PARABLES OF JESUS || The Talents

The Kingdom of heaven was exemplified in many teachings of Jesus during His ministry on earth. Today, we shall examine another parable used to depict the appearance of God’s Kingdom.

“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. 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.’ [Matthew 25: 14–30, NKJV]

As at the time this parable was told, a talent was used as a unit of currency, with it having a value of about 6,000 denarii. This money was equivalent to the wages of about 15 years (or more) worth of labour. Analyzing this, we can see that possessing a talent was a huge deal as it was extremely valuable.

Therefore, let us examine some lessons under three headings.

The Master

The master (or lord) of the household assigned talents to his servants before departing to a far country. These talents were given according to each servants’ capabilities for reasons.

Likewise, Jesus Christ who is our Master and Lord has given those under His tutelage, specific gifts and abilities according to our different capacities. For He knows each of us better than anyone and designates unique responsibilities to us accordingly. No two persons are the same and can exercise their gifts in the same way, even if they possess similar gifts (e.g. two teachers cannot teach or impart knowledge in the same manner). Hence, we are expected to constantly align ourselves with Jesus and seek His wisdom so that we will be able to use our gifts efficiently to His glory.

The Servants

Anyone who totally submits (spirit, soul, body) to Jesus Christ becomes His servant. Just as servants wait and serve their masters, we are expected to perform the will of our Master here on earth using the gifts He has bestowed on us.

As the master left for a far country in the parable, Jesus departed this earth but only for a short while. Though we do not know the exact hour He will return, we rest in the assurance of His Second Coming where He will return to rule the whole world [John 14;1–3, Acts 1:11, Revelations 3:11,16:15]. As such, it is important for us to serve Him dedicatedly while waiting for His grand arrival.

Jesus gave us a mandate before leaving this earth. Famously called the Great Commission, He instructed that all believers preach about the Gospel; His death, burial and resurrection with its link to our salvation. It should not surprise us then that at His return, we will account for the usage of our gifts in accordance to this mandate given before His departure.

Limited Time

Many of us have not realized that we all have limited time on earth. The parable quoted in this text showed that none of the servants knew the time their master would come back from his journey. A tangent to this would be this — no one knows what tomorrow brings.

Some have rough estimates of when a particular feat in their lives should be achieved; education, career, marriage, business etc. Yet, it is important to remember that all we do must be in total alignment with the will of God for us. Regardless of our desires to succeed here on earth, nothing is of more importance when compared to fulfilling God’s purpose for our lives. Nothing is greater than doing all He requires of us during our stay here. Nothing is more precious than dedicating our time and service to Him.

One lesson I have learnt in recent times is this — as long as one is in the centre of God’s will for their lives, a direct or indirect expansion of His Kingdom here on earth occurs. For God wants as many as possible to be saved from eternal damnation and be restored back to Him both now and forever through complete acceptance of Jesus Christ into their lives. Thus, whatever plan He has for an individual also has an effect on another’s restoration to Him.

Having said this, I strongly encourage us to use our talents wisely in the pursuit of God’s Kingdom. We all have been given peculiar gifts and abilities for the service of the One who created us. These valuable gifts were given for His grand purpose and our use/misuse of them will be recompensed when the King returns in glory.