A man going on a journey
called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them.
To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one--
to each according to his ability.
The man leaving on a journey would no longer be present to put his possessions into use directly, as he had done while he was there. He thus desired to raise up servants who could act in his name, receive his talents as gifts, so that they continue to be at work in the world, and he through them.. In short, his interest was in more than monetary value. He desired servants who would be stewards of what was his, who would act in his stead during the period of his absence. We too, each in a measure unique to us, receive from God things that are properly "his possessions", graces that we are meant to use to act on his behalf in the world. In doing so we make him present during his the absence of his visible presence. In failing to do so, in burying our gifts, we deprive the world of the benefit of his power, power that was meant to continue to work through us while he was away.
Then he went away.
Immediately the one who received five talents went and traded with them,
and made another five.
The servants who made a return on the master's investment seemed to go out boldly, without fear of failure. It was as though they trusted the master's assessment of their ability, knowing that he himself foresaw what they could do with his gift. Because the master believed in them they did not see themselves as alone or relying only on their own skill. Rather, because they were participating in the plan of a provident master they were courageous. It was the master's story and they had found their roles.
But the man who received one went off and dug a hole in the ground
and buried his master's money.
The man who failed to make a profit likewise did so not only because a lack of self-confidence but also because of how he saw his master.
Master, I knew you were a demanding person,
harvesting where you did not plant
and gathering where you did not scatter;
so out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground.
Fear of punishment was not a sufficient motive to allow him to act in the way he was meant to act. In fact, such fear paralyzed him, and caused him to bury the talent, and to hide the light he was given under a wicker basket. If his fear had been something more like awe then it might have been the holy fear which is said to be the beginning of wisdom. Then the fact that the master harvested where he did not plant and gathered where he did not scatter would have been a cause for confidence. It would have given him the additional assurance of what was possible when the master's possessions were put to use with trust. As the master explained, virtually any effort would reap results and that the only real failure was not to try.
Should you not then have put my money in the bank
so that I could have got it back with interest on my return?
How is our view of the master impacting our investment strategy for the gifts we have been given? Do we hesitate and hide because of fear that the master is impossible to please? Or do we instead trust him in his judgment about us? The man who received one talent might have seen this to have been a negative judgment, that he was less gifted than the other two, and therefore of less value in his master's eyes. But this was not how the master saw things. To those who chose to share in his work by investing what they were given he gave identical rewards, regardless of size of the return. The real thing the master sought was servants who would share his work, who ultimately would share his heart. The precise measure of increase was not the measure of a servant's value.
For to everyone who has,
more will be given and he will grow rich;
but from the one who has not,
even what he has will be taken away.
We have a choice. We have been entrusted with much. Will we trust the master and grow rich? Or will we instead trust the fear of our ego, bury our talents, and lose the master's gift? The master's perspective is the light that gives us the confidence to stay alert and sober. The world may seem dark and full of risk. But we even in that darkness we have been made children of the light.
But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness,
for that day to overtake you like a thief.
For all of you are children of the light
and children of the day.
We are not of the night or of darkness.
Therefore, let us not sleep as the rest do,
but let us stay alert and sober.
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