Parable of the Talents

Coming up next on Renewing Your Mind been faithful over a few things lumber to make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your Lord, I mean can you imagine would be like to hear that from Jesus and Jesus looking in the eye, at the end and so I know you adores not shut to you so happy you're here. Well done. Do you know the parable of the talents asserted here is the opposite message you wicked and lazy servant today on Renewing Your Mind, Dr. RC Sproul looks at this well-known parable of Jesus hope to see that there's only one way to avoid being unprofitable servants. In this session we come to the last of the parables that will be examining in this particular series, and it's also the longest parable that is found in the Gospel according to St. Matthew, it's one of the three that Jesus gave to warn people of the suddenness of is coming in. As I mentioned in the parable of the 10 virgins that his coming can be seen eschatological way at the end of the age or in our personal eschatology where we may meet him in the next hour and we don't know the day or the hour of our own death, but we are to be prepared as Christian people for his coming either at the end of our lives or at his return at the end of the H so let's look now at the parable of the talents again in chapter 25 of Matthew, beginning at verse 14 for the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them and to one he gave five talents, to another to do another one, to each according to his own ability and immediately he went on a journey, then he would receive the five talents went and traded with them and made another five talents and likewise he would receive two gained two more also.

But he who had received one went and dug in the ground and hid his lord's money.

After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them so he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents thing. Lord, you delivered to me five talents. Look, I have gained five more talents besides them is Lord said to him, well done good and faithful servant. You were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your Lord.

He also who had received two talents came and said, Lord, you delivered to me two talents. Look, I've gained two more talents besides them is Lord said him well done good and faithful servants you been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your Lord, then he would receive the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown in gathering where you have not scattered seed. I was afraid and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is your but his lord answered and said to him, you wicked and lazy servant, you know that I report not sown, and gather wide not scattered seed.

So you are to have deposited my money with the bankers at my coming I would received back my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has 10 talents to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance, but from him and does not have, even what he has will be taken away and cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

The first thing we have to say about this parable is what I hope would be obvious to most of you that is not a parable about various talents and gifts of abilities that God gives to us in this world. Here the use of talent that not refer to a particular skill that you or I might have. It refers to a unit of currency that was the highest unit of currency among the Jews at this time so it talent was considerable amount of money one talent would be usually Simplot equivalent to a whole year's wages for many people and so this man who goes on this journey to a far country, who was wealthy enough to have servants is also leaving a substantive amount of money in their care. During his absence, and so he gives to one of the servants five talents of money in a considerable sum and then he gives to the second servant to talents of money and to the third a single talent where told that he distributes these monetary substances.

According to his perception of their ability to be productive and fruitful with the money that he entrusted to their care. Now some people say in this parable of a strong case for capitalism. Oh, it certainly doesn't oppose capitalism. I don't think that the primary point of the parable is to enjoin a particular economic system upon us, such as we call capitalism. But what capitalism has in common with the wisdom of this parable is the whole principle of deferred gratification and the principal of investing your capital in such a way that your capital works for you and increases your prosperity and it frowns upon wasteful consumption or frivolous spending of things, or the idea of immediate gratification where if you get your paycheck you can't wait to go out and spend it on their latest toy, but rather the idea is to grow your resources by wives and frugal investment now again what this has in common with capitalism. Historically, is that the idea as I said, is to have your capital working for you, but that you be prudent with the use of whatever capital you possess that you use it in a way that will increase its value rather than diminish its value, and so here the master is asking his sermons to be prudent and wise investors so that they will be productive that they will be fruitful with whatever they have received which is on loan from their master because they themselves are not the owners of this money that is been entrusted to them. This also speaks to the Christian principal of stewardship of stored in the ancient world was not the owner of the house, but he managed the finances of the house. He was principally involved in or a condo media and the word economics economy comes from that Greek word all corn meal which literally means house law or house rule and it is the word from which we get the concept of stewardship that the person who is put over the management of the affairs of the house is expected to handle those goods, of which he is a steward but not the owner and by extension the Christian faith sees that everything that we have including our skills and abilities are gifts from God and we are called to be stewards of everything that we receive from the hand of God, no early on in my teaching career teaching university at a Christian college I remember giving an examination not not one, but at least five students who were doing poorly on the test would say to me, the professor of sorry I'm not very well prepared for this examination but I hope you won't hold it against because I want you to know that my heart is filled with love for the Lord Jesus and I tried to do what I can. I fact last week instead of studying. I was busily involved in evangelism outreach and as a result I didn't do so well on this test at the kind of stuff I would get from students and I would tell him I said you know you seem to have a good grasp of the doctrine of justification by faith, and that I want you to know that as far as the kingdom of God is concerned, the only way you ever be justified is by faith alone, but in this classroom. That's justification by works alone. I'm glad that you love Jesus, but I hope you love them enough to be born diligent stewards of your time here in college and start studying for your tests and using the abilities of these given you now. There was this idea and I found widespread throughout evangelical Christianity that all you need to have is a loving heart and a warm heart.

And since justification is not by works.

We don't have to work as Christians, how can you read even have a cursory reading of the Gospels and not see the emphasis of our Lord put on the activity on groups tree that doesn't bring forth fruit is whirly, only to be cut down, and cast into the fire by their fruits you shall know them by their words but by the stewardship of the faith that they profess to as so as Christians we should be diligent and one of the principles that we saw at the time of the Reformation was Luther's concept of the priesthood of all believers in that concept. He was not trying to get rid of the idea of the clergy. He knew that there was a specific function that the clergy were called to perform in the main function. They were called to perform was to equip the saints for ministry that every Christian is in the ministry. Every Christian has to participate in the mission of the church.

You may not be an evangelist, you may not have that particular gift but it's still your responsibility to make sure that evangelism is taking place and there is no room for slackers in the kingdom of God.

A minute I get this being the president of the Christian organization for 40 years. Every time you let somebody go you get people saying it's should never ever fire anybody in a Christian organization is just not Christian. Saturday was not Christian not working, not producing and we would be remiss to keep people in this task, which is a higher calling than any secular task in the world that people say to me with Bahrain is my gatekeeper. You're harder to get a hold of than the president of the United States. I said, glad to hear that there's a reason for it.

I have a far more important draw that hate us module is to care for the people of God for their spiritual needs and so I will be held accountable and who have the gift of teaching let them think shut him to get the preaching women preach limo is a gift of generosity B generous, we are all gifted by the Holy Spirit. Everyone of us for ministry and at the time of the coming of Jesus. He will have an accounting with us, not simply like these fellows is what they did with the money, but what we've done with that which he has bestowed upon us and given us the responsibility of stewardship for that – how would you feel if you were called into that account tonight and Jesus said I gave you this ability I give you this opportunity. I give you this mission with the to do with this is what happens. The owner comes back and he says to the man whom he gave five talents wellness story fella said here's your five talents and five more.

I doubled your money. I've been trading wheeling dealing be very careful and productive and Jesus being influenced by modern culture by Marxism the labor theory of value said you greedy person making a profit by I don't want to see profit. I have a nonprofit organization that I want you to be involved no less than what he says and how would you like to hear these words from Jesus. Well done, well done. Your good sir, your faithful servant. Even faithful over a few things I'm going to make you ruler over many things.

Enter into the joy of your Lord, I mean can you imagine would be like to hear that from Jesus and Jesus look you in the eye.

The end. So I know you adores Moshe to you so happy you're here. Well done you good and faithful servant trustworthy trusted you with five talents and he turned them in the 10 and because you were so resourceful such a good steward over these little things make you ruler over many things, enter into the joy of your Lord. Many turn to the second serve in the second service of the Lord to give me to tears for use of the same thing. Damn well done you good and faithful servant even faithful over little things make you ruler over many enter now into the joy of the Lord. Then we come to the climax of this parable with respect to the one who would receive the single talent he comes with excuses and he comes with accusations against his master. Lord I know you to be a hard man referring we have not sown course I don't reprocess my one bought the field. I paid the manner that is in the yes I reap where I am sown gather were not scattered seat and so I was afraid and I was scared to death that I was can lose this single talent you can trust me with so I went and I dug a hole in the ground and and I hit it in there I can got big enough renown show 11 was the thing I get back to just exactly what you gave to me you are afraid you can take a risk that you understand that you couldn't possibly grow. What I entrusted to you without taking risks. They had to be wise, calculated risks, but your fear just let my money be buried in the ground you can at least of your friend get taken to the bank and it would've been safe in the bag and whatever interest the bank earned, you would've been able to give me on this time of the common said the Lord said to him you good and faithful servant, Nana, you wicked lazy servant, slothful servant, you knew that I reap Raven sown gather would have not gathered sagely ought to have deposited my money with the bankers and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. So think that talent from him give to the one who is tenant's for to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance. Everyone who produces will be given more blessing and cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness now, in and of ourselves were all unprofitable servants without the grace of God we can produce anything. It's the master who gave the talents of money to these men in the first place wasn't their own, the one I was lazy was evil lost, but the master given him and then the awful instructions cast the unprofitable servants into the outer darkness. You know what that means, send him to hell send them where there will not be the joy of the Lord instead of the joy of the Lord there will be only weeping and gnashing of teeth. What a horrible scenario that Jesus describes for the unproductive professor of faith who shows no fruit of that faith, the plight of the unprofitable servant is the same plight of the foolish virgins of the previous parable.

I don't know about you but I don't want to be where the only sound I hear is sound of weeping and the gnashing of teeth. I want to be where I hear the sounds of weld you good and faithful servant, enter into the joy and you know as I heard RC wrapping up that message.

I could only imagine the overwhelming joy he experienced as he heard those words sent more than three years ago.

Well done this week.

We have featured Dr. Spruill series the parables of Jesus, and we learned about the persistent widow the good Samaritan. The prodigal son and others that let me recommend that you request all 12 messages from the series will send it to you in a two DVD set for your donation of any amount to later ministries you can find us online@renewingyourmind.org or you can call us with your gift at 800-435-4343 you'll find hundreds of additional resources, both online and when you download our free app sermons teaching series video and audio messages and articles are available at the touch of a button. Download the free app when you search for Lincoln here next week we will study the religion of paganism. First, Dr. Leonard Godfrey will show us how the Old Testament figure Sampson was entangled by paganism, but overcame it been Dr. Peter Jones joins us to discuss paganism in our time. I hope you'll join us. Beginning Monday for Renewing Your Mind