NOV. 13, 2005 PASTOR SCOTT FULLER
ZEPH 1:7; 12-18; PS 90; I THESS 5:1-11; MT 25:14-30
Prepare our hearts, Lord, to receive your Word. Silence in us any voice but your own that in hearing we believe and in believing we obey your will revealed to us in Jesus Christ. Amen.
Dear friends in Christ: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
In Pat Conroy’s book The Great Santini, the author introduces us to Bull Meechum, a pilot in the Marine Corps. Bull runs his family the same way that he runs his squadron of fighters, enforcing strict obedience and demanding devotion to the rules. His word is law, his expectations unconditional, his demand for obedience absolute.
He is, in every sense of the term, a harsh man. Apparently, the novel closely parallels real life. The author’s own father was, in fact, both a Marine Corps fighter pilot and a harsh man.
This, of course, is the same criticism leveled at the master in Jesus’ story from today’s gospel. Preparing for a journey, the man calls three slaves and entrusts them each with a significant amount of money…then leaves. No instructions, suggestions, restrictions, limitations. He simply gives them the gold and goes.
A while later he returns and summons the slaves to settle up. The first proudly presents a 100% return on his trust. The same is true for the second; both are commended, praised and blessed with greater duties. The third slave, though, simply digs up his master’s money where it was buried and returns it with the rebuke, You are a harsh man (and) I was afraid.
One theologian is certain that Jesus did not intend for this parable to be a commentary on God’s relationship with humanity. He does not want us to draw a connection between the rich man and God, or the slaves and us, because, he asserts, God is neither harsh nor demanding. Would you agree with his assessment, that God is neither harsh, nor burdens us with great expectations?
Let’s answer the easy one first. What do we know about God’s expectations of us? Name some commandments that affect our lives.
You shall have no other gods.
You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.
Honor your father and mother.
You shall not kill, commit adultery, steal, bear false witness, or covet.
And what does God promise to do to those who disobey these rules, break the Law, “bury” their treasures? In v. 12 of today’s first lesson, the Lord says, I will punish the people who rest complacently and in v. 17 he says I will bring such distress upon people that they shall walk like the blind. Furthermore, says God, because they have sinned against the Lord, their blood shall be poured out like dust, and their flesh like dung…ouch!!
So, maybe Jesus’ parable is an allegory of God’s relationship with us. The evidence seems to indicate that God runs the world, the way the master ran his slaves, the way the Great Santini ran his family. God’s word is law; God’s expectations unconditional; God’s demand for obedience absolute.
And, lest you’re tempted to blame this divine crankiness on the God of the Old Testament, as if God is somehow different in the new, listen to some of the things said by our gentle Jesus, meek and mild: Turn the other cheek; Love your enemies; and pray for those who persecute you.
And further: those who cause others to sin, says Jesus, should tie a huge stone around their necks and toss themselves into the sea (MT 18:6). Likewise, in MT 24:51, the slave who fails to carry out the master’s will shall be cut in pieces and put with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. And in Jesus’ parable about the wise and foolish bridesmaids, those unprepared were stopped at the door and told by the Master, Truly, I do not know you (MT 25:12).
So, if Jesus intended this parable to represent God’s attitude toward humanity, what’s the message that we’re supposed to hear? One option might be: produce…or else! The two who worked hard are rewarded while the lazy one is chastised – so Jesus could be saying: prove your worth to God and you will be rewarded …do nothing, and you will be punished.
But I’m convinced that a different message is intended here, due to how Jesus lived his life, what he taught and whom he blessed. Here’s the test: was Jesus most likely to befriend: the hard-working scribes or the hard-playing sinners?; the careful Pharisees or the care-free fishermen?; the followers of the law or the flaunters of the law?
I think it’s clear that the Lord’s mission is not about work, nor about God’s desire for productivity or results. Instead, what’s at stake here is the relationship, the connection, the bond between who the Master is, how much the Master gives, what the Master expects… and how the servants respond to the Master’s trust.
Those slaves were given huge sums of money. Can anyone guess what one talent would be worth in today’s terms? We’re told that it’s about 15 year’s wages for a day laborer! If that’s true, the 5-talent slave was entrusted with about $3,000,000.00; the 3-talent slave was given 1.8 million; and the 1-talent guy got about $600,000.00 - certainly not chump change!
The point is that all three were blessed with an incredible gesture of trust. The difference was in how they received it. The one talent slave was suspicious, sure that his master had set him up, was eager even to see him fail. But the other two received their Master’s gold and great expectations…with joy and excitement, with honor and trust, with praise and thanksgiving.
The truth is that all of us have been entrusted with golden gifts, terrific trusts, wondrous wealth – from simply living in this country to the talents that God has entrusted to each person here. A few do things that are meaningful for many, but all of us are equipped to bless a family member or a friend.
From donating to victims of Katrina, to praying with a neighbor, to sharing some food, a hug, an ear or a smile, God’s expectation is that we simply put our gifts to work…period. The interest, the returns, the results, all of that will vary with each person and the Holy Spirit. What’s important is that we use what we’ve been given to glorify God and care for our neighbors.
Does God have great expectations for our lives? Absolutely, but great only in the sense of putting to work the talents and treasures we’ve been given, however big or small. Is God harsh? Absolutely, if harsh means passionately opposed to sin and passionate about establishing God’s Kingdom in our lives and for our neighbors. But it’s also true that God is good and gracious, loving and kind, eager to embrace us, encourage us and embolden us in our serving – forever and ever. Amen.