Following the Way of Jesus (13)

Jesus the Teacher - The Parable of the Talents - Don’t Waste Your Life!

Matthew 25:14–30 (ESV)

“For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money. Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours.’ But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Paul advised the believers in Ephesus to “make the most of every opportunity because the days are evil”(Ephesians 5:16). This message resonates with what Jesus is teaching in this parable, and if I was to sum up its overall lesson, I would say, in the words of a book by John Piper, “Don’t waste your Life!”

John Piper tells a story he read in the February 1998 edition of Reader’s Digest, which tells about a couple who “took early retirement from their jobs in the Northeast five years ago when he was 59 and she was 51. Now they live in Punta Gorda, Florida, where they cruise on their 30 foot trawler, play softball, and collect shells.” Piper says that as he read it, “I thought it might be a joke. A spoof on the American Dream. But it wasn’t. Tragically, this was the dream: Come to the end of your life—your one and only precious, God-given life—and let the last great work of your life, before you give an account to your Creator, be this: playing softball and collecting shells. Picture them before Christ at the great day of judgment: ‘Look, Lord. See my shells.’ That is a tragedy. And people today are spending billions of dollars to persuade you to embrace that tragic dream. Over against that, I put my protest: Don’t buy it. Don’t waste your life.” - John Piper in Don’t Waste Your Life. Wheaton: Crossway, 2003. p45–46.

Now, this parable has the theme of ‘being ready’, which dominated the last section, is still at the centre of this parable, which again portrays a ‘coming’ and its consequences for those who should have been preparing for it.

The distinction between this parable and the last however is that it takes up the question which that of the bridesmaids left unanswered: what is ‘readiness’? Readiness is not a matter of passively ‘waiting’ for the bridegroom to come, but of responsible activity, producing results while the master is away for a very “long time” so that, when He does return, he will see it and commend you for it!

So, the period of waiting is not intended to be an empty, meaningless ‘delay’, - a marking of time where we can watch cricket or drink warm beer because the all important football season has ended - but a period of opportunity to put to good use the ‘talents’ entrusted to his ‘slaves’.

1. Be Responsible! - Do Not Neglect Your Opportunities:

(a). A Master commissions His servants:

The Master was about to go on a journey and was planning to be gone for a long time. In order for his estate to be well managed in his absence, he called his own “servants” (Grk: doulos, a general term that referred to any kind of bondservant from labourers to household servants, to land overseers and skilled craftsmen). and artists.. What they all had in common was that they were the personal property of their owners, who often had the power of life and death over them.

Now these servants, trusted with the Master’s wealth were tried, tested as well as trusted servants. The master beleived that these servants would invest wisely and beneficially to increase the capital of his already considerable estate and he gave them a free hand to invest as they saw fit! These responsibilities were given to each according to his own ability. The owner knew his slaves intimately, and he entrusted each one only with the responsibility he reasonably could be expected to handle.

It’s important to note that the word ‘talent’ as used here does not represent a natural aptitude, ability or skill as the word conjures up for us in English but rather the Greek word, talanton represents a weight and the value of a specific talent depended on its weight and its composition - a talent of gold, being extremely valuable, whilst a talent of silver or copper is less valuable still - So, though we can’t work out the exact value of these talents, the sums entrusted to them are huge and is generally regarded to be equal to 6,000 denarii (the equivalent of 6,000 days wages for a Roman soldier and some field hands, that’s just over 857 days works or 16 years and 4 months see Matt 20:1–7), so in terms of modern purchasing power it represents tens of thousands of pounds (cf. on Matt 18:23–34) and the servant with 5 talents (just over 82 years of wages) was repsonsible for more than a lifetime of earnings!

(b). The Master returns - delighted and disappointed!:

On his return the master decided to settle accounts, expecting a return on his investment, but look what happened! The two who traded, did what their master required; he was delighted and they received their reward. On the other hand, a third servant, buried it in the ground and gained nothing from investment, and the Master was disappointed! Two did their "duty” as profitable servants but one was “unprofitable” (see Luke 17:10).

On the day of reckoning, the slave who had received the five talents demonstrated that he was eager to serve his master because he had eagerly gone and traded with them, and gained five talents more. Likewise, the slave who had received the two talents, had gained two talents more but the slave who received the one talent went away and dug in the ground, and hid his master’s money which although it seems an odd thing to do nowadays, for much of history, hiding valuables in the ground was a common practice because there were no bank vaults or safe deposit boxes. It was a simple and sensible way to protect such things as jewels and coins - ‘Money can only be guarded by placing it in the earth’(Rabbi Baba Metzia 42a - Note the Treasure hidden in the field in Matt. 13:44).

(c). Two Servants Receive Their Reward:

The master commends and rewards the dilgience and faithfulness of the two slaves who doubled their investment, saying “‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ Note that the ‘reward’ of the faithful discharge of this responsibility is ‘not a well-endowed pension, but even greater responsibility’ (Schweizer, p. 471).

And note that they both received the same reward because although the second slave was given less than half as much to work with, he performed just as successfully and faithfully doubling his master’s money and demonstrating a supreme commitment to their master by making the most of what they had, by maximizing their opportunities. Both “enter into the joy of your master” , a sharing in the happiness of the Master(so GNB version) suggesting that they shall enoy the privilege and intimacy of his presence - a wonderful picture of what Heaven will be like - “The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.”(Rev 22:3-5).

(d). One Servant Receives His Punishment:

The master condemns the attitude and laziness of the servant who excused his lack of effort saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours.’

He had failed to grasp the nature of his responsibility and in doing so revealed the true nature of his attitude to his master whom he viewed as some kind of greedy capitalist who exploits people to gain even more money. Even if this were true, the man had a duty to fulfil, but he allowed his own prejudicial view of his master to get in the way of his responsibility of service. Her was after all a bondservant and was not free to not work and why was he surprised that a landowner who deployed fieldworkers reped what he “did not sow” and gathered a harvest from seed he had not “scattered”?

Instead of acknowledging his failure to do his duty and fulfil his bligation to his master, he tried to excuse himself by attacking the character of his master - this is what sin does to us, note Adam and Eve blamed eachother then God for their failure in the Garden of Eden! - , accusing him of being a hard man, exploiting the labours of others.

Clearly he did not trust his master, and said that he was afraid of him. He clearly did not love him, else he would have risked personal loss in the effort to serve his master so he chose security over service, entirely understandable from one perspective, safeguarding the Master’s investment by refusing to risk it.

So, the Master is quite justified in calling him a ‘wicked and slothful servant!’ for he allowed his personal animosity of his Master to get in the way of his requirment to work hard and increase his master’s wealth! - “you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents.” A bonus for the one who earned the most!

But that was not all - He was sacked BIG TIME! “And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ - Gehenna, the rubbish pit; a place of remorse and regret for opportunities wasted! - “For he says, “In a favourable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the favourable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”(2 Cor 6:2).

(e). THE POINT of the Parable:

The master wishes to make it clear here that this slave’s action was irresponsible. He is playing safe and achieving nothing! He is wasting his opportunities and tragically, his fate will reveal that he ahs wasted his life!

And so Jesus warns: “For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”

If we claim to be servants of Christ in the Kingdom of Heaven we must “make the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.”(Eph 5:16). We must not waste our lives!

If we work for Jesus and are faithful, God will and does impart greater gifts and even greater responsibilities as we serve Him. He has used us and will use us even more - “For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance

However, if we fail to work for Jesus in extending the Kingdom of Heaven; if we prove faithless and untrustworthy then, no mater how sucessful and blessed we have been in the past, whatever we once had, “will be taken away.” What a tragedy!

A former Hillsong worship leader and songwriter Marty Sampson shocked the Christian community when he said he's struggling with his faith. Sampson who wrote music for Australia's Hillsong ministry years ago also recently posted doubts about the Christian faith on issues such as hell and suffering saying, "I am genuinely losing my faith, and it doesn't bother me." - Heb 3:14-19 “We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end. As has just been said: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.” Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies perished in the wilderness? And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? 1So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.”

The unused gift or unused opportunity is lost! This is a tragedy! God has given us a trust, and gifts to use as an opportunity to extend the Kingdom of Heaven so DON’T WASTE YOUR LIFE! The life God wants you to live for Him, for as Jesus says: Matt 16:25, “Whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”

2. Be Ready! - Do Not Waster Your Life:

When reading this parable, think of the Master as Jesus; the talents as specific privileges and opportunities entrusted to us to serve Him in the kingdom of heaven and the gain; as fruit from the ministry of those servants who are delcaring the gospel of the Kingdom of Heaven.

(a). We are not all given the same gifts or responsibilities but we are asked to be faithful with what we have been given:

the allocation of these huge sums were given, “according to ability” demonstrating that God reckons with his people as individuals whose circumstances and personalities differ - but we are given the same command, to faithfully discharge our responsibilties during our lifetime of service.

Our Master, Jesus is not even asking us to outdo eachother in terms of maximising massive returns on his investment in us, he is simply asking us to be faithful with what we have been given and put it to use so that it gains more, whatever the mroe looks like! We will not all have the same resources but we do have the same obligation to use them according to our ability.

Those who demonstrate by their spiritual fruitfulness that they belong to God will be given even greater opportunity to bear fruit for Him. But those who demonstrate by their unproductiveness that they do not belong to God will lose even the benefits they once had.

(b). We must not become weary in waiting for Jesus but should diligently seek to extend the influence of the Kingdom of Heaven:

We must not give in to the temptation of one of these servants who felt thar because his master had been gone a long time and there is no real reward in working for him anyway, he would not risk what was entrusted to him or do anything about it either. Our job is to use whatever gifts, Jesus has given us, to the best of our ability, until He comes or calls us to give account in order to see the fortunes of the Kingdom of Heaven increase here on earth, “as it is in heaven.”

We must be careful to not allow the negative view of the third slave to infect our thinking! There are those who claim to be servants of Jesus, who entertain negative views of His character or mistaken views of what it means to serve Him. If we have a limited knowledge of Him, we may conclude that Jesus is distant, uncaring, unjust, and unreliable. We may entertain hard views of Him and justify our lack of effort and investment in the weork of the Kingdom of Heaven.

Why? Because the third slave became utterly worthless to the Master and his fate was to be cast out … into the outer darkness; in that place there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth” just like the man who tried to crash the king’s wedding feast without the proper garment - representing those who want to enjoy the benefits of the Kingdom of Heaven, without embracing Jesus, the only way of entry! (Matt. 22:11–13). Outer darkness is a common New Testament description of hell. “God is light,” John declared, “and in Him there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). Light signifies God’s presence, and darkness signifies his absence. Hell not only is eternal darkness but eternal torment. In that place there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, signifying the unrelieved agony of being separated from God’s presence and goodness.

Here is the warning! Unproductive, lazy “servants” who entertain hard views of Jesus are in deep, spiritual trouble and they need to repent! The Day of Reckoning will reveal the true heart of the “servants” of the Kingdom of Heaven and those who truly trust in Christ and work for Him here on earth, will gain everything, whilst those who do not trust in Him and are lazy and do nothing for Him, even if they claim the name, Christian, will lose everything. They are not simply unfaithful, they are faithless!

(c). We must be Ready! - But What Does BEING READY Look Like?

What does BEING READY look like? - It consists in continuously and faithfully discharging our responsibilities as disciples, whether they have been small or great and if we do, the Lord assures His servants that “each will receive his wages, according to his own labour” (1 Cor 3:8).

‘A religion concerned only with not doing anything wrong’ (Schweizer, p. 473) is an irresponsible sort of faith which is utterly useless in the end and has no reward! So, ‘being ready’ consists not only in keeping yourself clean, it also involves an active, responsible, faithful service which produces results.

It is both/and, not either/or! Titus 2:11-14 “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.” “Faith without works is dead”(James 2:14). “Saving faith is serving faith”(John MacArthur jr).

And this is where Jesus will take us next when He introduces us to the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats - passively sitting by whilst people are suffering, is not the way of Jesus; actively helping to relieve suffering and rebuild damaged lives is!

A lack of this Biblical balance has, and still can take us away from the will of God for our lives!

This happened to some in the Thessalonian church, a church that was characterised by a real interest in the Second Coming of our Lord. It was perhaps because they thought the Lord was coming momentarily that some of the belie unwawares but because this led some to beleive that it was imminent, they fell into laziness and some decided to do no work at all, not only becoming an economic burden to the church but an uneeded distraction and contentious disruption and so Paul rebuked them severely and commanded them “to work in quiet fashion and eat their own bread.” going on to command the whole church to not “grow weary of doing good” (2 Thess. 3:10–13).

Peter, on the other hand rebuked those who mocked the church because they were convinced that the Lord would not come soon and so they abandoned all moral restraint and lived in sensual; indulgence - 2 Pet 3. Peter reminded them that the people of Noah’s day responded in the same way to Noah’s prediction of the flood, which came upon them suddenly and at a time they did not expect. In the same way, the apostle declared, Christ will appear suddenly in the end time, bringing the “destruction of the ungodly” (2 Pet 3:5–7).

(d). We Must Not Waste Our Life!

Don’t waste your life! God cares about how you live but He also cares about what you do for Him and so we should care and remember the old dictum: “Only one life, will soon be past; only what’s done for Jesus will last!”

John Piper advises: “Desire that your life count for something great! Long for your life to have eternal significance...Don’t coast through life without a passion.” ― John Piper, Don't Waste Your Life

Near the end of his life, Paul wrote to Timothy, “I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day” (2 Tim. 4:6–8).

He was not boasting but simply expressing a deep sense of fulfillment and rejoicing. He was confident the Lord knew the integrity of his heart and would be faithful to reward Him according to His gracious promises.

Paul tells us to “love” Christ’s appearing. When the Lord returns in glory and power to establish His kingdom, He will commend His true disciples for their faithfulness, imperfect as it will have been. (see 2 Tim. 4:8).

Let Paul be your inspiration - “I will not waste my life! I will finish my course and finish it well. I will display the Gospel of the grace of God in all I do. I will run my race to the end.”― John Piper, Don't Waste Your Life

So, this parable reminds us that all of our gifts and opportunities are from God and what is required is faithfulness in their use.

“Man’s chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever”(Westminster Shorter Catechism Ans 1) and according to Eph 2:10, “we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

God’s gifts are imparted to each according to his ability. It is not the amount of the gift that is important but one’s faithfulness to it and the heart is crucial to how well we will use them because “The gifts of God are not given like money, but like plants, which need a suitable soil for their growth” (Johannes Weiss cited by Robinson p. 207). If the soil of our hearts is fertile, fed by love for Jesus then we will serve Him faithfully not begrudingly - “If you love me, you will obey what I command”(John 14:15).

Not to use these gifts or appreciate out calling is to waste our life! And it is possible, for Paul speaks of us appearing “before the judgment seat of Christ that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad”(2 Cor 5:10).

A true Christian who wastes his abilities, spiritual gifts, and opportunities will have his work “burned up, [and] he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as through fire” (1 Cor. 3:15).

Paul is quite clear about this: “According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.”(1 Cor 3:10-15).

In using the building metaphor, Paul’s emphasis here is on the quality of the materials used. If Christ is the foundation of the Christian life, it is important that the building be worthy of His presence - 1 Cor 3:16-17 “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.”

Paul knew of course that he was the person he was because of the “grace God has given me” this is why he objects to the Corinthians exagerated admiration of thier ministers, “Paul, Aoloos and Cephas”(1 Cor 3:4-7) - they were planters and waterers but God makes a Christian, He makes us grow! That is why Christ can be the only foundation! You cannot have ‘Christianity’ without Christ, you must build your life on Jesus!

But what you use for building your life, tells you how much you value Jesus - Paul identifies two classes of material, expensive and appropriate - gold, silver, costly stones, and relatively cheap - wood, hay or straw. We either build in a slovenly fashion, putting into it that which costs him little or nothing. Or we build with great care and skill, whatever the cost!

And there will come a time of testing for all we build. The Day - not defined here, but clearly referring to the day when Christ returns, the day of judgment (cf. 1 Thess. 5:4; Heb. 10:25) a time when the work God’s people have done will be judged and it will be a searching test, likened to refining fire. It will consume what is combustible, but leaves metal and stone intact. So on Judgment Day, the quality of the work will be shown in its true character. (cf. Mal. 4:1). The test in fire will determine whether or not a man will receive a ‘reward’ (Grk: misthos - the wage of the building worker whose work is approved; cf. Luke 19:16–19; Rev. 22:12).

All those considered here are saved, for they have built on the one foundation, Jesus Christ. So, even if some of what we have done is “burnt up”, “he himself will be saved, but only as through fire” and “he will suffer loss” meaning he will not be rewarded as others will be, because he is a “brand plucked out of the burning”(see Amos 4:11; Zech. 3:2).

“Let each one take care how he builds” - DON’T WASTE YOUR LIFE!

“whatever you do, find the God-centered, Christ-exalting, Bible-saturated passion of your life, and find your way to say it and live for it and die for it. And you will make a difference that lasts. You will not waste your life...“My joy grows with every soul that seeks the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. Remember, you have one life. That’s all. You were made for God. Don’t waste it...“Life is wasted if we do not grasp the glory of the cross, cherish it for the treasure that it is, and cleave to it as the highest price of every pleasure and the deepest comfort in every pain. What was once foolishness to us—a crucified God—must become our wisdom and our power and our only boast in this world.”― John Piper, Don't Waste Your Life”― John Piper, Don't Waste Your Life