I invite you to turn with me to the Holy Scriptures, to the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 25. We read the verses 14 through 30, and these words also form our text. Hear the word of God, for the kingdom of heaven is as a man traveling into a far country, who called his own servants and delivered unto them his goods. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to every man according to his several ability, and straightway took his journey. Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same and made them other five talents. And likewise, he that had received two, he also gained other two. But he that had received one went and digged in the earth and hid his Lord's money. After a long time, the Lord of those servants cometh and reckoneth with them. And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliverest unto me five talents. Behold, I have gained beside them five talents more. His Lord said unto him, well done, thou good and faithful servant. Thou hast been faithful over a few things. I will make thee ruler over many things. Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord. He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliverest unto me two talents. Behold, I have gained two other talents beside them. His Lord said unto him, well done, good and faithful servant. Thou hast been faithful over a few things. I will make thee ruler over many things. Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord. Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown and gathering where thou hast not strawed. And I was afraid and went and hid thy talent in the earth. Lo, there thou hast that is thine. His Lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant! Thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gathered where I have not strawed. Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. Take, therefore, the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance. But from him that hath not shall be taken away, even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. May the Lord add his blessing to the reading and preaching of his holy and infallible word. Dear friends, as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, we are called to be good stewards. What is a steward, you say? Well, a steward is someone who looks after someone or something. For example, a shop steward is someone who looks after the work being done in a shop. A steward or stewardess, we call them flight attendants today, is an employee of an airline company who looks after the needs of passengers. Well, Christians are also stewards. We are called to be good stewards of our time. We're called to be good stewards of our money. We're called to be good stewards of the environment. But we are also called to be good stewards of the kingdom. We come in our study of the parable parables of our Lord to the parable of the talents, which appears immediately after the parable of the wise and foolish virgins, which we reflected on last time. Now there are certain similarities between these two parables. In the first place, both parables portray the visible church of Christ. Secondly, both parables reveal that within this church there are two kinds of people. There are converted and unconverted. There are saved and unsaved. There are true believers and there are hypocrites. And thirdly, both parables describe what will happen on the day of judgment. But there's also an important difference between these two parables. The parable of the wise and foolish virgins emphasizes the need to be watchful, whereas the parable of the talents emphasizes that we are also to be busy. We are to be good stewards of the kingdom, employing our gifts and talents and taking advantage of every opportunity afforded to us to advance the kingdom of Christ and to promote his glory. Well, with that in mind and God's help, let's reflect on this parable under the theme, the required stewardship of the kingdom. And we'll consider, first of all, the wise distribution of the stewardship, secondly, the contrasting management of the stewardship, and thirdly, the careful accounting of this stewardship. Jesus, in this parable, compares the kingdom of heaven to a rich man traveling to a far country. Now he says that before he departed the rich man summoned his servants and divided up his money among each of them. And to one he gave five talents, to another he gave two talents, and to a third one he gave one talent, each man according to his ability. Now the rich man in the parable represents the Lord Jesus Christ. He is portrayed as a rich man because as the risen and exalted king, all things belong to him. They were given to him by his father as a reward for his atoning work. The far country represents heaven. Forty days after he rose from the dead, Christ ascended into heaven and was seated at the right hand of his father. And from there he will come again to judge the living and the dead. But until then, he remains in heaven. The servants represent the members of the visible Church of Christ on earth. Now as for the talents, often people think that the talents refers to our natural gifts and abilities. And that's because this is exactly how this word is used in modern English. In fact, it is due to this parable that this particular word came into the English language with that particular meaning. And so many people think that this parable is about using whatever talents in the sense of gifts and abilities that God has given us to his honor and to his glory. But that is not the meaning here. In ancient times, a talent was a unit of weight. Now how much that was, we cannot say for certain. But it was also used, as it is here, to determine the value of money. Thus, a talent of gold coins was worth more than a talent of silver coins or copper coins. Now in the context of this parable, the talons represent anything that the Lord has given us whereby we may glorify him and extend his kingdom, whether that be in our own hearts or in the world in general. That includes our natural gifts and abilities, but it includes more than that. It includes our time, our money, our influence, our knowledge, our health, our strength, our intellect. It includes the Word of God and the many opportunities that we have to grow in our understanding of the Word of God. It includes the fellowship of other believers and attendance at the weekly worship service. It can even include our trials and hardships. Whatever means the Lord has given us whereby we may glorify him and extend his kingdom is represented by the talents in this parable. Now you notice four things about these talents. First of all, they come from Christ. And that stands to reason of course. We have nothing of ourselves. Whatever we have, whatever we had, we have forfeited on account of our sin in Adam. And whatever we have has been given to us by Christ out of mere grace. Secondly, they are very valuable. While it's impossible to pinpoint its exact value, some say that a single talent of gold was worth a lifetime of wages for a common labor. And so that's a substantial sum. And the idea is that whatever gifts or opportunities the Lord gives to us in this life are extremely valuable and therefore should be guarded and used wisely. Thirdly, we learn here that everyone has at least one talent. Now there's not a single member of the visible church who does not have at least one gift or one opportunity to extend the kingdom of Christ and to promote his glory. The Lord has given every one of us at least one talent. Some talents, some rather, have more talents than others. That's the fourth thing that we learn here. And that's determined by Christ himself. He is the one who gives the talents. He is the one who determines who gets what gifts and opportunities and how many. And on what basis does he decide that? Well, he decides that, as our parable says, according to our ability. Everyone gets what Christ thinks we can handle, no more and no less, which by the way is a mercy lest we be expected to do things we simply are not able to do. Well let me ask you as I come to the close of this first point, what gift or what opportunity for service has the Lord given to you? My friend, be on the lookout for these opportunities. Don't despise them. Whatever your station in life, whatever gifts, whatever talents, whatever opportunities and responsibilities you have, both within the church and outside of the church, they have been given to you by Christ himself. Now you say, for what purpose has he given them? Well, that brings us to our second point. After dividing up his goods among his servants, the rich man, we are told, departed on his journey. And no sooner did he depart than the servant who had received five talents proceeded to trade with the same. Now, we're not sure exactly what he did with it. Most likely, he invested some of it. With some, he bought and sold, and he did very well. Over time, he doubled the amount he had been given. Now the servant who had received two talents did the same. He too went and traded with the two talents that he had been given, and he too doubled his master's money. And we learn here, as Matthew Henry writes, that a true Christian is a spiritual tradesman. A tradesman, he says, is one who, having made his trade his choice and taken pains to learn it, makes it his business to follow it, lays out all he has for the advancement of it, makes all other affairs bend to it, and lives upon the gain of it. And that is also true for believers, is it not? Believers do whatever it takes, and they use whatever gifts and whatever they have been given to advance the interests of Christ and of his kingdom. They will use their gifts. For example, if a man has the gift of leadership, he will serve as an office bearer in the church. Or if a woman has the gift of hospitality, she will invite people into her home and prepare for them a meal. Or if a young man has the gift of working with his hands, he may use that gift to maintain the church property. Or if someone has the gift of music, they will play the piano or organ in church to lead the singing. They will also use their opportunities. For example, believers will share the gospel with their neighbors and coworkers. They will visit the sick and the shut-ins in their congregation. They will serve on a board or committee of the church or of the local Christian school. There are countless opportunities to be of service in the church and kingdom of Christ. A true Christian is someone who will take advantage of these and do whatever is expected of him and whatever the Lord has placed before him and he will do it gladly and joyfully as unto the Lord. Well, my friend, is that true of you today? How are you using the gifts, the opportunities, and the responsibilities that Christ has given to you? Are you using them to advance his cause and to build up his kingdom? My friends, we don't have to do much to accomplish for the Lord. To be sure, there are some people who do. History contains the names of many Christians who accomplished much good for the Lord. We think, for example, of William Wilberforce, who fought for the abolition of slavery in Great Britain, or William Carey, who founded the modern missionary movement, or George Mueller, who established orphanages all over England, or Johann Sebastian Bach, or George Frederick Handel, who wrote beautiful music and God-glorifying music. And I could mention countless others. These all accomplished great things for the Lord, but not all of us are like them, nor is that necessary. If you're a stay-at-home mom, you can advance the kingdom of God by simply devoting yourself to the raising of your children in the fear of the Lord, so that when they're older, you may shoot them out like little arrows into the world to assault the strongholds of Satan. If you're a business owner, you can use the profits of your business to support the work of the kingdom of God through various Christian parachurch ministries or through your local church. If you're a student, you can advance the kingdom simply by doing well at school and seeking to be a positive influence on others around you. If you're a member of a board or a committee, You can advance the kingdom by getting involved, by contributing and doing what you're asked to do. There are countless ways that we can advance the kingdom of Christ, none of which may ever be seen or recognized by anyone except for the Lord. The point is, friends, we are called by God to use whatever gifts, whatever responsibilities, whatever opportunities we have been given to advance his cause and to promote his glory. Do you see that today? Sadly, not everyone in the church does. And we have a good illustration of that here in this parable. While his two fellow servants went about trading with the talents that they had been given, the man who had been given one talent decide to bury his in the ground. Now that was not uncommon in those days. In ancient times, before there were banks, people who wanted to protect their money would often bury it in the ground. Think back to the parable of the hidden treasure in the field. And that's what's going on here as well. This man took the one talent that he had been given and he buried it in a field. Now there are many people like that in the church today. They've been given gifts, they've been given opportunities and responsibilities, but they don't use them, or they don't maximize their use. I'm thinking here, for example, of the person who goes to church twice every Lord's Day, and he hears the preaching of the word, or he attends the Bible study, or the youth group every week, but he doesn't do anything with it. He doesn't change as a result of what he has learned. He doesn't ask the Lord to apply it to his heart. He doesn't discuss or share what he has learned with others. He just sits there, drinks it in, and goes home. Or the person who has been blessed materially, but gives very little to the church or to the kingdom of Christ. Or the person who is good with his hands, but uses it only for himself. He never does anything for others or for the kingdom. Or the person who has been appointed to a committee but never shows up for meetings and if he does, he doesn't contribute anything or volunteer for anything. Or the person who's retired and in good health and he has plenty of time on his hands but he spends most of his time only on himself. He doesn't visit anyone, he doesn't help anyone in need, he's not involved in anything, he doesn't volunteer for anything. where the person has suffered a heavy trial, a financial setback, the death of a loved one, a debilitating disease, but who doesn't do anything with what he or she has learned from it, or who just spends the rest of their lives feeling sorry for themselves. I could give many more examples, but I trust you get the idea. Such people as I have described are just like the man who buried his talent in the ground. They were given the means to expand the kingdom of God and bring glory to his name, but they chose not to use it. My friend, does that describe you today? Is anyone listening to this broadcast burying their talent in the ground? If so, beware, one day you will have to give an account. And that brings us to our third and final point. After a long absence, it came time for the rich man to return home. And upon arriving at home, he immediately summoned his servants to give an account of what they did with his money. The servant who had received five talents came to his lord and reported that he had gained five more. In fact, in the original Greek, all the emphasis falls on the word five. Thus, literally, he says, five talents you gave me, look, another five talents I have gained. And upon hearing this, his lord evidently, well pleased, said to him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant. Thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things. Enter thou into the joy of thy lord. And something similar happened with the servant who was given two talents. He also came before his Lord. And he also reported that he had received two talents, but had gained two more. And he too was warmly commended by his Lord. Well done, he said, good and faithful servant. Thou has been faithful over a few things. I will make thee ruler over many things. Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord. And we learn several things from this. First of all, we learn that one day we must all give an account. Just as the servants had to give an account to their Lord, so we too one day must give an account to the greater Lord, the Lord Jesus Christ. And that will take place on the day of judgment. Then the Lord will summon each one of us before his throne. And he will ask us what we have done with the many gifts and the many opportunities and the many responsibilities that he gave to us in this life. And when he does, how will you answer him? Are you prepared to stand before the Lord? If the Lord were to take you out of this life today, what would you say to him? Would you be able to say that you doubled his money? Secondly, we learn here that those who have done much for the Lord and his kingdom in this life will be warmly commended and rewarded in the next. What is this reward? Well, first of all, it will be a disproportionate reward. By that I mean the reward will far exceed the service rendered. The rich man says to his servants that they were faithful over a few things, but he says he will make them ruler over many things. Matthew Henry writes, what charge we receive from God. What work we do for God in this world is but little, very little, compared with the joy set before us. Put together all our service, all our sufferings, all our improvements, all the good we do to others, all we get to ourselves, and they are but few things, next to nothing, not worthy to be compared, not fit to be named the same day with the glory that is to be revealed. Secondly, it will be a joyful reward. The man said to his servants, enter into the joy of thy Lord. And we learn here, don't we, that the final state of the believer who labors much for Christ in this life will be a state of great joy. And what is more, this joy is of the Lord. Again, hear what Matthew Henry says. He says, this joy is the joy of their Lord. It is the joy which he himself has purchased and provided for them. It is the joy of the redeemed, bought with the sorrow of the Redeemer. It is the joy which he himself is in the possession of, and which he had his eye upon when he endured the cross and despised the shame. It is the joy of which he himself is the fountain and center. It is the joy of our Lord, for it is joy in the Lord who is our exceeding joy. Abraham, he says, was not willing that the steward of his house, though faithful, should be his heir, but Christ admits his faithful stewards into his own joy to be joint heirs with him. The faithful servants therefore received a rich reward. But what about the unfaithful servant, the one who buried his talent in the ground? What did he receive? Well, he received no reward at all. We read then when it came time for his servant to give an account of his stewardship that he said to his Lord, Lord, I knew thee that thou art a hard man. reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed. And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth, and lo, there that thou hast is thine. The servant here accuses his Lord of being a hard, or we could say unscrupulous man, reaping where he had not sown, and gathering where he had not strawed. Of course, there was no substance to that accusation. reason why the man had not made any return on his Lord's investment was simply because he was lazy and as such it was totally wrong for him to cast the blame at his Lord but that's what he did and the Lord refused to accept it. For in response to his servants accusation the rich man said thou wicked and slothful servant Thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not and gathered where I have not strawed. Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. The rich man here is not admitting that his servant was right about him. He's simply putting his feet to the fire. It's as if he was saying, if you really believe that I reap where I did not sow and gathered where I did not straw, then rather than bury my money in the ground, you should have brought it to the money lenders and received the interest from it. And the fact that you didn't only compounds your guilt. But without waiting for an answer, the rich man ordered the talent which he had entrusted to his servant to be given to the servant who had gained 10 talents. And he said, every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance, but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. Now Jesus here is not countenancing business practices that enable the wealthy to become wealthier at the expense of the deserving poor. He's not doing that at all. Rather, he's laying down an important principle of spiritual life. He's saying that anyone who has been given any gift or any opportunity to advance his kingdom and takes advantage of it will become spiritually rich and prosperous. But those who do not will become spiritually destitute and will perish in the end. And isn't that exactly what happened to this servant? After being condemned, his Lord commanded his servants to take him and to cast him into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. This man, who was given so much, ended up with nothing. In the end, he was cast into hell. Well, let this be a warning to each and every one of us. There is much work that needs to be done in the church and the kingdom of Christ. Therefore, my friends, don't be lazy. Don't be slothful, or you too may suffer the same fate. And was our Lord teaching here that we must earn our own salvation or that we can lose it if we don't work hard enough? Of course not. All he's saying is that those who do not make use of the gifts and opportunities to expand his kingdom and to glorify his name show that they were never truly converted to him in the first place. They are still dead in their sins, but those who do show that they were. And so this parable presents us with two ways, doesn't it? Either we make good use of the gifts and opportunities that God has given to us and we will be blessed, or we refuse and we will be cursed. So which way will you choose today? What will you do with the gifts and opportunities and responsibilities that Lord has given to you, including the sermon you have just heard? Amen. Dear friends, it's a great blessing and encouragement to us to hear from our listeners. If you were blessed by the message you have heard today, or if you were blessed by previous messages on this program, won't you please take a moment and let us know? 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