MAKE IT MAKE CENTS // Matthew 25: 14-30 // Pastor Bianca Juarez

If it's your first time here, welcome to revere. My name is Bianca and I'm one of the pastors here I love I love that we get to walk into this space in this place and I pray that maybe you walked in Hungry maybe you walked in thirsty. I pray that the bread of life and living water fill you to overflow I pray that you might have walked in empty, but you leave Filled and overflowing and refreshed but not just that you would leave filled But that you would be encouraged to chase after Jesus and his plan for your life Now for those that don't know I haven't been going to church my whole life And if I am not careful there is a possibility and I am prone to make this feel like a routine So when I work on sermons and when I work on series for this church I am dedicated to crafting messages that reveal who God is through his word And I want us to be transformed in his presence and that is why I'm excited for this series I firmly believe that over the course of the next three weeks that this series has the potential to change your life Because it's going to change your decisions. I Say this because there are two main issues that are affecting us as orange County residents But I'm gonna go further and not just say orange County even though statistically speaking those are the two main issues I believe that this is affecting Southern California California and dare I say the nation the two main issues that are facing People in our area number one mental health issues and number two finances So we don't know where to go for mental health help or we don't know how to fund it And the truth is is if we're honest, we got issues We've got marriage issues. We've got in law issues if you're in laws with you don't nudge them today But there's kids issues we we got singleness issues. We got loneliness issues. We got depression issues We got anxiety issues and on top of those issues now. Let's add to the financial stress of life money issues mortgage issues rent issues car issues debt issues we got issues and I don't believe like I said before I don't believe this is just for Southern California I believe that this is for the nation So when preparing for this series and taking a look at what is going on culturally and even globally Have you ever looked at somebody's decisions or their life choices and thought? I'm confused make it make sense Where you say one thing, but you're living another like you say you want peace, but you keep welcoming in chaos You say that you want to be a person of generosity, but you haven't planned a budget as a pastor

I speak to people and they're honest and they'll say that they're lonely or they're broke or they can't afford gas to come to church So they're not coming to church no more, but then I'm confused because you're lonely But you haven't signed up for a community group you're broke But you're holding in $10 matcha and you say you can't come to church, but you've got Hulu and Netflix and ESPN plus subscriptions Make it make sense Now before we can see here and laugh or maybe question us somebody else's math Why don't we take a look at our own math? because sometimes The problem isn't that God hasn't given us enough Sometimes the problem is that we haven't learned what to do with what God has put in our hands so today I'm going to be talking about making sense and Multiplying what God has put in our hands because our financial habits are revealing something about our spiritual habits Your financial habits reveal something about your spiritual habits and over the next three weeks We're going to be talking about stewardship money management and multiplying what God has given us now every time I teach on finances People inevitably feel away and maybe you're one of those people who are like I brought a friend to church and now we're talking about money Oh, no, you know because every time I talk about finances There's there's accusations or there's thoughts or there's prejudice where people will say all the church wants is your money Why do you guys always talk about money? God is God doesn't need money money. Does it matter to God? But money does reveal what has your heart? That's why this matters the title of the series and the title of our message today is make it make sense Make it make sense so we're making your Bible some Matthew chapter 25 Matthew is in the middle of your Bible It is the first book of the New Testament And it is an eyewitness account of a disciple who follow Jesus and he is jotting down Jesus's stories his parables his words and his miracles And as you turn to Matthew chapter 25, I have to admit I've been sitting on this message for well over a year. I Didn't know how and when to talk about it, but recently I received a message your life and you had mentioned that you had accepted the fact that your marriage was over because of infidelity but you alluded to financial infidelity and you alluded to being thousands of dollars in debt. So how did you get out of debt as a single woman living in debt free?"

I realized that I don't really open up about my personal finances because it's just that personal. Also, the vein of the podcast isn't really about my finances so I didn't think anyone would care but as I was recording that podcast and people started emailing or messaging me about what I said, I realized that it was this passage out of Matthew chapter 25 that gave me the practical life handles to dive into God's Word and it changed my life. The passage that we're about to read theologically isn't dealing with finances. It's speaking about Christ's return and not squandering everything that He's given us. However and yet this passage taught me and inspired me to get out of debt. This passage that we're about to read taught me how to be risky. It actually stretched my financial goals and gave me perspective on how I want to lead this church. Are you ready to read this passage? If you are, say Amen. Matthew 2514, Jesus says this, He's telling a story, a parable, to help people understand. He says, "Again, it will be like a man going on a journey who called his servants and entrusted his wealth." Whose wealth? His wealth, if you brought your Bible circle, that his wealth to them. So just upon verse 1, we are going to discover that the capital, the finances, didn't belong to the workers. The servants didn't own the money. They were stewards of the money. This is the mental mindset I want as followers of Jesus. He is the owner and the giver of all. I'm so glad you said that I will. Psalm 241 says this, "The earth is the Lord's and everything in it. The world in all who live in it. God owns everything. A ownership says, "What can I do with this?"

Stewardship asks, "What does the owner want me to do with this?" When I give my money to my financial investor, I actually give in one lump sum at the end of the year. I give my money to my financial investor. And if she were to invest in the market and the stock market is bad, she comes me at the end of the following year and says, "Hey, we didn't earn any money. I'm not going to fault her for trying." The market was bad. But if I give her my money and she takes my money and she puts it under her desk and then she comes and tries to hand it back to me and says, "We didn't earn any money. What makes you think I'm going to trust her with my finances? I'm not." Well, guess what? You are a wealth asset manager for the Lord God Almighty. Hold on. Hold on. You may not have gone to college. You may not even be good with finances, but let me tell you the job that you have today. Move over Deloitte and Tush, move over Schwab financial. You are a financial wealth asset manager for God Almighty. You might be sitting here thinking, "No, that's my money." Okay. Well, who gave you that money? God, whether you want to admit it or not, stay with me. Well, who and how did he give you that money? He gave you the job that you have. And how did he allow you to get that job, his finances and his providence? And how did he empower you to maintain that job? Your life, your health, your mental ability that he bestowed upon you? I am not saying, please hear me, I am not saying that every financial hardship or anyone

that's faced with financial issues is because they don't know how to steward their finances. The truth is, is life is going to life. Some people are facing financial struggles because they lost a job or they were hit with a sudden illness or, God forbid, they're walking through a divorce. For our circumstances, you might be facing or managing today. All I'm saying is, let's bring it to the light and start identifying the best steps that we need to take to be multipliers of what God has entrusted us to manage. Does that make sense? The truth is that God gives you and Scripture, which we're not going to talk about today, but Scripture will tell us, "Hey, we give back to God," what is his. We get to keep all of this, but we give back to God, what he asks of us. We give verse 15, to the one he gave five bags of gold to another two bags and to another one bag, each according to his ability. So the owner assessed who can do what with his finances. Then he went on a journey, verse 16, "The man who received five bags of gold went at Oh, the answer is on the screen. I'm gonna say it again, and you proved to me that you could read, all right? Here we go. To the man who would receive five bags of gold went at once and put his money where. To work, work, work, work, work, and gain five more bags. Okay, I like putting names here on people so we understand who we talk about. Let's name this brother John. And if John had a hustler or a moniker, it would be John the Hustler. Or if he had a nickname or a moniker, it'd be John the Hustler.

Why do we know that John is the Hustler? Because scripture gave us details at once. So immediately, he secured the bag. All five of them, and he put the money to work. Faithfulness doesn't require perfect conditions to start. If you're taking note, faithfulness starts with whatever opportunities are given to you. If you are waiting for the perfect time to start, go me waiting a really long time. Whenever God entrusts you with something, immediately put it to work, even if it's yourself. Look at verse 17. And also the one with two bags of gold gain more. So John is the hustler. Let's now name this servant Taylor. And Taylor receives two talents. He works with what he has and he has given two more. So let's call Taylor the faithful one. Taylor didn't ask, why did I only get two talents? Well, John got five. Which shows me that God isn't asking you to manage what he gave somebody else. He's asking you to be faithful with what he gave you. You weren't called to reproduce on someone else's results. You were called to be faithful with your own resources. Does that make sense? Okay, okay. So we've got John the Hustler. We got Taylor the faithful.

Let's read about the third servant. But the man, verse 18, who had received one bag, went off, dug the hole in the ground, and hid his master's money. Let's call this guy Michael, Michael the hider. He received one talent, digs a hole, and buries the master's money. And as we will learn, he is fearful. What fear convinces you to protect may be the very thing that you failed to steward. So church, what has God placed in your hands that fear has made you bury? What are you sitting on, when the Lord is asking you to multiply? He's not telling you how much to multiply. He's telling you and asking you to be faithful with what he put in your hands. Okay, so let's get into the details of this. In our translation, the translation that we use here, NIV, the new international version, we are told that the servants were given a bag of gold, five bags of gold, two bags of gold, and one bag of gold. But in other translations, how many in your translation says a talent? Will you raise your hand? Yeah, a talent, right? Okay, well, the problem with that, which is why the translators wanted to make it easy for us to understand, the problem with the word talent,

is that in our English language, talent is synonymous with skill. But that's not what we're talking about here. Jesus listed talent as a monetary amount. So in reality, one talent is equal to 6,000 denary. That's roughly 20 years of labor wages. So let's just do the math. Some people think, oh, this is just chump change, a bag of gold. It wasn't pocket change. It wasn't chump change. It wasn't couch change. It was a multi-million dollar financial portfolio. Let me back it up. 20 years is the average wage of 6,000 denary. Stay with me. The average wage of American income is $57,000. So take $57,000 in times of by 20. That's $1.14 million. Even the servant who only got one bag of gold was given a multi-million dollar portfolio. This isn't pocket change. And you might be sitting here thinking, well, God didn't give me a multi-million dollar portfolio. Do you make $57,000 a year? Do you make $20,000 a year? Do you make $200,000 a year? Whatever God has given you, what are you doing with it? Are you sitting on it? Are you fearful?

Are you bearing it? Or are you going to work? See, cause servant number one and servant number two, they put it to work. But servant number three, just sat on it, looking for 19. After a long time, the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. Master, he said, you entrusting me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more. His master replied, well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful with a few. I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share the master's happiness. Verse 22, the man that had two bags of gold also came. Master, he said, you've entrusting me with two bags. See, I have gained two. You have been faithful with a few. I will put you in charge of many things. Come in sharing your master's happiness. God is not concerned with what you have in your hands. He's concerned with what you do with what you have in your hands. Recognize what has been entrusted to you. God is the owner. You are the steward. Stewardship begins when ownership ends. And our mindset as Americans, our mindset as idealized Westerners. It's mind, mind, mind, mind, mind, my life, my finances.

The first two stewards, they went out to work and they multiplied what was in their hands. But I want to highlight a point I want us to just acknowledge. They were not given the same amount. They were not given equal amount. They didn't start at the same starting line, but they took what they had, whatever it was, and they multiplied it. I didn't grow up with wealth. I didn't grow up with parents who went to college. I didn't have a college fund when I started college. I didn't have an inheritance or bequeathed a large fund of money. I don't have a trust fund. But I took whatever God gave me. And I wanted to show him that I could be faithful with what he's entrusted to me. The truth is, is that some people start with more or are given more. Some people, period, full stop. They just have more. They might be born on second base when you're in the dugout. They might be taller than you. They might be better looking than you. They might have better education than you. They might have a better zip code than you. They might have a better area code than you. They might have better parents than you. They might be lighter or wider than you. They might be a man. There is opportunities that certain people have

that others don't. But that's not what this conversation is about. It is not my job to compare and despair. It is not my job to be jealous and ask why. But it is my job to take whatever that God has given me and to show him I'm the girl that can multiply it. That's what I want for God's people. If you, yourself as an owner, you are less prone to share. Me, me, me, my, my, I, I, it's my money. It's my wealth. But if you are a steward, you are more prone to be risky. Let me see what I could do. How can I multiply this? Where can I invest in this? It doesn't make sense, but I'm going to show you when you trust God with your finances, it makes sense. It doesn't make sense, but it will make sense. And I watched this in the life of my parents. My parents never had a portfolio wealth manager, but they knew what King Solomon said about finances and generosity. Proverbs 11, 24 says, "One man gives freely, yet gains more. Another with holds unduly becomes a poverty." They say, "Hey, one man is generous, and they're giving out their funds and their finances, and they have more." And the one that has holds back, and they have less. Verse 25, "A generous person will prosper, whoever refreshes others will be refreshed."

Like I said, my parents never went to college, but I was able to go to college with thanks to many scholarships, and now I get to be a woman that helps other women fund with cash as they step into their collegiate dreams and adventures. My parents did not have inordinate wealth, but they taught me to tithe and to honor God with my hard work and to live a life of radical generosity. My parents didn't give me an inheritance, but they gave me a spiritual education to help me live a life of generosity, to help people less fortunate than me. Whatever God gave me, it was my mission to prove I'm a 10-talent girl. I may have been given one talent, but I will show you I will multiply it and multiply it and multiply it. Would ever you give me, I will show you that you can trust me. That mental mindset has held me through even leading this congregation. Well, what is the opposite of a wealth manager and multiplier? Look at verse 24, "Then the man who had received one bag of gold came, master," he said, "I knew you were a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown gathering, where you have not scattered seed, so I was afraid, and I went out and hid your gold in the ground." See, here's what belongs to you.

You gave me a little, I'm gonna give you a little. Refuse to let fear bury what you've been given. The first two servants, they acted, but this servant allowed fear to dictate his stewardship. As I read this verse, there was some words that came to mind that describe the third servant. Judgmental, he judged the master, said, "I knew you were a hard man." Also, there's a sense of entitlement that I'm picking up and it's implied, it's not direct, it's implied, Well, here's what I'm gonna give you. There's also fear clearly because he said, "You are a hard man." And then there is this aura of bitterness. If you've come here today and you feel like God is hard on you, if you're watching online or you're in this room and you feel like God only wants to take from you, if you feel like God has been cruel to you and is punishing you, that will make you want to hide your talent. It'll make you want to squander your gift. It'll make you angry and bitter with God. But let me let you know that there's grace and I'm so glad that you're here. You could have legitimate frustration and bitterness with God. You could feel like it is unjust that others started ahead of you or he or she had what you never had. You could even feel afraid that you're gonna mess this up

and make mistakes and lose everything. But let me tell you because I love you. Let me warn you, what you believe about the master will shape what you do with what he puts in your hands. How you view the master will dictate what you do with what he placed in your hands. When I was starting over in my life and I was rebuilding, I'll be honest with you and I have been honest with you in this journey, I was feeling very disappointed by God. I was betrayed by man and I was broker than a joker. I was thousands of dollars in debt. There were credit cards taken out in my name that I wasn't even aware of. There was back taxes that had 'em been paid in years that I discovered and all of the legal divorce fees were solely incurred by me. I'll be honest with you, I could have filed bankruptcy. I could have gone crazy and discharged everything to a credit card, yolo, you only live once, someone's gonna pay this debt. I could have been bitter, I could have been so angry, but I made a decision in that moment. I'm a 10 talent woman and God may have only given me one talent but I'm gonna show him that he could trust me with his wealth. So I immediately took out my finances and I looked at my finance to my debt ratio and then I called and reached out to a tax specialist to see about creating a plan to pay off my unpaid taxes.

I found out that my retirement plan that I had and I started when I was 21 had gone unpaid and not invested for the 15 years that I was married. So as a single woman thinking about the future, I had to think, how do I double and triple up on this? And then I had to create a budget because my goal was to be absolutely and completely debt free. And I wanted to be debt free, not only so that I would be a slave to no one, but I could live a life of generosity, which scripture tells me. I knew even with my lack, even with money I didn't have and even with my in debt, I wanted to be generous because Paul the Apostle says this in second Corinthians chapter nine. He says this in verse six. Remember this, whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. Whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Well, here's the challenge. Paul is using agricultural terms because during this time, everyone knew about farming. Well, where this falls short is that we use words like reap and sow and harvest. And we don't really get it because we are no longer in a greater society.

We're an industrial society. We're actually a tech society. So we break this down. To sow, here's a seed. To sow is to plant. So Paul is saying, if you sow sparingly, here's what I'm gonna pay off my debt with. Here's what I'm gonna pay my loans with. Here's what I'm gonna be generous to, to the church. Here's my tip for God. And here's what I'm gonna give, the homeless man at the end of the 405 Freeway. Paul is saying, hey, if you sow sparingly, you're gonna reap sparingly. You can put it in a little, you're gonna get a little. But then he says, those that spare so generously will reap generously. Guess what? I'm gonna give God to what is his. I'm gonna honor God my finances. I'm gonna pay off my debt so I'm a slave to nobody. My friends who need finances, hey, I'm gonna be wise by generosity but I'm gonna be generous because I'm gonna be a person who sows generously. Does that make sense? So he's saying in verse seven, each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion for God loves a cheerful giver and God is able to bless you abundantly.

So that in all things, at all times, having all that you need, you will abandon every good work. I may not have a lot of money at that time but by God, I would share what little I had. It might just look like buying a coffee for someone behind me at Starbucks. I don't drink Starbucks, I have evolved, praise the Lord. It might be just tipping well for the waitress at the restaurant. and they need a little gas money or something, I can just pull it out. Whatever situation I am in or was in, what I do know is that I had to be generous because God gives seed to the sower, not the hoarder. God gives seed to the sower, not the hoarder. I couldn't control every financial situation I found myself in. I couldn't even control what was gonna hit me next, but I could take responsibility and make the next faithful step. And sometimes church, the next miracle doesn't begin with a sudden deposit in your bank account. That will be nice, more often than not. It begins with an honest budget, a difficult conversation, a plan in the courage to stop hiding what God has given you. Look at the consequence, we're gonna find out the consequence of hiding what God has given us. Look at verse 26, his master replied, "You wicked and lazy servant.

"So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown "and gather where I have not scattered seed." Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers so that when I returned, I would least receive it back with interest. If you put in a bank, I at least would have got interest on it. So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has 10 bags. AKA, if you don't lose it, if you don't use it, you lose it, verse 29, for whoever will be given more and they will have an abundance, whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. So what does this mean practically? Maybe you weren't raised in a house that taught you biblical stewardship or how to multiply the money that God has given you. That is no longer an excuse for reckless living. I am passionate about this because it's changed my life and I'm seeing the people of God become slaves to debt. I worked in an anti-human trafficking organization for seven years because I abhor slavery and yet the people of God are living under debt because they won't get their finances under control. Do you know that 79% of Americans are living in debt that should not be? Galatians 5.1 says, "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free and in this house, we don't just honor God with our words. We honor God with our actions and our deeds."

So let's start off and get real about where we need to grow in the area of wealth, asset managers, for the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Know what you have. I'm gonna give us four, four things I want us to hold onto and every single one of us is gonna fall in one of these four categories. My goal over the next three weeks is that you move from one category into the next. So category one, know what you have. Start off by making a budget. Know how much do you bring in and how much do you spend each month? If you are spending more than you're earning, you're living in debt. I remember the year that everything imploded and my life went up in smoke and I discovered the inordinate amounts of debt that I was in, I was terrified. I didn't know how it was gonna make it. I did the math and the math wasn't mapping. It didn't make sense, but I trusted God because I know he always comes through. I know my God always comes through. I had a plan and I was gonna live generously with wisdom but I made a plan and one thing that I was raised on is in our household, we always paid the tithe. My daddy always says, you pay the Lord, then you pay the landlord. We always tithe, we're gonna talk about that

in the coming weeks, but for me, it was not my tithe that I wanted to give to God. At the end of every year in this house, we do something called an end of your offering. Scripture refers to it as a free will offering. You don't have to, but it's the above and beyond. It is my gratitude. God, for everything you have given me, I wanna give back to you, not because I have to, because I want to. And every year, in the years that I was married, my then husband and I made a financial commitment it was scary, like the amount made your butt cheeks clench. Like, oh, how's the Lord gonna come through? But we did it in faith because we had a vision. The first year when everything imploded, I made up my financial plan and I realized what I had to pay to catch up and how long it was gonna take me, but that year, I took a look at my savings, I look at my finances and I said, I'm going to still give what I've always given an income of two, even if it's an income of one, because my God will provide my every need. That year, I made the donation and I knew that the Lord would see me through, but let me tell you something, I was scared 'cause I looked at my bank account. I didn't know how I was going to make it. But now I get to stand on the other side

of God's provision and his faithfulness and say I am living absolutely, completely debt-free that I get to experience God as Jehovah-Giara because Malachi three sends us to test me in this. God says test me in this, test me in the tide. That's not even the message for today. That's a freezy. That's an appetizer for next week. And listen, I stand before you and I tell you, I still do not own a home yet. I put an emphasis on the yet 'cause I prophesied that I will get my house. The Lord hears me pray for Corona Del Mar and even if he gives me a home in Corona, I will say yes, Lord, all right. Corona and Corona Del Mar, they're very different. I'll take either, Jesus, I'll take either. But let me tell you something, there was grave sacrifices that had to be made to get to the place that I am now. To live the life that I'm living now, I had to say no for a really long time. We have something called financial peace university in our community groups. It makes me excited. I remember looking out and saying, "Toni's that's do a girl who went through "financial peace university who had inordinate debt "and is now living debt free." It said it, she said, "It changed my life."

And yet I talk to people who lead FPU and they're like, after week two, people stop coming because they don't want to do what's required for freedom. I remember my sisters coming over to my house when everything kind of imploded and I was on a very tight budget. They're like, "Pianca, why is it so hot in this house?" Well, what they didn't know is I didn't turn on the AC 'cause the AC is expensive and some of y'all act rich with your AC, all right. I was like, open the window, it's a sweat box. We're trying to get skinny or something. And then during the winter, they would come over and be like, "Bring your jackets "'cause I'm not gonna turn on the heater." They're like, "You're so cheap." No, I want to be debt free. Don't get it twisted, all right. There is sacrifices that you will have to make for your freedom, but it is for freedom that Christ has set us free. We already started community groups, but I reached out to Danielle who's part of the staff and she leads our community group and I said, "Hey, do we have any FPU community groups going on?" Right now, she said, "Yes." I said, "Thank you." Now, I didn't tell her I was gonna do this 'cause I asked for forgiveness and I don't ask for permission to help me Lord,

but if you are here and you know, this is your first step. I want to be financially free. You go to the next step's tent and talk to Danielle and sign up for community group. We're breaking the rules for you because I want you to be free. It changed my life. I saw Jesus as Jehovah-Giro my great provider and I want you to know the same. Number two, number one was know what you have. Number two is honor God with what you have. We're gonna talk about this in coming weeks, but tithing doesn't mean it's just about money. It's actually being obedient. Tithing is us being students of the word of God. Obeying God in all areas of your life, except with your finances, is actually disobedience. Tithing honors God and puts him as a priority and as somebody who has lived out this principle every year of her life, I can attest that there's a blessing in obedience and I want you to walk in it too. So number one, know what you have. Number two, honor God with what you have. Number three, grow what you have. Oh, I love this one. Now, I had no financial understanding and maybe that's where you find yourself. You want to invest, you become debt free. Hey, ask a friend.

Reach out to a financial advisor. Speak to some entrepreneurs or money savvy people here in this congregation, but don't let an excuse that you don't know keep you frozen. 'Cause right now you're like, oh, I have a savings account. Yeah, that's making like 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 3% on your income. At least put it in a CD, put it in a high yield savings account like something. Put it in a college fund for your kids, a family trust. Move it so that your money multiplies. There's people in here. I started my 401(k) at 20. Some of you are 40 and don't have a retirement plan. Bro, bro, I'm telling you this 'cause I want you to walk in freedom. I want you to feel confident. I want you to show the world. I will be a slave to no one and a borrower to none. My God is the provider of all my needs and I will steward what he's given me. Maybe you're sitting here and you're like, yeah, I have a portfolio and I manage it, great. Why don't you reanalyze it? Why don't you get a little risky? Why don't you start thinking strategically about what you can do to multiply the funds that God has given you? And this is my favorite. This is where I'm hovering right now. And I think the Lord is stretching me

and challenging me in many ways. Number four is invest in what lasts. Invest in what lasts. Do you know the quickest, fastest and most efficient way to disciple and get the gospel out there? Isn't YouTube? It isn't Instagram evangelists or TikTok creatures. It's the local church. is the fastest and most effective way to grow disciples and followers of Jesus. We as Revere are committed, but me as Bianca, I'm committed. We and I are committed to church plants that are doing the work of ministry. And I've said this before, I'll say it again, you don't give to Revere, you give through Revere, because a year ago, when people thought I was crazy, 'cause if you don't know we're trying to save for a church building, we're trying to steward God's finances, and so in order for us to buy a building, we need to have funds in the bank to qualify for a loan, takakakakakakakakakakakakakakakak, yeah, whatever. And then last year, for our end of year offering, I just felt the Lord say, revival is not just gonna come out of Revere. So whatever you bring in, whatever you bring in, invest it into 10 churches in Southern California, I thought it was crazy. I thought I thought it was crazy, but I'm like, this has never been about a man or a denomination

or this has always been about God getting glory for what happens in the capital C church. Doesn't matter who gets the credit. (audience applauding) So if you are here and you succeeded in budgeting, you are faithful in tithing, you are good in investing, what if God is inviting you to more? What if God is stretching your faith in church planting and church building? Look at what 1 Timothy 6 says. Command those who are rich in this present world, not to be arrogant or to put their hope in their wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment, command them to do good and be rich in good deeds and to be generous and willing to share. In this way, they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. So I want to bring us back to where Jesus started. The master entrusted his wealth to his servants, and one day he came back and he asked him, "Hey, what did you do with what I had given you?" The question wasn't whether they fulfilled somebody else's assignment. The question was, were they faithful with what God put in their hand? So today I want to ask you, church, what is God put in your hand? What is he entrusted you with?

Maybe it's money that you've never taken the time to manage. Let's start there. Maybe it's generosity that you are postponing because you're gonna wait until you have enough. Maybe it's a financial conversation with your spouse that you've been avoiding but you know it needs to take place. Maybe it's an opportunity to learn or to plan or to save or to begin again. Maybe what you've been bearing isn't money at all. Maybe you have been bearing your courage because of something to happen to in your past. Maybe, maybe the Lord is giving you a talent, not the denari which Jesus speaks about, but what if he's given you a talent to start businesses? What if he's giving you a talent to sing? What if he's giving you a talent in medicine and sciences? What if he's giving you a talent to walk into a room and your charisma changes the atmosphere? Like that's not a talent? Yes it is, people would kill for Riz. Man, what do you have that you're bearing? Because you're afraid. Listen, your past may explain why you're afraid but it doesn't have to keep you from every good decision in your future. So put fear to the side. Listen, it doesn't all have to be fixed today but what is the next faithful step that you could take today? Open the bank account, start the budget,

have the conversation, make a plan, decide what generosity looks like at the beginning of the month, not at the end of the month and remember we're not doing this to convince God to love us. We're doing this because everything we have has been given to us by him. And one day I wanna hear him tell me and I wanna hear him tell you well done, good and faithful servant. Come enter into my joy and my happiness not because I had the most, not because you made the most but because we were faithful with the master put in our hands. So revere, let's make it make sense. Let's dare to believe that God is who he says he is and he could do what he says he can do. I want your life to change because I want you to be a slave to no one. We're doing a favorite church where you stand to your feet. In a second, we are gonna continue on in this act of worship. Here in this community, we believe that worship prepares us for the word and then the word prepares us to worship. So we're gonna go back into worship and during this worshipful moment, I want you to think about and say, God, what do you want me to do? I wanna turn my ear to you.

Do I need to start investing? Do I need to start saving? Do I need to be generous and give of my family? I believe that he could speak to you. But as we're here and we're gathered as saints and aunts and men and women young and old, I believe that there's people in the room where you have been a slave, maybe not to money, but you've been a slave to sin, a slave to addiction, slave to man's approval. Hey, today I want you to know that there is one master who loves you and is given not just wealth to you and life to you, but freedom and forgiveness to you. His name is Jesus. If you're here today and you've never said yes to Jesus, today is the day of salvation. If you're here today and maybe at one point you were walking with the Lord, but you've turned your back and you're living a life of sin and someone invited you or you're watching online, today is the day to get into a right relationship with Jesus. So if you're here today, you never said yes to Jesus or you repenting and coming back. In a second, I'm going to count to three and invite you to boldly raise up your hand. But one, by raising your hand, you are saying, I want Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior. Two, by raising your hand, you were saying, my mistakes and my failures with the Bible refers to a sidd could be forgiven because of what Jesus did on the Cross at Calvary. And three, by raising your hand, you were saying the same spirit that raised Jesus from the grave as Romans 10 tells us will live in me. So if that is you and you're here today and you are saying, yes to Jesus or you're coming back to faith, one, two, three, we boldly raise up your hand. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. Anyone else? Oh, all the carnal people are on this side. God bless you. Anyone else on this side? Hey, to let you know that you're not alone in this decision, we're going to pray a prayer of faith. For those four people that raised your hand, it's not too late, it's not too late. This is not about raising hands so we can see you. This is about a position in the posture of your heart. I'm tired of my old ways and I'm committing my life to Jesus. We don't want you to do this journey alone. Some of our ushers are going to put a pamphlet in your hand and you can stop by the next step. We want to put a Bible in your hand to let you know this is not the finish line, this is a starting line. We want you to get plugged in and get God's very best with you. It's going to start here by letting you know in a community that you're not alone. Church, will you repeat this prayer after me for those that raised their hand and said yes to Jesus. Church, can you repeat after me and say Jesus? Forgive me of my sins. Did I choose you

as my Lord and Savior? Cleanse my heart, cleanse my mind, cleanse my body and fill me with your spirit to do what I cannot do in Jesus' name, amen and amen. Let's thank God for those receiving the free gift of salvation. Church, I want you to tune your ear to heaven. As you worship God right now, will you just ask in the quietness of your heart, Spirit, living God, speak to me. Show me what I need to do. You will never fail me God. I'm afraid but I'm bearing my talents. Now I need to step into what you call me to. So Church, can you sing up this declaration? Do you trust Him? You're Savior. Yes, yes the one. Let's worship in Church. Thank you God for who you are. Thank you for what you've done. Thank you for how you provided. You will never fail us then and you will not fail us now. In Jesus' name.