"Good Job!"
Rev Les Kuiper
Text: Matthew 25:14-30
I. Introduction
A. How do you measure whether you have succeeded or failed
in a ministry, or in anything, for that matter?
1. For example, we are beginning a new season of ministry.
When we get to April or May how will we know which ministries have been
particularly successful, and which have not been? Or, several young people
worked on SERVE projects this past summer. How can you measure whether
your work was successful? At the end of his ministry, Jesus cried out in
a loud voice, "It is finished! I have succeeded!" Yet, by many standards,
he was a failure.
2. In the world of politics, professional spin doctors create an image
of success for a person regardless of the truth. We all want to be successful.
No one wants to be a failure in life or in ministry. But how do we measure
success?
B. Two times in Matthew 25 we hear two of the sweetest words the human
ear will ever hear: "Well done! Good job!" This morning we begin our stewardship
month. What is the standard for success? I invite you to listen to Jesus'
words in Matthew 25:14-30
AS YOU KNOW, THIS IS A PARABLE. Mt
25 BEGINS "AT THAT TIME THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN WILL BE LIKE..." (25:la).
THE STORY LINE IN THIS PARABLE IS THAT- A MAN WENT ON A TRIP.II.
II. Being a man of wealth, he had property to care for while he was gone.
A. The title which translators have given to this section of
Matthew 25 is "The Parable of the Talents." Typically, when we hear the
word "talent" we think of an ability or spiritual gift. As we will see
it includes that, but much more. Actually, a "talent" in Jesus' day was
6000 days wages. In other words, one "talent" was about $250,000 at minimum
wage. This particular master had eight talents. In other words, about two
million dollars. If he had that much money he very likely had a lot of
other property as well.
B. Now, this is a parable remember. In other words, this story has a
deeper meaning. Someone has defined a parable as "an earthly story with
a heavenly meaning." As we read this parable we know that the master here
is Jesus, who is preparing to go to heaven and back. Or perhaps the master
is simply God, whom we experience as Spirit, but whom one day we will meet
face to face.
What is his property? There have been various suggestions, but most
of them are limited. Some have suggested that the "property" in this parable
is the Word of God or the Gospel, or perhaps the Spiritual gifts God distributes.
The Psalmist expands our view of what God owns when he confesses, "the
cattle on a thousand hills" belong to Him (Ps 50:10). And when he confesses,
"the earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who
live in it" (Ps 24:1). And Jesus adds, "all authority in heaven and on
earth have been given to me" (Mt 28:18).
III. THIS MAN WENT ON A TRIP. HE HAD PROPERTY TO CARE FOR, AND HE ENTRUSTED
IT TO SERVANTS.
A. In the parable, he does not specifically tell the servants
what to do with his property. He simply "entrusted" it to them. He seems
to imply: "Do with it as I would. I did not become wealthy by letting it
sit. I have managed it."
B. In distributing his property to his servants he graciously gave it.
He gave to "each according to his ability.. to one
he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one
talent" (vs 15). I can imagine there may have been some envy as
he distributed to each. But imagine the waste if he had given one talent
to a five-talent servant, and imagine the burden if he had given five talents
to a one-talent servant. He knew each one of his servants - he knew them
well. Perhaps it was with this parable in mind that Paul observed that
"we have different gifts, according to the grace
given us (Rom 12:6).
We do well to remember that whatever we have is a trust from the Lord
- our home, our husband, our wife, our children, our spiritual gifts, our
money, our freedom, our time. As we take inventory we may sigh, "what blessings
the Lord has given!" Yes, the Lord has blessed us! At times we may also
sigh, "what a responsibility!" Yes to that too, because as he blesses us
he says, "do with it as I would."
IV. A MAN WENT ON A TRIP AND HIS SERVANTS WENT TO WORK.
A. As Jesus tells the story, two servants invested wisely.
Each of them doubled their money. "The
man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to
work and gained five more. So also, the one with the two talents gained
two more" (vs. 16-17). Notice, they did not turn one dollar to fifteen
million, the way one might by gambling. They did not even turn one thousand
dollars into ten thousand dollars through questionable activity. That would
have been foolish, certainly not wise. Rather, they invested their talents
to appreciate over "a long time." There is always some risk in investing,
but they invested according to their ability over the long haul.
By most standards they were successful simply because they doubled
their money. That is very simply how we often measure success. We tend
to measure our businesses, our ministry, our parenting by such standards.
We can all point to those who were particularly successful in such ventures.
B. As Jesus tells the story, two servants invested wisely while one played
it safe.
What he did involved work too. "The
man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground
and hid his master's money" (vs 18). He very likely kept on eye
on it, perhaps spent some sleepless nights, spent some energy developing
suspicions and rationalizing his approach. Some people play to win, others
play not to lose. Some play to succeed, others play not to fail. Either
way, it takes a lot of energy to cover all the bases. It can be an awful
burden to know that everything I have is the Lord's and He wants me to
use it as He would!" Wow!
V. A MAN WENT ON A TRIP. HIS SERVANTS WENT TO WORK. AND THE PUNCH LINE
OF THE PARABLE IS THAT THE MASTER SETTLED HIS ACCOUNTS.
A. He has his standard.
1. "After a long time the master of those servants
returned and settled accounts with them" (vs 19). This is accounting
language. An accounting requires an exact match between what one owes and
what one pays.
2. As Jesus tells it, the master distinguishes between the servants
that met the standard and the one who did not. He measures each of them.
To two he said "Good Job!" To one he said, "You wicked servant!" He addressed
each of them on the same basis. For each of them he used the same standard.
He measured each, and he rewarded each. To two he said, "I will put you
in charge of more." To one he said, "Give me back what is mine." What was
his basis for evaluation? What was his standard?
3. We need to know because "we must all appear
before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due
him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad" (2 Cor
5 10).
B. He has his standard, and his standard is faithfulness.1. As Jesus tells this parable of the Kingdom, his standard
is clear. He is not looking for quantity He doesn't suggest at all that
he thinks five is better than two. He doesn't suggest at all that effectiveness
is his standard "great job! You DOUBLED your money!" Listen to the voice
of the master in vs 21, "Well done, good and faithful
servant! You have been faithful (vs 21); and again in vs 23, "Well done,
good and faithful servant! You have been faithful." In contrast,
as he turns to the third servant he sees a blatant lack of faith.
"You knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have
not scattered seed" (vs 26).
2. Faithfulness is faith at work over the long haul. Believing in Jesus
allows you to use gifts God has given you. A
Rabbi Zusya once said, "in the world to Come, I shall not be asked, "Why
were you not Moses?" I shall be asked, "Were you Zusya?" At times God places
us in obscurity. Helen Keller once said, "I long to accomplish a great
and noble task, but it is my chief duty and joy to accomplish humble tasks
as though they were great and noble. The world is moved along, not only
by the mighty shoves of its heroes, but also by the aggregate of the tiny
pushes of each honest worker." Wherever God places us He calls us to be
faithful. He doesn't expect us to be God, creating the results. When Charleton
Heston was training to drive the chariot in Ben Hur, he said to Cecil B
De Mille, "I can barely stay on this thing. I can't win the race." De Mille
replied, "It's your job to stay on it. It's my job to make sure you win."
(Topic: Faith)
CONCLUSION: God calls us to be faithful. You can make that your focus because
when he was on the cross for you, he cried, "it is finished!" He did everything
necessary to establish your relationship with God Your account is settled,
paid in full. Go now, and live by faith.
|