“But the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew I harvested crops I didn’t plant and gathered crops I didn’t cultivate, why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.’”
(Matthew 25:26-27)
In the parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30), I imagine the wicked servant looking like the Kevin James meme when he was asked this question.
Have you ever taken time to think about the statement? Now I know that banking was different back then but if you were to leave $1,000 in a Chase bank right now, you would get an annual yield of 0.01%. That interest would be a grand total of a dime! Sorry but I don’t think anyone is retiring off that.
So what is this passage telling us? I think we can take two lessons from this part of the parable.
Something is better than nothing.
It seems like the last man did nothing with what the man gave him. He wouldn’t have been thrilled with getting a dime out of his $1,000 investment but it would have meant something. In this parable, the owner represents God. He has given each of us various skills and abilities. What are we doing with them? Are we trying our best to use what God has given us for His glory or are we so afraid of failure that we do nothing?
Something is better than nothing. If God has given you a musical gift, use it. If God has given you administrative gifts, use it. Don’t hide who you are but at least try.
Be willing to take risks
What made the other two men successful in this parable is that they took risks to invest the money wisely. I think of all those investment commercials that say there’s always a risk in investing money.
Faith isn’t truly faith unless we are risking something. That something doesn’t have to be dramatic but it is something. Maybe your comfort? Maybe the fear of rejection? Maybe failure? Regardless, you need to be willing to take that risk. God wants to grow the gifts He has placed in you and the only way to do so is in faith. Maybe that’s moving to a new place. Maybe that’s talking to someone for the first time about Jesus. Whatever it may be, take time and take that risk.
Let’s be people today that maximize God’s gifts as He unleashes the talents within us. Love you all!
-Pastor Ken