Meditationen am Gnadenstuhl: Tuesday Easter VII: Luke 19:11-28

Tuesday Easter VII

Daily Lectionary Readings: Numbers 16:1-22; Luke 19:11-28; (Treatise 39-48)

Luke 19:11-28

[11] As they heard these things, he proceeded to tell a parable, because he was near to Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately. [12] He said therefore, “A nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and then return. [13] Calling ten of his servants, he gave them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Engage in business until I come.’ [14] But his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’ [15] When he returned, having received the kingdom, he ordered these servants to whom he had given the money to be called to him, that he might know what they had gained by doing business. [16] The first came before him, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made ten minas more.’ [17] And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant! Because you have been faithful in a very little, you shall have authority over ten cities.’ [18] And the second came, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made five minas.’ [19] And he said to him, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’ [20] Then another came, saying, ‘Lord, here is your mina, which I kept laid away in a handkerchief; [21] for I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man. You take what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.’ [22] He said to him, ‘I will condemn you with your own words, you wicked servant! You knew that I was a severe man, taking what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow? [23] Why then did you not put my money in the bank, and at my coming I might have collected it with interest?’ [24] And he said to those who stood by, ‘Take the mina from him, and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’ [25] And they said to him, ‘Lord, he has ten minas!’ [26] ‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. [27] But as for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slaughter them before me.’” (ESV)

Whenever Jesus uses a parable to teach, we have to keep in mind two things: The outcome is not going to be what we expect, and the context in which Jesus tells the story. In the case of the parable of the minas, the context is just after Jesus' encounter with Zacchaeus, where Jesus proclaimed the kingdom of heaven (salvation) has drawn near to his house, and just before Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem.

What this parable is not about is stewardship of money or resources. Nor is it about rewards in this earthly life. A mina is worth about 1,000 denarii, or a little more than three years' wages for an average laborer. It is a great deal of money, but not as much as a talent, which was worth about 6,000 denarii. Do not confuse this parable with the parable of the talents in Matthew. They are different parables with different details and different purposes. They are not parallel passages.

The nobleman who goes into the far country to receive a kingdom and return is Jesus. He is going to enter Jerusalem on Palm Sunday and finish His journey to the cross. Upon His resurrection and ascension, He will be enthroned at the right hand of the Father until His return on the last day.

The servants are disciples of Christ who have been given various gifts and talents to be used in the service of their neighbor and in the creation of new disciples. The first and second servants took risks with their discipleship, doing all that they could to make more. The last servant played it safe, not even earning interest on the money entrusted to him. That is the disciple who remains a believer but does not share the Good News. For the servant with one mina, a bank would have been safer! What if he lost the old rag he wrapped his master's money in?

Similarly, there is no such thing as a solitary Christian. We are not meant to serve in solitude. Christianity is communal, with everyone contributing according to their ability, whether it is money, or time, or skills. From the point of view of the nobleman, the last servant was wicked and disobedient. He was supposed to put that money to work to earn the master more money. Likewise, God does not give us our various abilities for our own glory but, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to increase the size of God's kingdom by obeying the great commission.

So everyone needs to become a missionary or street-corner evangelist? No. Some people are given those specific skill sets. The point is that we are called to use these gifts for the betterment and enlargement of God's kingdom, not ourselves. The result is often failure, frustration, and even ridicule and persecution. But that is not to bother us because, on the last day, we will be held accountable for how we used the gifts we were given. Our eternal salvation does not depend on the results, it depends on believing Jesus died and rose for us. But an accounting will be made, and the eternal rewards will be commensurate with our efforts. The Bible does not teach us exactly what that means, but it will be just and righteous as all actions of God are.