Don’t Waste Your Life | Matthew 25:14-30

Good morning, Watermark. How are we doing today? It's good to see you. Great to be with you. My name is Timothy Ateek, and I'm one of the teaching pastors here. If this is your first time ever at Watermark, welcome. I hope it feels like home very quickly.

Several years ago, when I was a student pastor, I took a group of high school students on a mission trip to Italy. I know what you're thinking. That's a mission trip you could totally feel called to go on. We went to Italy, and I rented this big nine-passenger box van to drive these high school students around. One day, we were up in kind of the hill country of eastern Italy, and we were going to different houses to invite people to a Christian event.

The roads up in this hill country were very narrow roads. Only one car could fit on them at a time. I found myself in a place where I needed to turn around and go the other way. So, I pulled up into this very steep driveway, thinking I would just reverse and go back the other direction. Well, unfortunately, when I reversed, I missed the driveway. I ran off or over this brick wall that was about this high. When I backed over and off this brick wall, the back of the van ran straight into the street, and then the entire bottom of the van, every inch of it, scraped along that brick wall.

When we finally landed or settled on the street, I looked in my side mirror and saw the back half of our van kind of hanging off. I was like, "Well, that's not good." So, I figured I'd get out and survey the damage. When I did, I saw gasoline pouring out of the van, because when I scraped every square inch of the underside of the van along that brick wall, it punctured the gas tank. Watching all this gasoline stream out while there was a van full of high school kids whose parents had entrusted me with them, I just stuck my head in the van and said, "Everybody out of the van." We found ourselves in a moment where we really needed some help.

The funny part of the story is that I needed a friend to drive me two hours back to the airport in Rome, and I had to talk to the rental car company. Basically, my message to these Italians at the counter of the rental car company was, "Here's the deal. The car you gave me… I wrecked it. It is no longer drivable, and I need you to give me another car." I remember the looks on their faces. They were royally confused. There was trepidation. I could read in their faces, like, "It didn't go well the first time. Why would we try this again?"

The reason I tell you that is, that day, I had to give an account to those people on what I had done with the car they had given to me. I tell you that because we're stepping into a parable in Matthew 25 this morning that is all about the reality that every single one of us, one day, will stand before Jesus Christ, and we will give an account to him on what we have done with the life he has entrusted to us.

I just want you to think. When you stand before Jesus, what will the state of your life be like? What will you say to him, and what do you hope his response is to you in that moment? The point of this parable we're looking at in Matthew 25, and the point of my message, is very simple. Here it is. I hope you don't miss it. Here is the point of the message today: don't waste your life. That's it. Don't waste your life.

When I say that, some of you guys have already concluded that you haven't wasted your life and you won't waste your life, and others of you have already concluded you already have wasted your life and there's no hope. Wherever you're at, the message to you is "Don't waste your life." Sometimes it's really interesting giving a message titled Don't Waste Your Life to a room that is full of very successful people.

A message that is titled Don't Waste Your Life sounds fitting for a troubled high school kid or for a directionless college kid, but not for a room full of successful people. I would argue that while the troubled teen or the directionless college student needs this message, this message is even more relevant for the high achievers in the room. It's for the MBAs and the CEOs and the millionaires and everyone in between, because as my professor Howard Hendricks said when I was at Dallas Seminary, the biggest waste of a life is being successful at doing the wrong things.

The biggest waste of a life is actually being really successful, but it's being successful at the wrong things. Do not let that be your story. So, today, what I want to do as we journey through this parable together… I want to give you three questions to ask and answer that will keep you from wasting your life. I'll go ahead and tell you what these questions are so you know what's coming. Here are the three questions I believe will keep you from wasting your life:

1. What do you have that belongs to Jesus?

2. What are you doing with what belongs to Jesus?

3. What do you want to hear when you meet Jesus?

That's where we're going today. If you have a Bible, join me in Matthew 25. We're going to be looking at verses 14-30. Just so you know where we're picking up this story in the life of Jesus… Jesus tells this parable just days before he is betrayed, arrested, and crucified. He's having a private conversation with his closest friends, the disciples, and they get into a conversation about end times. That might appeal to some of you here. For some of you, that is an interest for you, and you've found yourself in plenty of conversations about the end times.

Jesus' friends want to know what's going to happen during the end times and when the end times are coming. Jesus answers their question about what. He doesn't answer their question about when. He unpacks for them, in Matthew 24, what they can expect when the end times come, but instead of answering their question about when Jesus is coming back, Jesus' message to them is "Live awake. Be prepared. Live like I am coming back. Do not waste your life."

So, we pick it up in verse 14, which is going to require a little bit more context for us, but I want you to see how the parable starts. Jesus says, "For it will be like a man going on a journey…" Anytime you're studying the Bible and there's something that requires more understanding, you should do the research and figure it out.

For example, if you start reading in verse 14, and it says, "For it will be like a man…" you should ask the question, "What's it?" That's really important to understanding the story. Well, if you were to go back and read the surrounding passages around it, you would find that in verse 1 of chapter 25, Jesus is actually talking about the kingdom of heaven. So, it is the kingdom of heaven or the kingdom of God.

Well, what is the kingdom of heaven? We actually answered that question on the first week of the Parable series, but just to give you a little recap, the kingdom of heaven is a reference to the rule and reign of God in the hearts of his people and throughout the earth. The kingdom of heaven has "already" and "not yet" aspects to it.

The "already" aspect of the kingdom of heaven is the reality that the King of the kingdom, who is Jesus, has already come. The kingdom of God broke into history in the person of Jesus Christ, and he is the conquering King who conquered Satan, sin, and death through his death, burial, and resurrection. He now is seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven, and he is ruling and reigning in the hearts of all who put their trust in him. That's the "already" aspect of the kingdom.

The "not yet" aspect of the kingdom is the fact that the King is going to come back. Jesus Christ will one day come back. That day has not come yet, but it will come. When he comes, he will come to judge the living and the dead, and his rule and reign will be realized throughout the earth in such a way that the kingdom of heaven will replace the kingdom of the earth.

We know that Jesus in this parable is talking about the "not yet" aspect of the kingdom because he talks in the future tense. He says in verse 14, "For it will be like a man going on a journey…" Jesus is helping his friends understand what it's going to be like when he comes back to judge the living and the dead, and every person on the planet has to give an account to him for what they did with the life he entrusted to them.

Okay. Verses 14 and 15 kind of set the scene for us. Here's what it says: "For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away." See what's happening in the parable. It's very simple to understand.

There's a master and three servants. The master represents Jesus. That master is going on a long journey. That long journey represents the fact that Jesus left earth and went to heaven about 2,000 years ago. I'd say that's a long journey, and it still could be a little while longer. We have no clue. But Jesus is the master. The journey is his time in heaven. The servants represent us.

Now, this master gives three different servants three different amounts of talents. What is a talent in the Scripture? A talent is a unit of weight. It's either made out of gold, silver, or copper. Commentators debate how to measure the value in our modern day. What's the value of a talent? People debate it, but I think the consensus is that a talent is about 20 years of earned income of a working person. Twenty years. It depends on whether it's gold, silver, or copper, but it is not unrealistic to assume that one talent could be as much as $800,000 to $1 million or $1.5 million.

So, just think. That's just one talent. One guy is given five, one is given two, and one is given one. What's the point? The point is it really doesn't matter pinpointing the exact value of a talent. The point is that there's a master with extravagant wealth, and he entrusts significant portions of his wealth to his servants. Jesus is the master with extravagant wealth. We are the servants. He has entrusted every person on the planet with significant portions of his wealth, and he expects us to steward it, which begs the first question.

1. What do you have that belongs to Jesus? I want everyone right now to come up with an answer to that question. Just decide. Decide in your mind. Decide in your heart right now. What do you have that belongs to Jesus? Do you want to know what the answer is? Make sure your answer matches the right answer. Here's the answer of what you have that belongs to Jesus. Drum roll, please. The answer is "Everything." Everything you have belongs to Jesus.

Some of you guys just got super offended because you think I just took a shot at all the work you've done in your life. You're sitting there like, "You know what? I worked hard, and I sweat to earn everything I have." I would just say: Where did you get the mind you have? Where did you get the mind with that creative ability or that strategic ability? Where did you get that intrinsic drive to perform at all costs?

You might say, "Well, I got it from my parents." Okay. Well, where did they get it from? I could do this all day. The answer is "God." Everything you have is from God. Because it's from God, it belongs to God, and God cares deeply what we do with what he has given us to steward. Psalm 24:1 is extremely clarifying. Look at the wording. It says, "The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein…"

Let me simplify that wording with a different translation. "The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it…" Do you live in it? Yes. Therefore, you are God's. Everything you have belongs to Jesus. Your body belongs to Jesus. Your mind, your eyes, your ears, your hands, and your legs all belong to Jesus.

Every cent of your portfolio actually belongs to Jesus. Your house belongs to Jesus. Your second and third house belong to Jesus. Your cars belong to Jesus. Your abilities belong to Jesus. Your company belongs to Jesus. Every second of your time belongs to Jesus. Every opportunity you ever have belongs to Jesus. Everything you have, including the breath in your lungs right now, has been entrusted to you by Jesus.

Just like the servants in the story, where the master gave differing amounts to different people, it's the same thing. You have been given more to steward than other people in this world, and other people in this world have been given more to steward than you. But let's be clear. Jesus is the King of Kings. He's the master in the story, we are the servants in the story, and all of the aspects of our lives are the talents. So just evaluate. Do you agree?

Here's what I want everyone to do. I want to invite you to clench your fists. Just stick them out and clench your fists. If you're not doing it, you're the odd person out and we're all looking at you. So just do it. I just want you to think. What do you have in your life that you are gripping like you own it? What are you gripping? What would you be nervous for Jesus to touch in your life? Then I want to invite you to open your hands. This is the posture with which we should hold everything in our lives, because it's not ours in the first place. It's all his.

Several years ago, when I was a student pastor, the church I worked for did a wakeboard camp every summer. So, these families would bring their top-of-the-line wakeboard boats, and we would take middle school kids out and teach them how to wakeboard, and then we would share the gospel with them. One of my friends, David, brought his top-of-the-line wakeboard boat. If you know boats, it was an Air Nautique. It was very nice. It's an amazing boat. David gave his week to driving middle school girls around with their counselors so they could learn to wakeboard and then hear the gospel.

I remember walking along the dock, and I saw David. His boat was tied up, but David was literally just standing in the middle of his boat, looking at the seats on his boat, confused. I said, "David, is everything all right?" What you need to know is that the middle school girls who were on David's boat had brought a bunch of permanent markers with them, and when they were driving around on the boat, they were coloring with permanent markers. So, when I asked David, "Is everything all right?" that's what was happening.

I will never forget David's response. He said, "Man, I'm just standing here trying to figure out why God wanted marker on his boat." It stuck with me, because here's a guy who came to the realization that everything he has is actually not his. The millions he had made selling his company didn't belong to him; it belonged to God. The house he had, the nice house, wasn't his; it was God's. The boat he had wasn't his; it was God's. His time was not his; it was God's. He wasn't an owner; he was simply a steward. If you don't want to waste your life, then here's the key: Own nothing. Steward everything. That brings me to the next question.

1. What are you doing with what belongs to Jesus? If we just established that everything belongs to Jesus, now let's answer the question…What are you doing with what belongs to Jesus? Remember, in the story Jesus is the master and we're the servants. All of the aspects of our lives are the talents. Watch how the story continues.

Verse 16: "He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money." That word but marks a contrast. Jesus is telling this story because he's trying to show the difference between stewarding your life and wasting your life. He wants us to steward our lives.

So, we should look at the servant with five talents and the servant with two talents to learn what we are supposed to do. What did the servant with five talents do? The wording is really important. It says, "At once." He went at once. What does that mean? He snapped into action. Why? Because his aim was to please his master. There was no time to waste, so he snapped into gear. We should conclude that the person with two talents did the exact same thing.

Now, Jesus does not give us all of the details of what these servants did to double their master's assets, but the wrong assumption is that they did it quickly. They did not go to Vegas and just have a really hot hand for a weekend. That is not what happened here. If they had been entrusted with millions, the right assumption is that it took from the time the master left to the time the master returned for them to turn the master's wealth into double what it was. That's the right assumption.

From the time the master left to the time he returned, they leveraged everything they had. All of their time, all of their energy, and all of their attention went to pleasing the master. They wanted to maximize the master's resources for the sake of the master's profit. But that wasn't the servant's goal who only had one talent, which was still potentially a million dollars. It was still a significant amount. But his desire was not to please his master. That wasn't the aim of his life.

He did nothing to maximize the potential of the master's resources. His life didn't match his title. He was considered a servant, but he wasn't serving his master. I wonder if that describes anyone in this room. I wonder if anyone in this room is a Christian but is not living for Christ. Just evaluate. Are you a Christian who is not living for Christ? Maybe you believe theologically that everything you have belongs to Jesus, but practically, you're living like it's yours to do with it what you want.

So, just evaluate. Do you throw money at every form of luxury and comfort like it is your money? Do you not give to the church because you aren't convinced the church will steward your money well? Do you spend hours each week binging Netflix or scrolling through Instagram or perfecting your hobby at the country club like it's your time? Are you a workaholic, trying to prove something or earn respect or become somebody like it's your career? Do you look at pornography like they are your eyes and it's your mind?

See, it's good for us to realize Jesus has plans, specific plans, for everything that belongs to him. So, are you living like it's yours or his? This is where, I think, Paul's words to his friends in Corinth are really helpful. He says in 2 Corinthians 5:9, "So whether we are at home or away…" Watch the wording. "…we make it our aim to please him." He's saying that's the bull's-eye. Everything we have is leveraged for that purpose. The aim of our lives is to please God.

If that's the case, how can we be people who own nothing and steward everything? One of the best things we can do is become a people who begin to ask Jesus what he wants us to do with what belongs to him. I want you to imagine what your life would be like; I want you to imagine how this church would change; I want you to imagine how different Richardson and Lake Highlands and the Park Cities and Plano and every neighborhood that is represented in this room…

I want you to imagine how different this city would be if the thousands of people who are hearing this this morning began to go out and simply ask Jesus every day what he wants us to do with what belongs to him. Imagine at any point that you're looking at a screen with questionable content just asking Jesus, "Is this what you want your eyes looking at right now?" Or when you're sitting at work at your office at 8:00 p.m. while your family is at home just asking, "Is this what you want me doing with your time right now?"

Imagine asking, "What do you want your money spent on?" or "How do you want me to conduct myself in your meeting today? How do you want me to care for your body today? How do you want me to use your mouth to encourage others today? How do you want me to sharpen your mind today?" As we ask Jesus these questions, just imagine what would happen if we began to ask the Spirit of God to give us everything we need to accomplish everything Christ asks of us.

See, that's one of the beautiful realities of the gospel. Jesus, through his death, burial, and resurrection, doesn't just save us from sin; he actually saves us into a relationship where he lives inside of us through the presence of his Spirit, and he gives us everything we need to do everything he calls us to do. So, the Christian life is not just a demonstration of sheer will; it is a demonstration of sheer surrender to God's will by the power of his Spirit.

Let me be really clear what I'm driving at right now, because I don't want there to be any confusion. I'm trying to call us to reject cultural Christianity and embrace biblical Christianity. If the life I am presenting to you feels extreme to you, let me just tell you what has happened. Your understanding of following Jesus hasn't been shaped by Jesus. Your understanding of following Jesus has been shaped by the American dream, not Jesus. If we're going to follow Jesus, we should let Jesus speak into what it looks like to follow Jesus.

I'll just say there is something beautiful and captivating about people who own nothing and steward everything. I see it happening in this body all the time. I know teachers who faithfully pray for their students and love their students with a Christlike love. I sat at lunch with a long-time Watermark member recently who has built a very successful company. As we had lunch, he said, "I don't believe in retirement," but here's the thing.

He wasn't saying, "I plan to run this company until the day I die." He was saying, "Look. When I cross the finish line, I want to cross it sprinting. I want to spend the rest of my days on earth discipling younger men. I want to help Watermark maximize its impact for the sake of the gospel, and I want to leverage all of my resources for the glory of God." That's what he was saying when he said, "I don't believe in retirement."

I think of families at Watermark that have invited international students from UTD into their homes to befriend them and show them the love of Jesus. I think about a couple here at Watermark that has designated an extra room in their home for a formerly incarcerated man to live so that he has discipleship and a place to live and support while he puts his life back together.

I think about a lawyer who is wheelchair bound, and she has a major heart for people with disabilities. She's currently on a trip to El Salvador right now to use her time, talent, and treasures to bring wheelchairs to those with disabilities. I think about a senior project manager here in our body who works for one of the largest commercial real estate companies in the country.

She has managed the build-out of each Watermark healthcare location. Not only has she volunteered her time, but she has leveraged relationships in business to get a variety of items heavily discounted or donated. I think about a friend who advocates for kids with special needs or learning differences because she upholds the image of God in each individual.

I think about a young adult I stood right down here with this past Tuesday night who sat there and counseled another young adult, just quoting Scripture. He quoted a good portion of Romans, chapter 3, and I just watched in amazement. I was so encouraged, because here is a young adult who has realized that his mind actually belongs to Jesus, so he has filled his mind with the Word of God so he can serve at The Porch but also serve with Great Questions to help unbelievers process through their hurdles in a really compelling way.

Do you know what each of these people is doing? Each of these people is maximizing the potential of their Master's resources for the sake of the Master's profit. They are owning nothing. They are stewarding everything. So, what are you doing with what belongs to Jesus? That's the second question. Now the final question I want to answer from the parable.

1. What do you want to hear when you meet Jesus? Look at how the parable goes on. Verse 19: "Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them." Why? Because Jesus is going to come back, and every person will stand before him and give an account. It goes on.

Verse 20: "And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, 'Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.' His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant.'" Wouldn't it be great to hear those words? "Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master." That is a picture of eternity with God in heaven.

Verse 22: "And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, 'Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.' His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.'" These servants have devoted all of their lives to one thing: pleasing their master. They have lived for their master. So, what did they hear when they gave an account for their lives? It was these beautiful words: "Well done, good and faithful servant."

One of the best things we can do is realize right now what Jesus celebrates. What is it? "Well done, good and wealthy servant." No, that's not it. "Well done, good and talented servant." That's not it either. "Well done, good and strategic-minded or creative servant." Nope, not that. "Well done, good and beautiful servant." Nope. "Well done, good and athletic servant." Not that either. What does he celebrate? "Well done, good and faithful servant." That is what he celebrates.

Everything you are and everything you have has been entrusted to you to make much of him. So, own nothing. Steward everything. Be faithful. How? By the power of the Spirit of God that is at work in you. I want you to notice that in this story, the master gave the same commendation to both the person with five talents and the person with two talents. Do you know what that means? Here's what it means. Don't miss it. It means it doesn't matter how much you have. What matters is what you do with what you have.

So, let me encourage you. Stop comparing. Stop wishing you had a little bit more of someone else's life. Stop trying to become who other people need you to be in order for them to approve of you. Embrace the life God has entrusted you with to steward. Embrace that life, because that's the only life you will give an account for when you die. Now, the question is…What do you want to hear when you meet Jesus? One option is "Well done, good and faithful servant," but not everyone will hear those words. Look at how the parable goes on. Verse 24:

"He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, 'Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours.' But his master answered him, 'You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest.'"

This is really clarifying, because this shows us that this servant didn't truly know and understand his master. He thought his master was a hard man. What that means is he is calling into question the character of his master. He didn't understand the character of his master. When he says, "I know you to be a hard person," he's saying, "I know you to be someone who exploits people, and you put your servants in unfair positions."

What we've learned from the parable is that this master had every intention of rewarding this servant who had less than the other servants. If he would be faithful with the one talent he was given, he would receive the same reward. That is a generous master, but he misunderstood the character of his master. It shows that this servant didn't understand his master's values. See, his master's desire and values was for his assets to be maximized, not just managed.

Then it shows that this servant didn't actually understand his purpose in life. His title was that he was a servant, yet he was a servant who wasn't serving his master. Instead of serving his master, he was actually serving himself. He was living for himself. He was living to protect himself. That's why he hid his master's assets. So, let's just be clear. This is a picture of a guy who didn't really know his master, and he wasn't truly living for his master. So, look at the result. What's the result? Verse 28:

"So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

What's the consequence for a servant who doesn't truly know the master and isn't truly living for the master? The result is complete rejection by the master, and he is banished from the master's presence. See, here's what this parable teaches. According to this parable, instead of hearing, "Well done, good and faithful servant," some people will stand before Jesus and hear, "You wicked and slothful servant," and the result for the lives they have lived will be eternal separation from God in hell. Why? Because they wasted their lives owning instead of stewarding.

Now, this is where passages like this can feel really uncomfortable. When you hear that this servant is basically judged for the life he lives, and he is banished from the master's presence because of how he lived, it can feel very anti-gospel. It can feel void of grace. It can feel like the emphasis is that our salvation is something that is earned by our works.

So, don't miss what I'm telling you right now. Here's what you need to understand. The lives we live don't save us. Here's what I'm saying: you don't earn your way into heaven. That's impossible. It is not works that save you. The lives we live don't save us, but the lives we live do make visible either the invisible faith that saves us or the invisible unbelief that condemns us.

Do you see the difference? It's not our lives that save us. It's not the lives we live, but the lives we live do make something visible. They make visible either the invisible faith that does save us or the unbelief that condemns us. So, let me just say this. If you're nervous right now because you are a Christian not living for Christ, your tendency in your nervousness might be to think the application of this message is to go and do, to make sure you're right with God, but that's not the application of this story.

The application of the story is not go and do; the application of the story is to see the one who has already come and done. It's to see the King, to see the King of the kingdom. Let me explain it this way. I've shared this with you before. A mentor of mine, Doug Sherman, put it this way: your view of Jesus determines your response to Jesus.

Sometimes the best way to know what your view of Jesus is is by looking at your response to Jesus. The servant with the one talent had a poor response to the master because he had an incorrect view of the master. So, if you're looking at your response to Jesus, and you're not pleased with your response to Jesus, the issue is your view of Jesus. It's possible that you have the wrong view of Jesus.

A good question for you to answer right now is…Who do you know the Master to be? Who do you know the King of the kingdom to be? Who do you know Jesus to be? This is a parable about the kingdom of heaven. Jesus is the King of the kingdom. He's the one who left heaven. The kingdom of God broke into history in the person of Jesus. While he came and deserved to be worshiped as a king, he actually took the nature of a servant. Jesus became a servant.

He submitted himself to the will of the Father. He came to accomplish all that was God's will. What was the will of the Father? It was for Jesus Christ to take countless enemies of God and turn them into children of God. He has done it by conquering all of our sin on the cross. When Jesus went to the cross, he was being punished for all of our sin. When he walked out of the tomb, he was walking out victorious, conquering all of our sin, demonstrating that he has made a way when there was no way for sinful people to be brought into right relationship with God.

He then ascended into heaven where he sat down at the right hand of the Father. Jesus Christ is the King of all Kings. What do kings do? Kings reign. When you know Jesus as King, it only makes sense for him to reign in your life and for you to live for him. It's going to look imperfect every single day. There are going to be good days and bad days. It will be imperfect. It's going to be a lifelong learning process, and there will be moments every day where you try to steal Jesus' throne back in your life, but ultimately, you live for him because he is the King.

So, if you're here this morning, and you know Jesus Christ as King, and you are living for him as King, my encouragement to you is just keep going. Keep repenting. Keep surrendering. Keep submitting. Keep serving. Keep stewarding, and do it all by the power of the Holy Spirit that has been granted to you because of the cross and the empty tomb of Jesus Christ.

If you're here this morning, and you know Jesus Christ as King, but you've been in a season where you've been distracted by the fast-paced nature of Dallas… You've been in a season where it has just been you living for yourself. It has been about achieving, accomplishing, attaining, becoming. Do you know the grace of God this morning is for you? My encouragement to you is just repent. Confess it to the Lord. Invite his rule and reign back into the aspects of your life in which you've been living for yourself.

Then if you're here this morning, and Jesus Christ has just basically been a ticket into heaven for you…you just need him, basically, to get you into heaven when you die, but from now until that day, you feel like you can live for yourself and do whatever you want to do…here's my encouragement to you. Don't miss it. It's to see Jesus before you see Jesus. What I'm saying is my encouragement to you is to see Jesus as King now before you see Jesus as Judge then. See Jesus as King today before you see Jesus as Judge on that day.

You know what? When I went to that airport in Rome and told my story to those guys at the counter, do you know what they did through trepidation? They gave me another car. I don't know why, but they gave me a new car. Do you know what the good news is about Jesus? When you come to Jesus now, and you see him as King now, and you come to him and say, "All I have for you is this broken and busted life," he gladly gives you new life. Gladly.

Through his goodness and his grace, he gladly gives you everything new. He gives you everything you need to live a life that is pleasing to him so one day, when you stand before him, you can hear those beautiful words: "Well done, good and faithful servant." May we be a people here at Watermark Community Church… May we be known as people who own nothing and steward everything all to the glory of Jesus Christ. Let's pray together.

Lord Jesus, it all is yours. It all belongs to you, Lord. It's all yours…everything. God, I pray that we would be a people who believe that and surrender fully to you. God, may we own nothing. May we steward everything. Thank you for your goodness and your grace expressed through your triumph over sin on the cross. We declare you to be a victorious and conquering King. You're a good King, Lord.

In the areas of life where we don't trust your goodness, Lord, would you gently draw us to a place where we say, "You can have your way in us"? If there's anyone here today who has never put their trust in you, I pray that they would know you today as Savior and begin to walk with you as their King. We need you. We love you. In Jesus' name, amen.