Good and Faithful Servant

Faithful Service (4)

CGCM Youth Fellowship
5/21/2021

Icebreaker:
If you were given five talents (more than a lifetime’s worth of wages*), how would you spend or
invest the money?
* A talent is worth about 16.5 years of wages. Five talents are worth 82.5 years of wages.
In today’s USD currency, assuming a $50,000 annual salary, 82.5 years of wages would
be $4,125,000 (before taxes)!

Review main points of the sermon:

Matthew 25:14-30

I. What does it mean to be a faithful servant?

- A faithful servant is trusted to always accomplish God’s purposes with the resources
given.

II. What are the results of being a faithful servant?

- Experiencing God’s joy and receiving more opportunities to experience more of God’s
joy.

III. When is it hard to be a faithful servant?

- When we forget who God is and do not want to risk investing in His purposes.

I. What does it mean to be a faithful servant?

- A faithful servant is trusted to always accomplish God’s purposes with the resources given.

1) v16-17: The two servants who were given five and two talents by the master, traded what
they were given and made a profit of 100%. They did so “at once” or immediately to
accomplish the master’s purpose of making more money.

a) Since God is our Master, we need to know His purposes as we serve Him.
What are God’s purposes?

(Making a “profit” of souls in the Kingdom of God. The gospel to be shared

so that all will come to salvation through faith in Jesus. Christians to be
sanctified and continue to grow in their relationship with God as disciples.)

© 2021 Ivan C. Yu https://ivancyu.com/

 b) Do you feel like you are using your Spiritual Gifts and other resources God
has given you (time, energy, money… etc.) to accomplish God’s purposes?
What may be preventing you to do so “at once” like the servants in the
parable?

2) v15: The master gave different amounts of talents to each of the servants according to
each one’s ability. God also gives us different kinds and amounts of Spiritual Gifts and
resources. He does so, knowing what we can handle and how we are capable of using
them to serve Him.

a) Have you every doubted if you can be able to serve God in a certain ministry
or use a certain Spiritual Gift or resource?

b) If God gave you a certain Spiritual Gift or resource, it means that you do have
the capability to serve Him with it! How does this change your perspective on
serving God? Read 1 Peter 4:10.

II. What are the results of being a faithful servant?

- Experiencing God’s joy and receiving more serving opportunities to experience more of God’s
joy.

3) v20-23: When the master returned, he gave the same response to the two faithful servants
given five and two talents.

• He recognized their faithfulness.

“Well done, good and faithful servant…”
• He gave them greater responsibilities.
“…You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much…”

• He was joyful for their faithfulness.

“…Enter into the joy of your master.”

a) Have you ever felt like you do not get recognized for what you do (whether
serving in church or anything good elsewhere)? Do you think the lack of
recognition and appreciation deter people from being willing to serve
faithfully?

b) If you know that God always recognizes your faithfulness in the way you
serve, how does that motivate you to serve or motivate the way you serve?

© 2021 Ivan C. Yu https://ivancyu.com/

 Part of this recognition is experiencing God’s joy. What do you think it
means to experience God’s joy? Have you ever experienced God’s joy as a
result of serving?

c) If we are faithful in the little things in life, God will give us more and greater
responsibilities to be faithful in. This also results in more opportunities to
experience God’s joy. What are some little things in life you may be
struggling with being faithful before God in? (Taking care of your body,
going to bed on time, doing chores… etc.)

III. When is it hard to be a faithful servant?

- When we forget who God is and do not want to risk investing in His purposes.

4) v24: The unfaithful servant described his master as a hard man who exploited the labor of
others. This is a wrong idea of the master and showed that he distrusted the master.

a) It is hard to be a faithful servant if we have a distrust of our Master. How can

we overcome any false ideas or perceptions that we may have about God?
What is the best way to know God?

5) v25-27: The unfaithful servant did not want to take a risk with the money he was given.
He did not want to make an investment in the master’s purposes and buried his talent
underground. Even if he had taken a little risk and put it in the bank, he could have at
least gained something.

a) What risks to us may be involved when we invest our Spiritual Gifts or

resources (time, energy, money… etc.) while serving God?

b) Are the risks worth investing in the “profit” of God’s purposes? (See 1a)

c) If we do not want to take a risk investing our Spiritual Gifts or resources, we

would be like the servant who buried his talent underground because he did
not trust the master. Taking a risk involves trusting that God will provide and
bless you as you faithfully serve Him.

Closing

6) What is one thing you learned from the message today?

Share prayer requests and close in prayer.

© 2021 Ivan C. Yu https://ivancyu.com/