I studied English in school, so things like homonyms get me all giddy inside. But even if you find English and grammar super boring, keep homonyms in mind for today’s story. It’ll help us make sense of some stuff when we’re through.
Our story today is from Matthew 25, and we’re looking at the 2nd of 3 parables Jesus told just a few days before He was crucified. He told these parables so His disciples would know what the Kingdom of Heaven is going to look like. But He was also telling these parables so they would know how to respond while He was gone.
And I don’t just mean after He was crucified. Jesus didn’t stay dead, but God raised Jesus from the dead three days later. But He didn’t stay here on Earth. 40 days later, Jesus rose to heaven on some clouds, promising that He would come back soon. We don’t know when that will be, but in these 3 parables, He teaches us that we need to always be ready because He could come back at any time!
That means we shouldn’t waste the time God has given us. Jesus wants us to use this time to tell others about Him so they can believe in Him too! Because when Jesus comes back, it will be too late for us to tell others about Him then.
But this second parable – the one we’re going to talk about today – tells us there are other things we shouldn’t waste while Jesus is gone. It begins with a master going away on a long journey. Just before he left, he called over three of his servants and gave them each some money. Or more specifically, “talents.”
In Jesus’ day, talents were like really expensive coins. They didn’t have bills or credit cards, so coins were worth a lot more than a nickel or a quarter (or a toonie for all us Canadians!). It’s hard to know exactly how much a talent would have been worth by today’s standards. Some say it was somewhere between $1,000 and $30,000. Others think that talents were worth close to a million dollars. Can you imagine that? An a million dollar coin!
This is why some translators of the Bible choose to use a different word than “talent” in this story. They might use bags of gold or silver. But I’m going to stick with talents.
Anyways, the master called over three servants. He gave one of them 5 talents, one 2 talents, and the last 1 talent. Even the servant who only received one talent must have held that money very carefully. This was a LOT of money their master had just given them. Think of all the stuff they could do! With that kind of money, their families would be well fed for a long time. They could have parties and buy the best donkey in town!
Of course, it wasn’t their money. And though the Bible doesn’t say the master gave his servants any instructions, we can assume he wanted them to take care of the money as if it were their own. In other words, don’t waste it. Keep the money safe and use it well.
We can imagine the master leaving, his servants waving at him as he rode off into the sunset, and then the first servant saying, “Well, time to get to work!”
“What do you mean?” the third servant asked. “Our master’s gone!”
“Well, sure,” the first servant replied, “but I don’t think he’d like it too much if we just sat around in his absence. He gave us this money, so I’m going to use it. I’ll invest a little, maybe use some to buy an extra field, hire some workers, and see if we can’t bring in a bigger harvest than we’ve ever seen! If I play my cards right, these five talents could easily become six or even seven!”
“That’s not a bad idea,” the second servant said, scratching his beard. “I’ve always thought about setting up a little carpentry shop in town. I already make the master’s furniture! If I use this money to buy some supplies, I could easily make some tables and chairs and make him a profit!”
“Are you guys nuts?” the third servant cried. “You’re gonna spend our master’s money? Do you have any idea what he’ll do to you if he finds out? Or if all these big dreams of yours fail and you lose money? He’ll have your hides for sure!”
“So what are you going to do with it?” the first servant replied.
“Bury it, of course!” the third servant said, grinning.
The first stared at him, mouth open. The second just shook his head.
“Think you know better, do you?” the third servant said as the silence dragged on. “Well, we’ll see who’s laughing when our master comes home!”
And so the three servants each went off to their own plans. The first servant bought that field and hired those workers. It was an extremely successful year, and the master’s property brought in more grain than it ever had. So much more that when they sold it all, the servant had enough to buy another field the next year!
The second servant started his little carpentry shop. It was tough slugging, and he was even nervous he would lose his masters money for a while, but by his second year in business, he had a solid group of clients and was making some decent money. He made back his two talents and then some.
The third servant did exactly what he said. He found a spot deep within the master’s fields and buried the money. He continued doing his normal jobs, confident the master would be happy to receive his money back exactly as he left it.
After two years, the master finally returned home. As his wagon approached, the first and second servants talked about their new work and how successful things had been. They compared notes on farming strategies and the best way to fix a crooked table. The third servant stood a few feet off, glaring at them.
They all greeted the master warmly, and he invited them into his home to eat with him. As the cooks were preparing dinner, he asked his servants how they had spent their time while he was gone.
The first servant said, “Master, I’m pleased to report that I’ve bought you two extra fields and hired a number of new workers while you were gone. But don’t you worry, those five talents haven’t been lost. In fact, I have ten talents now!”
The master smiled. “Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!” (Matthew 25:21 NLT).
Then the second servant spoke up. “Master,” he said, “I’ll admit the last few years have been hard. My skills have always been in carpentry, so I decided to set up a practice while you were gone. There were times I thought I was going to lose those two talents you gave me, but business has been going well lately. Those two talents you gave me have become four!”
Again the master smiled and gave the same blessing. “Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!” (Matthew 25:23 NLT).
The master then turned to the third servant, who had grown very quiet. He wasn’t so confident anymore. He swallowed, feeling like all the moisture had gone out of his mouth, and said quietly, “Master… I know you can be a hard man, growing angry with waste and harvesting crops you didn’t plant. I didn’t want to lose your money, so I hid it. Look, here’s your talent back.”
The master’s eyes narrowed. He took the talent back and said, “You wicked, lazy servant! If you knew this is how I would react, why didn’t you use the money better? You could have at least put it in the bank! Then it would have made interest! But as it is, you have wasted what I gave you.”
He then turned to the first servant and said, “You may have the talent the third servant wasted.” And he continued, “To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away” (Matthew 25:29).
Hearing that must have been devastating! The third servant meant well, but he completely misunderstood his master and his instructions. That’s why it’s important we get our instructions right too. The master in this story is Jesus, who has gone on his long “journey” to heaven. In his absence, He wants us to use what He has given us to glorify Him. The worst thing we can do is waste it.
So let’s talk about homonyms. We also have a word “talent” in English that has nothing to do with money. For us, talents are those things we are good at. In our story, the first servant was a great organizer and farmer, while the second was good at carpentry. They used their talents to double the money their master gave them.
God has given us many things. He’s given us time, money, and talents. But He didn’t give us those things so we could simply sit around and enjoy our time here on earth. Sure, it’s fine to have a good time, play some games with our friends or enjoy a meal out or something, but we must be careful not to waste the stuff God has given us. That includes sitting back and not doing anything at all.
Don’t waste anything God gives you. If you have a job or receive an allowance, consider using some of that money to help others. If God has gifted you with the ability to talk easily with others or teach or play soccer, then use those gifts to show and tell the world what it means to be a follower of Christ! And don’t just use your time for yourself, but use it to help build God’s kingdom.
We probably won’t literally double our money or talents when we use those things for the glory of God, but God does promise us a reward – a stronger and closer relationship with Him! And honestly, that worth way more than any talent ever could!
~Brentagious
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