The Christian’s Use of Money and Goods

Matthew 25:14, 15, 19-30

A CHRISTIAN is one who has made a full dedication of himself to the Lord, agreeing to spend and be spent in his service as the divine will is revealed to him. Such a one realizes that all he has and is belongs to the Lord and that he is merely a steward over it. He realizes, also, or should, that “it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.” (I Cor. 4:2) A steward is not privileged to use his master’s money and property to enrich himself. To do so would mean that he was unfaithful to his trust.

Our lesson for today—the Parable of the Talents—emphasizes that we are to consider our chief vocation in life to be our service of the Muster, and that all else is incidental. While the “talents” of the parable are money, we are not to get the thought that the faithful use of money in the Lord’s service is the only thing involved in Christian stewardship.

The talents were given to each one “according to his several ability.” One’s abilities are his “talents,” but this is not the sense in which Jesus employs the term in the parable. Rather, as already noted, the talents refer to money, and in the parable the money was distributed to each one according to his ability to use it properly.

Since the “ability” of those to whom the talents were given corresponds with our use of the term talent, the units of money given in the parable could reasonably represent varying opportunities for service which the Lord entrusts to his people, opportunities in keeping with their respective abilities.

One might have a financial ability, another a speaking ability, another an ability of time, or perhaps of strength or of influence. Some might have more than one of these, so the Lord gives opportunities accordingly, and our faithfulness to him is tested by the manner in which we use these “talents,” and by their use endeavor to increase them.

We should keep in mind, of course, that the Master’s parables cannot be applied too literally in every detail. The principal lesson in this parable is simply that the Lord is pleased for his people to use faithfully that which is entrusted to them, and that those who are thus faithful will be given larger opportunities of service, if not this side the veil, then in the kingdom; when they enter into the “joy of the Lord.”

While there are many exceptions in individual cases, it is generally true, nevertheless, that a Christian who makes faithful use of his every opportunity of serving his Lord will enjoy an expanding field of service. The Lord in His providence grants this increase, and also rewards the faithful by inviting them to share his joy, both now, and later in the kingdom.

The parable is a true reflection of what often occurs in Christian experience in that it shows the hesitancy of those who can render little service, to do anything at all. In that the talents were given according to the ability of those receiving them, the person to whom but one talent was given obviously possessed little ability. And is it not true that those in the church who are very limited in their capacity to serve often hesitate to serve at all, feeling that anything they might do would not be pleasing to the Lord? This, of course, as the parable shows, is a mistaken viewpoint.

The Parable of the Widow’s Mite well illustrates how pleased the Lord is when those whose financial ability to serve is small, use their little faithfully. The same principle certainly applies no matter what one’s abilities may be, and regardless of how limited they may be. The one talented person of the parable did not fail to receive the approval of his master because he was given only one talent, but because he did not use that talent. The important reward mentioned in the parable is the invitation to enter into the joy of the Lord, and this was given to the man who used his two talents faithfully, as well as to the five talented man. The same would have been true of the one talented man had he faithfully used what had been given to him by the Lord.

The unprofitable servant was cast into “outer darkness,” and for him there was “weeping and gnashing of teeth,” instead of the “joy of the Lord.” Since the disappointment of the unfaithful servant is seemingly contrasted with the joy experienced by the others, it is reasonable to conclude that in contrast with the “outer darkness” of the unfaithful the reward of those who had gained other talents is, in part, an increased understanding of their master’s plans. The path, way of the just, we know, is one which increases in brightness for those who are faithful, while those who are unfaithful to the truth sooner’ or later lose it and find themselves in darkness.

QUESTIONS

Is the faithful use of money the only lesson taught in the Parable of the Talents?

What is the difference between the term “talents” used in the parable and the English word “talent” today?

What is the difference between the talents given to the servants; and their abilities to use them?

Why is the one talented servant cited as an illustration of possible unfaithfulness?

Do those who are unfaithful to the Lord continue to enjoy the light of truth?

| Home Page | Table of Contents |