December 06, 2011
Five Star Servant
In the Parable of the Talents the master gives one servant 5 talents,
another two talents and the third one talent. It just dawned on me that
regardless of our position in life, rich or poor, believers are in the role of
the servant with five talents. We put our money to work and gain more. We are
faithful with a few things, and the Lord has put us in charge of many things.
We are the benefactors from the talents of the lazy servants. In spite of
everything we have, we are given more and have abundance. Where I am today and
how God has blessed me has a direct correlation to my management style. “Well done good and faithful servant!...Come
and Share your master’s happiness!”
(Matt 25:21 NIV)
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1 comment:
Gail;
-----I was a bit surprised by your relating believers to the servant given five talents. My perspective of this parable has been more of my present situation and God’s blessings being in a large part the results of my management style, too. But my management style leaves me feeling more like the servant having received two talents who only by the skin of his teeth and the Lord’s providence was prevented from loosing half of it on bad investments, while in some Tim Tebowish way he found the doubling of it drop into his lap as the game came to a close. And that is only because somehow I feel the need to stay within the parameters of the parable. If I were allowed to break free of its projected circumstances to find my true place in the story, then I would even more be a servant having received five talents from the Lord who only by the Lord’s merciful intervention was able to increase it by one.
-----So, I wonder if the aspect of your relating believers to the one having received five talents isn’t more because he actually received five rather than because he made five more. No way am I going to relate to making the more for the Lord’s kingdom when I know truly my increase to it is small. If so, then I must unfortunately be the exception to the sense of your statement meaning “all” believers such that it could then at most mean “all believers except Steve.”
-----But then I realized something I had missed in this parable all these years. Both servants performed 100% on their investments. The servant given five made five; the one given two made two. The servant given the encouraging attitude makes encouragement, the servant given the smiley face makes smiles, the servant given the $1,000 of excess causes a $1,000 worth of benefit to those in need, the servant given evangelistic skills reaps souls into the kingdom, and the servant given mentoring skills disciples those reaped souls. It isn’t about “much” or “little” at all. Everything done in the His kingdom is invaluable no matter how trivial. It is about increase of what you are given rather than of what you are not given. And in that sense, I now understand exactly what you mean in saying believers are in the role of the servant given the five talents.
Love you all,
Steve Corey
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