We make decisions every day, all day long. Some are important, some not so much. Sometimes, we treat the important just like the unimportant because of our value system. Many Christians will spend large amounts of money for children’s lessons to play sports or take classes in the arts field, yet they are stingy when it comes to helping others or giving money to promote the gospel. God has given everyone 24 hours a day and seven days a week. He has given abilities to gain income and serve in the kingdom. What will you do with what He has placed in your hands?
In Luke 19:11-26, we read a parable that Jesus used to teach the importance of using what we have wisely for the Lord. In this setting, it will not be long until He is crucified and later ascends to Heaven. He leaves and returns just as the Master does in this passage. When He leaves, He will give each believer gifts to serve others and bring glory to the Father. He gives each a warning not to waste their gifts.
Luke 19:11-12 “And as they heard these things, he added and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear. He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return.”
In Luke 19:13-14, the nobleman meets with ten servants and gives each of them a certain amount of money to invest so that the amount will increase. In verse 14, we see that they hated the man. They were rejecting his authority over them.
Luke 19:13-14 “And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come. But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us.”
In verse 15, he returns and calls the servants to him to find out “how much every man had gained by trading.” In verses 16-19, the first man reports that he has increased the one pound to ten pounds. The Master is pleased and rewards him with authority over ten cities. The second has increased from five to ten and is rewarded with authority over five cities. These had been diligently working for the Master while he was gone.
Luke 19:16-19 “Then came the first, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds. And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities. And the second came, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds. And he said likewise to him, Be thou also over five cities.”
The next section of this passage shows us the other side of the Master’s dealings with a lazy and faithless servant. We find the servant laying up what had been given him in a napkin. He had been blessed and done nothing with it to please the Master. He admits that he knew the Master was an “austere” man. He was rigid and harsh. What he said he enforced. There would be no mercy at his return. He had been told what to do, and this servant disobeyed.
Luke 19:20-27 “And another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin: For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up that thou layedst not down, and reapest that thou didst not sow. And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow: Wherefore then gavest not thou my money into the bank, that at my coming I might have required mine own with usury? And he said unto them that stood by, Take from him the pound, and give it to him that hath ten pounds. (And they said unto him, Lord, he hath ten pounds.) For I say unto you, That unto every one which hath shall be given; and from him that hath not, even that he hath shall be taken away from him. But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me.”
God has given each of us opportunities and abilities to be used for His glory and His kingdom. One day, Jesus will return, and we will give an account of what we have done with what He has given us. God will judge each of us. For those who have not accepted Jesus as their personal Savior, they will be judged and doomed to hell for all eternity. Christians will be judged according to what we have done with our lives after salvation. While we will still gain Heaven for eternity, there will be a time of sorrow for the things we should have done or how we acted in a way not honoring to Him.
We need to be faithful, wise, and passionate about serving Him. He is the ruler and judge over everyone, and we need to embrace this truth, not reject it. We are not robots. Each time we have the opportunity to please the Savior, we have a choice to accept or reject, to obey or disobey, to serve others, or to be selfish. What will you do?
