Another Look at the Parable of the Talents

In the light of teaching on God's grace, I have some issues with the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25. Traditionally, this text has been used by legalistic churches in order to "press gang" beleivers into doing "something" for God. Even though some beleivers have come to church with all kinds of hurts, sorrows and burdens - this has not stopped many preachers from using this text to patronise Christians into making efforts to put on, what can only be described, as a religious performance.

We often read this parable in the context of real-life, whereas it is simply a means by which the Lord likens the kingdom of God to something that we can relate to here on earth. In verse 14 we read about the master going on a journey. This gives us the idea that God is leaving us and that we are left to make decisions for ourselves without any help from Him.

The Master’s Plan

There is no mention of the master sitting down with the servants and discussing a plan of action. No, they are just given talents, with no mention of what to do with them or what is expected of them, before he leaves them to their own devices. I know that God can make it appear that He has left us for a while, as a means of a test, but the Bible says that He will never leave us not foresake us.

We can get the impression from this parable that God expects us to know His will from the outset: to come up with clever and creative ideas of how to use the gifts, talents and abilities that He has given us, which may as yet still be lying dormant. We are expected to somehow find the endurance to see these things through to completion.

Isn’t this the way that many Christians behave in church? Many beleiveers, are in a state of confusion and frustration, eager to experience a satisfying relationship with God. We are told that God has a plan for our lives and that we will never be satisifed until we discover what this plan is and we allow this plan to unfold in our lives.

Confused beleivetrs often get impatient and take matters into their own hands by deciding how they should serve God. Typically, this will be in the form of the usual perfunctary roles and routines that the church provides.

Jesus spoke to His disciples and told them to tarry (which means wait) for the Holy Spirit in Jerusalem, before they were to take any further action (See Luke 24:49). How many Chrsitans are inclined to tarry and wait for the Holy Spirit before they step out in the name of “serving God?” I suppose this comes from the theory of “starting off small” (see Zec 4:10) when it comes to serving God; but this concept can cause some people to become persuaded to do things in church that they are simply not meant to do.

Talents Given According to AbilityThis parable tells us that the master gave to the servants according to their ability. It is not surprising that the servant with the most talents went away immedietly and made five more. It is also not surprising that the servant with the least talents was too afraid and confused to do anything with what little he was given. There seemed to be no encouragement for this servant, no teaching to tell him that he was accepted the way he was and that he was still loved by the master.

But rather, this "unprofitable servant" was told that he would be thrown into outer darkness where there would be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt 25:20). This has been assumed to mean that if a believer does not serve in the church, even if it is under duress, then he will be thrown into hell. But perhaps "weeping and gnashing of teeth" actually refers to a life of frustration and disapointment, sort of an, “Arrrgggghhhh!!!!”.What I Believe This Parable Means

Fear - The Reason for Disobedience

This parable is intended to highlight the condition of fear and unbelief. The key to this is found in Matthew 25:25.

When a person succumbs to fear, they fail to act upon what is right for them in the moment, and they make excuses to reinforce their attitude. The Bible calls these excuses, "imaginations" (2 Cor. 10:5 KJV), "arguments" (2 Cor. 10:5 NKJV), "warped philosophies" (2 Cor. 10:5 MSG), "deceptive fantasies" (2 Cor. 10:5 Phillips) and "arrogant reckonings" (2 Cor. 10:5 Weymouth).

When believers are conditioned with wrong beliefs, they adopt an attitude of fear, doubt, suspicion and self-protectionism; their whole outlook on life is one of minimising further harm and loss, and as such, this leads them to veer on the side of caution. The Message translation calls this person a "play-it-safe". (See Matthew 25:28 MSG).

28 "'Take the thousand and give it to the one who risked the most. And get rid of this "play-it-safe" who won't go out on a limb.
Matthew 25:28 MSG

Serving God With Wrong Motives

Due to their fear, when opportunities are presented to these people – they fail to act upon them. Then, they have the audacity to blame God because He seems to do nothing to bless them. Such people might be actively serving in church, giving offerings, trying to keep rules and do good works. But such efforts done without faith and love are to no avail.

Anxious Christians can become compelled to do good works, purely out of a want for approval: both God’s approval and the approval of other people. People who serve in the church with wrong motives, become frsutrated when people do not go out of their way to show their appreciation of their efforts. They also get mad at God when they fail to get blessed - when they want and how they want. This is tantamount to spiritual blackmail. Little do these people realise that their good works are not authorised by God, and therefore, are treated as a replacement to God’s grace as a means of justification. (See Romans 4:4).

Missed Opportunities

Such people might have opportunities all around them, and yet, because of their unbelief, they cannot see the value or relevance of those opportunities. These people fail to make a postive start in life, because they feel overwhelmed by the circumstances that surround them, and feel underwhelmed by what they see as a lack of their own ability. This situation is also addressed in Zechariah 4:10.

There is Now No Condemnation

It appears, at first, that the unprofitable servant has been condemned by his master, who is representative of our Lord. But we read in the New Testament that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Rom. 8:1). Therefore, the parable of the talents is highlighting the act of self-condemnation. The believer condemns himself when he looks at his past failures, his own apparent lack of ability and fails to trust in the power of God because of this.

A Matter of Trust

Jesus Himself told us in John 15:5 that He is the Vine and we are the branches. When we give our lives to the Lord, He does not condemn us, He forgives our sin and sees us as being right with Him: He grafts us into the vine, so to speak. As branches, we do not break away from the Vine because of wrong behaviour. We break away from the Vine when we fail to trust in God because of our unbelief and fear, because we try to trust in ourselves and our own judgement and ability; fear is a means by which we disconnect ourselves from the love, peace, joy and wisdom of God. Fear can be likened to making a decision to trust in man, rather than trust in God. It is not God who throws people into outer darkness -- they throw themselves into outer darkness: they disobey God by not trusting in Him. If we do not trust God, we fail to have the faith that we need in order to allow the Holy Spirit to move freely in our lives.

According to Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionary , the word translated “believes” in the New Testament, is the Greek verb pisteuō (G4100). This Greek word means:

From G4102; to have faith (in, upon, or with respect to, a person or thing), that is, credit; by implication to entrust (especially one’s spiritual well being to Christ): - believe (-r), commit (to trust), put in trust with.

When a person “believes” in someone – they mean that they trust that person. Trust is a personal thing. So when Jesus talks about believing in Him – He means that we should put our trust in Him. We cannot trust Jesus in a state of fear.

Joseph Prince on Self-Condemnation

Pastor Joseph Prince has preached about scriptural text which at first appears to be condemnation from the Lord, when in fact, it is highlighting self-condemnation. A good example of this can be found in the message of Communion found in first Corinthians 11:25-28.

25 In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me."
26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes.
27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.
1 Corinthians 11:25-29 nkjv

Condemnation from the Pulpit

How many times do we hear condemnatory messages from the pulpit? People who are in a state of fear are not in a state of fear because they want to be. Fear is something that is instilled in people over a period of time. Quite often, a traumatic situation is all it takes to drag a once-happy person into a prolonged state of fear. I do not want to condone fear in any way – all I want to say is that we should reach out to fearful people in love, with compassionate understanding. We must understand that there are emotional states of despair and apathy that many people find themselves in, not by choice, but because that is how they have been conditioned to think. These unfortunate people cannot be brought out of a negative emotional state though intimidation.