I must first give credit where credit is due for this post.  It was Mark Driscoll who made recently made a statement that really struck me and has caused me to write this post.  I will not attempt to fully quote but will attempt to give the main picture.  He said it is like the church is full of gun collectors- and not enough soldiers.  We have taken the Gospel given to us by our parents or grandparents or whoever and we have put it on a shelf.  We are religious to clean it and make sure that it is prefect condition but it is time to shott something already.  You can find this quote on a clip at www.theelephantroom.com

     This makes me immediately think of the story of the master who hands out money (talents) to his servants found in Matthew 25:14-30.  Three servants are given money and two of them invest the money and double it.  While the third servant takes his money and buries it.  The servants reasoning to his master for burying his money is that his master was a man who profits, and seems to indicate doesn't like losing money.  For some reason I picture the boardroom for The Apprentice in this interaction.

     The master in plain language is that he is not happy.  How worthless this servant was to do nothing with money given him.  What the servant saw was that his master did not enjoy failing, but what he missed was that master only succeeded by investing.  You can't make money by hiding it.  The church cannot be built by hiding the materials, which is the GOSPEL of Jesus Christ.

      The question for us is are we collectors or users of what God has given us?  Can we say as Paul that we are being poured out as a drink offering or do we say that we haven't ruined our collectable?  Now let me be clear, we cannot not build the church or the kingdom!  ONLY GOD can do that.  YET, it is clear that we have called by God as the body of Christ to go and invest the Gospel that we have been entrusted with so that disciples may be called out to go and do likewise.  We will share at times when we see no profit, but at least we used what God so graciously gave us, because we realize grace was not created for us, but all those who might receive it.

     May I........May we, the church, be users of the Gospel today and not a worthless collector.      Amen