God Supplies Parable of the Talents

Matthew 25: 14-30

We are continuing through a short series of messages that launched last week called God Supplies…now God’s provision covers every aspect of our life but today I want to look at a specific parable where Jesus used how we handle financial provision and then directly connects it to our spiritual well-being.  You see the Scripture does not separate our financial life from our life with God.  Researchers have identified over 2,350 verses in the Bible that deal directly with our finances.  So, any serious study of the Bible will regularly bring you to a point of understanding and applying what God’s Word says about how I approach financial resources.    

The parable we will look at today is sandwiched right into a section of “rapid-fire” stories that Jesus gave that all teach one big point about the Kingdom of Heaven.  

For context, back in Matthew 24:1, Jesus begins to teach his disciples about what the end of the world will look like. Jesus gets very specific about the end of the world.  So, he must want us to be informed and aware of these things so we will watch for them and not grow weary or distracted or defeated, but to remain strong in our faith, to not cower back from the world but to stay alert…live with the understanding that he could come back at any time…so embrace our life with him with faith, with hope, and with courage.  

So, today we will look at the Parable of the Talents in Matthew Ch 25…it is the longest parable that Jesus gave that is recorded in the gospel of Matthew.  

And so, this parable is under this umbrella of what we need to know to be prepared for his coming whether it is at the end of our own life (our own personal eschatology). Or at the end of the age.  

So, right before the parable of the talents, he tells the Parable of the Ten Virgins – in that he says…hey…Don’t miss the party – do not procrastinate and think that your life with God and your part in his kingdom is something to put off until the last season of your life.  

Parable of the Talents – Hey pay attention to how you spend time, talent, and treasure, and do not waste your life.

Then he tells the Parable of the Sheep & Goats – While you are here on earth. I want you to take care of the hurting, lost, and the vulnerable.   

So, as we look at this parable - one of the traps that we need to be aware of and avoid as we follow Jesus is fear - and in particular - fear of failure.  

The Cleveland Clinic calls fear of failure 

Atychiphobia is an intense fear of failure. It comes from the Greek word “atyches,” meaning "unfortunate.”

Symptoms of a Fear of Failure or 

People with a fear of failure may be:

• Afraid of performing simple tasks at work, home or school.
• Angry or irritable.
• Anxious about being judged by others. So you worry about what other people think of you. 
• Depressed or sad.
• Pessimistic (negative outlook on life).
• Prone to procrastination if a task or activity seems challenging.
• Unable to maintain relationships.
• Unwilling to accept constructive criticism or help.

As God’s people when we go about life with a fear of failure, we cocoon and pull back from God’s activity in our life.  It can be paralyzing…and will keep you from becoming all of who God created you to be.  

Fear of failure can prevent or disrupt your life’s aims and dreams…it can prevent you from forming or growing in healthy relationships with others.  In short, if we are not careful, we can waste our lives in worry by living in fear and not faith.  

So, as we look at this parable in Matthew 25 called the Parable of the Talents.  And the main theme of this teaching is going to be for us to make sure that when times get difficult, we don’t shrink back, we don’t go into our shell…but we lay it all out on the line for the sake of the gospel and the glory of God.  

Look in Matthew 25:  I’m going to read the whole passage.  

So speaking about the Kingdom of Heaven Jesus told this story: 

The Parable of the Talents – Matthew 25

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,  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? 27Well 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.’

(Pray) 

Incredible story with powerful lessons for us.  Now we actually get our word talent from this story…we talk about having musical talent or athletic talent of something that America is supposed to have.   

But in this story in the Bible, talent is a specific measurement of the weight of a precious metal equal to the weight of a person. A talent was the highest unit of measurement in the Roman world at that time. So, when the Bible speaks about a talent, it is talking about an enormous amount of money. In fact, I did the math and in today’s prices, one talent would easily be worth over $6M, two talents would be over $12M, and 5 talents would be over $30M.   So, you get the point, this was not a small investment of trust.  Even the person with one talent had over $6M in today’s world.  I hope we can look at our own lives and see how much God has blessed us with.  We have life and the ability to worship and serve.  The Bible teaches us that even the ability to earn income is a gift from God.  ¹⁸ But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.  Friend, every good and perfect gift that comes into our lives can be traced back to a generous God who supplies us with everything we need.  

Also, did you notice that God decided who got what – and it was based on the Lord’s perception of their abilities? It is not equal – but it was based upon his sovereign will.  

That’s important because you may ask why this or that person has so much more than me…One of the most crippling things to do in life is to compare yourself to another person. Comparison will put up barriers between you and others and will destroy your soul.   It is a lose/lose proposition.  When we do that, we either get puffed up with pride or we beat ourselves up with condemnation asking  ”Why don’t I have what they have?”

I like how Ken Blanchard says it…the problem with running the rat race is even if you win…you’re still a rat! 

So here are a few things we can take from this parable: 

1. A false view of who God is will result in a wasted life.  

Notice how the servants with five talents and two talents replied when the master returned…did you catch their attitude of gratitude?  They said “Master, you entrusted me with so many bags of gold…then I went out and gained five more.”    Their starting point was a recognition that all that they had to work with came from God.  They saw themselves as a steward or a manager of these resources.  They saw God as the one who owns it all, (not just 10% - by the way) and graciously chose to entrust them with a portion that they were to steward well.  You see stewardship comes down to managing wisely and well the resources that have been entrusted to you by God.  Or as Howard Dayton has put it, “What you possess, God owns.”  

And when they report, the master says “Well DONE”.  Notice he did not say well your heart was in the right place!….he commended him for their actions….We have a great Commission, not a great Intention.  James, the brother of Jesus would also say in his NT book to be doers of the word and not hearers only.  So the one with five talents says, here is what I have done with what you gave me…not just here is what I thought about…not what I posted about…not what I got together with a group of friends and studied what it would be like to follow Jesus more faithfully with all he has entrusted to me….no - it was “here is what I have DONE”.  and the Master says, well done, you have been faithful with a few things…now I will put you in charge over many things…enter into the joy of your master…that’s how it went for the first two regardless of the amount.  It was their faithfulness that was commended.  We all want to hear that one day, don’t we? 

Then it was time for the report from the servant with one talent…. The foreboding music starts on the soundtrack of this story…I mean, can you imagine what is going on in this guy’s head as he listens to the one with five talents and then the one with two talents…he is thinking, I am in big trouble….so he did not start with his financial report…he started with an assessment of the master…you see this moment was about the master assessing the management of the stewards but the servant with one talent flipped the script and began to assess the master….he said “master, I knew that you were a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered.  Can you imagine the look on the Master’s face listening to this?  Like really, I just gave you over $6M to manage and you say I am harsh and do not invest generously?  

You see, listen to this…the first two, who had different amounts, had the same right view of who God was…a generous and gracious master who owns it all and entrusts us with a portion of his resources to steward according to his divine perception of our abilities and his purpose for our life.  

The last servant began with a false and dangerous view that the Master was harsh and not gracious.  So – don’t miss this - what you believe about God will shape the way you approach how you invest your life.  Your time, your talent, and your treasure.  

This last servant operated out of fear…look back at verse 25 the servant with one talent said…I was afraid (there is that fear of failure) that I would lose it so I went out and buried it…he was fearful and wanted to protect himself…. You see the opposite of faith is not doubt…it is fear.  

Then he talked with arrogance….look, he started judging God…he said you are a harsh master…you seek a return where you have not invested….that is bold arrogance…he said ok God, before you judge me, I am going to judge you…that is promotion of self…so whether it is fear…protection of self…or pride…promotion of self…we edge God out of his rightful place as the object of our worship and the audience we live our life for.  

If you think you do not have a heavenly father who is gracious towards you and has given you life and the ability to earn and be productive and have healthy relationships, then you will operate out of fear of failure…if you don’t believe God has your back, you will think everything you have and do depend completely on you…then you act out of pride.  And when it comes to your finances - you will operate from an economy of scarcity and not an economy of abundant living.   You will find yourself simply getting yours and not helping others…

The world’s view of finances is to get all you can, can all you get, and sit on your can….when all the while God is saying I own all of the resources in the Kingdom…because he is the King, not me or you. And God has entrusted some of his resources into our hands  -  and according to this parable, his will is that you and I  leverage it all for his sake and the sake of the Kingdom.  

You see, the Bible teaches us that God is for you but – it also teaches that your life isn’t about you…the unfaithful servant believed that God was against him…not true…the Bible teaches that God is for you…it says that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us…he is for you…it’s just that my life isn’t about me….it is about what God can do in me and through me when I am surrender to him and his purpose and will for my life… So, live your life with that in mind.   

Did you know that it is impossible to give to God?   Let me illustrate: 

*Example of someone giving back $5 when 10 was given to them

2. We will one day give an account for everything God has entrusted to us.   

One of the roles of a church (any Bible-believing church) is to prepare the believers to be ready to give an account of how we lived our lives and what we did with what was entrusted to us by God.  

The parable teaches us this and looks at the difference between the report of the first two and the report from the third.   

You see the first two said….you gave me so much and I gained a 100% return.  The one with five gained five more….the one with two gained two more…and look how the master replied to each of them.  He first commended them…then welcomed them.  

But not so much for the third servant.  You see this is a cautionary tale…don’t be the third servant.  Be like the first two.  

And let me remind us here that a parable is a story that teaches a spiritual truth.   The truth is that one day we will all give an account of what we did with what God entrusted to each of us.  And it is an individual assessment.  It is not what some organization did, what the government did, what other people in my family did, but what did I do…

Some of us steward great amounts of opportunity, amounts of influence, resources, health and connections.  So when we look at our calendar, our budget, our checkbook, how are we doing in positioning all God has given us for his Kingdom?  Let me put this in terms of a class or a course in school – Jesus (our heavenly professor) is telling us this – this whole stewardship thing – it will be on the final.  

Listen…our greatest fear should not be a fear of failure…no, our greatest fear should be that when we stand before God he would say to us….you did nothing with the talent I gave you…you didn’t serve anyone other than yourself, you didn’t make the world a better place, you were not generous, you didn’t take care about how you spent financial resources, you wasted it….Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom…now fear of the Lord is when we have a full acceptance and recognition of God’s reign and rule over all of life so that it impacts how I live my life.  It impacts my decisions big and small…who I date or marry, how I spend money, what career I choose – God has a say over all my life. 

We are saved through our faith in Christ, but as followers of Jesus, he is clearly explaining the expectation to be diligent to use and employ all of the talents, resources, and the abilities he has given to us for his glory and for his Kingdom.  

So, what does it mean to be a good steward?  

Did you know that there are over 2,350 verses in the Bible that deal with stewardship and handling finances.  It is clearly something Jesus wanted us to know about and be faithful disciples in how we handle resources.  

Here are three principles that will lead you to become a good steward which is one who: 

A good steward is one who: 

Spends wisely – 

Proverbs 21:5 “The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.”

Do not waste time or money on impulsive or temporary things…spend your resources on things that matter.  I won’t kill you with statistics, but the average American family spends more than they make, are living paycheck to paycheck and the average new car payment is $743.  You cannot be a faithful follower of Jesus and spend the vast amount of your resources on things that ultimately do not matter.  Housing matters, clothes matter, food matters…beyond that it becomes more of a want than a need.  

Save regularly - 

• A wise man saves for the future – Proverbs 21:20
• Money little by little grows – Proverbs 13:11

Have an intentional plan to save at the front of the month and not if you have anything left over.  

Remember the story of the Good Samaritan?  How after other religious people walked by the wounded man in the ditch, the Samaritan, got down into the ditch, bandaged his wounds, took him to an inn and paid the innkeeper money, and also said I will stop back by on my return and settle up the tab.  Have you ever thought about what if the Samaritan didn’t spend wisely and save regularly so that they would have had the financial resources to help this hurting person when they had an opportunity?  Maybe God is looking for good stewards who can help others and provide them the opportunity to do so based on their capacity and availability.  

Do you want to be a person God uses to help others?  Spending wisely and saving regularly is a great place to start. 

Live generously – Last in this order but not in priority, There are so many passages in the Scripture about radical generosity that I will only say that when we give, it aligns our life more with Jesus.  You cannot ever outgive God…because God is the first giver and he is the greatest giver.  So I am not up here merely preaching about giving a percent – there are other passages that deal with that - what I am talking about is generous living so that we don’t fall into the trap that says well God, you can get a certain percentage, but this other part here, that is mine and not yours….….spoiler alert…it is all under his authority and belongs to him.  So when we give an account before the King of Kings and Lord of Lords…he is not going to look into the books and see how we handled a certain percentage.  No, according to Matthew 25, he will ask us to give an account for everything and every moment he put into our hands.  So be like Jesus…be a radical giver.   And when we are good stewards, we get to experience the joy of generosity.  

Which brings us to our Closing Question: 

Key question – How can I live a more faithful and less fearful life?      Or to be even more straight from the passage - how would you do if you were called to give an account today for all He has entrusted to you? 

You see everything we do in life will either bring us regret or reward….so if I were to ask you how are you living your life right now how would you answer?   Jesus is saying I gave you this opportunity I gave you this mission, I put these resources, these relationships these positions into your sphere of influence….how have you done with it? 

Invitation: Would you bow your heads…

So, is your life faithful…or fearful?  God has put some things on your plate, what have you done with it?  

Would you be able to say here Lord, is what I have done with what you gave me?  

Would you hear well done…faithful servant.  You have been faithful over a few things…here is more to be faithful over….enter into the joy of your master.  

That is my hope and my prayer, that we would all hear those words.  

You may be here today and do not have any assurance at all that you would hear those words because you do not know the master…he may be the King of Kings, but is he your king….Jesus has given his all for you…he held nothing back….so whatever is preventing you from coming to him today and saying Lord, I need you to be master and ruler of my life…I need the forgiveness found only when I kneel before the cross where you gave the most anyone has ever given.  Won’t you come to him today? We are going to have a time of response…you may need to come to this altar.