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The
highest courage is to dare to be yourself in the face of adversity,
choosing right over wrong, ethics over convenience, and truth over
popularity.
Travel the path of integrity without looking back, for THERE IS
NEVER A WRONG TIME TO DO THE RIGHT THING.
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Bishop Soc Villegas
25 July 2007
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<< Go
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ON SERVANT
LEADERSHIP
(Part 18)
USING OUR TALENTS
November
17, 2010
Today’s reading: Luke 19:11-28
Today’s parable of the ten gold coins gives us a lesson on
servant leadership. The gold coins refer to talents, which God
gives freely to His people in order for them to serve Him.
What are the talents for? Jesus says to the ten servants,
“Engage in trade with these until I return.” (Lk 19:13). Jesus
came into the world in order to reconcile people to God and to win
salvation for them. This he accomplished on the cross. Before
Jesus ascended into heaven, he commissioned his disciples to
proclaim this good news of salvation to the world. They are to do
this until he returns once again, at the end of time. The
experience of salvation by people would depend on their hearing
and accepting the good news, which in turn would depend on
evangelizers who are sent to proclaim that good news. Then, as
people are brought into a life in Christ, their formation needs to
continue and to deepen. Thus, disciples of Jesus, especially
servant leaders, are tasked with winning souls and expanding the
kingdom of God on earth, in preparation for heaven.
What are these talents? They are the gifts God has given us, such
as life, health, mental abilities, skills, resources, etc. If we
understand that we belong to God, are His instruments, and are
just passing through this earth, our focus should be on serving
God and building His kingdom on earth. In this we make use of our
talents. Now we all use our God-given talents in different ways.
Some use them for the kingdom, others use them for personal
benefit, and still others do a combination. This accounts for the
different fruits achieved by the servants. One earns ten
additional coins, a second earns five, and a third earned nothing.
To the one who earned ten, Jesus says, “Well done, good
servant!” (Lk 19:17a). Jesus is elated. His will is being done.
The kingdom is being built. This is servanthood at its best. The
second servant who earned five is appreciated and rewarded. He too
has served the kingdom, though producing less fruit than the
first. Finally, the third servant is severely rebuked and
condemned. He did not use his talent for the kingdom.
In fact, Jesus calls the third servant “wicked.” Why? What did
he do wrong? Here we need to see what God actually expects of
those whom He calls to servanthood. This is important because we
might just be going through our lives, doing nothing that is wrong
or bad, but we might be surprised when we come before God at the
final judgment and receive condemnation. What does God expect of
us, His servants?
First, God harvests what He did not plant (Lk 19:21-22), that is,
we do the work of evangelization and mission, and the harvest of
souls belongs to God. God has made Himself totally dependent upon
us to accomplish His will. He gives us talents, but it is up to us
to use them for God’s purposes. Here we see the critical
importance of living our lives as servants of the Master.
Second, God is a “demanding person” (Lk 19:21-22). Since God
depends on us for the proclamation of the good news of salvation,
which is the all-important work in this life, God demands our all.
This is after all about souls. This is about experiencing the
salvation that Jesus went to such great lengths to win for us. God
expects that we will be fruitful instruments. If we are not, then
what is our existence for? We are to live not for ourselves but
for God. If we are selfish with our God-given gifts, then the
kingdom that God wants to build through us (that is, all his
disciples) will not be built as widely and as strongly. The giving
of gifts to us is totally connected with the purposes of God for
the life of the world, and beyond.
Jesus says that if we do not gather, then we scatter. God gathers
His people, while Satan scatters them. By not gathering the flock,
we contribute to keeping the flock scattered. By not bringing
people into a life in Christ, we in effect keep them under the
dominion of Satan. By not doing the work of God, which He has
entrusted to His people, then we in effect are doing the work of
Satan. Thus we commit the sin of omission. Thus we do evil.
We need to see the great importance of using our God-given gifts
for God’s purposes. If we do not, then we stand condemned. If we
do, we are rewarded and even extolled.
There is another thing. Since we exist for God and not for
ourselves, since God gives us talents in order to serve Him and
His purposes in the world, then our responses determine whether we
grow or diminish in experiencing the fullness of God’s grace and
blessings. The third servant who did nothing loses his talent,
while the first servant is given the additional talent (Lk 19:24).
And here lies a spiritual principle: “to everyone who has, more
will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will
be taken away.” (Lk 19:26).
How do we experience the abundance of blessings that God has
reserved for His beloved people? Just by our faithfulness. When we
serve God with our talents, we not only win a harvest for God, but
we also get a windfall for ourselves. We not only are extolled by
God, but we also increase in our experience of His grace and
blessings.
As servant leaders, those who are faithful will be given charge of
ten or of five cities (Lk 19:17,19). Since God depends on His
people for His work, then those He finds dependable and fruitful
will be given even greater responsibilities. We start off with
whatever talents God gives us, no matter how small our talent
might be. If we prove faithful, then God Himself multiplies those
talents. Those who are faithful in small matters will be given
greater responsibilities (Lk 19:17). Further, God not only depends
on His people to bring in the harvest, but also on His servant
leaders to continue to govern His people in His name, preparing
them for their ultimate destination, heaven.
God is about an awesome work in the world. This work involves the
very salvation of souls. It is carrying on the very mission of
Jesus and participating in his salvific work. It can be truly
intimidating, as God calls us to do work that is divine. Some
might be deterred by the challenge and the demands of true
discipleship (Lk 19:21a). Some might be afraid of failure and
displeasing God (Lk 19:20-21).
But God just expects that we try to look to His interests and to
do what we can with what He gives us. We might even just take the
easy path and deposit His money in the bank to earn interest (Lk
19:23). As long as we are working for the kingdom and using our
talents for God’s purposes, then we will be on the right path.
We must not be afraid of failure. We must simply do our part and
be faithful.
And of course, when we do even more that just deposit the money in
a bank, when we truly strive to become faithful and effective
instruments, when we utilize our gifts and our talents simply to
glorify God and build His kingdom on earth, when we give our all
while not counting the cost, then we will experience the fullness
of God’s blessings, and will hear Jesus say to us, “Well done,
good servant!”
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