The most powerful, life-shaping, future-defining thing about you is not your bank account, your resume, or your history. It is exactly what flashes into your mind, and what grips your heart, when you hear the word: GOD.

Last week, we opened this series by asking a massive question: What Cathedral are you building?

We looked at a man who had all the ambition in the world, but used it to build a barn for his stuff instead of a cathedral for his Creator. He played it safe, he hoarded his wealth, and even so, God called in the loan on his soul that night.

There's a deeper reality behind that parable that I want to look at today. You will never build cathedral in honor of a God you secretly believe is a bully.

Today, my question is: What God Are You Serving?

The Parable of the Minas
The parable opens with Jesus on his final approach to Jerusalem. The disciples are buzzing, the crowds are getting bigger, and the air is electric with expectation.

But Jesus, the master communicator, knows he has to reset everyone's expectations. He hits the brakes on all the speculation to craft another epic parable.

"Therefore He said: "A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. So he called ten of his servants, delivered to them ten minas, and said to them, 'Do business till I come.' But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, 'We will not have this man to reign over us.'" (Luke 19:12-14, NKJV)

A nobleman—a king in waiting—is leaving, and then he will come back. But he does not leave his team empty-handed.

He calls his servants and gives them each a mina. A mina was about three months' salary. So that's a lot of money.

And what's the instruction? "Do business until I come." Put this money to work.

The Greek word there is πραγματεύσασθε (pragmateusasthe).

It's the only time this specific word appears in the entire New Testament. It comes from the root pragma. It is where we get the word "pragmatic."

Here's a good chunk of money... Use it! I'm trusting you with it. Be pragmatic—do whatever makes sense to you. Just do something with what I've given you.

 

First, notice this: Grace comes first. Resources are generously, abundantly given. That's step one. It's always step one when it comes to God.

Where did this deposit of grace came from?

In the parable, the nobleman goes into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return.

Christ is the nobleman.

He goes away into a far country – into the darkness, death, our sins, and his grave – and receives a kingdom.

He receives this glorious everlasting realm populated by me, and by you and by everybody who will receive him as their savior.

And then he comes back, a reference to him being raised from the dead.

So back to the story, when that nobleman gave that money to those servants, it was costly to him.

Because that's always how Grace goes. Grace is not just God being easy-going and lenient with sin or with sinners. No. Grace costs God. It costs God immensely. Grace costs God everything. Grace is not a little thing. It is bigger than you think.

And the astounding truth about Grace is that God gives it so freely, even though he first obtained it so expensively.

God finds you, he sees potential in you, and he says, "I am going to invest in you. I'm going to heavily fund you. I am making a preemptive deposit into you. Grace comes first.

Here... Take my grace. Take my gifts. Take my unsearchable riches of grace. Take my presence, my comfort, my strength, my Holy Spirit into your life. Now, go do business with it... yes enjoy it yourself, but don't forget to invest in me and in the Gospel."

Pathway Church, for 68 years, has done exactly that.

We are not a perfect church, but we are "doing business with God's deposit" because that's our collective mission.

And the evidence of God's favor is stunning, especially recently.

In the last 18 months alone, the number of people who've been saved here... 18 months, 3,312 souls saved for eternity.

That's not just a number; that is a deposit of souls won by doing the work of the gospel with the deposit of grace.

If you go back 10 years, that number is 9,267 eternal lives that have been changed by doing the work of the gospel in this ministry.

That is doing business with the deposit of grace... and we know it's more than a business. It's a calling, it's a mission, it's a privilege.

We've seen 1,056 baptisms. That is a deposit of public, unashamed faith.

For 68 years, the Master has been depositing His blessing in this fellowship, this church.

Ten years ago, we took a step of faith to build this worship center. Noah built an ark, and we built a worship center. Why? Because a storm is coming and we wanted a place to save souls. It was a wise investment—a tool God has leveraged to see thousands of people find their safe harbor in Christ.

The nobleman went into a far country, where he died and received his kingdom. By paying that price, he can make this wonderful deposit. He makes us his exalted ambassadors. He sends us on a mission. He funds the mission. And as a group, we have done everything we can to be bold, and risky and adventurous with his gospel.

The results are amazing.

And would you be okay with me saying, I feel like we've only just begun! Like we're just scratching the surface.

But even Jesus knew not everybody wants to get on board. Jesus added:
"But his citizens hated him."

Even when the King is a giver, some people will always see Him as a problem. A complication in their plans.

The said, We will not have this man to reign over us.

So the stage is set. The capital is in their hands. The command has been given. The question is, what will they do with it? What do you do when the King's grace is in your hands?

The Bold Investor
"And so it was that when he returned, having received the kingdom, he then commanded these servants, to whom he had given the money, to be called to him, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. Then came the first, saying, 'Master, your mina has earned ten minas.' And he said to him, 'Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities.' And the second came, saying, 'Master, your mina has earned five minas.' Likewise he said to him, 'You also be over five cities.'" (Luke 19:15-19, NKJV)

The first servant steps up. He simply presents the results: "Master, your mina has earned ten minas."

That's a 10x return. Not incremental, but exponential growth. I pray for that.

What kind of mindset does that require?

Audacity. Boldness. A willingness to take a risk. A willingness to look foolish.

And I want to be this person. I want to be the most aggressive investor of grace on the planet. I want Pathway to be this kind of church filled with this audacious, bold kind of people.

Four months ago, I sat with our executive team and I asked a question.

Where will we put the next 500 people that God sends to us at Pathway Church? I asked that because week after week, we run out of parking or we run out of seats. And so how do we make more space for more people?

Growing by 500 people would be growing by about 10%. That would represent linear growth.

There was an audible groan because everybody pretty much realized that that would mean, adding another service to our schedule, which might sound easy to you, but is enormously complex and costly.

So I paused, and I asked another question. I asked OK instead of 500 people... where would we put 50,000 people? That's not 10 percent, that's 10x. That's 1,000 percent.

At first, they looked at me like I was nuts, but then everybody's minds started spinning and we started thinking outside the normal boxes of what we've always done... even outside the box of what church always looks like.

And guess what... we have a plan! It's already launched. More in a minute.

But why did servant number one take so much risk?

Because of his view of God.

He didn't see a tyrant waiting to punish him for a bad trade.

He saw a Father eager to give.

He saw a generous King who wanted to see His grace dispensed throughout the whole wide world.

And he saw himself as an ambassador of that grace.

So he went out and did business, and he proved himself right in his assessment of God.

And for that, the reward is awesome. He says, "have authority over ten cities." You're not just a mayor, you're the governor.

Now, do not push this off to some fluffy, future heavenly real estate deal.

Jesus is teaching a glorious promise about your capacity and your potential on earth, right now, in this life.

This is about your present self sending blessings to your future self.

When you prove you are bold with the grace God has given you—when you "do the Master's business" with your time, your talent, and your treasure—He expands your territory. He expands your borders.

He promotes you.
He gives you more influence, more responsibility, more life. A bigger impact. A broader voice. He expands your borders.

When you realize that everything you have is a gift of grace, and when you both enjoy it AND invest it for Christ... God gives you things that money can't buy:

Significance: Knowing your life isn't just a collection of "selfies," but a vector of real impact.

Abundance: A heart so filled by the River of Grace that you never feel like an orphan again.

Satisfaction: The deep, soul-level thrill of being a partner with the King in His business.

Everlasting Reward: The moment you walk into the gates of heaven and you see faces — real people — who are only there because you gave, you prayed, and you did business with the Gospel.