The Faithful Servant

Our Theme for 2025 is “Live Like Jesus”

It comes out of a simple desire to follow Jesus - and to learn better what that means.

We are spending the entire year in the Gospel of Matthew.

We began with the beatitudes - you can find that series on our website or on YouTube.

Now we jump to chapter 25.

Two weeks ago began the season of Lent - it is 40 days leading up to Passover and Resurrection Sunday.

It is a time of self examination and of repentance.

So during this time we are going to skip to the end of the gospel of Matthew and follow Jesus through the events leading up to the crucifixion and resurrection.

It is a season normally referred to as “passion.”

We think of passion as a strong feeling or emotion.

But it comes from the Latin root meaning “suffering.”

This season of passion is a time to allow ourselves to experience what Jesus experienced as he fully entered into the human experience.

We want to fully enter into His passion - His experience.

Last week Lester Zimmerman preach from the first part of the chapter about the ten bridesmaids.

It was a challenge for us to be ready for Christ’s return.

Next week Darryl Henson will be here and will cover the last part of the chapter - the sheep and the goats.

In between those two parables is another parable about a master and his three servants.

The parable answers the question, “what does it mean to be a faithful servant of God?”

Jesus was a faithful servant.

And we want to be faithful servants

But like everything else in Matthew’s gospel - the truth isn’t what you might expect.

In this story God entrusts his servants differently.

And the servants in the parable manage the master’s trust accordingly.

But the real message of the illustration is God’s generosity.

Jesus' parable and His example should make you want to be a faithful servant.

God entrusts his servants differently.

Matthew 25:14–18 ESV

14 “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. 15 To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. 16 He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. 17 So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. 18 But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money.

The parable begins with a wealthy landowner going on a journey.

Travel took a long time in those days, so he will probably be gone for months or even years.

While he is gone, he divides his assets among three of his servants to manage in his absence.

Dividing your assets among several servants is the ancient equivalent of diversifying your investment portfolio.

If one of your investments doesn’t work out - you have others to fall back on.

The striking feature of the parable is that he doesn’t divide his assets equally, but he divides them differently.

One manager gets five talents, another two talents and another one talent.

A talent is not a single coin -it is a cumulative weight in currency - it’s a lot of money!

A talent is basically a bag of gold- its as much as one person can carry - somewhere upward of fifty pounds (67 lb. according to the Babylonian standard).

It is said that “God only gives you what He knows you can handle.”

The first servant got five times what a normal person could handle.

Did you know that this statement is not actually in the Bible?

The famous quote is really a misinterpretation of what Paul wrote to the Corinthians.

1 Corinthians 10:13 ESV

13 No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.

God never said that He wouldn’t give you more that you could handle.

In fact, He pretty much promises that He will sometimes give you more than you can handle.

What He does promise is that He is not going to lure you into a trap with temptation - that’s what the devil does.

If God gives you more than you think you can handle - just know that He has also given you the means to handle it.

The master in the story gives to each servant according to their ability.

You can do this - God knows you can!

It’s not fair - fair is when everything is equal.

No, God is not fair - He doesn’t give to everyone equally.

Life is not fair - some people have it better than others.

If you want life to be fair, where everyone gets what they deserve, how do you think that is going to work out for you?

People manage God’s trust accordingly.

Matthew 25:19–25 ESV

19 Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20 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.’ 21 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.’ 22 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.’ 23 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.’ 24 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, 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours.’

Each of the servants proved the master’s evaluation of them.

The one that was given five talents or five bags of gold used it to hire a work force that grew crops or produced a product which turned a profit.

By the time that the master returned - the scripture doesn’t say how long, but a long time - long enough to successfully establish an enterprise.

Each of the first two servants doubled their money.

investors use the rule of 72 to determine how long it takes to double your money. It takes 72 divided by the annual rate of return. So at 5% interest it will take 14.4 years to double your money. But at 10% interest you can double your investment in just 7.2 years.

Either this master was gone for 5-10 years or these servants found a way to make 20% or better return on investment.

Probably, the former is true.

The master not only trusted them enough to leave them in charge for a long time - but he was proved right by giving each one exactly what he knew they could handle.

Except the guy with one talent.

The guy with one talent buried his sack of gold in the dirt.

Why would he do that? - Fear!

He was afraid - he even said so.

He was afraid of loosing the little that he had - which was only little in comparison to the other servants - it was still a lot of money!

He was intimidated by his master - who he had seen do some fierce bargaining.

He doesn’t understand how business works - he just sees his master throwing his weight around and he doesn’t think he can play the part.

Some people think that being the boss is being “bossy” - they don’t understand how to take responsibility.

This servant did not conceive of his responsibility - he could only think in terms of survival.

He had a victim mentality.

A victim mentality is a type of dysfunctional mindset which seeks to feel persecuted in order to gain attention or avoid self-responsibility. People with a victim mentality blame other people or external factors for the events or situations in their life. They feel that life is beyond their control and out to deliberately hurt them. They have three core beliefs: they are powerless, they are oppressed, and they are innocent.

What are this servant’s beliefs about the master?

He’s a hard man. (he’s powerful- i’m not powerful)

He reaps where he doesn’t sow. (he’s privileged; he doesn’t deserve or work for what he has - it just magically appears)

What he is giving me is not a gift; it’s a trap - he’s going to ask for it back, and I don’t know when!

What are the servant’s beliefs about himself?

Everyone is out to get my gold!

I have to protect myself from everyone, including the master, who is trying to take advantage of me.

This is not and opportunity for growth or advancement - its just a scary situation that I am probably going to screw up, no matter what I do.

I need to do whatever I have to do to get back to what is normal and comfortable for me - bury the sack of gold in the ground - pretend it never happened.

No body can blame me for what I didn’t do.

The problem with the third servant is not just what he does with the money, but that he completely misunderstands the master, himself and his relationship to his master.

God rewards his servants generously.

Matthew 25:26–30 ESV

26 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? 27 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. 28 So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. 29 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. 30 And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

If you think God is a harsh master, you will likely find that belief to be self-fulfilling.

And because a victim is blind to their own responsibility, you will probably think that it has nothing to do with you.

If this servant thought that the master just sits around all day and that his money magically appears -he could have played his own part that way.

He could have delegated his responsibility to investment brokers and just collected the interest.

There is no way he would have doubled his money with other people taking their commission fees, but he would at least be ahead of where he started.

There is another possibility - though it is reading into the text a bit - he might have been gambling against his master’s life.

Travel in the ancient world was notoriously dangerous.

What are the chances that his master never comes back?

The estate passes to the closest relative along with all of the master’s assets.

If they cant find the buried treasure, it can’t be counted among the household assets.

Later he can dig it up and use the money to skip town.

OK, so that is just speculation - the scripture doesn’t say what the third servant intended to do with the money.

But it makes sense that the master punishes him, not just for being stupid, but treats him as if he had stolen the money.

Whether or not he intended to steal the money, he stole in that he failed to produce even a minimal increase from his master’s investment.

The wicked servant’s behavior is contrasted with that of the master.

The master exercises faith by trusting his servants.

The wicked servant exercises fear by hiding what he is given.

The master exercises wisdom in giving more where he sees more capacity to handle what is given.

The wicked servant sees no potential, only problems - he plays it safe.

Do nothing - blame circumstances - show contempt for the master who put you in those circumstances.

Ultimately, the wicked servant is an illustration of someone who hates their life and is angry at God.

God is not generous - He is setting me up to fail!

But the master, while he may be firm; He is also very generous.

More than anything else in the story - the master is always giving.

He gives away sacks of gold.

He gives his faithful servants promotions.

And he gives what he confiscates from the wicked to his most faithful servant.

To the faithful servant - he gives even more.

No, God is not fair - but He is good.

If all we can see of God is judgement, we will live our lives intimidated, always trying to get around responsibility.

But if we recognize God’s generosity, we will live our lives in gratitude - seeking ways to multiply and give back for all that He has given to us.

And you will never out-give God.