24Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: 25And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine. 26His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: 27Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. 28Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. 29For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.
Matthew 25:24-29
The Story Summarized
A wealthy man plans to leave town for a season. To prepare, he gives three of his servants a portion of money. The goal should be clear: invest the money and make a profit.
One servant receives five talents, the second servant receives two talents, and the third receives one talent.
Two servants do well. They invest what the master gave them and make more wealth in the process.
The third servant fumbles. He buries the wealth and lets it sit in the dirt until his master returns.
When it’s time to give the financial report, the master is greatly displeased with the servant who did not invest. He ends up taking back the money and casts the servant from his presence.
The Problem
The servant’s action (or inaction) revealed the bigger problem: his unbelief. He didn’t trust his master.
The other servants invested because they trusted their master and embraced his mission. Though they had no control over the results of their investments, they were faithful to do what they could with what they had to build their master’s kingdom.
Sadly, by his inaction, the servant with one talent revealed a lack of the only commodity God accepts – faith. Instead of sowing by faith and trusting the Lord to do whatever he wanted with the results, his heart was turned away from his master. At the very least, this servant could have seen that the talent wasn’t his to bury; it was his Lord’s and was to be used in a way that would please his Lord.
What It Means Today
How are you investing what the Lord has entrusted to you? Your time? Your abilities (even the seemingly mundane such as the ability to walk)? Your strength? Your joy? Your words? Are you sowing into Christ and his things? Or are you burying what he’s given you?
Faith says, “I know what my master would want. I have no control over the results, but will invest in a way that would be pleasing to Him and trust Him to give the return.”
Unbelief says, “God is a hard person and is going to collect what he wants from wherever he wants anyway. So, I won’t bother.”
If I truly believe the Lord, I won’t bury my talent, but invest it and look to Him to do what He wants with that investment. That’s sowing in faith. Planting the seeds while looking to the Lord. “Lord, I can reach out to this person, I can write this blog, I can serve this person, but Lord, it has to be you working through me. You’re the one who makes anything happen.”
Additional Thoughts
1. It’s worth noting that the master didn’t frivolously hand out assets to just anybody. Matthew 25:15 says, “And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability…” (italics added). The master was very deliberate about what he gave and to whom he gave it. The fact that the servant received a talent was proof that the master had judged him capable of doing something with that talent.
2. It’s also worth noting that not everyone received the same return. The servant with five talents earned five talents more. The servant with two talents earned two talents more. Both received praise from their Lord because they earned a return equivalent to what they had been entrusted with.
3. Seemingly “secular” things can be the means of faith that God uses to build his kingdom. 1 Corinthians 10:31, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” And in 1 Timothy 6:17, “Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy.” The point is that the normal, everyday things like eating and drinking–and enjoying it–is part of walking with Christ.
4. Jesus is not impressed with our talents – he gave them to us to begin with. If we have strength, it’s from him. If we have weakness, He can show Himself strong. If we have riches, it’s because he wills it. If we have poverty, he promised to be our riches.
Do you trust Him? It starts with that. As you get to know him, it will make sense to start making investments that are by faith because you’ve seen his character. He won’t force us to come under his authority, but he does extend the invitation because He is a gentle master who offers rest for our weary souls. He takes everything – even the burden of the results of the investment – on Himself. The servant wasn’t cast out because he didn’t get a big return; he was cast out because he didn’t see the master as worth following. However, if you don’t know him, it’s impossible to step out in faith.
Getting to know him is the point; otherwise, taking a risk for the sake of Christ makes no sense. The wicked and lazy servant wasn’t willing to take a risk – all he could see was a difficult master that he had to serve.
Who is Jesus to you? Is he a hard task-master? Or is he a beloved lord?
5. Everyone has to give an audit. All of us–whether believing or not–will give an account for everything done in the body. The strength you had today is because he gave it to you. The fact that you are able to have a family is because of Him. Oh, maybe you don’t believe Him. You may not even say thank-you, because you consider everything you are and have is because of your own doing.
However, when the veil is lifted and you realize that not a thing happened without his permission–not even the ability to curse him, if you so chose–you will see that everything was on loan and it will be your turn to give an account of how you squandered the master’s assets.
It’s worth asking… do you think you’ll blame the master for your own laziness, too?
Final thought: when you are brought to account for using the master’s wealth, generosity, patience, to build up your own kingdom while tearing down his — what will you say?
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