ASI Scandinavia 2013: Transforming Grace

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ASI Scandinavia

Self-Management: How To Use Time, Talents, and Resources

Jeremy Zwiker

Part 1: Self-Management- How To Use Time, Talents, and Resources

All of the ones basically that are used in the Old Testament are talking about what?

And then all of the ones in the Second or in the New Testament or basically in the New Testament there were 6 verses with the word talents in it and 11 times it is found in the parable of the talents so it's actually there that you want to find the definition or or the story of the talent so I would like you to go to to the parable Matthew 25 you have your Bibles Matthew 25 verse 14 to 30 and we can read there together and this is in the context the story is in the context of what is happening in Matthew 24 the first verses the story of the 10 versions right So with the 10 versions before and it's talking and we can start actually in verse 13 because even though The paragraph starts in a way after that about the talents, it gives us the context.

It says, watch therefore, verse 13, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of Man cometh.

This is actually talking about talents in the very end, right?

Okay, so this is very applicable actually to our lives.

For the Kingdom of Heaven is as a man traveling into a far country who called his own servants and delivered unto them his goods.

So it's starting, the kingdom of heaven is as a man traveling, so we need to know who is the man, right?

A man traveling into a far country who called his own servants, so we have the servants, and delivered unto him, unto them his goods.

So what is, who's the man that's traveling?

So it's the man traveling into a far country.

Where's the far country and who are the servants?

For time's sake, the servants, Jesus went where?

The children of man or the followers of Christ.

So he gave us, us as followers of him, he gave us his goods.

To every man according to his several ability and straightway took his journey so first principle he doesn't give everybody the same amount of talents but he gives them according to their ability and it's good with that.

Then, 16, then he that had received the 5 talents went and traded with the same and made them other 5 talents.

And likewise, he that had 2 received 2, and he also gained 2.

But he that received 1 went and digged it into the earth and hid his Lord's money.

After a long time the Lord of those servants cometh and reckoneth with him.

And so he that had received 5 talents came and brought other 5 talents, saying, Lord, thou deliverest unto me 5 talents.

Behold, I have gained beside them 5 talents more.

And his Lord said, Well done thou good and faithful servant.

Thou has been faithful over few things I will make the ruler over many things.

He also received had that received 2 talents came and said, Lord, thou deliverest unto me 2 talents.

Behold, I have gained 2 other talents beside them.

His Lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant.

Thou hast been faithful over few things, I will make thee ruler over many things.

Then he which had received 1 talent come and said, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed and I said I was afraid and went and hid thy talent in the earth Lo there thou hast that is thine His Lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou newest that I reap where I sow not, and gather where I have not strug.

Thou oughtest therefore have put thy money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury.

Take therefore that talent from him and give it to him that hath 10 talents.

For unto every 1 that hath shall it be given and he that shall have abundance, but from him that hath not, shall be taken away even that which he hath.

And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Now, the context is the second coming, right?

I looked it up in the Christ's Object Lessons, chapter 25.

And if you haven't read it, and if you have read it, read it again.

And there in Christ's Object Lessons 325 it says, watch therefore for you know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of Man comes.

Then he showed what it means to watch for his coming.

Now this is the question right, Should we just sit back and watch and wait?

It says there, the time is to be spent not in idle waiting but in diligent working.

The lesson he taught in the parable, this lesson he taught in the parable of the talents.

We are to use our talents, we are to use everything that the Lord has given us.

The special gifts of the Spirit are not the only talents represented in the parable.

It includes all gifts and endowments whether original, acquired, natural or spiritual.

It's everything that we have gotten from the Lord.

If it's natural, acquired, If we've learned to play the piano, if we've learned to do this or that, or if it's just natural to us, it doesn't matter.

If we have gotten things from the Lord, from the traveler, Christ, if we have gotten things from Him, That is a talent.

The question is how do we use it and who are we using it for?

Are we putting it and using it and putting it into his work and doubling them?

Okay now in the chapter she actually goes through the different talents and there's whole sections on these talents.

Mental faculties, our brain that we have gotten, are we using it for God's work?

You know, even if you think you have no influence, everybody has influence.

Even when you do nothing, you actually have an influence on somebody.

This is actually in science, they have found that, yeah, it's actually true.

Because you're making still an impression on people without doing anything.

Part 2: Self-Management- How To Use Time, Talents, and Resources

Father in heaven, we thank you so much for giving us the talent of time.

And we pray dear Father that you will help us to use it effectively in our daily lives and in your work.

Father help us to understand some principles and that we can be more efficient in using the time that you have given us.

Okay, I have a thesis and well I started, I'm calling it a thesis now.

And the thesis is the definition of a missionary.

Talked about the definition of a missionary.

A missionary is a person whose sole aim is to demonstrate the gospel to the world using all his or her time, talents and resources to reach this goal.

Yesterday we talked about talents because that's more or less an overarching topic that includes time and resources.

Today we're going to talk about time, tomorrow we're going to talk about resources.

Okay, so how to use resources for the work in the work of God.

And so today will be about time and so this is the thesis and this is like the foundation that we have an understanding that all of our time, talents and resources are here for the sole purpose of investing them in the work of God.

If you had $1, 440 a day or say Norwegian crowns, no it's less value right, euros, even better, and it expired by the end of the day and you could not save it, how would you use it?

You know this, we have 1, 440 minutes a day, 10, 080 minutes a week, 32, 400 minutes a month and 525, 600 minutes a year.

You know, time is something that we can never accumulate.

That's why it says in the Bible, and we'll look at some sacred texts, that the time is evil, I believe, because it just continues.

Okay, as a foundation we'll look at some sacred references in the Bible.

In Genesis 1, God made heaven and when you look and when you read through that, you can see that God made the heaven and the earth and he had a plan.

And he didn't say on the third day, ah, maybe on the fourth day I won't do it so much or Oh, I didn't get done what I wanted to do on the third day And so I had to do it on the fourth day or you know, there's not none of this Procrastination and saying oh, you know, I'll do it later He had a plan and he put it into practice and in Genesis 1 27 if you go there Genesis 1 verse 27 it says so God created man in whose image?

In the image of God created he him, male and female created he them.

So He has created us in His image so we are to be like Him and also make a plan like He was when He was the Creator God.

He was not procrastinating His plans that He had made.

He had made plans and that's what he did.

In the councils of heaven, we actually read about, he had made plans and Lucifer got jealous about it.

But in any case, there was plans laid and it was executed.

Then we know from Daniel 9, 24 to 27, if you haven't studied this prophecy, study it.

Anti-procrastination is not to delay, or yeah, planning and not saying, oh, I didn't get it done today, I'll just do it tomorrow.

In the Latin American culture, you would say mañana, right?

Tomorrow, which means not necessarily tomorrow, but in the future.

So, yeah, procrastinating is kind of just putting it, pushing it away in front of you and never doing it really.

And anti is not, yeah, not procrastinating.

So Genesis, Daniel 9 talks about the time prophecy that is so exact.

He had foretold this many, many hundred years beforehand, before it happened, so that he knew he had a plan.

He didn't come like a year late or a year early as you might interpret if you didn't know that the year 0 wasn't a year, right?

It also says that he chose a time and he came at that specific time.

Mark 1.15 is also saying how the fulfillment of the prophecy that Jesus would come had been fulfilled.

Mark 1 15 says, and saying, The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand repentee and believe that the gospel what time was he talking about the time was fulfilled what time well exactly the 1 that we just looked at Daniel 9 that the prophecy of the Christ that the Messiah would come Proverbs let's go to Proverbs 22 verse 29.

It says there, "...see'st thou a man diligent in his business, he shall stand before kings, he shall not stand before mean men." What does that mean?

He shall stand before kings, he shall not stand before mean men.

He will not stand before normal mean like it's the in the meanwhile like it's the How do you call it?

So somebody that knows how to use his time.

Okay, Ephesians and this is the central text I would say of this study.

It says there, see then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise.

Starts with be wise not as a fool, right?

And then it says redeeming the time because the days are evil.

There's actually an appeal that we would use the time because the days are evil.

Let us today, right, there's a whole, we could have a whole study on today is the time that that the Lord is calling you.

So, But the days are evil because it just continues.

We will never, never experience another yesterday.

Part 3: Self-Management- How To Use Time, Talents, and Resources

It has been a privilege to be with you together through this series on talents and talking about self-management.

Just a short recap, we have talked about self-management, how to use talents, time and resources, period.

That is basically the conclusion, is that they are all here for 1 purpose and that is to use in God's work.

We have talked about talents as the overall theme, that was the first presentation in this workshop, and how all of the talents that we have gotten, which includes a lot of things that we might not think of as talents right away, but if we think about it, yes, they are also talents.

And so, and that they are best used in the service of God.

The second day we talked about time management and some principles in time management.

There was, maybe you can help me remember some.

An appointment, now you know what to answer.

Never be late for an appointment is 1 of the principles.

This is not the, you know, if you don't do this, you will not be saved type of thing.

But strive towards it as much as you can, beyond time for anything and everything.

With, Also we talked about imbalance with the other principles of friendship and so on.

But then time management, also time is a question of priority.

And today we will be talking about resource management.

Resource management, how to use our resources.

Actually, I'll put these over here so that I have less obstacles between me and you.

What was the thesis on which this seminar is built?

We're going to talk about resource management today.

Exactly, the definition of a missionary, which incorporated and helped us understand in a way where our talents, resources, and time belongs.

The definition of the thesis was, a missionary is a person whose sole aim is to demonstrate the gospel to the world using all his time, his or her time, talents and resources to reach this goal.

It helps us to remember it, helps us, it's more, makes more impression on the mind.

Okay so that that helps us to to remember.

So that's a missionary we are all called to be missionaries.

Above all others for which God's gifts should be used is the sustaining of workers in the harvest field.

I wonder when we think about our resources, when we think about what we own, our money, our assets, do we have this in mind?

Do we think about that, oh, okay, on the priority number 1, let me think, how am I going to use my money in God's work?

Is that number 1 or is that something that comes maybe number 10 or somewhere when all the bills are paid.

The 1 purpose above all others for which God's gifts should be used is the sustaining of workers in the harvest field.

Obviously, the obvious place to go when we talk about resources is where?

Let's go to Malachi 3 in some translations or languages.

Take something which doesn't belong to you.

Take something which doesn't belong to you without permission.

What is the difference between robbing and stealing?

Because stealing is also taking something from somebody that does not belong to you, right?

Robbing is going up to a person with a gun and saying, give me your wallet.

There's a big difference in robbing and stealing.

You're going to God and taking His possession.

You cannot steal from God because He knows everything in that sense, if we go by that definition.

So we are robbing God with tithes and offerings.

Then it says, are cursed with a curse, for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse that there may be meat in my house, and prove me now herewith, says the Lord, if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

This is amazing, an amazing promise, right?

He will, if we are faithful and we return our tithes and offerings, He will open the treasure house of heaven and pour out so that we cannot receive it.

If you haven't tried this out, saying God I have not paid tithe, I have not given maybe as much offering.

Series

Self-Management: How To Use Time, Talents, and Resources

Part 3: Self-Management- How To Use Time, Talents, and Resources

Transcript

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