Dear friends in Christ, <\/p>\n
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The master of the household doesn\u2019t give equal shares to his servants. One gets five talents of money. One gets two and one gets one. He gives according to their ability. They\u2019re all equally his servants. They\u2019re all equally in the household. But while the master is away, they have different abilities and responsibilities; so the master has different expectations for each one.<\/p>\n
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Our Lord Jesus Christ has ascended into heaven and He\u2019s coming back in glory. This is the \u201cjourney\u201d of the parable. As Christians, you are all equally His servants. You are equally in the household of God. You are equally forgiven, for the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses all of you from all you sin. In the meantime, as you await His return, He has different callings and plans for each of you. And because He gives you certain callings and responsibilities, He entrusts you with various things to get the job done. It\u2019s all part of the plan to keep the world in order and the body of Christ going until the Last Day.<\/p>\n
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We sinners take this truth and interpret it with a glass-half-empty attitude. We sum it up this way: life isn\u2019t fair. That\u2019s true enough. In God\u2019s design, He gives different daily bread to different people. This applies to all sorts of things. Some will have more money and others will have less. Some will have more talent and others will have less. Some will have mechanical skills and some will not. Some will have profound athleticism, while others will be uncoordinated. Some will be beautiful and some will not. Some will have an engaging personality and great conversational skills, while others may struggle to say hello. Some will be given many years of life in this world; some will not. Life isn\u2019t fair. God doesn\u2019t make us identical, but gives us various gifts. Together, we are the body of Christ. Some will be kneecaps and some will be eyes.<\/p>\n
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Different people will have different callings for the good of all.<\/p>\n
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Life isn\u2019t fair, and different people are different because God made them that way. This is hardly profound, but it\u2019s part of the parable. We can add this, too: to whom much is given, much will be expected. If God has given you much, you are a steward of much and called to exercise that stewardship faithfully. If you are blessed with abundant wealth, then it is given to you to use that wealth wisely. If it is abundant talent, then it is given to you to make use of that talent according to God\u2019s will. The same is true for whatever God gives you for use in this life\u2014 strength, brains, beauty, music, whatever. It\u2019s given to be used within your callings in service to others, and in service to God.<\/p>\n
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This should be good news. This should all be a great comfort from this parable. For one thing, you\u2019re already in the house\u2014you\u2019re not trying to earn your way in. You\u2019re part of the household of faith, not because of what you\u2019ve done with what you\u2019ve got, but because Jesus has already redeemed you. What you have is given by God: He\u2019s not running a talent search to see who has the right stuff to buy or sing or dance or run or think his way into the kingdom of heaven. You\u2019re already in for Jesus\u2019 sake. That\u2019s Good News.<\/p>\n
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God has given you what you need to accomplish what you need to do. This doesn\u2019t always mean that things will go easily according to your plan. They might be very difficult, as the Lord teaches you to trust in Him, not just the abilities He\u2019s given. There will be failures along the way, for every parent knows that children also learn by failing and falling; your Father in heaven knows this, too. There will also be times when you learn what you\u2019re not suited for, how God\u2019s gifts to you don\u2019t match up with what you were hoping to do. This, by the way, is what makes the teenage years so frustrating for so many: as youth continue to mature and face impending adulthood, they need to try different opportunities to discover how best to be of service to others with their talents and skills. Not every venture will go well\u2014even when it\u2019s not a matter of right or wrong, and it sometimes means an embarrassing fall on the face. It\u2019s part of discovering what God has shaped you to do, and not to do.<\/p>\n
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But overall, isn\u2019t this all comforting good news? You belong to the Lord for Jesus\u2019 sake. Until His return, He has plans for you. Because He has different plans for different people, He gives different talents and gifts to different people. All of this is designed for the good of all, as each uses what he has\u2014and who he is\u2014in service to those around him.<\/p>\n
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But here\u2019s the rub. As sinners, we don\u2019t see God\u2019s careful planning and entrusting as wise or good. Instead, we often resent it as terribly unfair. We are seldom happy with who we are; better put, we are seldom happy with who God has made us to be.<\/p>\n
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Rather than give thanks for what you are by God\u2019s design, you\u2019ll be tempted to focus on what you aren\u2019t. Dissatisfaction and discontent are two big temptations for the devil. God makes you smart, but you would rather be strong. God makes you musical, but you\u2019d rather be smart. God makes you athletic, but you\u2019d rather be better looking. God gives you wit, but you\u2019d rather have wealth. God gives you wisdom and experience, but you\u2019d rather have youth and bravado.<\/p>\n
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So not only will you be dissatisfied with who you are, but in jealousy you may also resent who others are\u2014who God has made others to be.<\/p>\n
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And when people do find something about themselves that they like, what is the temptation? Pride. Rather than give thanks to God for the gift and use it in service to others, the big temptation will be to use that in service to yourself, to gather recognition, power, wealth and a sense of superiority.<\/p>\n
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Or you may not want to use the talents that you have, reasoning that to do so would take too much time or be embarrassing or below your status.<\/p>\n
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Or it can go this way, too, since the devil has a deep bag of tricky temptations: you\u2019ll be tempted to covet especially what the world glorifies, which may not be at all the greatest gifts for service in the household of faith. Physical beauty and strength are placed on pedestals in this world, where models and athletes are worshiped like gods and goddesses. But how far can you translate beauty and athleticism into service to your fellow man? Both are terribly subject to abuse: those who have them are constantly tempted to use them to build their up their own pride and ego. Riches are another great idol of the world, an attractive god, even though the worshipers of mammon are usually a miserable lot. Compared to beauty, athleticism and wealth, I\u2019ll take integrity, honor and compassion in people any day of the week. But you and I will be tempted to covet those showy things every day.<\/p>\n
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All of this is true, and it\u2019s not good. But none of this pride or resentment or jealousy or discontent or coveting is the most serious facet of the sin.<\/p>\n
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The most serious facet is this: to resent who you are, or to resent what God has entrusted to your stewardship, is to accuse God. It is to accuse God of messing up in what He has given. It is to say that He isn\u2019t wise, that He doesn\u2019t know what He\u2019s doing. It accuses God of being untrustworthy. That is where discontent leads\u2014to the accusation that God is not to be trusted, that He\u2019s not compassionate. What next? When a sinner thinks that God is not compassionate, then he concludes that God is a hard master. A sinner isn\u2019t going to want to serve a God like that. Resenting all that God has done for him, he\u2019ll harden his heart and deny that God has given him anything. That\u2019s what happens to the servant with the one talent in the parable. He\u2019s the only one who thinks the master is hard, and so he does nothing with what the master has given him. By failing to use what the master has entrusted to him, he\u2019s effectively saying, \u201cI don\u2019t want to be your servant anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n
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That is where the devil\u2019s temptations ultimately lead. That\u2019s the goal, to get you to resent God\u2019s gifts for you and others until you say, \u201cThis is a hard God. I don\u2019t want to be His anymore.\u201d It is not God who has become hard, but your heart. At that point, throwing away all of His gifts including forgiveness, you\u2019re opting for outer darkness, for weeping and gnashing of teeth.<\/p>\n
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So, what\u2019s the solution? It\u2019s not just looking at the glass as half-full rather than half-empty, nor is it working to be more thankful and helpful. No, the solution is repentance.<\/p>\n
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Repentance begins with contrition. It begins with confessing resentment towards God for what He hasn\u2019t given you and for what He has given to others. It includes confessing envy, jealousy, coveting, thanklessness and discontent, along with all other sins that would lead you to doubt God\u2019s mercy, to see Him as a hard master for opposing your sinful will, and make you think that leaving His household is a good idea.<\/p>\n
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But repentance doesn\u2019t end with contrition. It moves on to absolution\u2014it moves on to hearing that you are forgiven for all of these sins because of what Jesus has done.<\/p>\n
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And here is what Jesus has done for you. For you and for your salvation, He came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary, and was made man. According to His human nature, He became a specific person with a specific appearance\u2014and, says Isaiah, an unremarkable appearance at that. According to His human nature, He took on weaknesses and frailties of man. He could be weary, hungry, sad\u2026bruised and wounded. But rather than resent those limitations or envy others, He remained without sin, using His humanity fully in service to those around Him\u2014and fully in service to all the world.<\/p>\n
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That service led Him to the cross. There, He was the object of sinful man\u2019s wrath. Envying His righteousness, coveting His power, resenting His holiness and their own sinfulness, they sought His death by the cruelest of means. He submitted to that\u2014not because He was powerless against them, but because He was there to suffer God\u2019s judgment for sin. For theirs. For yours.<\/p>\n
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Risen again, your Savior comes to you. By His Word and Supper, He continues to forgive you all of your sins, keeping you clothed in His righteousness and strengthened in the one true faith. Because of His cross and His grace, you can be sure of this: it is God who made you to be who you are. It is God who has entrusted you with gifts and abilities for service, and it is God who still preserves you and your stewardship. He uses your strengths and your weaknesses for your good, as well as the good of others. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Because of the cross, you can be certain that God works this for your good, and not for evil. Because of the cross, you\u2019re set free from resentment and envy and discontent and the rest of those temptations that would harden your heart toward outer darkness. And when you\u2019re tempted again, you repent again; and His grace is sufficient.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dear friends, rejoice. The Lord has made you who you are for service where He has placed you. Until He comes again, that means that there will be inequality in the eyes of man. But what the world calls inequality, the Lord calls suitability\u2014indeed, He has suited and equipped you for the things He would have you do in service to your neighbor and in service to Him. And while those gifts may be various and unequal in our eyes for service in this world, His grace is the same for all\u2014sufficient for salvation. In other words, no matter what the Lord has entrusted to you for this life\u2014great or small, you can be sure of this: you are forgiven for all of your sins. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Dear friends in Christ, The master of the household doesn\u2019t give equal shares to his servants. One gets five […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","wpfc_preacher":[176],"wpfc_sermon_series":[],"wpfc_sermon_topics":[],"wpfc_bible_book":[],"wpfc_service_type":[],"class_list":["wpfc_preacher-pastor-j-fritsche","wpfc-sermon-single","post-3988","wpfc_sermon","type-wpfc_sermon","status-publish","hentry"],"sermon_audio":"http:\/\/redeemerlutheranchurch.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sermons\/2023\/11\/November-19-2023-Redeemer-Sermon.mp3","sermon_audio_duration":"","_views":"57","bible_passage":"Matthew 25:14-30 \u201cIt will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability.\u201d","sermon_video_embed":"","sermon_video_url":"","sermon_bulletin":"","_featured_url":false,"sermon_date":1700419053,"_sermon_date_auto":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/redeemerlutheranchurch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/wpfc_sermon\/3988","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/redeemerlutheranchurch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/wpfc_sermon"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/redeemerlutheranchurch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/wpfc_sermon"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/redeemerlutheranchurch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/redeemerlutheranchurch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3988"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"http:\/\/redeemerlutheranchurch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/wpfc_sermon\/3988\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4002,"href":"http:\/\/redeemerlutheranchurch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/wpfc_sermon\/3988\/revisions\/4002"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/redeemerlutheranchurch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3988"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"wpfc_preacher","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/redeemerlutheranchurch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fwpfc_preacher&post=3988"},{"taxonomy":"wpfc_sermon_series","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/redeemerlutheranchurch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fwpfc_sermon_series&post=3988"},{"taxonomy":"wpfc_sermon_topics","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/redeemerlutheranchurch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fwpfc_sermon_topics&post=3988"},{"taxonomy":"wpfc_bible_book","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/redeemerlutheranchurch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fwpfc_bible_book&post=3988"},{"taxonomy":"wpfc_service_type","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/redeemerlutheranchurch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fwpfc_service_type&post=3988"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}