The Master’s Obligations
Last week we saw that the master in this parable represents God. And because God is Love, He is no ordinary master. He does not demand from you what you cannot supply. In fact, He does not force His lordship over you. Instead, He makes you an offer and you decide if the offer is acceptable. Today, we look at this offer by looking at the master’s obligations.
To understand His obligations, we need to study Luke 10:1-21.
1. To Appoint You
After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go.
Luke 10:1
The Greek word used here for appoint is Anadeiknumi. It means:
i) to proclaim anyone as elected to office
ii) to announce as appointed by a king, general etc
iii) to lift up anything on high and exhibit it for all to behold.
In this instance, the Lord proclaimed the seventy-two as elected to office.
What does it mean to proclaim?
It means to declare publicly.
Therefore, it is His responsibility to publicly declare your office. It is not your responsibilty nor is it anyone elses responsibility. It is He who calls you into whichever area He has deposited in you.
We see Him do this repeatedly in the Bible. Here are a few mirrors:
…The LORD said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.’ Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what to do. You are to anoint for me the one I indicate.”… Then the LORD said, “Rise and anoint him; he is the one.” So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came upon David with power. Samuel then went to Ramah.
1 Samuel 16:2-13
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
Jeremiah 1:5
Jesus returned to Galilee…The scroll of the Prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it was written:
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.”
Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, and he began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your presence.”
Luke 4:14-21
But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel…Then Ananias went to the house of Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord–Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here–has sent me to you so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.
Acts 9:15,17
From the above mirrors, it is clear that the Lord appoints us in many different ways. For some, He speaks to them directly yet to others He may use an intermediary. But one thing stands out in all of the Lord’s appointments, His Spirit is involved. It is impossible to be appointed without the Holy Spirit. Why?
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
Acts 1:8
You need the power of the Holy Spirit to carry out the work the Lord has for you.
How does the Holy Spirit enable you to carry out the Lord’s work?
But the Counsellor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
John 14:26
But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
John 16:13
Your Turn
The Holy Spirit is available to all the children of God. And who are the children of God?
Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God–children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
John 1:12-13
To be a servant of God, you first have to be a child of God. As a child, you have access to the Holy Spirit, as per Luke 11:13:
If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!
Being a servant is a choice. It is knowing your position as a child and a friend of God and still deciding to humble yourself to do that which He ( not you) has appointed you to do.
Should you choose to be a servant, you need the Holy Spirit, if you are to be fruitful in the area of your appointment.
If Jesus needed the Holy Spirit to fulfill His assignment, how much more do you and I require Him?