14"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. 15And 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. 16Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. 17And likewise he who had received two gained two more also. 18But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord's money. 19After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.
20"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.' 21His 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.' 22He 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.' 23His 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.'
24"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. 25And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.'
26"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. 27So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. 28So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.
29"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. 30And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'
This is a very interesting parable. Yes, it is a good example of the fact that everything we have belongs to God. The more we have, the more we will be given. And from those who do not have, even what they have will be taken away. But have what, and what will be taken away? Why? And why does this example talk of the Lord as being a hard man, reaping and gathering what is not his? Even though the first two servants did wisely, it is the thought process of the third servant and the discussion between him and his Lord which tells us so much more.
The man was going to be traveling to a far country, meaning the servants knew he would be back some day, though it may be a while. The servants would be responsible for his goods while he was gone. My Bible said a talent is $1000. Now, that is a lot of money to be responsible for. What they do with that amount of money will be important.
The first two servants traded with it and their wealth increased. But isn’t that a risk? Isn’t it kind of like trading on the stock market? Sure, you could double your money, but you could also lose it all too. Is that why the third servant hid the money he was given? Is that why he said he was afraid, because he didn’t want to risk losing it?
But he also had an odd sort of justification in his mind. He knew his master was a hard man, that he would reap and gather that which wasn’t even of his own efforts. Didn’t the other two servants have to give to their master the extra profits they made from the talents they were given? Why should he work to make that money increase, when it all goes back to the master in the end anyway, the master who didn’t even do any of the work for it? As long as he returned to the master that which was originally his in the first place should be good enough, shouldn’t it?
Well, the problem with this servant’s reasoning is that he wasn’t looking farsighted enough. Yes, the first two servants gave all their money and profits back to the master. But in return, the master would make them ruler over many things, and invited them into the joy of their lord. The more they had, the more they would be given. But for the third servant, even what he had was taken away, just as the money and profits were taken from the first two servants, but nothing was given in return.
So how does this parable translate to our lives? What do we have of which more will be given or taken away? I believe He is talking of our personal blessings and talents. It is awesome when you consider all the blessings God has given us. And He has given us our many talents for specific reasons. The more we use these talents, the more we will be given. The more we attribute our blessings to God, the more we will be given. Yes, God is the one who will reap the benefits from how we use our blessings and talents. But we must recognize everything we have comes from God anyway. And in the end we will leave it all behind, as we enter into the joy of the Lord, where we will have abundance.
But what about being afraid to use those talents and blessings? What of the risk of losing what you possess? Actually, you will lose everything you posses in the end anyway, but that is not the point. But there is a key statement at the beginning of the parable here that is almost too easy to overlook. It said he gave to each according to his own ability.
The third servant’s abilities must have been less than the other servants because he was given only one talent which was according to his abilities. But even though he didn’t have the ability to trade like the other servants, he could have at least invested the money with a banker.
God gives you responsibility according to your ability. He does not expect more of you than you are capable of. He does not expect you to use your talents and blessings in the same way as the next person. But He does expect from you what you are capable of. And He gives you gifts in the form of talents and blessings according to your ability. So if He gave you certain gifts, it is because you are capable of using them. Therefore you should not be afraid to use those talents and blessings. And the more you use, the more you will be given.
Do not hide your talents and blessings, but use them. We are not to just hold what the Lord has given us, but to be profitable with them. This is important, for it may mean the difference between entering into the joy of the Lord and having abundance, or being cast into the outer darkness with weeping and gnashing of teeth.