Introduction

Some of God’s best work begins with something small. A seed the size of a freckle. A lunch packed by a mom. A shepherd boy with a sling. A widow with two coins. Our Father loves to place grace in small packages and watch courage unwrap them. You may feel your life is “just” a handful of minutes between meetings, “just” a few dollars after bills, “just” a quiet kindness in a loud world. But in the hands of the Master, “just” becomes “joy.” He delights to entrust us with ordinary moments that are pregnant with eternal meaning.

Have you noticed how fear talks us into burying what God gave us? Fear says, “Not enough.” Comparison whispers, “Not like them.” Shame mutters, “Not after what you’ve done.” But the Master’s voice is different. He calls you by name. He knows your frame. He gives according to your ability and smiles as you step forward. He isn’t looking for flashy. He is looking for faithful. Not perfect performance, but patient obedience. Not impressing the crowd, but pleasing the King.

Your kitchen table can become a pulpit of hospitality. Your quiet prayers can become thunder in heaven. Your Monday workbench can become an altar of worship. A text of encouragement, a faithful tithe, a well-timed apology, a bold invitation—seeds in the soil of trust. The ground may feel hard. The sky may look gray. Yet the Master is near, and His pockets are deep with mercy.

I love the simple strength of this line from Martyn Lloyd-Jones: “Faith is the refusal to panic.” When fear shouts, faith stays steady. When risk rises, faith remembers Who holds the reins. When you feel small, faith says, “My Master is not.” In a world that applauds ease, Jesus applauds effort. In a culture that chases applause, He seeks allegiance. He does not measure you by the size of your platform, but by the surrender of your heart.

Today we open a parable that hums with hope and humbles our hearts. It’s a story about a generous Master, ordinary servants, and the breathtaking outcomes of trust. It will call us to put what we have to work, to take wise, worship-filled risks, and to aim for nothing less than the smile of our Savior. If your hands feel empty, bring them. If your courage feels thin, bring it. If your past feels heavy, bring that too. The Master knows what to do with all of it.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 25:14–30 (KJV)

14 For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. 15 And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey. 16 Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. 17 And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two. 18 But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money. 19 After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them. 20 And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more. 21 His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. 22 He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them. 23 His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. 24 Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: 25 And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine. 26 His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: 27 Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. 28 Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. 29 For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. 30 And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Opening Prayer: Gracious Master, thank You for trusting us with Your gifts, Your gospel, and Your good name. Calm our anxious thoughts. Kindle fresh courage. Give us hearts that trust You, hands that work with love, and eyes that look for Your return. Teach us to be wise with little and faithful with much. Today, speak to us by Your Spirit through Your Word. Let fear lose its grip, let faith find its feet, and let our aim be Your joy. We ask this in the strong name of Jesus. Amen.

Trust the Master and put what you have to work

The scene is simple. A master trusts his servants with his wealth and then leaves. Time passes. He returns and asks what they did with it. Two put the money to work. One buried it. That is the heart of it. Something is put in our hands. Something is expected. There is trust placed on us, and there is a day when that trust is reviewed.

This is not pressure used to crush the soul. It is honor. The master treats the servants like partners. He hands over what belongs to him and lets them act. He gives them room. He gives them time. He gives them enough to do real work. This is how grace looks in daily life. We are not spectators. We are not stuck. We are trusted people who can act, build, plan, and bless.

When the servants start to trade, they make simple moves. They do not wait for perfect weather. They do not wait until they feel amazing. They take what they have and move it into the stream of life. They trade. They try. They add effort. And their effort bears fruit. This is how faith works in plain clothes. A step. Then another step. Then the quiet strength of staying with it.

Many of us long for clear signs and big moments. The parable points to steady hands instead. It highlights the patient work that happens when a person believes the master means what he says. A person who trusts soon learns how to start. And starting often teaches more than waiting does.

The one who hid his talent had a story in his head. He called the master harsh. He feared loss more than he loved obedience. That story shaped his choice. And that choice cost him more than he knew. The parable helps us check the story in our own heads. What do we believe about the One who gave us life and time and truth? What story rules us when we decide what to do with our days?

The master knows his servants. He gives “to every man according to his several ability.” That line sits like a solid rock in the passage. He is not careless. He is not guessing. He does not give five to the one who can bear one. He does not give one to the one who can bear five. He assigns with knowledge. That means the portion in your hands is not random. It fits you. It is sized to your frame. It has a wise purpose.

This matters for how we work. When you receive a trust that fits you, you can step into it. You do not need to borrow someone else’s path. You do not need to mimic another person’s pace. You look at what is in your hands and ask, What would faithful action look like today? It may look like tending a task list with care. It may look like serving a family with patience. It may look like sharing a word about Christ when a door opens. It may look like managing money with clean books and a clear plan. It may look like showing up on time and keeping promises.

This is also where “his goods” needs to be remembered. The master puts his goods into their hands. The money is his. The growth is for him. The servants are stewards. That changes the weight we carry. We act with grit, but we do not act alone. We plan, but we do not pretend to be owners. We labor, but we do not claim the glory. The owner has a will. The owner has a timeline. The owner has a purpose larger than our view. Our role is to line up with that will and work with what he gave.

Working with what we have calls for ordinary tools. A notebook. A calendar. A budget. A shelf of well-used Scripture. A few trusted friends. Time set aside to think and pray. Small habits that honor God and serve people. These are like the trades the servants made. They take the deposit and move it into motion. Motion tends to invite more motion. Seed money grows into a business. A first conversation grows into a friendship. A short prayer said every day grows into a steady walk with God.

Notice how the text shows effort over time. “After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them.” There is a long arc. Faithfulness breathes in long arcs. It survives dull days and hard weeks. It keeps showing up. This is where trust becomes visible. You keep at it because you believe the Lord will return and review with perfect fairness. That belief keeps the hand to the plow.

Look at the way the first two servants act. “Went and traded.” Simple words. They speak of initiative. They show a mind that makes plans and a will that takes action. They do not have full control of the market. They do not control the weather. They control their choices, their effort, their honesty, their patience. They learn along the way. They pay attention. They likely make mistakes and then adjust. This is how wise work grows. You start with what you know. You do the next right thing. You keep a long view.

In our day, “trading” may look like learning a skill that multiplies your service. It may be taking a class so you can mentor students with skill. It may be reading a good book on leadership so you can guide a team with care. It may be setting up a weekly time to share the Scriptures with a neighbor. It may be making a plan for giving that is consistent and cheerful. Good trading always has a plan. It names goals. It sets rhythms. It watches over the little leaks that drain away fruit.

Good trading also honors limits. Sleep matters. Health matters. Sabbath rest matters. People who try to wring seven days of output from every week soon break something. God wired us for work and for rest. Trust shows up in the way we lay our work down at night and pick it up again in the morning. Trust shows up in the way we say yes to the right things and no to the wrong things. A focused life bears more fruit than a frantic life.

There is also a moral layer to faithful trading. The servants trade with their lord’s money, not their own. That asks for clean hands. That asks for truth in the inner parts. Shortcuts poison the field. Lies are expensive. Greed eats the harvest. People who walk in the light gain a steady conscience. A steady conscience helps you think clearly. Clear thinking helps you work wisely. This is how small acts of integrity guard the whole farm.

The text gives us the man who hid the money as a caution. He says he was afraid. He says the master is hard. His view of the master drives him into a hole in the ground. That is a vivid picture of how fear can shrink a life. Fear is a feeling, but it is also a teacher. It teaches us to freeze. It teaches us to seek safety over faithfulness. It keeps us from the very things that would have helped us grow.

There are signs that we are hiding what was given to us. We keep putting off a good step until later. We wait for flawless conditions. We speak of big plans but never write the first line. We talk ourselves out of needed action with long lists of what might go wrong. We shrug when a clear good work crosses our path. We call caution wisdom when it is really unwillingness to act.

The master’s answer to the third servant is interesting. He says the servant could have put the money with the bankers. That would have brought some return with little effort. This tells us something kind. When you cannot do much, you can do something. There is always a way to move the ball down the field. You can pray for a person by name. You can write a note that lifts a tired soul. You can set aside a small gift for gospel work. You can show up and carry a corner of the load. The bank path is not glamorous. It is still faithful.

Fear often wears a mask. It appears as cynicism. It appears as endless analysis. It appears as constant comparison. It can appear as a polished reason that says, “I would start if only…” When you catch this mask, speak truth to your heart. The master who gave you the trust will also help you use it. He sees. He knows. He rewards. The way out of fear is a small act of obedience done today.

Practice helps. Set a tiny goal and meet it. Set another and meet it. Stack these small wins. They raise your courage. They make faith feel doable. Invite a friend to ask you how it is going. Tell them the one thing you will do this week. Tell them when. Tell them why. When people who love you ask about your steps, the steps become real. Over time this breaks the habit of burying what God gave.

The word that rings like music in the passage is “Well done.” The praise is clear. “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.” That is the approval every servant longs to hear. It is not loud in the world’s ears. It is loud in heaven. It comes with more trust and a welcome into the master’s joy. Notice that joy. The reward is not only more work. The reward is communion. The servant is ushered into the gladness of the one he served.

This joy starts now. Whenever you take what you have and put it to work under God’s eye, you taste a bit of that joy. The work itself carries a sweetness. You sense that your life lines up with the purpose of your Lord. You feel clean. You feel awake. You feel alive to the presence of God in ordinary things. Tasks that once felt grey now carry meaning, because they are offered to him.

There is also growth. “Thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things.” Faithfulness increases capacity. A person who manages a small budget with care becomes able to manage a larger one. A person who teaches ten well becomes able to teach fifty well. A person who prays for a neighbor by name becomes able to carry a city in prayer. The Lord loves to entrust more to those who prove true with less.

This is not a scheme to gain more for ourselves. It is a pathway into service that increases. Hands that learn to carry ten learn to carry twenty. Shoulders grow strong under a yoke that fits. Hearts learn to love what God loves. The increase is not only in tasks. It is also in wisdom, patience, and hope. People who live this way notice God’s hand more often. They see answers. They see doors open. They collect stories of his faithfulness that steady others.

The closing lines of the parable are sober. Loss comes to the one who would not act. The gift is taken and given to the one who proved faithful. That line sits with weight on the soul. It urges us to stop wasting time. It teaches us that what we use grows, and what we refuse withers. It pushes us toward a life that treats every day like a trust.

No one has to guess about the master’s heart. He speaks. He praises faithfulness. He assigns more to the faithful. He brings his people into his joy. He calls sloth what it is. He warns with love. He acts with justice. All of this shapes how we live between his first coming and his return. We live like people who have been trusted. We live like people who will give an account. We live like people who want his smile more than anything.

So take stock of what sits in your hands. Name it. Thank God for it. Ask him how to use it. Make a plan that fits your season. Act on the plan this week. Review and adjust. Keep going. Keep praying. Keep looking for his help. Keep your ear tuned for the day when his voice says, “Well done.”

Take wise risks with the little entrusted to you

Risk steps into the scene through simple verbs ... View this full PRO sermon free with PRO