The Talents Faithful Stewardship

Matthew 25:14–30 Key Verse: “Well done, good and faithful servant.” (Matthew 25:21)

Two Extremes and the Reality

We live in a world that loves extremes. And we see it most clearly when tragedy strikes. This past week, after that horrific shooting in Minneapolis—two children murdered, others wounded, a congregation shattered—the responses were swift, loud, and sadly predictable.

One side immediately cried out, “Ban the guns!” as if simply removing an object could somehow heal the hatred that festers in the human heart. The other side crossed its arms and said, “Thoughts and prayers,” and then moved on, without compassion, without action, without engaging the very real suffering that had just torn through families and a church.

But what about reality? The reality is that violence doesn’t appear out of thin air. It’s not just about access to weapons. It’s born out of despair, anger, untreated mental health struggles, broken families, unchecked hatred, and the constant stoking of fear and rage by a media machine and cultural echo chambers. The extremes offer easy answers, but they miss the root of the problem.

And what is that root? It’s the same one Scripture points to again and again: the sinful human heart. The heart that chooses self over God. The heart that lashes out in anger instead of love. The heart that buries its pain in darkness rather than lifting it to the light of Christ. That is where evil is born. And that is why no political extreme—left or right—can ultimately solve the problem. What we need is redemption.

This is what Jesus so often does in His parables. He cuts through the noise, through the extremes, through the simple slogans, and He lays bare the truth. He doesn’t let us off the hook with shallow answers. He calls us to look at the heart. And in the Parable of the Talents, He does just that.

This parable isn’t just about money management. It’s not a lesson in business risk-taking. It’s not even just a reminder to “use your gifts.” It’s something much deeper. It’s about what it means to live faithfully as God’s people in a world like this—a world fractured by tragedy, poisoned by extremes, and aching for real hope.

And so it presses us with a question we cannot ignore: What are we doing with what God has entrusted to us? Not just when life feels safe and stable—but right now, in the middle of grief, in the face of fear, when the world around us is reeling.

I. God Entrusts Us with His Gifts

The parable begins with a master who entrusts his servants with his wealth. Don’t miss that word—entrusts. He didn’t give it away. He didn’t say, “This is yours now, do whatever you want.” No—the talents remained His property. They were to be used in His service, for His purposes, and for His glory.

And notice, none of the servants earned what they received. The servant with five talents didn’t receive them because he was smarter or better. The same with the one who got two. Even the one entrusted with only one talent—just one—received something staggering. In Jesus’ day, a single talent equaled about twenty years’ wages. That’s half a lifetime of labor. Even the “least” servant in the story was given a treasure beyond measure. No one was empty-handed.

And the same is true for us. Everything we have—our money, our homes, our families, our abilities, our opportunities, our energy, our very breath—comes not from our own merit, but from the hand of a gracious God. It is not mine. It is not yours. It is His, entrusted to us for a time.

This is where faithful stewardship begins. It begins with the humble recognition that life itself is borrowed. That our possessions, our talents, and even our time are on loan. Psalm 90 brings us right into this truth:

Psalm 90:12 ESV

So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.

Moses reminds us: you don’t have unlimited days. None of us do. Every moment, every opportunity, every gift we’ve been given is finite. And when we forget that, we fall into two traps.

One trap is to cling too tightly. To grab hold of money, possessions, achievements, even relationships, and say, “Mine!”—as if we can hold onto them forever. That’s idolatry.

The other trap is to squander. To waste our time, our talents, and our treasures on what doesn’t last—on selfish pursuits, on chasing comfort, on distractions that numb but don’t satisfy.

But the parable of the talents reminds us: God didn’t entrust His gifts so they could be buried or squandered. He entrusted them so they could be used—for His glory and for the good of others. And Psalm 90 drives this home when it prays:

Psalm 90:17 ESV

Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!

Do you see it? The psalmist isn’t asking God to make his plans succeed. He’s asking God to take the work entrusted to him and make it matter—make it last.

And that’s the heart of stewardship. We don’t own the gifts. We don’t set the agenda. We are servants. The Master entrusts, we invest, and He establishes the work.

So the question before us is not, “What do I want to do with my life, my money, my time?” The question is, “Lord, how do You want me to use what You have entrusted to me—especially in days that are fleeting and fragile?”

II. Stewardship Is Ultimately About Trust in the Master

At the heart of the unfaithful servant’s failure was not the amount of money he was given. It wasn’t even the risk involved in investing it. No—the real problem was his view of the master.

He said,

Matthew 25:24 ESV

Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed,

In other words, he didn’t trust the master’s character. He saw the master as harsh, demanding, maybe even unfair. And because of that mistrust, he buried the talent instead of using it

Think about it: his fear didn’t come from a lack of skill. It came from a lack of faith. And that lack of faith produced a lack of faithfulness. One small lie about the master—one assumption about God’s heart—led to wasted potential, missed opportunity, and regret.

And isn’t that the reality for us too? When we doubt God’s goodness, we cling tightly to what we’ve been given. When we see Him as distant, harsh, or unfair, we protect our gifts, our time, our resources. We hide our talents, avoid risks, and fail to serve as we were called. Fear and suspicion become barriers that keep God’s blessings from flowing through us.

Contrast that with the faithful servants. They trusted their master. They acted, even when risk was involved, even when the outcomes were uncertain. They stepped out because they knew their master was good, generous, and faithful. And when he returned, they were welcomed into his joy.

Here is the gospel truth at the heart of stewardship: our Master is not harsh. He is gracious. He is generous. He is faithful. And He has already given us the greatest gift of all—His Son, Jesus Christ.

On the cross, Jesus bore our unfaithfulness, our fear, our failures. Every moment we doubted, every gift we buried, every act of selfishness—He took it all. And in His resurrection, He gives us something far greater than we could earn: His life, His forgiveness, His eternal joy.

That is the foundation of faithful stewardship. Not fear. Not guilt. Not obligation. But trust. Trust in a Master who has already given everything for us, who holds nothing back, and who calls us to act, serve, and love out of the abundance of His grace.

So the question before us today is simple, yet profound: Do you trust the Master? Do you believe He is good, even in a world of brokenness? And if you do, how will that trust shape what you do with the gifts He has entrusted to you?

Faithful stewardship is never about earning God’s favor. It is always about living out of the love, generosity, and faithfulness of the One who already loved us to the end.

III. Living as Faithful Stewards Today

So what does all of this mean for us today—especially in a world so full of tragedy, fear, and brokenness?

It means we cannot afford to get stuck in extremes. On one side, some respond to tragedy with only words—“thoughts and prayers”—without moving beyond the platitudes into action. On the other side, some place their hope entirely in human solutions—laws, policies, programs—believing they can fix the brokenness of the world on their own. Both extremes miss the reality: the world’s true healing and transformation come only from God. And He has entrusted us to be His instruments in that work.

God has entrusted His people with His gospel—the power of the Word, the Spirit of truth, and the opportunity to live faithfully in the world. This is what discipleship looks like: not hiding in fear, not chasing empty extremes, but faithfully using what God has placed in our hands.

Faithful stewardship flows from hearts changed by the gospel. When Christ takes hold of us, He doesn’t just forgive our sins—He reshapes our lives. His grace moves us outward in love:

Parents, changed by the gospel, teach their children to pray—showing them dependence on God even when the culture scoffs.

Believers, set free by Christ, use their time, talents, and money not for selfish gain but to bless others: feeding the hungry, comforting the grieving, serving their neighbors.

Christians, shaped by the truth of the cross, speak with love in a world filled with lies, hate, and fear—bearing witness to God’s justice and mercy.

Members of a congregation, living in Christ’s compassion, stand with the hurting, grieving, and lonely—not because they have all the answers, but because the Lord has entrusted them with His presence and His heart.

This again is the natural progression from a gospel-centered life, we have to be careful to not make it another to do list for the Christian, but a done by Jesus Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit working.

Even in the face of violence, tragedy, and despair—like the horrific shooting—we are called to act as faithful stewards of God’s grace. We do not fix the world ourselves. We do not erase evil with human power alone. But we live in Christ, trusting that His resurrection transforms hearts, sustains communities, and gives hope where despair seems to reign.

And one day, when our Master returns, He will look at His faithful servants and say the words every Christian longs to hear:

Matthew 25:21 ESV

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.’

This is the ultimate reward: not for what we accomplished, but for faithfulness to the One who first loved us, the One who empowered us, and the One who already secured our place in eternal joy.

Because in the end, it is not about what we accomplish on our own. It is about the faithfulness of our Savior, Jesus Christ, who has already given Himself fully for us, and who calls us to serve Him in a world desperate for His mercy, His hope, and His grace. Amen

Prayer of Lament and Commitment

Gracious Father, We cannot understand such evil and loss. Our hearts break for the children and families torn apart in this tragedy. Yet even in our sorrow, You remain our refuge.

Forgive us when fear makes us bury Your gifts. Renew us by Your Spirit to serve with courage, to love boldly, and to shine the light of Jesus in this dark world. Thank You that in Christ we are forgiven and entrusted with grace. May we live as faithful stewards until we hear Your words: “Well done.”

In Jesus’ name, Amen.