“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. Therefore take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.” (Matthew 25:24-28)
“And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’ Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your
oil for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise answered, saying, “No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but rather go to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy,
the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.” (Matthew 25:6-10)
Different stewards–one was the keeper of a talent,the others keepers of the lamp. Two different scenarios–one out of fear mishandled his talent, the others out of laziness mishandled their oil. But the result is the same. When the master returned to take his due–in the case of talents, the interest; in the case of the virgins, his bride–When the master returned, the foolish stewards were left without. They had been poor stewards of what they were given and they would bear the punishment.
I don’t think I really recognized what stewardship meant until it bit me in the face a couple of days ago. Stewardship means that what I have been given, I have been given in trust. I have a responsibility to use it in the way for which it was given me. When I am given a scholarship to go to school, I have a responsibility to use that money to pay for school. When I am given charge over a ministry, I have a responsibility to lead that ministry in the best way possible. When I am elected to a position, I have a responsibility to fulfill the promises I made. Every privilege is a trust. And all too often, I have broken that trust.
I am ashamed, I am overwhelmed. I have broken my promises, misused the gifts I have received, taken advantage of privileges. I have said that I was rich–I am intelligent, I have enough money, I can do it on my own. So proud of myself, so consumed by my own self worth, I sat back and did nothing. And I did not see that I am “wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.” (Revelation 3:17)
But there is hope for me, however pitiful I may be. Revelation 3 continues: “I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see.” I must come to see myself
as worthless, pitiful, broken, and blind. And instead of clinging to self for my worth, I must cling to Christ–recognizing that He is the only one who can clothe my nakedness, open my eyes, give me anything worth having.
And while the virgins of Matthew 25 were shut out, Revelation 3 offers another fate: “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. Behold I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” By His grace and that alone, I am welcomed to the wedding feast. And unlike the steward of Matthew 25 who was cast into the lake of everlasting fire,
Christ offers another eternity: “To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My father on His throne.”