Lighthouse: YOU VE GOT TALENT! Matthew 25:14-30 Use it or lose it. A sermon preached by Rev. Dr. William O. (Bud) Reeves First United Methodist Church Fort Smith, Arkansas February 5, 2017
When Jesus wanted to get a point across, he would tell a story. Many of his stories are what we call parables. Parables are earthly stories with heavenly meaning, stories about common, everyday stuff that convey a spiritual truth. 1 This story in our Scripture text today is usually called the Parable of the Talents in Matthew s Gospel. We know all about talent. We love to see talent musicians, actors, dancers, artists of all types. We watch people perform on talent shows like American Idol or The Voice. We acknowledge talent in various professions, from auto mechanics to heart surgeons. This afternoon, we will watch talented athletes play football in the Super Bowl. We know talent when we see it. But that s not the kind of talent Jesus is talking about here. A talanta was a large weight of gold or silver, 75-100 lbs. of the stuff, usually formed into a circle. Imagine a big wheel of gold. We get confused about that sometimes, so I used a newer translation that says valuable coin. But it was a BIG coin, equal to about 15 years of wages for a working man. You couldn t put a talent in your pocket. Jesus is trying to make a point about the kingdom of heaven. So he tells a story about a rich guy who went on a long trip and left his three servants with five, two and one talent respectively. The servants with five and two talents went to work and doubled the value of the master s money. The servant with one talent buried the master s gold in the ground. He was afraid of the master, afraid to risk what he had been given, afraid he might fail. When the master returned from his trip, he called the servants to account. The five-coin servant and the two-coin servant reported their earnings, to the delight of the master. But when the one-coin servant reported that he was afraid and hid the money, the master was furious. At least the guy could have put the money in the bank, and it would have earned some interest. But no! So the master gave the one coin to the servant who had ten and threw the fearful servant out of his house, into the darkness.
Like many of the parables, you don t want to get too caught up in the details here. None of the servants own anything, really. It s all the master s money. The master is kind of harsh; perhaps the servant s fear was justified. I mean, presumably he hadn t been trained in finance. It s an unfair economic system. But we just need to go with the story and try to figure out what point Jesus is making here. This is a kingdom story. How can this be a lighthouse for us? How can this story show the way for us to be disciples? Let s pay attention. First of all, all God s children got coins. Nobody is broke. The master gives the servants five, two, and one talent. Even one talent is a big hunk of money. God gives everyone something to work with some more than others. But nobody is worthless; everyone can bring something to the table. God gives each of us spiritual gifts for the work of the Kingdom. Every single believer has one or more of these spiritual gifts (the coins of the master deep inside of us). Paul puts it this way in Romans 12: Because of the grace that God gave me, I can say to each one of you: don t think of yourself more highly than you ought to think. Instead, be reasonable since God has measured out a portion of faith to each one of you. We have many parts in one body, but the parts don t all have the same function. In the same way, though there are many of us, we are one body in Christ, and individually we belong to each other. We have different gifts that are consistent with God s grace that has been given to us. 2 In the coming months, we are going to have opportunities here at the church to study and discern our spiritual gifts. If we are going to be effective and fruitful and happy in our discipleship, in our service of the Kingdom, we need to know what coins God has given us. Each of us is unique. We have particular gifts and talents and resources that we bring to God s table. And we can make a difference in the world if we use what we ve been given. Ruth Johnson Colvin is a remarkable lady, a teacher who became concerned that in her hometown of Syracuse, New York, there were
over 11,000 people who were functionally illiterate. So she developed some materials and talked the women in her church into becoming literacy tutors. In 1962, she founded Literacy Volunteers of America in her basement, using an old refrigerator for a filing cabinet. But the concept took off, and today over 100,000 volunteers in 330 programs in 42 states are teaching people to read. In 2006, Ruth Johnson Colvin was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George Bush, and last December, she turned 100 years old. Reflecting on a lifetime of service, Ruth said, I felt strongly motivated by the Parable of the Talents. We re responsible for making good use of the knowledge we re given. 3 With the right attitude, you can be fruitful and effective disciples of Jesus. Maybe you have been given much to work with, maybe only a little. It doesn t matter. If you use what you have for Christ, you will be successful in your kingdom work. The servants in the parable had very different attitudes toward their gifts. The one given five coins and the one given two got to work, and by the time the master returned from his trip, they had doubled his money. The master, of course, was overjoyed, and he said, Excellent! You are a good and faithful servant! You ve been faithful over a little. I ll put you in charge of much. Come, celebrate with me. 4 The one-coin servant, on the other hand, was afraid of the master, afraid of what might happen if he lost the money. So he buried his coin, and when the master returned, the servant returned his coin, slightly dirty, and felt the wrath of the master. Don t you know people like that? Their every action is motivated by fear, by cynicism, by paranoia. They believe somebody is out to get them: the system, the boss, their family The powers that be seem to exist to make them miserable. And you know what? They are miserable! Their fear and cynical attitude toward life become a selffulfilling prophecy, just like it did for the third servant.
This is a perfect illustration of what Stephen Covey called the Abundance Mentality vs. the Scarcity Mentality. Some people operate out of a Scarcity Mentality, believing that there is not enough for everybody. There is only one pie, and it s a small pie, and if I m going to get my piece, others are going to have to take less. Scarcity people can t be happy for others who are successful; they can t share recognition with anyone; and they are not going to risk themselves in an unfriendly environment. So they never find success. Abundance Mentality people know that there is plenty of pie for everybody. So they can work with others; they can share the limelight; they can explore options and take risks because the universe is basically a friendly place. 5 The Abundance Mentality is the stance of faith, the mind of the Master, and the heart of discipleship. When you take this approach you can overcome whatever obstacles you face and accomplish amazing things. Marion Wade did not start out with abundant gifts or resources. He was born in Arkansas, but grew up in Chicago. He only had an eighth-grade education, and worked as an office boy and a salesman. But he kept his eyes open for learning and opportunity. In 1929, with the country and the world still in the grip of the Great Depression, he launched his own business moth-proofing homes and businesses. But something about the way Marion Wade did business attracted people, and he grew and expanded into rug and carpet cleaning and took on partners, and in 1954, he renamed his business Servicemaster. Today the Servicemaster corporation operates seven brands in 25 countries for an annual revenue of $2.5 billion. His biography says, Marion Wade had a strong personal faith and a genuine desire to serve and honor God in all he did. Taking his personal convictions into the business world, he saw great worth in each individual. As a result, he respected every customer and employee, believing that each one had been made in God s image. 6 That s an Abundance Mentality!
So what does this attitude of discipleship get you? That s always our question, isn t it? What s in it for me? So what? If you choose to operate out of fear, cynicism, and paranoia, the parable is pretty clear. You get thrown out on your ear! You lose what little you may have had, and you are separated from the master and his celebration. You don t want to go there. But if you operate with an abundance mentality, if you live by faith and not fear, if you practice good stewardship of the gifts, talents and resources that God has given you, guess what? You ll get more more gifts, more opportunities, and more responsibility. Twice the master tells the good servants, You ve been faithful over a little. I will put you in charge of much. 7 Then Jesus gives the key teaching of the parable, Those who have much will receive more, and they will have more than they need. But as for those who don t have much, even the little bit they have will be taken away from them. 8 In other words, use it faithfully or lose it. We can use what we have been given faithfully, abundantly, joyfully, and victoriously because we know the truth. This is not our stuff. It all belongs to the Master. Everything we have, everything we are, everything we will be belongs to God. So we can live confidently, knowing who s in charge, knowing who will bring our lives and human history to a glorious close, knowing that whatever happens to challenge or obstruct us, God s got this! Max Lucado uses the image of an ice skater a talent which I do not have: Imagine you re an ice skater in competition. You re in first place, one more round to go. The medal almost yours. Then just before your performance, your coach rushes up with the thrilling news: You ve won! The judges tabulated the scores and the person in second place can t catch you. You re too far ahead. How will you feel? Exhilarated! And how will you skate? How about courageously and confidently? The prize is yours! 9 We can skate through life courageously and confidently because we know who has won. Jesus Christ has already won the victory of
salvation for planet earth. Death and despair have been defeated. Fear and cynicism and paranoia are foolish, because the Lord reigns. It s all about life and hope and joy and peace. The evil and sin and struggles of this world are only apparent and temporary, because in the end, God wins. So skate like a champion, because that s what you are. You have an invitation to the party. The Master says, Well done. You are a good and faithful servant. Come, celebrate with me! 10 The older translations say, Enter into the joy of your master! Either way, this is the great promise for those who live by faith and act like stewards of the gifts of God. You will achieve in abundance. You will be welcome in the house. You will share the joy of your master. So come to the Table. Eat the bread. Taste the wine. Remember your Master, and celebrate! 1 Attributed to William Barclay. 2 Romans 12:3-6. 3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ruth_johnson_colvin. 4 Matthew 25:21. 5 Stephen R. Covey, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1989), 219f. 6 http://www.giantsforgod.com/marion-wade-service-master/, www.servicemaster.com. 7 Matthew 25:21, 23. 8 Matthew 25:29. 9 From The Applause of Heaven, https://maxlucado.com/listen/the-prize-is-yours/, August 31, 2015. 10 Matthew 25:23.