faithful servants with more and more responsibility. And in other lessons, I referred to Timothy and Tychicus who were given special responsibilities by Paul, because they had proven themselves to be faithful men.
Most young people get to a point in their lives when they want liberty to make their own choices and to walk their own path. Those opportunities are granted early to some and much later to others, because some kids are more faithful to their childhood duties than others are. Liberty and self-determination are blessings which can be earned through faithfulness.
Speaking of Timothy and Tychicus, I’ll add Silvanus, to whom I don’t think I’ve referred to as yet. This last man, Paul’s co-laborer was given praise by Peter at the end of his first epistle. In his closing salutation, Peter said, “(This letter is being sent unto you) by Silvanus, a FAITHFUL brother…” Silas probably blushed when he heard people read the apostles words. There may not be many more glorious words of praise which might be uttered about a servant of God. There may not be better words spoken during an eulogy or printed on a tombstone than “He was faithful.” Of course, neither Peter nor Paul will ever be able to describe or honor you and me as faithful people. But far more important is the potential testimony of the Lord Jesus, “Well done thou good and FAITHFUL servant. Thou has been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things.” I don’t know that I will hear those words at the Bema, but I hope I do.
Here perhaps is another application of our opening scripture from Proverbs.
“A faithful man shall abound with growing responsibilities: but he that maketh haste to be powerful or important shall not be innocent.” I Timothy 6:2 teaches, in a round about way, that good and faithful employers end up with good and faithful employees. Good and faithful husbands usually have faithful wives, and vise versa. Paul reminds those Christians who were servants, that if “they… have believing masters, let them not despise them, because they are brethren; but rather do them service, because they are FAITHFUL and beloved, partakers of the benefit.” The more faithful we are the more often the people around us will be faithful. Parents need to remember that; employers need to practice that; and it definitely applies to pastors.
You might accuse me of twisting this scripture just a bit to make my next point, but it is a Biblical principle. When Paul and Silas arrived in Philippi, Macedonia they were able to witness of Christ to “a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul. And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be FAITHFUL to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us.” Lydia pleaded her faithfulness to God as a reason for the missionaries to stay at her house. Faithfulness played a role in the growing Christian fellowship between this new convert and her evangelists.
I think we can apply that to 21st century Christians and to godly Christianity. Only those who are faithful to the Lord through His church are going to be blessed with the very special fellowship that can only be found in the church. Periodic attendance is never going to grow into the close, loving relationship there ought to be among brethren. Not even mere weekly fellowship will produce anything more than weak acquaintances. More is required. More is expected of church members. As I have said before, “It is required in church members that a man be found faithful.”
And, again, there is faithfulness in prayer which results in the bonding of the prayer warriors. As the Lord Jesus was talking with His disciples about some of the blessings of church membership, He switched to the more negative subject of church discipline. This was in Matthew 18. And then He made another minor course adjustment saying, “where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” Private prayer – secret prayer – closet prayer – is not wasted time. It is important. But as three Christian brothers, or two sisters, bow together or hold hands together, with one praying while the others listens and then the other picking up that conversation with heaven, there is a bond created that is more than the holding of hands. There is the melding of hearts. The more faithful we become in our church fellowship and prayer fellowship, the more close we become to one another.
Before moving on to the DIVINE blessings on people’s faithfulness, there is to one more natural result.
It might be argued that it isn’t a blessing at all, but a dozen New Testament scripture disagree. In Daniel 6 we read, “It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom an hundred and twenty princes, which should be over the whole kingdom; And over these three presidents; of whom Daniel was first: that the princes might give accounts unto them, and the king should have no damage. Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm. Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was FAITHFUL, neither was there any error or fault found in him. Then said these men, We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel, except we find it against him concerning the law of his God.”
When we are talking about faithfulness to God, diligent obedience to His will, and striving to live according to divine principles, one natural result – a blessing of sorts – will be the jealousy and opposition of sinners. BUT, “blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad; for get is your reward in heaven…” – Matthew 5:11. “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you” – I Peter 4:12-14. Peter said in another place: “if ye suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye; and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled; But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts; and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.” Having a good conscience that, where they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ.” Let me make a slight alteration and application of that last statement – that they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your faithful conversation and life in Christ.”
Persecution is a blessing to God’s saints, because it can bring them nearer to the Lord when other blessings can’t. It is a blessing, because it can strengthen our faith, our resolve and our hope in Christ. It is a blessing, because it opens doors for the witness of our faith. Many Christians might fear approaching persecution, and they may hate it when it comes. But I’ll close with this: those who are faithful to the Lord, will neither fear nor hate persecution for that very reason – They will rejoice in their persecution because they are faithful to their Saviour, and they will endure anything for His glory.
I’ll conclude by returning to my introduction: Are you sufficiently faithful to the Lord to be ready for Him to judge your faithfulness? Are you currently experiencing and enjoying the blessings that are to be found in faithfulness to Christ?