I remember listening to Bishop David Oyedepo some years ago when He said,
“The same energy I use to preach to 5 people is what I used to preach to 1 million people”.
This word stuck to me for many years and changed my attitude as I was growing up as a believer. Recently, while I was studying and pondering. The Spirit whispered to me that “The reason lots of people are not putting their attention into their gifts and calling in life is that they do not understand GOD’S REWARD SYSTEMS.

I thought about this word and whispered to myself ‘GOD’S REWARD SYSTEM? What does it mean? While still meditating, the Spirit took me to Matthew 25. The story of the talent about the faithful and unfaithful servant. While this is a story, I am quite familiar with, He started showing me specifically that some people today have ‘buried their talent’ because they do not understand EXACTLY HOW AND WHAT GOD EXPECTS FROM THEM.

Before we were born, we were SET APART (Jeremiah 1:5). That means we were SETUP to be A PART of a divine plan and assignment and before we were FORMED. To form means to ‘assemble, configure, bring together’. This means we are a system, having an input and able to produce an output. We were Purposefully created to IMPACT an environment, nations, communities with our unique gifts and callings.
But sadly, not everyone understands that productivity with our talents is a fundamental expectation God has for every believer.
Inside your talent is your assignment, and a tool for you to fulfill the ultimate assignment, which is the expansion of God’s Kingdom, and its righteousness.

Inside your talent also is part of what bonds your relationship with the master. That is why Jesus said IF YOU LOVE ME THEN OBEY. it is not possible to bury or ignore your talents and expect to please God with your religious lifestyle alone. There are more souls you can win if you maximize the gifts of God in your life.
Before we discuss what, ‘GOD’S REWARD SYSTEM’ IS, let us look at the story of the wicked servant who buried his talent, and this 8 THINGS is what happens to anyone who does not know God’s reward system.

1. YOU WILL PROCRASTINATE.
Procrastination is the act of delaying something unnecessary. People who procrastinate are those who have buried their talents. They procrastinate because they believe deploying their gifts to serve humanity in their various fields and discipline does not also amount to kingdom service. Perhaps because they do not understand how God will reward us at the end of our lives.

Some people think they must open a church, they must be overseers, they must go into full-time ministry because they believe that is the only way to serve God. They delay writing great books, invent great scientific solutions, great formulas for health and medicine, great sportsmen and women who can use their massive social media followership to draw men into the kingdom. Procrastination is a self-sabotaging habit that causes us to undermine our potentials for kingdom expansion.

2. YOU WILL START COMPETING AND COMPARING YOURSELF.
When you do not understand God’s reward system, you will start competing. You will say ‘that man is better than me ‘, he had 5 talents, but I have only one. He has a big church, but I am just a hairdresser or a tailor. Because you do not understand God’s reward system, you will engage in endless and malicious completion, fighting for attention and getting intimidated as the wicked servant did. As believers, we are running a race for completion but we are not in a competition.

3. YOU WILL LIVE WITH OFFENSES.
If you do not understand God’s reward system, you will live in offenses, fault finding, and bitterness. The unfaithful servant was bitter against the master. Many people today think God is not fair to them because they feel they are inadequate and empty. They do not know that WHATEVER THEY ARE DOING THEY SHOULD BE FAITHFUL and JOYFUL. God is not looking for experts, he is rather looking for obedience.

4. YOU WILL LOSE INITIATIVE AND INNOVATION.
Those who do not understand God’s reward system lose the use of a sound mind. In Christ are wisdom, quick understanding, and counsel. The unfaithful servant lost ALL. The master told the unfaithful servant that …You would have taken my talent to some businessmen, and I would have come to get it with more interest. Because of offense and lack of understanding. Many lose a mind that can take great initiative and innovation to build to create things that will bring glory to God.

5. YOU WILL BE A ‘WASTER’ OF RESOURCES
People who do not understand God’s reward system are wasters. They waste their gifts, time, and resources. They may look religious and God-loving, but they may have lived years and can’t point to something tangible they have done with their gifts and skills for God’s kingdom expansion.

6. YOU WILL ISOLATE YOURSELF AND NOT COLLABORATE.
Another danger of not knowing God’s reward system is the danger of isolation. Loss of networking, lack of fellowship. Fellowship is not just coming to church but CREATING PURPOSE DRIVEN RELATIONSHIPS. Many come to church and go home without partnering with one another to advance the kingdom. They just come to ask, ask, ask. But we are supposed to come to church to ASK, SEEK and KNOCK. The unfaithful servant did not partner with the other two because he didn’t understand God’s reward system.

7. YOU WILL CREATE EXCUSES TO YOUR DETRIMENT.
Those who do not understand God’s reward system are full of excuses. Excuses make them feel good and religious, Excuses creates procrastination. Joseph did not create an excuse, Daniel did not create an excuse, even Jesus for the JOY set before Him endured the cross. Some people are waiting for rapture and allowing their gifts to die in them.

8. YOU WILL BE IDLE.
Finally, those who do not understand God’s reward system will be IDLE. They may be religious, but they are IDLE. They are not intentional about spiritual and self-development. They are not cultivating skills; they are not engaging in competence and capacity development. They are just spectators. We are not saved to be spectators but to be the LIGHT of the world.

WHAT IS GOD’S REWARD SYSTEM?
THE MASTER SAID “GOOD AND FAITHFUL SERVANT”

God rewards GOODNESS. The word GOOD is powerful and popular in scripture. God made everything and saw it was GOOD. This means whatever GIFT YOU HAVE is intentional. God deliberately gave it to you. If you are a tailor, software developer, architect, singer, businessman. IT IS GOOD. And using this avenue to serve God is one-way GOD REWARDS.

God rewards faithfulness. The Greek meaning which that word FAITHFUL was translated from is the word ‘PISTE’ which means TRUSTWORTHY and BELIEVING. We MUST believe God rewards those who diligently seek him. Our talent and life are TRUSTS. We MUST SHOW GOD our worthiness by being FAITHFUL. Whatever field you are in BE FAITHFUL and let people know God desires for them to come to him through Jesus his son.

GOD IS NOT REWARDING people who are only in ‘full-time ministry’. God rewards our GOODNESS AND FAITHFULNESS in doing whatever he gave us the passion to do.
Remember, Jesus went about doing GOOD.
Whatever your skills and talents can be a PULPIT or PLATFORM for you to manifest his glory and do exploits. Be good and faithful. Do not think you are not important or called.
YOU WILL NOT LOSE YOUR REWARD.