Reflections...

Enter Into the Joy  

Good morning. Today’s gospel reading from Matthew 25 has been called “The Parable of the Talents”. It’s also been called one of the most misunderstood, even misused, parables of Jesus. I wouldn’t go as far as to say that, but the passage has been interpreted in many different ways, sometimes polar opposites to each other. That’s not surprising, especially for parables that aren’t followed by Jesus’ explanation. And that’s the case for the Parable of the Talents. Which Jesus (or at least Matthew’s telling of it) should supposedly be clear enough that the listeners get the point without further explanation.

So, why are we confused? Part of that may come from the word ‘talent’ itself. Here, talent doesn’t mean one’s natural aptitude or skill – like a talent for math or art. Talent in the biblical context was a weight or unit of currency used by the Romans and Greeks. But even knowing this, the parable’s still not so easy to grasp, if you look at what goes on.

A man is going on a journey and calls three of his workers to come see him, well, actually they are servants or slaves. The boss entrusts each worker with some of his money, according to their ability to manage it. One gets 5 talents, the next 2 talents, and the last gets 1 talent. And off the boss goes for a long trip. When he gets back, of course, he wants to see his staff. The five-talent servant has doubled his share to 10 talents. Well done! Enter into my joy! The two-talent servant also doubled his to 4 talents. Again, well done! Enter into my joy! 

But what’s going on with the poor one-talent servant? Well, he admits he just put the money in a hole in the ground to keep it safe from being stolen or lost. Why? Because, he says, I was afraid. I know you’re a ruthless businessman always looking for maximum gain and minimum loss.  So, even though I didn’t gain anything for you, I didn’t lose anything either, right? I hope you agree. 

No, the boss did not agree.  After giving him an immediate tongue-lashing, he even takes away the one talent and gives it to the servant who already has 10. Because, says the boss, those who have proven trustworthy will be given even more; and those who haven’t proven trustworthy will get nothing. Not looking great for #3, is it?  But it gets even worse. The now talentless servant is sent to outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 

How do we make sense of this parable? Well, first, by remembering it’s a parable –a fictional story to teach a moral lesson.  It isn’t ‘true’ per se but within it, lies a great truth. It never happened, but it happens all the time[1].  A parable then isn’t meant to be taken literally, though that doesn’t stop some people from doing it. The Swedish theologian Krister Stendahl liked to tell the story of a Lutheran pastor who was preaching on this passage. One old man in the congregation was particularly worried about the servant who gets thrown out to where there would be weeping and gnashing of teeth. What happens, he asks, if the servant is like me and doesn’t have any teeth? Not missing a beat, the pastor said, “Teeth will be provided.” 

On a more serious note, some scholars see this parable as a disturbing message of economic inequality and exploitation. And the only way they can explain it is to turn the parable on its head. They make the 3^rd servant the hero, the one who stands up to an oppressive system and pays the price. He could even represent Jesus. I admit this interpretation has its attractions. Certainly, fighting for justice is critical for Christians. But the more I studied the parable, the more unlikely this interpretation seemed. 

As modern listeners, we need to understand the symbolism used here. As I said, a talent was a measure for money. In fact, one talent was probably equivalent to 15 to 20 years’ salary for a worker. In other words, big bucks! More wealth than you could ever expect to earn on your own. Which was Jesus’ very point – what the Master gave to each of these servants to use was some unheard-of sum, a ‘superabundance’, a treasure beyond their wildest imagination. So, Jesus’ listeners would pick up right away: this story is about more than money. This is about the reality of the Kingdom of God. This is about what a generous God has given us to put to good use while we have the chance.

Now, once we grasp that, we need to put our focus in the right place. If we only focus on what happens to the 3^rd servant, the story only seems to be about judgment. There is a lesson about judgment here for sure, but we can only understand it in light of what happens to the first two servants. After getting outstanding performance reviews, what are the boss’s final words to them? “Enter into the joy of your master.” 

Enter into the joy of your master! What does that mean? That when we die, we’ll go to heaven? That’s part of it, but it’s so much more. Entering into the joy of the Master starts now, in this life. It’s what’s been described as ‘spectacular, holy delight’. And it’s ours when we do what pleases the heart of God and bless the world through our actions. That in essence is divine joy. And it’s been intended for you and me since the very beginning of time, when God made us in His own image.  As French philosopher Simone Weil said: “Creation was the moment God ceased to be everything so we humans could become something.”

Is this not then what the Parable of the Talents is about? God in Christ handing over power and freedom to us that we might become vessels of His divine pleasure and blessing. That we too can share in the kind of joy that was once uniquely God’s.[2]  What a privilege! So, far from being a tale of fear and failure, or inequality and exploitation, this is a story of grace and opportunity. But only if we act on it – before it’s too late. The Master will come back. We will have to account for what we’ve done with what we have.

So now let’s look at that third servant. Part of us might still want to defend him – after all, he only got one talent while the others got five and two. The boss already seems to have marked him out as less capable than the others, so maybe he was an unwitting victim of low expectations and fierce competition. Actually, I confess I have a bit of a soft spot for the one-talent worker. Because that’s how I see myself if I’m honest about it. 

Most of my career has been as a ‘missionary’ in Hong Kong. Now I know it’s only by the grace of God and some kind bosses that I got this chance. But when I compare myself to those that I consider five-talent and two-talent missionaries, I can’t help but feel inadequate. When I would go back to the US periodically for reporting to my mission boards, I would hear the marvelous things other missionaries were doing and the rightful praise they were given. I was embarrassed. And then there are other missionaries here in Hong Kong. I deeply admire them too. They are doing marvelous things in their ministry and rightly deserve our praise as well. So where does that leave little ol’ one-talent me in the Kingdom of God? And I still have teeth!  Maybe I need to listen to some wisdom from an Indian fable. It’s about a magician and a mouse.  You may have heard it before.

A mouse was in constant distress because of its fear of the cat. A magician took pity on it and turned it into a cat. But then it became afraid of the dog. So the magician turned it into a dog.  Then it began to fear the tiger. So the magician turned it into a tiger. Whereupon it was full of fear for the hunter. At this point, the magician gave up and turned it into a mouse again saying, “Nothing I do for you is going to be of any help because you have the heart of a mouse.”

Friends, whether you or I have the heart of a mouse or the heart of a tiger, whether God has entrusted us with one talent or two talents or five, you know what? It’s enough. It’s more than enough.  Pastor Sam Wellumsom says: “God has made you who you are. And, yes, maybe God hasn’t physically given you as much as He has given others. But use what God has given you for the furthering of His kingdom. God has given you the precious blood of Christ poured out for you on the cross. God has given you His name to call upon Him in prayer. God has given you brothers and sisters in Christ who need to be strengthened and encouraged by your words and by your example. 

Jesus is your gracious master who takes of His own property, that which is His, that which He earned, and gives it to His servants. He empties the treasuries of His palace and gives it to you [and me]. [That third servant was sadly mistaken. Our] God is not a hard man who reaps where He does not sow. He sows for others. He sows for you [and me] to reap.”[3]

Dearly beloved, the lesson then isn’t merely that we need to live our lives meaningfully and use our gifts well. Satish Joseph says the parable tells us we have the freedom and the ability to either accomplish God’s purpose or not. What is God’s purpose for your life? What is God’s purpose for KUC? 

At the end of our lives, every one of us should want to hear ‘Well done, good and faithful servant … Enter into the joy of your master.’ However, there is yet another possibility—that God says to us, ‘You wicked and lazy servant.’ I pray it isn’t so!  For God is a good, generous, and trusting God. But God has also placed our destiny in our hands. Eternal life is a gift. But it is also a choice.[4] Which destiny do you choose? Amen.