Take the Talent Away from Him...

 Read Matthew 25:14-30

 

You wicked, lazy servant!

 

I do not want to be at the end of a sentence that begins with “Woe unto” and I do not want to be the addressee of the statement, “You wicked, lazy servant!”

 

For the most part, I focus on what we are to do as trusted servants when examining this parable.  We know that we are saved from sin and death.  We know that the blood of Jesus has rescued us from condemnation.

 

There is no condemnation in Christ Jesus.  Those are some powerful words. 

Those are incredibly powerful words, but we still need to consider the negative examples when they come our way in our Bible study.  The third servant gives us those negative examples.

 

He was governed by fear.  We have discussed fear many times and know that God wants us to be courageous and not afraid.  But for this brief examination, I want to look at the master’s disposition in dealing with the third servant.

 

His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So, you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned, I would have received it back with interest.

 

“‘So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags.  For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.  And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

 

The third servant knew right away that when the master began labeling him wicked and lazy, things were not going to work out as he thought.  The master doesn’t just reprimand the servant, he examines his thinking.

 

Some people love me because I tend to examine the thinking.  Just as many people hate me for the same reason.  Back to the parable…

 

You knew that I gleaned a return even where I had not invested.  You knew that about me but you chose a course of action that produced no return.

 

You knew what I expected and you did the opposite.  How could this turn out for the good?  Really?  Did you see any good outcome in your choice?

 

So, you were afraid.  Is that it?  Have I ever valued fear in our relationship?  Have I taught you fear?  If you had fear of me, don’t you think that would have motivated you to please me—to produce some return for me?

 

You get better results with courage but if you were afraid of me then you should have considered that I would not accept anything short of some return on investment. 

 

You should have used your fear of me as motivation to please me and not something to debilitate you.

How could you accomplish this with so little courage?  You could have marched yourself right down the bank and put my money in a Certificate of Deposit.  At least I could have received some interest. That’s a no-brainer.

 

How hard would that be?  You didn’t have the backbone to invest like the other two servants, but you had everything that you needed to go to the bank and deposit my money in an interest-bearing account with no risk.

 

C’mon snowflake, even you could have done that!

 

We are usually in tune with what’s happening up to this point, but now the master says, “Take the money away from this servant and give it to the one who has the ten talents.”

 

Ouch!  Isn’t that being a little harsh?

 

Let’s remember that the money was a trust.  It really never belonged to the servants.  Remember the joy of the first two servants.  ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’

 

See what I gained for you.  Here is what I did for you!  My joy is in pleasing you!

The third servant knew that the money belonged to his master, but he never moved beyond fear to realize that he was also a trusted servant.

 

One talent equaled the daily wage for a worker for 20 years.  That’s big-time money even when you are only trusted with one talent.  Today, what does the typical worker make?  If it’s on the low end, maybe $30,000 per year.  On the high end, perhaps $50,000 per year.  I’m not talking about supervisors and executives, but workers. 

 

So, one talent in today’s equivalent is between half a million and a million dollars.  That’s no chump change. 

 

There are other estimates but they also fall under the no chump change umbrella.

 

OK, so we get this is a big trust even for the third servant, but why take what little he has?

 

Think to Proverbs 13:22. 

 

A good person leaves an inheritance for their children’s children,

    but a sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous.

 

You may have heard the second part of that as the wealth of the wicked is laid up for the just or the righteous. 

 

What else could the master do if he subscribed to biblical wisdom?  The wicked and lazy don’t get to keep what they have if they have anything at all.

 

Remember, the three parables in this chapter are told in response to the disciple asking about the end of the age.

 

Throughout the Psalms, the psalmists cry out on behalf of the people, “How long are you going to let people get away with defying you and living it up, Lord?”

 

The answer is that in the end, they do not get away with it.  Wealth won’t get you anything on the day of wrath, but righteousness is what saves you.

 

Part of the problem is that we have our own connotations of wicked.  Hollywood paints villains as ugly, menacing, and heartless doers of evil.  But we should look at wickedness as everything that is not good—everything that is not done or given or lived in God’s way.

 

There is no sitting on the fence in this dichotomy.  It’s God’s way and everything else.  If you are on the wrong side of the fence, you have earned the titles wicked or lazy or slothful.  Don’t get caught up in the Hollywood picture of a villain and think that’s what wickedness looks like.

 

The wealth of the wicked is stored up for the righteous, so the decision to take the talent from the third servant was not nearly as harsh as that servant's decision to defy his master.

 

Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten talents.  That was the message at First Light. God wants to give the faithful even more.

 

For now, there is God’s way and there is everything else.  Those living in the everything else, don’t get to enjoy their Master’s happiness.

 

Even what they have will be taken.

 

We are God’s way people.  We enjoy his happiness.

 

 

Amen.

God wants to give you more!

 Read Matthew 25:14-30

 

Consider the words: You wicked, lazy servant!  Now those are some words I don’t want to hear.

 

We don’t always understand this part in our modern mindset.  Hey, the guy just didn’t do well.  Why accost him and call him names—mean names at that?

 

Was he really wicked?  Lazy, that’s easier to swallow, but wicked, really?

To understand the parable, we should understand the Proverbs.  In macro view, they say there is God’s way and there is everything else.  What are the terms for everything else?

 

Wicked.

Sinful.

Slothful.

Lazy.

Foolish.

 

It’s a dichotomy:  Righteous or wicked.  There is no middle ground.  There is no fence-sitting.  It’s God’s way or everything else and everything else is labeled wicked.

 

We in this over-sensitized time don’t do well with distinct dichotomies, but there is good and evil.  There is right and wrong.  There is righteous and wicked.

 

We are usually in tune with what’s happening in the parable up to this point, but now the master says, “Take the money away from this servant and give it to the one who has the ten talents.”

 

Ouch!  Isn’t that being a little harsh?

 

Let’s remember that the money was a trust.  It really never belonged to the servants.  Remember the joy of the first two servants.  ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’

 

See what I gained for you.  Here is what I did for you!  My joy is in pleasing you!  I love being your servant and bringing you this good report.

 

The third servant knew that the money belonged to his master, but he never moved beyond fear to realize that he was also a trusted servant.

 

He only had one talent.  How can he be considered a trusted servant?

 

One talent equaled the daily wage for a worker for 20 years.  That’s big-time money even when you are only trusted with one talent.  Today, what does the typical worker make?  If it’s on the low end, maybe $25,000 per year.  On the high end, perhaps $50,000 per year.  I’m not talking about supervisors and executives or oilfield wages, but workers. 

 

So, one talent in today’s equivalent is between half a million and a million dollars.  That’s no chump change. 

 

Other estimates put a talent at $100,000 to half a million, but still: That’s no chump change. 

 

OK, so we get this is a big trust even for the third servant, but why take what little he has?

 

Think to Proverbs 13:22. 

 

A good person leaves an inheritance for their children’s children, but a sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous.

 

You may have heard the second part of that as the wealth of the wicked is laid up for the just or the righteous. 

 

What else could the master do if he subscribed to biblical wisdom?  The wicked and lazy don’t get to keep what they have if they have anything at all.

 

This morning I want us to look at the wealth of the wicked being stored up for the righteous in the context of this parable.

 

The first servant had done very well.  We know this from the beginning of the parable.  He was trusted with more than the other two.  He produced more than the other two.  He put what the Master gave him and put it to work right away and produced a great return.

 

Today, it would take 10 years to double your money if you invested in something with a 7% interest or return.  The master was gone a long time, but I doubt it was 10 years, so this first servant surely made some aggressive investments that required much attention. 

 

He had to be diligent.  He had to be wise.  He had to be decisive but not impulsive.  His master trusted him in accordance with his ability.  He produced a fantastic return.

 

“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’

 

The second servant did likewise and received the same commendation from his master, but at the close of this parable, we see the first servant rewarded beyond all others.

 

So take the talent from him and give it to the one who has 10 talents.  For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have more than enough.

 

The wealth of the wicked is stored up for the righteous. 

 

This first servant took the money with which his master had trusted him and produced a good return.  He knew what he started with and what he produced.  But when the full accounting of these servants was finished, this first servant was given more.

 

The talent first trusted to the third servant was put in the first servant’s trust.  He was given more.  He had more and was given more.  He had more than enough.

 

Now both the first and second servant were also invited to share their master’s happiness.  They got a promotion and they were invited to be a part of their master’s happiness.

 

But the first servant got something extra.  So, the moral of the story is it pays to be number one!  That’s the ticket!  It’s dog-eat-dog even in the parables of Jesus. 

 

Or not.

 

All of the money still belonged to the master.  Even the 11^th talent received by the first servant still belonged to the master.  It’s not about how much you have.  It’s about what you do with it.

 

The first servant was now trusted with even more. 

 

In this parable, it has to do with money.  Money is something that we get—we can wrap our minds around it easily.  It’s not conceptual or reflective.  We can count and measure money.

 

Well, I used to be able to count and measure.  Now I just count out.  I have grandkids.

 

But we are trusted with so much more than money.  We lead and we serve.  We parent and look after parents.  We proclaim the good news and we are a light unto the world.

 

We are generous.  We are people of truth.  We are people of love and mercy.

 

We are disciples.  God has trusted us with following Jesus, taking the gospel to the world, and doing our best to live the right standing with God that we have received as a gift.

 

We can look at this parable and if we are not careful, we might think it’s about what we do that puts us in right standing with God, but it has nothing to do with what we have done.

 

God alone made us right with him.  He did all that was required.  We are receivers of his blessings.

 

Look at the religions of the world. They require their followers to do good, or follow certain rules, or a combination of both to get to heaven, or get to a state of Nirvana or reach a plane of consciousness or become nonexistent.

 

Everyone else is working their way to heaven.  Heaven has been given to us freely in the blood of Jesus.  We are receivers of this gift.

 

The world that believes in something else but thinks it can earn its way to heaven spends time doing things that get them there or so they believe.

 

We spend our time receiving what has been so freely given.  We want to receive more and more of the Kingdom of Heaven into our lives now.  Yes, there is more in store, but we are to receive God’s kingdom now.

 

Every time that we receive God’s kingdom and live in his kingdom, he gives us more of his kingdom.  God wants to add to what we have already received and put to work and refined and produced.

 

God wants to add to what we have.

 

When we receive the gift of salvation and decide to follow Jesus and put his words into practice, we should expect not only to please God but to be further blessed by him.

 

Sometimes this is with money.

 

Sometimes it is with Spiritual Gifts.

 

Sometimes it is with opportunities.

 

Sometimes it is with peace that is more than we can understand.

 

Sometimes it is wisdom that God grants generously.

 

Sometimes it is eyes to see and ears to hear in the midst of a chaotic world.

 

God wants to give us more!

 

God wants us to live an abundant life.

 

Some might be thinking that he is going to preach name it, claim it.    No, I am preaching about the abundant generosity of God.  God is looking for a reason to bless us.  God wants to give us good gifts, fantastic blessings, and this thing called abundant life.

 

I am talking about the abundant nature of our Master as he blesses those who follow him!

 

If God is for us, who can be against us?  Make no mistake that God is for us.  He has opened his kingdom to us.  He has saved us from wrath and punishment in the blood of Jesus and he is looking to bless us beyond what we might expect.

 

God wants to add to what we have for we are his trusted servants, his children, and his friends.

 

When we live every day God’s way, we should expect God’s blessings to continue even in our trials and tribulations.  We will have trouble in this world but take heart—take courage—Christ Jesus has overcome the world for us.

 

For those who consistently reject God’s way, even what they have will be taken and given to those living in right standing with God.  Are we talking about salvation here?  I don’t think so.  All three were trusted servants.

 

This parable deals with three trusted servants some random guys just off the street.

 

What about the wicked and lazy part?  I think we are talking about someone getting through this life as one escaping a burning house with only the scorched clothes on his back and having missed a few payments on his fire insurance.

 

Are we talking about rewards for the righteous?  Yes, to an extent.  But we are also talking about awards.  Rewards come in return for what is done.  Something awarded is an honor bestowed upon someone beyond the customary reward.  Awards consider what has been accomplished but is more about bestowing a greater blessing upon someone who is already enjoying the rewards of doing things right.

 

What do we take home here?

 

God made you right with him by the blood of Jesus.  That’s the biggest gift and blessing ever.

 

God wants you to do things his way and rewards those who do.

 

God wants to give over and beyond what might be expected.

 

God wants to give you more. 

 

We often look at what we are to do when we examine this parable.  That’s good.  We should—we should be faithful in a few things.  We should take what our Master gave us and be faithful to put it to work to produce a good return for the body of Christ and bring glory to God’s name.

 

This morning, however, I want us to focus on the generosity of God.  God wants to give you more.

 

It’s not like I want to earn God’s favor.  God has poured out his favor upon you!!!

 

The sun shines and the rains fall on the wicked as well as the righteous, but there are some things that God gives only to those seeking him and his righteousness.  God wants to give you more.

 

The question is, “Will we receive it?”

 

The Kingdom of Heaven has been opened to us.  We may live in this kingdom now.  We are not on our way there.  God’s kingdom has come to us.

 

God wants to give us more.  The wealth of the wicked is stored up for the righteous.  The wicked don’t want to live in God’s kingdom.  They want the benefits but are afraid to give up what they have in the world thinking it to be better than what God has in store for us.

 

There is nothing better than what God has in store for us!

 

I believe that we want to receive this kingdom now, but we must first stop believing the lies of the enemy, of the world, and of our own selfish nature.  God’s way is better than the way of the world. 

 

The world has a great advertising campaign going but God gives us truth.  And the truth is that God loves you.  He has called us to love one another.  He wants to bless us more and more.  He wants us living in his kingdom now where he is our only Master.  You cannot serve two masters.

 

You may look around at those in the world getting away with all sorts of scandalous things and wonder, will God let them get away with it, or how much longer will the wicked live the rich life?

 

Don’t worry.  What the wicked have, they don’t get to keep.  In fact, they are only holding it until it is given to us.  The wealth of the wicked is stored up for the righteous.

 

Take the talent from him and give it to the one with ten talents.

 

Take the trust given to the wicked and entrust it to the righteous.

 

God wants to give you more than he has already.  Be ready to receive it.

 

Amen.

The Baseball Glove and Salvation - One more time...

  

 

 

Read Matthew 25:14-30

 

It’s October.  That means it is time for the World Series.  That means that I can use my baseball glove analogy and it will still be in season.

 

Do you know what the toughest thing for me was when I went to Africa to teach pastors and church leaders?  People didn’t know baseball.  There was maybe some interest in basketball, but soccer was the sport and I didn’t know diddly about soccer.

 

Half of my analogies come from the Marine Corps and the other half from football and baseball. What do you do when people can’t relate to any of those.

 

I know that I promised you some analogies from my stroke and my car accidents, but they are not forthcoming.

 

Hey, I slept through my stroke. That’s not going to add much to the message.

 

Until a few years ago, I never had a real car accident.  Then they came in threes.  On the last one, I ran into a building.  Can you believe it—they said that the building had the right of way.

 

Did the building not know to watch out for the other guy.  That’s what they taught in Drivers Ed back in the day.

 

Why am I telling you this?  For however much time I have left here, you are probably stuck with Marine Corps and sports analogies as I try to explain the word of God with things that we might already know.

 

As this is October in America, I will use my baseball analogies.

 

Imagine that you buy your son or daughter a brand-new baseball glove.  It was just the one that he wanted or she wanted.  He oiled it just right, wrapped around an old baseball to where its curves and flexibility were perfect.  Then he put it on the shelf.

 

There that glove sits on the shelf.  Oh, it has a prominent spot, but still, it sits unused.  Over the course of time, the son might take it down once or twice a year and put it on, perhaps even pop it with a baseball or his fist, but sure to return it to its place.

 

Dad’s heart breaks.  He longed to see it used and even worn out from playing catch, digging ground balls out of the dirt, or diving for fly balls nearly out of reach, often leaving grass stains on it.  Dad would even have a little joy if the glove was only used to slap the dugout bench or bang on the chain link fence to start a late-inning rally.

 

Dad might even be happy if it came down off of the shelf, not even to go to a game, but to just have a catch in the backyard.

 

But the glove sits on the shelf unused.  It was the perfect gift.  Dad knew it when he gave it to his son.  The child was excited when he received it, but save the occasional ceremonial wearing, it remains unused.  It sits on the shelf.

 

Not too many days ago, sanctuaries were filled with people singing, “He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today!”  Many of those people won’t be seen in a church building for another year.  Some will drop in for Mother’s Day and a handful might come for an hour at Christmas. Some won’t even think about their salvation and how they should respond to it.

 

Some come every Sunday truly seeking the Lord.  Some come every Sunday logging in their pew time.  And then there are those who come every Sunday and can hardly wait for service to begin. 

 

There are those few who wake up celebrating every day as the day the Lord has made, rejoicing and living it to the full.

 

Those few know what it is to live life to the full.  Their baseball gloves are worn and scratched and the laces have been replaced more than once.  They know the life smells of horsehide, a freshly watered infield, and can smell a new-mown field from a mile away.

 

For some people, this is struggling through tough times but keeping faith in God.  For some, it is helping a stranger.  For others, it is giving beyond the tithe and knowing the joy of sacrifice.  For many, it is battling pain while keeping joy in their hearts.

 

For many, their baseball gloves are spiritual gifts and God-given talents.  These individual blessings long to be put to use to produce good fruit.  They cannot sit dormant and produce fruit.  They cannot sit on the shelf.  They beg to be put to use.

 

Some have truly put their gift of salvation on the shelf, breaking it out only once or twice a year.  They grace God with their presence at a service once a year and wonder why he is not more thankful.  Some have taken their gift of salvation and tossed it in with the other clutter of their lives.  They have forgotten that it is even there, save perhaps when they gasp at how quickly their own children are growing and they ask what it is to be saved and live for God.

 

And some have drifted into the apathy and ambivalence of the world forgetting the most wonderful gift the world has ever known.  Christ died to take away your sins.  When you professed your faith in him, your slate was wiped clean.  It is a done deal.  It is finished!

 

You are forgiven!  By his gift alone, you have been made right with God!

 

The question that we are called to answer each and every day of our lives is, “How will I respond to this incredible gift?”

 

Will we put it on the shelf, throw it in with the rest of the clutter, or just forget about it altogether?

 

Or…

 

Will we put it to use by taking this gift of life and gift of salvation and live to the fullest extent possible, seeking to bring glory to God every step of the way?

 

I still have feelings that I can’t explain at the smell of horsehide and freshly watered infields.  I am too old to dig balls out of the dirt or dive for them in the outfield.  Those days are gone, but I have found other ways—many other ways—to live this life and live out my salvation for God.

 

I can no more put that gift on the shelf than I could a new ball glove.  I have to put it to use.

 

Having considered the gift of salvation that we received by grace, I must ask again, what are we doing with it.

 

Having considered the parable of the talents, now consider the question never asked but answered by all three servants, what did you do with what I gave you?

 

Now let’s put it into terms that we have talked about so much lately—our salvation which is 100% the gift of God.

 

What are you doing with your salvation?

 

Are you diving for line drives and scooping hard-hit ground balls out of the dirt or does your glove sit on the shelf?

 

Is your salvation sitting on the shelf?

 

There’s your food for thought and action this week.

 

Amen