XV_Talent?

XV

Talent?

‘I was afraid and so went and hid your talent in the ground’ Matt 25:25

You’re probably familiar with the parable of the talents. In it the Master entrusts his 3 servants with ‘talents’. ‘Talent’ meant large sum of money, but it’s a good word to consider. Upon his return from a trip the master learns from each of his servants what they did with ‘their talent’. Two of them have used what he gave them and returned with more than they started with, they have done well and he is pleased. One has buried his talent, he has done nothing with it and the master is furious.
This story was re-written hundreds of years later by a theologian, and in it his 3rd servant spent all his money on drink and high living. For the theologian, these kinds of sins, rather than mere laziness, seemed more ‘worthy’ of the master’s scolding. However, looking at the original passage tells us something else. The master didn’t scold the servant for attacking his character (‘I knew you were a hard man’ v24) or binging, his rebuke is for wasting his talent, wasting his gift, burying it, letting the potential go unrealised.
The servant says ‘I was afraid’. Isn’t it so often the case that ‘fear’ is the cause for sin? How often do we let fear get in the way? How often does it hold us back? How often does it keep us boxed in and contained? Fear causes me to falter. Fear causes me to keep the deepest things to myself, fear causes me to go so far with God or relationships, but then to withdraw, fear causes me to doubt myself and God, fear causes me to wait for someone else to volunteer before I raise my hand, fear causes me to stay safe rather than take a risk, fear causes me to stay in the boat rather than walk on water.
In Luke 2 v10, the account of the birth of Jesus, the angel says to the shepherds, ‘Do not be afraid, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people, today...a saviour has been born’.

See, when Joy is there, fear has to leave. The angel say’s ‘Don’t fear, because Joy has come’, Jesus is born, the saviour is here, a reason to celebrate! When Joy turns up at the party, fear has to leave and go home.
In church the other day someone said faith was spelt r.i.s.k. Perhaps we do need to accept that there is always going to be an element of risk when following God and using his ‘talents’. Mary took a risk when accepting the Angels message; the shepherds took a risk when they made their way from the hillsides, leaving what they knew, to follow God’s call. I’d hazard a guess that the two servants in the parable were taking a risk when they invested or handled the money the master had entrusted them. In all these cases, there was fear, but...how great was the reward? What joy did God give them for stepping out? Had not God had Mary in his hands all that time? And the shepherds as they travelled and gave what little they had? This much is true -> we all have a gift. We have all been given talents for God’s glory. We have been made by the Father and therefore have all been given unbelievable potential, a part to play in furthering God’s Kingdom. We are not called to be Billy Graham or Matt Redman but only ourselves. The person God made us to be and who God died to redeem. What do you think?

XV_?

XV

?

Who do you say I am? Matt 16:15

Are you direct in talking to others? These words of Jesus show that he was prepared to give a direct challenge. Talking with Jesus must have been quite a scary experience; he had an ability to cut through reasoning that did not stand up to his penetrating insight. Do you remember the attempts made by the Samaritan woman to divert the conversation away from personal issues?

It was no accident that the incident related in Matt 16 took place near Caesarea Philippi. This place had been the centre of Baal worship in earlier years; the Greeks later made it a centre of worship of Pan. In Jesus’ day there was a temple, built on a hillside by Philip, to honour Caesar as a god. Against that backdrop, is it not amazing that Jesus, the wandering rabbi, raises the question ‘Who do you say I am’? It was as if the whole area, if it had a voice, might say ‘This is where you find god – in the fertility rites of Canaanites, or by the sensual worship of the Greeks or in the dominating force of Rome, declaring that Caesar is Lord. All three had a common aim – to draw God’s people away from the worship and service of the one true God. There is a total distinction between the worship of God and that offered to Baal, Pan and Caesar.

Who do you say that I am? The question has deep significance in 2008. The direct challenge put to Peter and the other disciples is, in turn, directed at us. As in Jesus’ day, there is no shortage of opinions about Jesus – a great teacher, a prophet and so on. BUT, you are faced with a question to which what ‘they say’ as an answer is irrelevant. Imagine that you are in the bodily presence of Jesus right now (and you would probably be overcome in prostration) asking YOU the question that you cannot brush aside. It is one of the most significant questions to be faced in life.

I can imagine that some of you will reply that you believe in Jesus; good, but Jesus reminded his hearers that demons believe and tremble. This question goes deeper, I suggest that if this devotional achieves what it should, then the whole context has to be read and pondered. The revelation to Peter that Jesus of Nazareth is Messiah means that from this point on, Peter is no longer a free agent but, as the following verses tell us, he is to follow in the path of suffering and death. There is no other way.

This revelation of Jesus to Peter in not ‘by man’ (cf John 1:13) and is directly from God (and we might add by the Spirit, the one sent to reveal Christ to us). If, as you read these words, you feel that their full significance is diminished in any way, seek a fresh revelation of the Holy Spirit who has been sent to show us who Jesus is.