Matthew 25:14-30
New International Version 1984 (NIV1984)
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.
Anyone
who has received the Word of God has been given a talent yet there are some who
have been given who have chosen not to apply it to their lives. It is true that our salvation is not based on
works, however, if we truly know our Lord and Savior, there is nothing more
that we should want to do than to serve Him.
There should be nothing more that we should want to do than share the
Amazing God with others.
Each of
us has a God given gift to proclaim His love to others. Some do it by preaching the Word of God and
living a life that reflects the teachings they are proclaiming. Some are teachers who touch the lives of
young and old through Bible lessons or Bible studies. Still others leave their home countries and
go share with others as missionaries. What
if you haven’t been given the ability to teach though? What
if moving away is not an option? Sharing
your testimony does not require you to be a preacher, a teacher, nor a
missionary but in Mark 8:38, New
International Version 1984 (NIV1984) we are told what will happen if we hide
the One who saved us. 38 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and
sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes
in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.” These
words are also found in Luke 9:26.
In the
end times, these words are going to be even harder to live by. We have seen from previous passages that a
Christian during these times will be hated yet even so, they should not be
ashamed of the One who came and saved them.
Here we
are now, we complain because people just don’t seem to understand those of us
who call ourselves Christian. They
distort our beliefs, twist our words, mock us, laugh at us, think that we are
just weak, call us radical, and the list goes on. Sometimes, even in these days we can tend to
hide what we truly believe, not speak up for what we know is right. We keep quiet because we don’t want to be
politically incorrect. We say we don’t
want to offend others because they may not have the same belief as us. Stop and think about that. Are we hiding our talents when we keep quiet? I tend to think so.
If you
know the Lord as your Savior, you have been given the opportunity of a life
time. There is nothing more wonderful
than to know and understand the power of His love. You can take that opportunity and share it
with others or you can take and hide it in the ground, bury it. The former will get you eternal life with Him
and the later will get you thrown out into the darkness. Our actions do speak for us, don’t settle for
status quo, be strong, be courageous, step out of your comfort zone, take a
risk for Him.
As you
seek Him may you have the desire within to share with others, shout it from the
mountaintop and in the valley that Jesus Christ is Lord!
Seeking
Him with all my heart,
Sheila
