Fri, Jun 15th - 6:48PM

Matthew 25:14-30

Story of the Talents

by Gerard Davis

14 For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. 

15 And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey...

 19 After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoned with them

20And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more. 

21His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. 

22He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them. 

23 His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. 

24 Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed:   

25 And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.  

26 His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knew that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed:  

27 Thou ought  therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. 

28 Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents.  

For those who work for Christ, this parable is a rewarding tale of how our Lord, the Lord of the Harvest is faithful and just to bless His children. The lesson for Christians in this story is not in the actions of the man who hid his talent, but in the other two who were rewarded in abundance. Luke records a parable in Luke 19:12-27 similar to the one Matthew quotes here.  Jesus tells the parable because, according to the scripture, “…they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear” Luke 19:11. Apparently the crowds needed to be informed that God is looking for each of us to do a great work for Him, but for some reason they were content to sit and wait for the kingdom of God to just “arrive” on its own.

 In this story, Jesus used the example of a “talent” which was a medium of exchange equivalent to money, but could just as easily be considered anything of use or of value.  Luke uses the term “mina” in the parable which is roughly three months wages (there is no debate that this story is referring to money; both Matthew and Luke record that Jesus referred to the subject as being money at least twice).  The first man in the story was aggressive with what he was given. He used everything that he was entrusted with and as a result, was able to bring his master a large increase.  Another of the men was also aggressive. He was given less than the first, but notice the percentage of increase he brought to his master was the same.  But, the last of the men was doubtful and negative.  He doubted that he could ever be successful so he decided not to try at all.   Instead he hid his talent where no one could see it so that when his master returned he could just give back what he had been given.

 The problem with the third guy was; he thought more about what could go wrong then what was going to go right. He could not see past his doubts and would rather break even than face the possibility of losing out completely. He was doubtful and he was plagued with fear.  He was afraid of failing with what his master had given him.  He was afraid of disappointment and most of all, afraid of his master.  He thought “what if I lose this talent?  My master is a mean man, etc., etc.”  He refused to put his talent to work because he was sure his work would fail so he devised his own plan for what he thought would insure a since of victory.  He figured he’d just give his master back the seed that he was given.  This way, he could guarantee he wouldn't return to his master empty handed.   

 God has entrusted each of us with things of value. Those talents could be internal talents such as physical ability, mental capacity, learned skills, acquired trades and experience.  Or they could be external talents, (things not stemming from you but affecting you) such as a societal position or relationships with other talented people having access to great resources. Our master wants us to pursue all types of increase:  spiritual increase, physical increase, increase in faith, increase in peace, increase in finances, and overall, an increase in our relationships with Jesus Christ. However, instead of pursuing increase, too many of us hide out. We are so convinced any endeavor we attempt will fail that we choose to keep our one little talent hidden when God wants us to take charge of five talents and turn them into ten. 

 He’s given you gifts, but it's up to you to do something with it.  If you are satisfied with no increase, then that is what you will have.  You will never see increase if, when things seem impossible, you refuse to make an effort just like the third man in this story.  Things are supposed to look impossible from time to time.   You are supposed to find yourself doing things that you've never done before. And you will often find yourself doing things that scare you. But God has to move you beyond your own understanding in order to move you away from depending on yourself and into trusting Him.  God has to lead you out of your comfort zone; away from a place where the fear of losing everything will cause you to hide.  Sometimes to overcome fear, you have to do that very thing which you fear. Remember, everything that is done today was once something scary which no one had ever done before.  

 Stop hiding your talents in the ground! Stop hiding your money in the bank! Stop hiding from the church officers trying to recruit you! If you have money, make an investment! If you can sing, join the choir! If you are dependable, become a trustee! Stop hiding and get to work! The result will be a great and abundant increase in your life to give you more than you've ever had before to do more and more of what you have never done. 

 Director’s Desk Publishing

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Fri, Jun 15th - 6:26PM

Luke 10: 41,42

by Gerard A. Davis

³⁸Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.

³⁹And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word.

40But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord,

41And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things:

42But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.

Church people instinctively spend a lot of time working at church; not just per instruction, but more as if salvation were obtained solely by activities within church walls. We show up dressed to impress and ready to do both physical and spiritual work every week beginning with the illustrious task of generously giving everyone a smile and a handshake. As long as we’re inside church walls doing church work, most of our attitudes and behavior couldn’t be better. Some of us show up just for the socialization that our “Labor of Love” provides and for no other reason.  

 But when you deal with some of us church workers outside of church walls, you’re shocked at the attitudes, the bad language, the impatience, the quick tempers, the bad habits and all the other sinful behaviors we harbor like fugitives on the run from the law.  Church people gamble;  church people drink;  church people smoke;  church people lie; church people steal;  church people do everything that unsaved people do including casually having premarital sex with other church people.  You can’t help but wonder how is it that people who work so hard and spend so much time in church can act just as ugly as the rest of the world outside of church walls?

The popular answer is to say that many church people aren’t really saved, which is true.  But there is a deeper, more firmly embedded issue which affects a far larger portion of church patrons than does hypocrisy.  If you’ve ever wonder why church workers act so different outside the walls (even if you’ve wondered this about yourself) here is the answer.

When we are at Church, we spend a disproportionate amount of time working. We work on the usher board, we work in the choir, we work in the pulpit, we work in the parking lot. Even pew members have to work, “Raise your hands”, “Say amen”, “All rise”, “Be seated”, “All rise”, “Be seated”, “All rise”, “remain standing”, “Now, follow the directions of the usher to your right…”, that’s a lot of work!

I’m not saying it’s wrong to work in the church.  It’s just that we spend all of our time at church working and not nearly enough time at the feet of Jesus. There is a difference between being at church to work and being at church to sit at the feet of Jesus. 

To emphasize what it means to spend time at the feet of Jesus, we have the popular story of Martha and Mary Luke 10:38-42. This story applies to so many church people that even if you’ve just recently read this story, these four verses still warrant yet another thorough look:

In context, we know that Jesus was traveling outside the city of Jerusalem conducting his normal behavior (healing, setting people free, etc.).  As usual, he was teaching as He went. He remaind in the outskirts becuaee it was not yet time for Jesus to make His triumphal entrance into the city.  So the story begins with Jesus arriving in a village called Bethany, about 2 miles from Jerusalem (John 11:18).  There, He knew of a woman named Martha and her sister Mary who would gladly receive Him into their home as He traveled from one village to another (the two women also had a brother named Lazarus, all three whom Jesus loved according to John 11:5).  As the story goes, Martha was busy doing many things preparing for Jesus to arrive. We can’t really fault Marrtha for being so busy, remember, Jesus was not traveling alone.  The story doesn’t list the number of people Jesus traveled with, but we know that along with His disciples was always a crowd.  Even a small multitude could easily have been upwards of 100 people.  Imagine if your pastor was coming to your house and bringing the entire church attendance with him.  You’d probably want to straighten up a little too; maybe put out some chairs, cook some food, etc.

When Jesus arrived, apparently Martha shot into high gear trying to finish the preparations.  But Mary, on the other hand, immediately sat down at his feet to hear the Word. Well, it didn’t take long for Martha to become irritated.  The bible says that Martha was “cumbered” or uncomfortable and we know from the tone of her question to Jesus that she had become angry that her sister is sitting down while she is working.  She pleaded to Jesus, " dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me.” Luke 10:40 NIV. In other words, she cried, “Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me working bymyself? Tell her to help me.” She asks the question in such a way that Jesus is expected to give a command for Mary to get up and join Martha in the kitchen, “…does thou not care?”

Jesus’ arrival presented these two ladies, Mary and Martha with a dilemma. There was still work to be done.  Do they continue getting things in order, or drop the broom and greet Jesus as he arrives? They ultimately had to make a decision to complete the task at hand at all cost, or abandon their posts at the last minute. Martha decided to continue her noble work even though Jesus had arrived.

This is the problem of many “churchie” Christians today.  The demands of a full schedule and a packed house make it difficult to stop serving and hear the Word so we don’t.  We push ourselves to accomplish more and more “for Christ” even if it means missing bible study and a sermon or two.  When you move by your own driving force there is rarely time to stop and hear the word.  There’s never time to study, no time to pray and no time to worship.  When you’re driving yourself to complete a task, you will easily become too busy. How do you know when you’ve become too busy?  When you’re not studying then you’re too busy.  When you’re not praying then you’re too busy.

Anyone who feels they must continue working while the Word is being delivered, is overly occupying themselves and too busy.  Martha was overly occupied, too busy and distracted by her work.  She was moving by her own driving force to accomplish everything she could possibly accomplish.  She let her work take precedence over the fact that Jesus, the Savior of Mankind, the Lover of her Soul, the Lamb of God, Jesus the Christ of Nazareth was there; and… He was Speaking!  When the Word of God arrives, it is time to sit at the feet of Jesus and listen. There is nothing more important than every Word that proceeds from the mouth of our Lord.  Christian work must be prioritized. And sometimes priorities have to be shuffled at the last minute if suddenly there is a Word from the Lord.  The NIV Bible text says Martha was distracted by all the preparations.  Even the most virtuous church work can become a distraction if it ever takes precedence over the Word of God.

Jesus said Martha is “careful” or worried over many things.  She has troubled herself with peripheral concerns when there is only one thing at that moment that is important.   Jesus is not so much condemning Martha's activity as commending Mary's.  According to Jesus, Mary chose correctly.  “…one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her” Luke 10:42.  Jesus calls His Word the one thing that is “needful”.  He says to us, "Sit at my feet and devour my teaching. There is no more important meal."   Mary positioned herself to partake in the "right meal”.  Her priorities were in order.  Jesus said what she had done by sitting at His feet was something that will remain with her. The meal Martha prepared was temporary, but the meal Mary prepared to partake will last.

Many Christians come to church just to act churchie.  We show up at church and “put our time in” and for the moment, feel better.  Getting a little praise and a dance is like a weekly “fix”. Many times it has little to nothing to do with jesus.  But when we are done, we leave in the same condition that we were in to pick up the same problems that we left behind 2 hours before.  There hasn/’t been a true encounter with Jeuss because if there was, we would never be the same nor would we do the same things we did before.When the Word of God is preached, how many church people are walking the floor, preparing food in the back or doing something other than hearing?  How many of us are too busy to listen?  When the Word of God arrives, it is time to sit and listen. Every person should be sitting with a bible in-lap and a highlighter positioned to hear.  When the Word of God is taught, we should stop working, and get positioned to partake of the one thing that is needful. 

Bottom line is, church can not change your life, but Jesus can.  Jesus is the living Wordl.  The word of God is the needful thing; do not allow it to be taken from you.  Once church folks, while at church, start spending more time at the feet of Jesus, the attitudes, habits and behavior outside of church will begin to change.  We will begin to see Christians acting as “churchie” on the outside as they do inside church.  Everyone will get a handshake and give a smile everywhere.  And, finally, we will see more Christians perform as the new creatures that God wants us to be with everyone anxious to spend as much time as possible at the feet of Jesus. 

Director’s Desk Publishing