Are You Being Faithful?

Are you being faithful?

Matthew 25:14-30

“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. Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. And likewise he who had received two gained two more also. But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord’s money. After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them. “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.’ 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.’ 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.’ 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.’ “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. And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.’ “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. So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents. ‘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. And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Jesus gives us this parable so that we can see our need for personal preparation for the coming of Lord Jesus. Additionally, it serves as a template for us to see if we are being a faithful or unfaithful servant to the Master. In these verses we see that two were prepared and faithful, while one was unprepared and unfaithful.

The meaning of faithful from the Merriam Webster dictionary:

1. steadfast in affection or allegiance: referring to loyalty. As in, a faithful friend

2. firm in adherence to promises or in observance of duty: referring to being conscientious. As in, a faithful worker

3. given with strong assurance: referring to a binding act. As in, a faithful promise

The talents in these verses represent something of value, which relates to everything that God has entrusted to you, whether it be your job, home, children, money, and most importantly; the things you do for His kingdom. Are you being faithful?

God has given each of us stewardship over many things and He expects us to show a profit when Christ Jesus returns. Now that profit is not how much you have grown your bank account or how large you have grown your family, but it is in how you have profited the Kingdom of God:

• Have you raised your children to worship and honor God?

• Have you spoken to anyone about Christ Jesus?

• Have you used your skills, abilities, and material possessions to serve in your church or community?

That is where the profit is: pointing souls to Christ Jesus.

From these scriptures we can see that God gives to us only what our abilities can handle. And also notice that each servant was not expected to produce the same results: the servant with one talent was not expected to produce five, the one with two was not required to produce two more, and likewise for the one with five; but there were to show some gain from the task given them.

So, we see that God will not place a burden upon you that is greater than you can stand. For Jesus tells us in Matthew 11:30 that His yoke is easy and His burdens are light. 1 John 5:3 reaffirms what Jesus says:

For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.