“No Risk, No Faith” – Matt 25:14-30 - November 16, 2008
The last time I checked into a hotel it took less than a minute. I gave them my name and handed them a credit card. In turn they handed me my key to the room. Making arrangements for that hotel took much longer. I located several options in the area I wanted to stay. I surfed on the internet to find the best price. I consulted with my wife. Planning for that stay required a greater investment of my time.
Most everyone I know generally refers to heaven or the after life as a place. When Jesus makes a statement about heaven, or in this case, “the kingdom of God,” he likens it to our current situation. Just as the master in the parable went on a journey, we too are on a journey. Over and over, Jesus describes the kingdom of God or heaven, or whatever you want to call it, not as a destination but as an activity. Here he says, “It is like faithful servants who put their talents to work for the glory of God.” As a result they received much joy. In other words, being in heaven has more to do with our movement toward heaven not our arrival. Therefore, Jesus always links heaven with our lifestyle, our attitude, or our day to day behavior.
One time a miser hid his gold at the foot of a tree in his garden. Every week he would dig it up and look at it for hours. One day a thief dug up the gold and made off with it. When the miser next came to gaze upon his treasure, all he found was an empty hole. The man began to howl with grief so his neighbors came running to find out what the trouble was. When they found out, one of them asked, “Did you use any of the gold?” “No,” said the miser. “I only looked at it every week.” “Well then,” said the neighbor, “for all the good the gold did you, you might just as well come every week and gaze upon the hole.” (from The Heart of the Enlightened, Anthony de Mello, S.J.)
This story is a sad commentary on those who are unwilling to take risks with the resources God has given them. The miser is like the third servant in the parable who hid his talent. Instead of putting his treasure to work he hid it. The master was not pleased and consequently he took away the talent that had been given. Even worse, he was “thrown into the outer darkness.” Or, you could say, his behavior did not measure up to the master’s standards.
God gives all of us resources. To some God gives special talents. To others God gives wealth and abundance. Everyone receives something from God. For those who are not blessed with talent or resources God gives grace. We all have the love of God within us and God wants us, at the very least, to give that away.
Rosa Parks was a poor, Afro-American woman who took a tremendous risk. She believed that minorities were being mistreated in our society and she took a chance on righting a wrong. She refused to sit on the back of a bus and was arrested, but her courageous protest helped to enhance the civil rights movement. Now we have an Afro-American president. That would not have been possible without the Rosa Park’s in this world who are willing to risk what God has given them for the sake of others.
Once a year our congregation makes a commitment of our time, talents and resources for the ministry and mission of the Church. It is the combination of all those individual commitments which enable the Church to be a vital congregation in today’s world. When people hold back or hide their gifts, the Church is less effective. I don’t believe it is laziness or indifference that keeps folks from using their talents. I believe it is fear. Some are fearful of being embarrassed. Others are afraid that they might fail. Still others lack the confidence in themselves to try.
The third servant rationalized that he knew the master was a harsh man. I mean harshness in the sense that he “reaped where he did not sow and gathered where he did not scatter.” In other words, there was no direct connection between how or where the master invested his resources and who benefited from them. The parable is here to remind us that we are to invest what God has given to us, not because we will always see results, but because God calls us to be faithful.
In the Church some folks like to know where their money is going. On the other hand, there are those who give their gifts, unconditionally, trusting their investment in the Church will make a difference.
A number of years ago, over 1,400 people in Chicago met in a grand ballroom of a large hotel to honor the mother of the year. It was a woman no one had ever heard of. Her name was Dominic Salvino, an Italian immigrant, a housewife who was extremely poor. She lived on Erie Street and she had many neighbors who were poorer than she was. Some of her neighbors were sick and others had as many as eight children.
Others were single parents without a husband to provide for the family. Mrs. Salvino appointed herself as the unofficial, untrained social worker and attended to her neighbors. She visited the sick, collected money for the poor, did housework for the bedridden and cooked meals for families who had no mother. She gave over 1,600 hours a year of her precious time and resources to her community. (from Lively Money, Pulpit Resource, 1978)
I believe that Mrs. Salvino is like the first two servants in the parable who invested what they had been given. Just as the master was pleased with them, the city of Chicago recognized Mrs. Salvino for her contribution to her neighborhood.
We may never know who is helped with our gifts and talents. However, we can be assured that God is acutely aware of the risks we take. When we are willing to risk what we have been given for the sake of the kingdom of God, we trust that the master will be pleased.
It is one thing to use our talents and resources to enhance the kingdom of God and to that end God is pleased. It is another thing to be faithful and be free to be givers of grace. When we extend God’s love to others without conditions, we give the intangible gift of hope.
One time there was a village chief who had three sons, each with a special talent. The oldest had an olive garden and provided oil for food and trade. The second son was a shepherd whose sheep provided food and clothing for the village. The third son was a performer, who brought much joy to the village.
One day the chief went on a long journey, just like the master in the parable. He put his three sons in charge and everything went well until the cold winds began to blow. The olive branches cracked from ice and failed to bloom. Soon the villagers had no fuel so they convinced the first son to cut down his trees so they could heat their homes. He realized it was foolish to save the trees only to lose the village.
The ice made it impossible to travel and soon the villagers had nothing to eat. They begged the second son to kill his sheep so they wouldn’t starve. At first he refused, but finally relented. It was foolish to save the sheep only to have the people perish.
The villagers had enough food and fuel to survive, but the hardships broke their spirits. They lost hope and became desperate. One by one they left the village in search of a better home. When the chief returned he was surprised to find smoke coming from his chimney. “What happened to the trees? Where are all the sheep? And where are all the people?” he said.
The first and second son were filled with sorrow and explained what had happened. Their father consoled them and said, “You did your best to save the village. But, what has become of the people?” The third son spoke up. “It hardly seemed proper to dance during such times of suffering. And besides, I wanted to conserve my strength to welcome you home.” The chief replied, “Then dance my son, for my village and my heart is empty.” When the third son got up to dance he grimaced and fell. He legs were too stiff from sitting and no longer fit for dancing. His father, filled with even more sadness and anger said, “Our village could survive with little food and fuel, but it cannot survive without hope.” And they all wept. (from William J. Bausch, Storytelling: Imagination and Faith)
The villagers were denied a heavenly experience because of the failure of the third son to dance. There was no joy and therefore no hope.
According to the experts we are now in a recession. Many are losing their jobs and we are experiencing some economic hardships. When folks are willing to risk their talents and resources others will be helped. More than anything, however we need hope.
Hope will be realized when we reach down deep, draw out our treasures from their hiding places, and give without expecting anything in return. Food, money, and resources will help, but so will the freedom to laugh, cry and yes, even dance.
Life is not static, it is constantly changing. There is no way we can predict the check-in time for heaven. We can however prepare ourselves for our arrival. Our earthly lives will end when they end. In the meantime God wants our lives to be involved in daily acts of faith. That means taking risks, using our talents for the common good and being givers of our unlimited resource of God’s grace.
Dr. Keith Wagner, St. Paul’s United Church of Christ, Sidney, Ohio