Matthew 25:14-30
We read this story every three
years, but we remember it frequently because of the use of the word talent.
This year I wanted to learn more about talents in the Bible. A talent is a
weight measurement, like a pound or a ton. Talents of silver and gold were
often shaped in disks or loafs, like weightlifting plates or housebuilding
bricks.
There were different weight
amounts for different materials. A talent of silver weighed about 50 pounds. A
talent of gold weighed 130 pounds. At today’s rate, a pound of gold is worth $15,400.
Multiplied out, a talent would be worth about $2 million. It is such a large
amount of money that it is mostly an accounting amount, used within the banks,
and transferred between accounts and account owners.
A gold bullion brick weighs about
27 pounds. What would you do if someone gave you a stack of 30 or 12 or even 6 gold
bullion bars? That is what the three slaves were dealing with. This amount of
money is H-U-G-E!
In the parable Jesus tells, the
man gives his slaves these huge amounts of money to manage: $10 million, $4
million, and $2 million. The first two slaves invest the money and double it,
giving the man $20 and $8 million in return on investment. The third slave
believes the man to be cruel, and he is afraid to lose the money. So, he does
what he thinks is the safest thing; he buries it.
… After thinking about the
physical appearance of this much gold, I started thinking about the man who
would trust his slaves with this much money.
Would I like to work for a man
who trusted me with that much money? I confess that I might be more like the
third slave. I might be tempted to play it safe. I also know myself and that I
would do enough research to find ways to invest the money and increase it.
We can assume the man knew these
slaves, he knew they had lots of experience in wealth management, and he
believed they could increase his wealth significantly. The man trusted these slaves
with his money.
How, then do we understand the
fear experienced by the third man? “I know you to be a harsh man, and I was
afraid, so I took the safest route I could think of.” Is the man really a
scoundrel? Is he Vito Corleone, the Godfather? If so, then the third slave is
right to be afraid, and we should be wondering how the first two slaves managed
to double their money. Were they unscrupulous as well?
Or, is the third slave simply
paranoid, afraid he will fail, so he refuses to take any risks? The man
criticizes the slave for the characterization of him as harsh and judgmental. Is
the man really hard or is he simply responding negatively to the accusation of
being harsh?
… I noticed something else this
time I read the story. The man doesn’t give any instructions to the slaves. He
just entrusts all that wealth to them. Hmmm, now we have some things to think
about.
Maybe the image of God is what it
important in this parable. The first two slaves did not fear the man. They
happily worked to invest his money and increase the investment. The man praises
them highly for their work.
If this is an image of God, then
God is generous with us, and blesses us when we invest in divine purposes. God
blesses us even if we don’t have millions of dollars to play with, even if we
are doing simple things like feeding hungry people.
Our image of God is often based
on our life experiences. If bad stuff happens to us and we blame God for it,
then God is severe and punishing. This kind of God delights in judging our sins
and loves to condemn us for them.
If bad stuff happens to us and we
rely on God to help get us through the bad stuff, then God is loving and forgiving.
This kind of God delights in seeing us grow in faith and in having a strong
relationship with us.
… Mike and I love to watch the
various versions of Dicken’s A Christmas
Carol. We enjoy the full range, Alastair Sim, George C Scott, Patrick
Stewart, Kelsey Grammer, and the Muppets, all very different and engaging
tellings of the story.
I think we can use the characters
of Ebenezer Scrooge and Bob Cratchit to see these different views of God. Scrooge
has a really negative view of life because he had a difficult childhood. Despite
being wealthy, he saves every penny he can, makes his employees work for
pennies as well. He says “Bah, humbug” about Christmas. He says, “Let the poor
die to reduce the surplus population.”
In contrast, Bob Cratchit and his
family are poor, barely getting by. Tiny Tim has a crippling disease. The older
daughter works as a housemaid to support herself. They go to church. Their
Christmas dinner is a humble meal, with a small goose that provides each person
a few bites of meat. As poor as they are, they pray before they eat, asking God’s
blessing on everyone, including Ebenezer Scrooge.
Scrooge’s view of God is that God
let bad things happen when he was young, and God won’t help him now. The
Cratchit family believes in God’s presence with them and that God provides what
they need every day.
I assume you know the rest of the
story, that the three spirits of Christmas lead Scrooge to reevaluate his life
experiences and he becomes a believer in Christmas. He doesn’t specifically
pray or praise God, but his worldview has been altered. He has repented. He suddenly
becomes generous and caring.
This week, I hope you think about
the ways in which your view of life and the world reflect what you believe about
God. And think about the ways in which your view of God reflects your view of
life.
I hope you believe that God is generous
and trusting in your abilities, your talents. I hope you recognize the gifts God
has given you to use for God’s purposes. I hope you count your blessings every
day and give thanks for them.
Please pray with me: Generous
God, you give us more than we can ever use. Lead us to be thankful. Show us
ways to use those gifts to help others. Above all, we thank you for your love
given to us by the talent-load. Amen
