Gather Little by Little

“Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his property to them. To one he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more. So also, the one with the two talents gained two more. But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.

“After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The man who had received the five talents brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.’ “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’

“The man with the two talents also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two talents; see, I have gained two more.’ “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’

“Then the man who had received the one talent came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’

“His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.

” ‘Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents. For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ Matthew 14:14-30

The story above was one of the many parables told by Christ during his earthly ministry. A parable was a  genre of oral literature that was commonly used in that day. The story is not to be taken literally in the sense that the event really happened. Christ used parables to explain an abstract idea through the means of the permanent. When reading a parable, it is important to remember that parables were not allegories. An allegory, such as Pilgrim’s Progress, Animal Farm or Gulliver’s Travels, every character or event stands for something in the literal world. A parable, however, only teaches a single truth. Aesop’s Fables are another example of parable literature.

So what was Christ’s intent in telling this story? I think it is pretty clear that God expects us to use the resources that have been entrusted to us and when we prove ourselves with a small amount of resources, he will send more resources and more responsibility our direction.

Do you want a job as a VP of a Fortune 500 company some day? How do you handle your employees in your current job as a McDonalds manager?

Do you want to be debt free? How do you use the extra $10 in your budget each month?

How do you handle leftovers in your kitchen?

I once knew a man who kept an immaculate yard and house. The owner of a local company drove past his house daily. One day he stopped and offered my friend the job of overseeing plant maintenance in his company on the spot. He recognized that this man was faithful in a little and entrusted him with a lot.

We have all been given a different set of resources and it is important to point out that all of our resources are not monetary.

Some have been given many children (like glblguy) and have the ability to make the world a better place through how their offspring are reared. There are some couples who have not been blessed with children, but God has given them the gift of extra time and money and tasked them with the responsibility to use that time or money for His glory.

Some have been given gifts in the area of writing or speaking or leadership. My wife is great at friendship and encouragement. Many of us might not possess any other talent than simple faithfulness – we just keep showing up.

Regardless of where your talents and resources lie, it is clear that God will hold all of us accountable for how we invest our lives.

Picture by: Miss Claeson