You are a gifted servant!

Matthew 25:14 "Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his property to them. ¹⁵ 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. ¹⁶ The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more. ¹⁷ So also, the one with the two talents gained two more. ¹⁸ But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money. ¹⁹ "After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. ²⁰ 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.' ²¹ "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!' ²² "The man with the two talents also came. 'Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with two talents; see, I have gained two more.' ²³ "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!' ²⁴ "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. ²⁵ So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.' ²⁶ "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? ²⁷ 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. ²⁸ "'Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents. ²⁹ 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. ³⁰ And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'

Sir Michael Costa, the celebrated conductor, was holding a rehearsal. As the mighty chorus rang out, accompanied by scores of instruments, the piccolo player – a little pint-sized flute – thinking perhaps that his contribution would not be missed amid so much music, stopped playing. Suddenly, the great leader stopped and cried out, “Where is the piccolo?”

The sound of that one small instrument was necessary to the harmony, and the Master Conductor missed it when it dropped out. The point? To the Conductor there are no insignificant instruments in an orchestra. Sometimes the smallest and seemingly least important one can make the greatest contribution and even if it doesn’t seem to make that big a difference to the audience at large, THE CONDUCTOR KNOWS IT right away!

In the Church, the players and the instruments are diverse — different sizes, different shapes, different notes, different roles to play. But like the piccolo player in Sir Michael’s orchestra, we often in our own sovereignty decide that our contribution is not significant. Our contribution couldn't possibly make a difference. And so we quit playing. Stop doing that which we’ve been given to do. We drop out. But the Conductor immediately notices. From our perspective, our contribution may be small, but from His, it is crucial.

I just have to believe I’m talking to some piccolo players this morning, who have dropped out of the orchestra, for whatever reasons: pain, exhaustion, insecurity, criticism, laziness, misbehavior. Convinced that your contribution doesn’t mean a hill of beans in the bigger scheme of things. We have buried our talent in the ground.

For all piccolos who won’t play, or at least aren’t playing, Jesus has something to say. For all the tiny piccolo players, the grand brass players, the soloists or the background singers, Jesus has something to say to each one of us, “You are my gifted servant!” He says, “I am leaving you, but I’m not leaving you unprepared. You are blessed. You are equipped. Because I have blessed you generously, now you will invest your gifts to my glory generously.” 

Jesus tells a story to teach us about using our gifts. There was a man who was going on an extended journey. This man was rich — very rich. While he was gone, he wanted to give his servants an opportunity. So he entrusted his property to them. He knows them. He has seen them at work. He knows they have his best interests in mind because his interests provide for their interests.

Not only is this man rich, he is also generous. The amounts he entrusts to his servants are not small. We might think of the gifts he gives in terms of 5, 10, and 25 thousand dollars. How generous! And yet he also shows his wisdom and shrewdness alongside of his generosity. He gives to each according to his ability. The man gives something to all of them, but he is only going to give each servant what they are able to handle. He does his best to set them up for success.

The man was even generous in his response to his servants after his return. He praises them, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.” You did well! You did the best with what you I gave you! You were faithful, and now I will give you even greater things. You thought I was generous before! My joy is yours; your place is at my side. “Come and share you master’s happiness!” They were gifted servants; how generous their master had given to them!

What is the point Jesus is making here? He, as our Lord and Master, is generous beyond belief with His blessings. We have personally experienced His generosity. He has replaced the depraved acts of our sinful nature with the fruit of His Holy Spirit. He has not only made us His servants, but also His dear children through Holy Baptism. In His Word He has taken us from spiritual death to spiritual life. He has given us peace that is beyond human understanding. He has forgiveness in His absolution and blessing in His benediction. He comes to us personally and individually in His body and blood hidden under the blood and wine of His Divine supper. He gives us called workers to preach His Word from our pulpit and teach His precious truths to our children in our classrooms. He unites us as brothers and sisters in the Christian faith. He has blessed us generously.

In addition to all of these spiritual blessings, God also gives us mental gifts, physical abilities and material blessings. Notice how each servant was given something. No one was left idle. Realize that God has generously given each of us talents. You may not be a five-talent person, but you have some talent. We all do. God expects a return. We had better not bury what has been given to us and leave it untouched until He returns.

What talents has God given you? Just like the servants in our parable, God has given each of us different gifts. Maybe it’s a talent to work with numbers, with computers, with music, with children, with teaching. Maybe it’s being able to lead or to support those who lead. Maybe it’s just offering a smile or a kind word or an intercessory prayer. It could be just being available to serve. How easy it is for Satan to convince us that we aren’t talented people! We often make the mistake in thinking that because I’m not the best in a certain area or have a lot of time to give, that I’m worthless. But that simply isn’t true! Whether our gifts take the main stage or serve in the background, God has generously given them to us – given them to us to use.

In the parable, there are two very different responses to the master’s generosity. Two servants are very similar. “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.” These two sprang into action “at once.” They were faithful. They made the most of their gifts, both their abilities and the money entrusted to them. When the master returned, they considered it a privilege to return the profit to their Lord, who says “Well done, good and faithful servant!” Notice what they are commended for! For their faithfulness, not for what they earned!

The third servant is a different story! He was unfaithful in every respect. He “went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.” This action took more work than just putting in the bank. He has earned nothing because he did nothing with his abilities or the generous gift of his Master.

So what about us? What is Jesus’ point in telling this parable? He wants each one of us to ask ourselves, “Do I understand that I am a gifted servant of the Master? Am I living like it? How am I using the gifts my Master has entrusted to me? How faithful have I been in using those gifts?”

Isn’t it interesting that Jesus told the parable the way He did? Why wasn’t the five talent guy the unfaithful one? He had all the gifts! If he didn’t use them, wouldn’t that be the greater crime? Wouldn’t that have a bigger impact? Maybe, but then each of us could easily say, “What a shame, but I am not a five talent person! So, I’m sure the Lord is not expecting quite so much of me. It is no real tragedy if I don’t use my gifts. They’re small. They aren’t that useful anyhow. I’m sure He’ll understand.”

Notice how Jesus pictures the least-gifted servant as the unfaithful one. Why? Was it because he had fewer gifts to begin with? Was it because he used his gifts for some evil purpose? No! He was unfaithful because he did not use his gifts at all. Jesus is reminding us, “No matter what your gifts may be, you are to use them faithfully. Your gifts may be different than someone else’s. Your gifts may be less than someone else’s. But each one of you has gifts—gifts especially entrusted to you from God! Be faithful with what you do have.” That is what Jesus expects, and that should be our goal!

A teacher recently mentioned the best explanation she had received for not turning in homework. A boy told her, “My family and I went on a hot-air balloon ride and we were going to crash because there was too much weight in the basket. In order to save our lives, I had to throw my homework out, and it worked.”

A marvelous bit of imagination on the part of this student … but, it was still an excuse – an excuse for not getting work done.

What reason do you give for not returning your gifts, whether in service to the Lord or in offerings for the Lord’s ministries? From those with fewer gifts: “I don’t have much. Let those with greater gifts than I have support the church, I have nothing to give!” From those with greater gifts: “So what if I’ve been blessed with 20 talents, and give as if I only had two. At least I’m giving something! Talk to those who give nothing. I’m doing my share to meet the budget and then some!” From others: “I’m tired. I’m worn. I’m weak. I have no energy, no time, no money, nothing left to give.” Oh, how we like to make excuses – they may be imaginative, they may appear real, but they are just excuses for not getting God’s work done!

This is between you and your Master: are you being faithful? What motivates you? Are you giving just to fill a need, to meet a budget, to run a church? Or are you giving to your generous Master by returning a portion of the generous gifts He has given to you? Jesus wants the latter. How are you using the gifts the Lord has given you? Do you think first of serving yourself or your Lord? Do you, as a gifted servant, have the same priorities as your Master? Have your gifts flowed from a good heart or a grudging one? Have you focused on faithfulness in accordance with your gifts?

How will the Master respond when He returns? We see our failings as His servants, here and in other places. How could He miss them? We bow our heads. We plead for His mercy. We repent. Yet, we can be assured of our gracious and generous Master’s response!

Jesus, our Lord and Master, has taken away all of our sins. His blood covers our unfaithfulness, along with our excuses and our lack of gratitude and generosity. He paid the purchase price for all our laziness. He served us by saving us. “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). Jesus has made us more than His servants. Paul says, “The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ” (Romans 8:16-17).

We cling to the promise, “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). He accepts our lives of service as a living sacrifice. We can offer it in joy. Ultimately, He will welcome us into the joy of heaven, but this greatest gift does not come to us because of our faithful service. Rather, it is because of Jesus’ service to us. Scripture is clear, “It is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

How generous our Master is! How gifted we are! How many wonderful opportunities for giving offerings, supporting ministry and serving the Lord and His Church that God presents for you here at Epiphany! Let us respond in using the gifts He entrusts to us with joy! When we do, we will never have to regret what might have been! Whether your instrument is a piccolo or tuba, a hammer or computer, your voice, smile or quiet prayers, let’s all be eager to hear our Master say upon His return, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.” Amen.

Christ’s Love, Our Calling: Different Gifts, Same Grace at Epiphany on September 25, 2011