THE PARABLE OF THE TALENTS.

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MATTHEW 25: 14-30

 

The Parable is a story with an earthly application and with a HEAVENLY MEANING.

This is a parable that could be confusing in the area of ‘spiritualising’ to find the Heavenly Meaning.

We are to see what was the message that Jesus was passing on.

 

THE MAIN THOUGHT THAT WAS GIVEN IS : “I KNOW EVEN AS I AM KNOWN”.

This is the main message of 1 Corinthians 13: 11-12.

 

What I have known of Christ and God, shall be revealed at my judgement by Christ of the Church; it shall be made known.  What I have known will be made manifest.

 

Matthew 25: 14-30

 

The Master gives to his servants Talents.  To one he gave five, to another he gave two and to one he gave just one talent.  He gave according to what he knew of each servant, what their ability was.

 

He knew what they knew and he gave according to where their knowledge had them standing in their ability.

He knew the ability of the one to whom he gave five.

He knew the ability of the one to whom he have two.

He knew the ability of the one to whom he gave just one.

There was no favouritism but a certain knowledge of each of those servants.

 

The servants at The Time of Judgement of what they had done with what the Master had entrusted them with –

He who was given five, made five more.  He made a profit out of what he had not sown personally, but the talent had been used and it produced another 100%, totalling ten.

The same applied to the other servant who had been given two talents with his total of four.

The Master was very pleased with them both and said that because they had been faithful with the few things that he had given them to be responsible for, that he would give them the responsibility for many things, all of which would be in the boundaries of His Kingdom/Property.

 

We now come to the one, who had been given by the master who knew what he was capable of…..one talent.

All he had to do was to double the one talent.  However he did not attempt even to do that.  If he had the Master would have been pleased, I am sure, because He knew the servant and what he was capable of, i.e. The Master knew how much the servant knew.

 

The one talent servant.  He did not try to explain to his Master why, that he had hidden the talent away from any way or possibility of doubling its value, but straight away jumped in with his story of justification.

 

Why do this if one is not feeling guilty but is believing that they did the right thing?

He knew that he had not done the right thing but excused himself by accusing The Master of what he was like and what he would do, whereby this servant had become very afraid.

The One Talent servant knew what the Master was like and what he would do, to extend the One Talent Servant.  However it would appear that  with this knowledge of His Master, he knew that he would have to abide within the confines of what would be acceptable to The Master.

 

The One Talent servant believed that he knew what His Master thought  and this did not extend to him being able to double the One Talent His Way.

 

“You are a hard man”.  This does not mean that The Master was a miserly, selfish and uncaring person, as the way that the Master rewarded the other servants does not portray this.  Even the entrusting of His property and the giving of Talents to enhance, produce and develop His holdings into His servants hands is not the mind of a hard man.

 

However what this servant did know about His Master was in regard to whatever things that He wanted done, The Master wanted that everything was to be done as He stipulated, all in accordance with His will.  There is NO OTHER WAY, NO ALTERNATIVES: only His Way.

 

It is His Way or else.  He is unrelenting in what is His Way and Will, and this applied to the way Talents are doubled.  There is no softening or agreement of another way, other than His Way and Will.

 

The servant knew his Master’s Power, even to overcome the Law of Sowing and Reaping – You reap and harvest where you have not sown -:  whereas the Law is that one must sow, in order to reap.  A man must see what he is sowing, in order to see what is harvested.

The servant knew that His Master could do this, but he knew that he, himself could not do that and was full of fear.   He thought that the best thing was to keep what he had in order to give it back when the accounting time with the Master came.

 

The Master was very angry with the One Talent Servant, simply because, if he knew what his Master was capable of and His means of doing things, WHY DID HE NOT DO WHAT THE MASTER DID AND HAVE FAITH to see that WHAT HIS MASTER COULD DO would also occur/work for him because HE DID THE WAY OF THE MASTER.

 

For his lack of Faith, for his failing to do what was asked of him by His Master, who already knew  what the servant was able to do – The Master looked for this servant, as He did with the others, to see them operating with the same principles of Righteousness as He did.

It does not say what the other servants did to multiply their talents that were given to them in trust, but as it was successful, they obviously had done as their Master would do.

 

The One Talent Servant did not do as his Master would because he had no confidence in it.

This appears to be a very important factor in this Parable because it called for such a drastic judgement.

 

Jesus spoke God’s Words exactly, how they were to be said, when to speak them and the exact words to use.  Jesus said “Do what I do”.  There is no other way that would please The Father, so do all His Way.

This is the way that all we do for The Father and the furtherance of His Kingdom and the building up of it, depends on us doing it all according to His plan and His Way.

 

Look at Jeremiah 17: 10-11      John 12: 47-50**

 

It does not matter how many talents one has been given, nor does it matter to whom they are given, they are to be multiplied : doubled and doubled again.

BUT THIS WILL ONLY OCCUR WHILE WE WALK IN THE SPIRIT AND DO THE WILL OF GOD THE FATHER AND DO IT HIS WAY.

 

This is so important as it relates to The Spiritual Gift/s that we were given at Baptism with Holy Spirit.

 

AS WE THINK OR KNOW, SO SHALL WE BE KNOWN.

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