He called his servants and entrusted His property to them.
Matthew 25:14
How does one measure his or her faithfulness in following and serving Christ our Lord? What results in Jesus saying, “well done good and faithful servant”? One of our Lord’s parables contains this very sentiment and allows us to understand how Jesus views faithfulness. To better engage this parable, consider the nature of all such teachings of Jesus.
According to James Montgomery Boice, “a parable of Jesus is a story taken from real life from which a moral or spiritual principle is drawn . . . taken together, these stories show the nature, origin, hindrances to, and victory of Christ’s work of spreading His gospel between the days of his first coming and His coming again.”[1] “The Parable of the Talents” represents one such story. This parable, along with all the teachings of Matthew 24-25, constitutes a message of encouragement and warning from Jesus purposed to prepare His people for His departure. Jesus, the master, is leaving for a period of time, and has delegated (entrusted) to His followers the care of His kingdom.
In the story, “talents” represent the actual entrustment of the master’s wealth. From Greek terminology, the term “entrusted” expresses “handing something over to be cared for, or to be committed to another.” There is much more to be discovered in this parable, and there have been many scholarly considerations as to what Jesus has actually entrusted, and to whom? Some see this as strictly an application for Israel during the last days. Others see this as more general, representing how we must prepare to stand before Christ when He comes again. This is indeed the unmistakable message of the parable: how will one be counted faithful to Jesus when He returns. And within the story, there is only one divine metric for faithfulness. It is not in the amount of the entrustment, nor the personality of the one being entrusted. Rather, the metric is what was done with what was placed in the care of each individual.
The parable describes three individuals who are stewards of the master’s wealth (Matthew 25:15). One receives a measure of 5 talents, a second receives a measure of 2, and a third receives only 1 talent. The first two stewards understand not only the assignment, but the master’s heart. So, they made an investment of their talent and gained a 100% profit for their master (Matthew 25:16-17). Steward one and two have two completely different amounts of responsibility. They were given such according to their own ability. Their return had different amounts. But neither the amount nor their own personality was considered. What was considered by the master was their willingness to care for their entrustment according to the master’s heart, not their own inclinations. They received the joy of the master as he said to them, “well done good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:19-23). In contrast, the third steward had an unhealthy view of the master, perhaps defined as fear and mistrust (Matthew 25: 18, 24-25). He hid the master’s entrustment and kept the wealth safe, but not according to the master’s heart. The lazy servant followed his own inclinations. As the good servants are praised and given increased responsibility, the lazy servant is scolded, rejected, and punished. Thus, this parable is both a message of encouragement for faithfulness, and a warning against misusing the entrustment placed in our hands by our Master. The application is both uplifting and severe. But in summary, the application is a necessary reminder of faithfulness to our Lord.
For a moment, applying the message of entrustment, look into your hands. What has Jesus placed in your care? And what will you do with the opportunity? Because this parable represents the context of teachings about Christ returning again, accountability to His Lordship is the supreme message. How will you stand before Him?
There are only two answers – two choices. The first response is about Jesus and His Kingdom (revealed in the first two stewards). The second response is about the individual and his or her personal interests. So, as if we were standing before Christ at this very moment, which is it? Actively seeking first the Kingdom of Christ to see Jesus glorified, or self-preservation. This is indeed a challenging lesson, and one Jesus taught in a parable so that we as the students might fully embrace the truth of how to measure what we are doing with what Jesus has placed in our hands concerning His Kingdom.
Today, resolve to be the good and faithful servant. Stand before Jesus each day with a sincere desire to be faithful with what He has placed in your hands. And, in this way faithfully prepare for His return. According to the parable, the only other option would be the response of the “wicked and lazy” servant. Wow! No middle ground of neutrality here. Are we faithful to our Lord and His kingdom, or are we preserving our self-interests?
I love the message of reward to the faithful servants: the Master’s joy. “Well done good and faithful servant” represents the genuine joy of our Lord over our lives of faithfulness to His kingdom. “I will put you in charge of many things” assures the spiritual blessings of our Savior’s joy over our lives. This is such a phenomenal expression of the blessing of our Savior saying to us, “well done good and faithful servant.” This does not nullify grace, for only by the rich grace and mercy of our Lord can we be received by Him. But, oh the joy of knowing our Lord’s pleasure and joy over our lives of faithfulness to His kingdom’s call. Why would we strive for any other reward?
Today, seek to hear Jesus say, “well done.” Seek not the praise of men, nor rewards of this life. Seek Jesus and His kingdom. This is the only true measure of faithfulness to Christ our King. Amen.
Blessings.
READ
Read Matthew 25:14-30 and allow this parable to excite your heart to stand before Jesus faithful.
[1] (Boice, The Parables of Jesus, pp. 14-16).
