Joyce Kim's Blog
Parable of the Talents / Jul 2, 05:02 AM
i love listening to erwin mcmanus’ sermons—they’re so simple but really deliver truth and conviction that i find are lacking in a lot of other pastors’ messages. anyway, this sermon is on the parable of the talents in matt. 25:14-28 which reads:
14 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. 15 And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey. 16 Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. 17 And likewise he who had received two gained two more also. 18 But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord’s money. 19 After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.
20 “So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.’ 21 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ 22 He also who had received two talents came and said, ‘Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.’ 23 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’
24 “Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.’
26 “But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. 27 So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.
29 ‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
God has created and entrusted within us the capacity to do good or evil. and for those who claim to follow the heart of God, he has entrusted us with his goodness as well as the capacity to do good. it is shortsighted to think that christianity and the pursuit of holiness is purely an individual system/process, as well as to view God in relation to ourselves. this image leaves out God’s Kingdom and his purpose for such a Kingdom on earth. when we neglect to explore and utilize our gifts/talents/capacity to do good, we are neglecting to follow what God wants from us, which is to build his Kingdom. we are essentially robbing God of what he has entrusted to us, of being active producers of his good in this world. God asks us, his servants, to choose to do good, to produce good; choosing to be neutral, to confine your potential towards your individual sanctification and holiness is, in God’s eyes, just as wicked as choosing to do evil.
my thoughts are everywhere (as they always are) but im convicted and really believe that as Christians, as Christ followers, we are given so much from God—not only the good news of the Gospel message, but also the capacity and potential and gifts that supplement his goodness for the purpose of his Kingdom. and i am tired of getting fat off of what i have been given, and convicted to get out of the “neutral” territory. i think the Gospel message gets cheapened and narrowed when we only view it as something that is useful only to our own personal holiness. i also think that what are talents are and how we use them is also very confined and culturally shaped—what i mean is that i believe God has given us more creative freedom to do good, but a lot of times this creativity is crushed or stifled when other christians prescribe culturally “acceptable” ways of doing good or following God. what this passage tells me is instead of focusing on what other people are doing and being critical of whether they’re doing it the “right” way or not, we should be concerned with whether we or not we are satisfying what God has given us to the fullest extent for his Kingdom. enough finger pointing (and i’m working on that as well!) and more encouraging ourselves and others to actively generate good for God in this fallen world.
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hey joyce! my name is chris – i’m just finishing up my “mission year” in chicago . . . i gotta quick question for you . . . are you korean?
i hope all’s goin well your way. ^^
By chris / Jul 5, 01:13 PM / #