Parables - Kingdom of Heaven - Using Gifts
Notes
Transcript
Gifts, and Talents, and Minas, Oh My!
Gifts, and Talents, and Minas, Oh My!
Each and every human being has been given something.
We’ve been given life.
We’ve been given a family, whether good or bad.
We’ve been given skills and opportunities.
But what do we do with the gifts and talents God has given us.
Talents
Talents
“For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them.
“The kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country”...
I suppose you could describe heaven as a far country,
And Jesus went there.
But that is not the point Jesus is making here.
“who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them.”
So the kingdom of heaven is described as a man who delivers his goods to his servants to deal with while he is gone.
Sound familiar?
Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it.
Ever since Adam (the Hebrew word for man) was created, his job was to tend and keep what was left to him.
In Adam’s case, the garden.
What has God entrusted to your care?
And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey.
We have three of this man’s servants receiving a some of money, 5 for one, 3 for another, and 1 for the third.
Notice, Jesus said to each according to his own ability.
Not “To each according to his need.” as Marx said.
But to each according to his ability.
The man did not give to his servants equally.
Similarly, God has not given each of us the same things.
God gave me skills with computers and studying the Bible and the Constitution.
He gave my cousin skill with mechanical things.
He gave Brother Mark skills with music.
Just as the man gave to his servants as he saw fit, God gives to us as He sees fit.
Then the man goes on his journey.
Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. And likewise he who had received two gained two more also. But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord’s money.
What did these men do with what had been entrusted to them?
The man with five talents traded with it.
The man with two talents gained two more somehow.
The third man, with only one talent, buried it.
What have you done with what God has entrusted you?
Have you traded with it, to bring gain to your Lord, to yourself, and to others?
Have you done something that simply grew your gift?
Or have you buried it in the ground, hid it rather than using it.
Because the answer to that question will have a big impact in how you see yourself in the rest of this parable.
After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.
Now comes time for the reckoning, the settling of accounts.
How will you feel when you stand before God?
Will you be ready to “settle your account”, or will you approach fearfully?
“So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.’ His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ He also who had received two talents came and said, ‘Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.’ His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’
Notice that the first two servants each received the same reaction from their master.
Each had been given talents and gained more for their master.
They did not gain the same amount, but their gain was proportional to what they had received.
And each received the same reward for their service.
First they are praised.
“Well done, good and faithful servant.”
Then they are rewarded for their work.
“you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.”
Lastly, they celebrated with their master.
“Enter into the joy of your lord.”
This makes sense,
The servants were good “business men”.
They took what they had and used it, they made it grow.
In other words, they were faithful in small things, so they could be trusted in grander things.
But what about the third servant?
“Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.’
The first two servants simply walked up to their master and presented their accounts.
Not this guy.
He starts by making excuses.
You are a hard man.
You reap where you have not sown.
You gather where you have not scattered seed.
Then he gets to the crux of the matter.
I was afraid.
When you come before God, are you afraid of what He will do to you?
Do you see God as hard.
Do you see Him as demanding something from you?
Just as this servant was afraid that he might loose what his lord had given him, are you afraid to loose what God has given you?
Or are you so afraid of doing the wrong thing, that you do nothing at all?
Because that did not work out too well for the third servant.
“But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.
Not only does the master chastise the servant for his foolishness,
He takes away what he has and gives it to the richest servant.
Does that seem fair?
‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
Wait, everyone who has, more will be given to them?
I thought we were supposed to “steal from the rich and give to the poor”?
I mean, who needs the talent more, the guy with ten or the guy who only has one?
Not only that, but while the other two servants were told to enter into the joy of their lord, this guy is kicked out.
Doesn’t this guy need a break?
Maybe he should get unemployment, after all, he just lost his job.
Or he can sign up for welfare, he has lost everything, even his living arrangements.
Does this parable make you think the the Kingdom of Heaven is unfair?
Minas
Minas
Another story in Luke 19 is similar, but with one major difference.
Therefore He said: “A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. So he called ten of his servants, delivered to them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Do business till I come.’
Here, instead of the servants getting money based on their abilities, everyone gets the same amount, ten minas, about three months salary.
And just like the story in Matthew, three servants come back, one earned ten minas, one earned five, and the last hid the money he received.
And the first to were rewarded based on how much they had earned with what they were given,
Then came the first, saying, ‘Master, your mina has earned ten minas.’ And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities.’ And the second came, saying, ‘Master, your mina has earned five minas.’ Likewise he said to him, ‘You also be over five cities.’
But what about the third servant?
“And he said to those who stood by, ‘Take the mina from him, and give it to him who has ten minas.’ (But they said to him, ‘Master, he has ten minas.’)
Again the third had his money taken from him and given to the one who had earned ten.
How is this explained?
‘For I say to you, that to everyone who has will be given; and from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.
In Matthew we’re told that he who has, more will be given to him.
And here in Luke we’re also told that he who doesn’t have, what little he has will be taken away.
Does that sound “fair”?
Not to modern ears.
Conclusion
Conclusion
These stories don’t seem very nice to our modern ears.
People getting different starting points.
Those who have getting more, while those who don’t loosing what they already had.
Doesn’t sound very “Christian”, does it?
Sounds like something a skeptic would use to argue against Christianity.
But what does this tell us about the kingdom of heaven?
First, we are all given gifts.
Not just money or skills, but so much more.
Yes, we all have received the gift of life,
And if you breath, that’s a gift as well.
But that gift of life is different for all of us.
Some were born to wealthy, powerful families,
Others to poor ones.
Some were born here in America, while others were born in Communist China.
Some were born with easily marketable skill and the ambition to use them,
While others see little reason to bother, so we sit on the couch.
Regardless of what talents you have, God expects us to use them.
Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
Just because you don’t have money, doesn’t mean you can hid the skill God has given you.
Just because your job may not be easy, doesn’t mean you should shirk doing it.
And even though you may dislike your choices, you should not bury the gift of your vote, or even your responsibility to oversee your elected officials.
“Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”
Who is Caesar in America?
“We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States;” — Declaration of Independence
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” — Constitution
Are you burying your gift of living in a free country?
Are you burying your freedom of religion, speech, and press?
Remember, it didn’t turn out very well for the servants who hid what they had.
No, not everyone gets the outcome they want,
But were you a good and faithful servant?
Were you faithful in little things?
Because we should now know that if we are unfaithful, if we hide what God has given us, then not only will what we have be taken away, but we can expect to be cast into outer darkness.
Put another way, will we rejoice with our Lord, or as Job said, will we escape hell by the skin of our teeth?