Daily Bread

Jesus told his disciples this parable: ‘For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.

‘After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, “Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.”

‘And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, “Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.”

‘Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, “Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.”

‘But his master replied, “You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” ’

In this story, a 'talent' is not a natural ability but a bag of gold that is roughly equivalent to twenty years’ wages for a labourer. We're talking a LOT of money here, and this parable was designed to shock and challenge those who listened to it.

As with the previous parable (see yesterday's devotion), this one has gained a lot of different interpretations, the most common of which is that it is a moral imperative that we are to use that which God has given us for good in the world that we might gain favour when Jesus one day comes again, however, despite preaching this message in the past, I'm not convinced it is the whole picture.

Bringing the parable into the present both for Jesus' original listeners and for us, there is something in it about the generosity of God, and perhaps the clue to unlocking the parable is in the words of the third servant when he says, "Here, you have what is yours." and gives what has been so generously bestowed back to to the master. Note that the other two slaves do not give back the talents! The actions of the third servant are a blatant rejection of the master's generosity and worse, the servant casts aspersions on him!

If we relate this to the place and time in which Jesus was ministering, there were indeed those who listened to his message and received the generous gift of grace on offer, yet there were those who made excuses and 'gave it back', rejecting Jesus and worse, casting him in a bad light.

We have been (and are being given) the gift of life in all its fullness through Christ. The love poured into us from God is precious and valuable, and if we allow the Spirit to work in us, this love will multiply and overflow from us to the world — no matter who we are or what our circumstances. Does it take some effort on our part, yes, probably! But we are not being rewarded based on our effort, but our obedience as humble vessels for God's love.

Holy God
Today I accept
your gift of grace
and your Spirit
of generosity.
Pour into my heart
your unlimited love
that it might overflow
from me to others
and to the world
around me.
Now and always.