Faithfulness 1 Cor. 4:2 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO
Faithfulness is one of the most needed and beneficial characteristics that a man or woman could possibly have. You may have noticed that faithfulness is a prime trait of our Lord. Deut 7:9 says, “Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations.” He is the faithful God – you can count on him to keep his words and to never fail in anything that he has ever promised. Read the Psalms if you want to see the great testimony of the Lord’s faithfulness. You need faithfulness to be:
A good steward – 1 Cor 4:2 – “Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.” You won’t find a more faithful steward in spiritual matters than Paul and you won’t find a more faithful steward in practical matters than Daniel – Dan 6:4 – “Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him.” Daniel wouldn’t cheat or steal from the king, neglect his duty, use his position for personal gain, or take advantage of the people below him – he could be trusted with every detail entrusted to him while not neglecting his responsibilities to the Lord – he prayed three times each day even when it became illegal to do so – and God spared him.
A good ruler – 1 Sam 22:14 – “Then Ahimelech answered the king, and said, And who is so faithful among all thy servants as David, which is the king’s son in law, and goeth at thy bidding, and is honourable in thine house?” David was the best king that Israel ever had and one of his most notable characteristics was his faithfulness – he was impeccably faithful to Saul; he would not touch the Lord’s anointed – he was faithful to the Lord, though he sinned, discharging his responsibilities in accordance with all the Lord commanded.
A good leader – Num 12:7 – “My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house” – Moses was a servant of the Lord and one of the greatest leaders Israel ever had – he was faithful to do God’s will – to stand before Pharaoh – to lead Israel out of Egypt and up to the Promised Land – to stand against Israel’s enemies – to intercede for Israel in her sins – and to see to it that every provision for the tabernacle was made in exact accordance with God’s commands.
A good minister – 1 Sam 2:35 – “And I will raise me up a faithful priest, that shall do according to that which is in mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed for ever.” Samuel was one of the best priests and prophets that Israel ever had – and he was especially noted for his faithfulness – he did all that was in God’s heart and mind – not what was in his own heart and mind – note all of the faithful ministers in the New Testament who ministered the word of God faithfully to the lost and to the saved [Eph 6:21; Col 1:7, 4:7, 4:9] – faithfulness is the reason that God chose Paul to be his minister to the uncircumcision – in spite of his past, he knew that he could count on Paul to risk his own life to get the gospel to those who had not heard – 1 Tim 1:12 “And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry.”
A good disciple – 2 Tim 2:2 – “And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.” Faithful ministers need faithful men whom they can train in the ministry to carry on the work of the Lord to others and to other generations – without faithful disciples, this whole ministry comes to an end.
A good preacher – Jer 23:28 – “The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream; and he that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the Lord.” To be a good preacher a man must speak God’s words faithfully – he can’t just give the good stuff – he has to preach all the counsel of God – and he has to be faithful to preach in season and out of season and to preach even when they are turning away their ears from sound doctrine.
A good witness – Prov 14:5 – “A faithful witness will not lie: but a false witness will utter lies.” If you are truly a good witness for the Lord Jesus Christ then you will not lie – I have known so called “soul winners” who fabricate lies in order to get meetings and to report big numbers – listen, if they will lie to get in the door or to report big numbers then they are, by definition, not a good witness because a faithful witness will not lie – you tell the truth when you are witnessing to the lost and you will be a faithful witness.
A good man – Ps 12:1 – “Help, Lord; for the godly man ceaseth; for the faithful fail from among the children of men.” One of the greatest characteristics of any man is faithfulness – if you can find a faithful man then you have found a good man – you’re better off hiring a faithful man whom you can train than you are to hire a trained man whose faithfulness is questionable – he can hurt you – in volunteer work in the church, faithfulness should be your number one concern.
A good treasurer – Neh 13:13 – “And I made treasurers over the treasuries, Shelemiah the priest, and Zadok the scribe, and of the Levites, Pedaiah: and next to them was Hanan the son of Zaccur, the son of Mattaniah: for they were counted faithful, and their office was to distribute unto their brethren.” These treasurers were faithful men and could, therefore, be trusted to carry out the responsibilities of handling money – financial safeguards are a necessity when dealing with money – but nothing beats faithfulness for securing the cash.
A good contractor – 2 Ki 12:15 – “Moreover they reckoned not with the men, into whose hand they delivered the money to be bestowed on workmen: for they dealt faithfully.” The workmen that repaired the Temple during the reign of Jehoash were faithful men – there was no need to reckon with them because they dealt faithfully with their work and with the funds – they didn’t overcharge – they didn’t charge for things that weren’t ordered or for work that wasn’t done – they did what they agreed to do for the price they agreed to do it.
A good employee – Lk 16:10-12 – “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own?” When you are on the payroll of someone else’s company you must be faithful in all that you do as if you are working for the Lord – that’s the only way to get ahead legitimately – and remember that faithfulness concerns every size responsibility that is entrusted to you – you don’t cut corners with little things like homework and expect to be diligent with big things like the responsibilities of a job – if you cut corners on little things you will cut corners on everything.
A good friend – Gal 3:9 – “So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham.” No one is more notable for his faithfulness than Abraham – and Abraham was called the friend of God [Jas 2:23] – you will need to be faithful if you want be a friend of God and you will need to be faithful if you want to be a good friend to men – there is nothing better than a faithful friend.
A good child – Titus 1:6 – “If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of riot or unruly.” How desperately we need faithful children today who will abide by their parents’ faith until they have matured to the point where they can grow in their own faith and live for the Lord – children today stray from the Lord in greater numbers than they stay – faithfulness is the key to them sticking around and growing in the grace and in the knowledge of Jesus.
Conclusion: Faithfulness is required in just about everything you do – faithfulness now is rewarded later – likewise failing to be faithful now has huge consequences in eternity – Luke 19:17 “And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities.”