Security or Service?

‘For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, “Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.” And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, “Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.” Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, “Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.” But his master replied, “You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Matthew 25:14-30

A “talent” was about 20 years earnings for a day labourer back then – so these are huge sums in Jesus’ parable.  But let’s be clear: this is not actually about money.  And “to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance” certainly isn’t some prosperity gospel idea about more money coming to those who already have a lot.  This is about responsibilities.  The talent taken from the third slave and given to the first one isn’t a reward: it’s saying that those who’ve acted responsibly will be given more responsibilities – while those who don’t live up to the assignments they’re given will have those taken away.  The first two slaves don’t get higher salaries, a gold watch or a plaque to put on the wall – but alongside the new responsibilities, they’re commended and invited to enter into the joy of the master.

This parable is part of a series Jesus told about the eventual coming of God’s kingdom.  It’s about how to live while we are waiting for him to return – which is why we’re getting this now, in the lead-up to the season of Advent.  It’s asking us, what does faithfulness look like in a time of waiting?  Don’t sleepwalk.  Care about more than your own security.  Use what you’ve been given.  For the third slave, what he might have called prudence and wariness has turned into self-protectiveness: focused on the potential risks to himself, he buries the talent.  He opts for security over service.

And in case you were wondering – yes, this is where we get our word “talent” from.  What began as an ancient unit of weight and money has come, through this parable, to be seen as God-given abilities or responsibilities entrusted to someone to be used and developed.  Nowadays it’s common to find it in the sense of a "special natural ability” – a talent for running, or learning languages, or the “green thumb” that good gardeners are said to have.  What’s clear from this story, is that we’re given special abilities in order to use them: we’re called to make good use of what’s been entrusted to us – not to benefit ourselves, but to help others.  That’s how we live while waiting for Christ to return.

Image credit: Etienne Girardet, Unsplash