The Parable of the Talents
Matt 25:14-30 is the parable of the talents. To paraphrase…a ruler leaves town, but leaves 1 servant $5 (let’s pretend it’s just $5), 1 servant $2, and 1 servant $1. He gave them amounts based on their personal abilities. He later returns to find that everyone has doubled their money except for the guy with $1, and he is ticked.
I read this the other night when me and some guys were talking about Christianity and business/finances. The point of the parable is that God wants us to work and be good stewards of our money. But while I was reading it, the verse hit me in a very different way.
It reminds me of telling others about Christ. The Master (God) gave these people something based on their abilities. They were to use these abilities to increase what was given to them, and I believe the same is true of us. Some have larger responsibilities ($5) than some such as pastors. They are responsible for a lot of people, their church. And some people, who maybe aren’t great leaders or “world changers” ($1) weren’t given that level of responsibility. And that’s ok. Not everyone has those skills. However, those people have no excuse (me included) not do something with that $1. I should be witnessing to people I come in contact with regularly because God has given me something, the Holy Spirit/salvation, and it is my job to do something with that. I should be doing my best to increase the Kingdom of God with what talents I was given. Make sense?
The man who was leading our discussion explained that the guy with $1 in the story didn’t even try to double what was given to him. He didn’t do anything with it. He didn’t try something then fail, he just buried it in the ground and let it sit there. Being a Christian and not doing anything with that is the same thing. If you tell someone about Christ in a loving and biblical way and they don’t respond well, did you fail? No. Jesus told people about God all the time, and they were the same ones that ending up killing him.
What talents do you have. Who do you come in contact with that doesn’t know who Jesus is. Better yet, just read Matthew 25:14-30 and think about witnessing while doing it. It’s much easier to grasp then whatever I just wrote.
