Reflection: "Risky Business"Our God is right into taking risks - that’s obvious, isn’t it?
Otherwise, we human beings, imperfect creatures as we are, wouldn’t have been left in charge of this planet. This strategy, the degree of free will that God has permitted us, is a high-risk undertaking. It means that God is prepared to even hold back on applying his divine power, so that we might have such freedom. And that’s really quite a dicey decision. God chose to live dangerously in order to open the opportunity for his “many children on earth to come into glory”. In dark contrast, the temptation for believers to “play it safe” may be one the smartest items in Satan’s box of tricks. Today’s Gospel reading features the parable of the talents. Jesus tells us that the kingdom of heaven: “is like a man going abroad, who called his servants and trusted all his capital into their hands. To one he gave five talents, to another two talents, and to one he gave one talent. To each, according to his ability.” Over many generations, preaching and teaching has focussed on how well Christians used the gifts God gave them. It’s stressed our need for good stewardship. The amounts of money that were mentioned - 5 talents, 2 talents and 1 talent, have been likened to our special abilities, thus the meaning of the word “talent” changed; no longer does it mean just a unit of currency, but it now includes the special gifts we have been given by God. The value of a talent depended on where you grew up. For the Greeks, a talent weighed about 25 kilograms of silver or gold. But for the Jews, it was about 50 kilograms of either silver or gold. The point is that it was a large sum of money, so let’s not feel sorry for the servant who was given only 1 talent. Okay, the others got more to manage, but even one talent was a huge amount of money. In silver, it would be the equivalent of 15 years of wages for a labourer and in gold, it would be a small fortune. What the master did, before he went away, was to entrust them to trade with these large sums of money, and to try making a handsome profit for him. He didn’t specify whether they should utilise wine, oil, grain, textiles, pottery, land, shipping, or whatever. He just took a big risk and allowed them to make their own decisions. I guess he expected them to take a similar risk. They were to put what was entrusted to them to good use. Trade and commerce, like human life itself, can be a precarious business. There’s always the possibility of setbacks and even losses. Witness the fact that in Australia, over 40% of small business ventures fail within the first two years. Trading is high risk, but the master knows all about that; he understands, and he wants them to give it their best. Let’s recognise the key element in this parable: the Lord truly places the responsibility in the hands of his servants. This is not make-believe stuff - he was serious. He doesn’t even stay in the background, like a back-seat driver, tut-tutting when things aren’t going well. Nor is he akin to a driving instructor, with calm nerves, yet with a separate brake pedal for him to employ in an emergency situation. No, the Lord in the Gospel fully trusts his servants. He leaves his country and travels abroad, so it’s now entirely up to them whether they succeed or fail. A high-risk strategy indeed! The first two servants honour the trust placed in them by taking some risks and put the money to use. Their talents became highly productive in the commerce of this life. Both of them make a 100% return while the Master is absent overseas, so these two receive the Master’s gratitude. Well done, good and trustworthy servant. You have proved yourself in a small way, now I will entrust you with something bigger. Come here and enjoy your master’s delight. Note this: those who are faithful receive a two-pronged reward. 1) Immediately there is the sheer joy of celebrating in the Master’s presence and: 2) Then comes more trust and responsibility. Those who do well for Christ Jesus are not given a “golden handshake” and allowed to sit back and do nothing. This idea of extra trust is a sobering thought for us, isn’t it! In the many generations since Jesus told this parable, among Christians there has always been a tension between those who want to play things safe and those who are prepared to take a risk in the name of their Master. That’s true in the way we either hoard or share the Gospel story with the world. Some opt for exclusive religion, like the Brethren, who keep to themselves and don’t interact with the world. They turn in on themselves, maintaining a tight knit fellowship, using their talents for each other, yet never risking them in the evil world outside their community. In contrast, some other churches and individuals are more of the risk taker kind. These groups quote Jesus when he said: “Go into all the world and make disciples of all men.” Such Christians take risks which can sometimes relate too closely with the world and its secular values. At the present time in the Uniting Church In Australia there are some who feel keenly that in social justice matters we have taken some large, and even foolish, risks, which may have been gravely influenced by the outside world. But only God can judge whether our church has exceeded acceptable risks or not. So - playing it safe, or talking the risk? Well, for my part, I’d always prefer to take the calculated risk for Christ’s sake. Better that than becoming constricted like that one talent bloke who went and buried his master’s treasure. He’s the big disaster in this story. We have no commission from the Lord to be foolhardy in the way we use our lives and our gifts, or in the way we employ the treasure of the Gospel, so I encourage you to risk it - for God’s sake - don’t be afraid. I guess none of us can look back over the years of our Christian experience and be completely satisfied with how much we have achieved and many of us have some regrets. But fear certainly isn’t an appropriate strategy. It was the over-cautious servant who was the one who was afraid - and look where it got him! Our stewardship of the gifts God has given us and those calculated risks we take in utilising our talents, should never be exercised under the shadow of fear. Ours is a God of perfect love, who is always on our side - perfect love - no room for fear. The God who is love is a risk taker and we’re called to be like him - for loving is always a risk. Yet it leads to the greatest bonus of all: “Come and enjoy your Master’s delight.” Think hard about the talents that God entrusted you with. Are you taking risks in utilising them, and multiplying their impacts, on the people you meet in your daily lives. We need to be showing them how God’s love has impacted our lives and sharing the good news with them – that they, too, can share with us in God’s kingdom. It’s not only the money God has graciously allowed us to accumulate, but the abilities we have. Instead of locking them away and keeping them just for ourselves, let’s get out there and put them to use, furthering the Kingdom of God here on earth. Pastor Rick
1 Comment
LENA BERYL BLOK
18/11/2023 07:09:17 am
Rick Thank you for your challenging message. You always give me something to think about.
Reply
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
Pastor
|