The Now and the Forever I m not a one-trick pony, I m a ten-trick pony, I m a whole field of ponies and they re literally all running towards this job. Anyone care to guess which BBC programme that testosterone-fuelled rant is from? The Apprentice, of course; yet another nonsensical boast from yet another hapless and deluded candidate desperate to become Lord Sugar s next business partner. Today s parable has all the makings of an episode of The Apprentice. It begins with a billionaire boss dishing out various sums of money to three employees in order to test their business acumen. When, finally, he calls them into the boardroom he s delighted that the first two managed to double their investment. The third, however, hands back the original amount freshly excavated from a hole in his back garden. And then to add insult to injury he practically accuses the boss of being a thief. Master I know you re a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. No wonder the episode ends badly with a You re fired moment complete with forced ejection, not into the customary black cab but into the darkness, where (in true Biblical fashion) there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Or does it? According to some scholars, in Middle Eastern culture the master s final words would not have been understood as quite so final. Instead, they would have been interpreted as just the beginning of a further negotiating period a time in which to iron out any grievances; seek council from others etc. So the parable actually ends on a bit of a cliff hanger with a What happens next?. We re now entering that season in the church year when everything starts to go a bit doomsday; all the readings just before and during Advent are full of heavyduty apocalypse. Lots of the parables at this time speak of a master or a bridegroom returning from a lengthy absence hinting at one of the Great themes of Advent, the Second Coming. And the most popular interpretation of this parable is that Jesus is the boss, who on his return expects his followers to have made the most of what they have been given. More of that later, but, as I ve said many times, parables are
meant to inspire a whole range of meaning; each new interaction with the story potentially means a whole new interpretation, so let me share with you a few different insights, one or two of which may resonate. Let me start with a question - if you were reading this parable for the first time, which of the characters would you most identify with? My hunch is that most of us would go with the third servant. The blogger Symon Hill asks, Why are we so keen to equate the rich man (in the parable) with God? What does it say about our theology if we assume that a rich and tyrannical figure must represent God? He goes on to say: Jesus constantly sided with the poor and marginalised, extending his love to all and making clear that repentance for the rich meant a change in the way they used their money. Furthermore, it is unlikely that a first-century Jewish teacher such as Jesus would have promoted usury (or money lending). What if Jesus intended the third servant to be the hero of the story? He tells the rich man the truth about himself and refuses to collude with his unrighteous moneymaking. The parable thus becomes a comment on the sins of inequality: To all those who have, more will be given; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. So, might this actually be a parable about speaking truth to the powerful? Here s another take: The talent (the sum of money) was a measure of gold; now gold is heavy. Father Robert Schoenstene suggests that the ancient Jewish reader would have immediately have got this heaviness connection. He says: Heaviness would have brought to mind the heaviest weight of all, which was the kabod or mercy of God. He goes on to say: The talents given to the three servants are not so much monetary gifts or personal capacities; they are a share in the mercy of God, a participation in the weightiness of the divine love. But since mercy is always directed to the other, these talents are designed to be shared. In point of fact, they will increase precisely in the measure that they are given away. The problem with the timid servant who buried his talent, he says, is not that he was an ineffective venture capitalist but that he fundamentally misunderstood the nature of what he had been given. The divine mercy received as a
pure gift is meant to be given to others as a pure gift. Buried in the ground, that is to say, hugged tightly to oneself as one s own possession, such a talent necessarily contracts. And this is why the master s seemingly harsh words should not be read as the punishment of an angry God but as an expression of spiritual physics: the divine mercy will grow in you only inasmuch as you give it to others. So maybe the gift is mercy, grace, compassion which only ever grow if we give them away. What other gifts might this parable speak to? Might it remind us of the gift of time?; we each have different finite measures of time left in this one precious life, the problem, of course, is that none of us know exactly just how much. And yet still we too often sleepwalk through so much of our lives. Too easily we wish away or squander the time we have. You ll know the quote, No-one ever says on their deathbed, I wish I d spent more time in the office. Perhaps this parable is asking us how we invest our time; how we make memories; create legacies in the lives of those we love; make and leave this world a better place. Which brings us to another gift our relationships; how are we investing in the people we know; those closest to us that perhaps too often we take for granted, those we find more difficult to like or love or forgive; those on the outskirts of our lives; who teach our children or serve us coffee or give us parking tickets; how can that time, however short, however fleeting, be significant in the greater scheme of life? And, if we call ourselves Christian, then we also have an extraordinarily precious gift the gift of the change we ve known in our lives, which comes from knowing that mercy and compassion and love of a saviour; the gift of Christ himself which only lives on in the giving. If we believe that to be too personal, too private, too embarrassing, if we hold it to ourselves, that gift will wither and die. At some time, someone took the time and had the courage, and loved us enough to share that gift with us will their investment grow and live on in me or will it die with me? Christ is counting on us to invest his mercy and compassion and love so that others too might share in its riches.
So what is this potentially difficult parable saying to you today? Is it an encouragement to speak truth to power? Is it a wake-up call to really live while you re alive? Is it a reminder that time is so very, very precious? Is it an encouragement to give our lives away, because it is only in the giving that mercy and compassion and love can grow? Is it a challenge to share the story of the difference Jesus makes? Does this simple ancient story perhaps have the potential to change not only the now, but also the forever? Readings Matthew 25. 14-30 14 Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. 15 To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, [a] each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. 16 The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more. 17 So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. 18 But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master s money. 19 After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. 20 The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. Master, he said, you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more. 21 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!
22 The man with two bags of gold also came. Master, he said, you entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more. 23 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! 24 Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. Master, he said, I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you. 26 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? 27 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. 28 So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. 29 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. 30 And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Psalm 70 Hasten, O God, to save me; come quickly, LORD, to help me. 2 May those who want to take my life be put to shame and confusion; may all who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace. 3 May those who say to me, Aha! Aha! turn back because of their shame. 4 But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who long for your saving help always say, The LORD is great! 5 But as for me, I am poor and needy; come quickly to me, O God. You are my help and my deliverer; LORD, do not delay