David Bahn – Reflections

Matthew 25:14-30

“For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. 15 To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. 16 He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. 17 So also he who had the two talents made two talents more.18 But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money.19 Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20 And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.’ 21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 22 And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.’ 23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 24 He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed,25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ 26 But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? 27 Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. 29 For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Perhaps you’ve seen the rising star who burns out in a blaze of glory. Whether he got too much attention, was never told no, or was so famous he lost track of his weaknesses, a man can crash and burn in the rubble of an over-inflated ego. Such is the danger of being gifted beyond one’s character: we can easily lose sight of our need to retain self-control.

In the case of the parable of the workers in the vineyard, the threshold of beyond-character gifting, however, is quite low. Those servants given 2 or 5 talents seem able to handle their giftedness. The one who receives only one talent is incapable of handling the trust he had received.

When one realizes he has been given a great trust it may bring out the attendant level of responsibility. Perhaps in real life it is those who have succeeded with the single-talent gift who receive the 2 and the 5. But even if it is one who cannot handle the single talent, the failure to do so brings grave and catastrophic pain: weeping, and gnashing of teeth.

If we are to live within our character, we must learn l to handle the small gifts that have been entrusted to us. That would require that we realize the smallest trust or the most extravagant gift is a sacred trust, and worthy of our best efforts of self control and humility. We recognize that these are gifts to be used for God’s glory and not simply to make us famous or simply to over-inflate our egos.