Sermon - Matthew 25 - Parable of the Talents - December 1, 2019
When we last looked at Matthew 25 and the Parable of the Ten
Virgins we were reminded that we need to be prepared. Knowing about Jesus, who He
is, will not be enough. If we are going to be prepared, we need to KNOW Jesus.
We know we need to be prepared, as we continue in Matthew 25
we will see what else Jesus is trying to teach us and those who will be living
through the Tribulation.
Matthew 25:14-18
“14 “For it is just like a man about to go
on a journey. He called his own servants and entrusted his possessions to them.
15 To one he gave five talents, to another two talents, and to
another one talent, depending on each one’s ability. Then he went on a journey.
Immediately 16 the man who had received five talents went, put
them to work, and earned five more. 17 In the same way the man
with two earned two more. 18 But the man who had received one
talent went off, dug a hole in the ground, and hid his master’s money.”
Jesus is using a Parable once again to teach us something. Jesus
is the man going on a journey, which last from when He ascended into heaven some
2,000 years ago until His second coming.
In this parable the master gives 3 of his servants’ talents,
or a significant sum of money. In today’s value the most conservative estimate
I found was that a talent could range from $1,000 to $30,000. Another estimate
was 6,000 denarius which is 6,000 days of wages, that’s 23 years. I looked at
it a couple of different ways and in 3 of the 4 calculation we are looking at
roughly a $1M. No matter how you look at it, if a master is giving a talent or
more to his servants, he is putting a significant amount of trust in them.
Since the master’s final act before leaving on his journey
was to give money to his servants, he probably gave them some guidance on what
was expected. With two of the servants taking the money and investing it, it is
safe to say that they knew what was expected. Being that each of these servants
were trusted with something of significant value and that they understood their
expectations, a case can be made that all there represent believers.
As believers today or those living in the Tribulation, we
would know that Jesus has given us something precious and we should know what
we are supposed to do with it. We should know that we are to love God with all
that we are and to love others. We should know that we are expected to be
witnesses here at home and to the ends of the earth. We should know that we are
to make disciples and help others to have their eyes opened to all that God
wants to do in their lives.
Hopefully each of us understands these things but knowing is
not enough. We need to be faithful.
John 16:7-14
“7 Nevertheless, I am telling you the
truth. It is for your benefit that I go away, because if I don’t go away the
Counselor will not come to you. If I go, I will send him to you. 8 When
he comes, he will convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment: 9 About
sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 about
righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will no longer see me; 11 and
about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. 12 “I
still have many things to tell you, but you can’t bear them now. 13 When
the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth. For he will
not speak on his own, but he will speak whatever he hears. He will also declare
to you what is to come. 14 He will glorify me, because
he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.”
Each of us have been given the Holy Spirit to work in us and
those around us. He convicts the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment.
He prepares the hearts of the lost to hear the Good News. He guides us towards
the Truth found in His Word. He not only helps us to understand the words, but
guides us in our daily lives. He helps us to act faithfully as we go about our
days. The Holy Spirit is in us, He will guide us, and ultimately He will use us
to bring Honor and Glory to our Lord Jesus.
The servants may have received millions of dollars, but we
have received the Holy Spirit and His amazing gifts.
1 Corinthians 12:4-11
“4 Now there are different gifts, but
the same Spirit. 5 There are different ministries, but
the same Lord. 6 And there are different activities, but
the same God produces each gift in each person. 7 A
manifestation of the Spirit is given to each person for the common good: 8 to
one is given a message of wisdom through the Spirit, to another, a message of
knowledge by the same Spirit, 9 to another, faith by the
same Spirit, to another, gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to
another, the performing of miracles, to another, prophecy, to another,
distinguishing between spirits, to another, different kinds of tongues, to
another, interpretation of tongues. 11 One and the same
Spirit is active in all these, distributing to each person as he wills.”
Different gifts given to different people and sometimes at
different times, all to help us to be faithful to all that Jesus has commanded
us to do.
Our master is gone, and we are waiting for Him to return. We
have been given the Holy Spirit and these amazing gifts. We are waiting for our
master to return, the question is what does waiting look like?
Before a recent dentist appointment, I was sitting in the
waiting room scrolling through Facebook essentially zoning out. It passed the
time until they called me back. I was doing absolutely nothing of value, I
think it is safe to say that passing the time is not how we are to wait for the
return of our King.
Now if you are sitting at home waiting for a plumber to come
do some work and you are spending time reading your Bible and trying to
understand how it applies to your life, that would be a good example of waiting.
As you devote time to God you are Loving Him.
If we are coming alongside a friend or loved one in pain,
that is good example of waiting. Sharing the Gospel with someone is a good
example of waiting. Teaching someone what we should be learning from a Parable
is a good example of waiting.
You could say, if we are reading God’s Word to understand
it, being a shoulder to cry on, sharing the Gospel, or teaching God’s Word we
are being faithful with the things God has given us.
Turn back to Matthew 25 and let’s take a look at how the
master responded when he returned.
Matthew 25:19-21
“19 “After a long time the master of
those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20 The
man who had received five talents approached, presented five more talents, and
said, ‘Master, you gave me five talents. See, I’ve earned five more talents.’ 21 “His
master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You were faithful
over a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Share your master’s
joy.’”
This servant understood what the master expected and
invested the $5M he was given and doubled it.
Matthew 25:22-23
“22 “The man with two talents also
approached. He said, ‘Master, you gave me two talents. See, I’ve earned two
more talents.’ 23 “His master said to him, ‘Well done,
good and faithful servant! You were faithful over a few things; I will put you
in charge of many things. Share your master’s joy.’”
The second servant understood what the master expected and invested
$2M and gave his master $4M when he returned.
‘Well done, good and faithful servant!’
Did you notice that the master response to the faithful
servants? There is no difference in their rewards. Here is the key, they are
not being rewarded for their results, they are being recognized for their
faithfulness.
The same is said for all who follow Jesus. Our eternal
reward is not based on the gifts we receive, the tasks we complete, the amount
of money we give, or even the number of people we witness to who accept Christ.
Jesus is not looking for our results, He is looking for our faithfulness as
we follow Him.
Jesus is looking for us to be faithful.
Now let’s take a look at the final servant.
Matthew 25:24-30
“24 “The man who had received one
talent also approached and said, ‘Master, I know you. You’re a harsh man,
reaping where you haven’t sown and gathering where you haven’t scattered seed. 25 So
I was afraid and went off and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what
is yours.’ 26 “His master replied to him, ‘You evil,
lazy servant! If you knew that I reap where I haven’t sown and gather where I
haven’t scattered, 27 then you should have deposited my
money with the bankers, and I would have received my money back with interest
when I returned. 28 “‘So take the talent from him and
give it to the one who has ten talents. 29 For to
everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have more than enough. But
from the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him 30 And
throw this good-for-nothing servant into the outer darkness, where there will
be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’”
At first glance you might think the third servant did the
prudent thing. He was afraid of making a mistake, he was afraid he would lose
the investment, he was afraid that he would fail.
I bet all of us can relate to being afraid to do something.
Fear has a way of causing us to doubt ourselves or what God is doing in and
through us. If fear takes hold it can prevent us from doing anything at all.
The third servant was afraid and did nothing. He did not act
in faith. He did not do what his master told him to do.
It can be scary talking to people about Jesus. It can be
scary to stand up front and share what God has put on your heart. It can be
scary to put yourself out there and risk rejection. When we use our earthly
eyes each one of these things can be measured based on the results. Did someone
accept Jesus, did sharing what was on your heart touch someone, did you put
yourself out there or let the fear of rejection stop you. These things can be
measured, but Jesus is not worried about your success rate. He is not measuring
you on if you reached 1, 10, 100, or more people. He is looking for your
faithfulness.
The first two servants were reward for their faithfulness.
They heard the words, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant!’
If you are faithful in following Jesus, if you let the Holy
Spirit work in you. If you are there for those in need. If you spend time
talking to God. If you spend time studying His Word. If you are going about His
business as you Love Him and Love Others.
If you are faithful in being a witness to those in your
mission field. You will hear the words, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant!’
It is my prayer that each one of us is prepared by knowing
Jesus and is faithful in being about His business, then we will all hear ‘Well
done, good and faithful servant!’
God Bless,
Robert
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