Our Lord and Savior has given us great promises. See the how in Matthew 25 the master gives property to his servants and instructs them to care for it. This property, by the way, is no small amount of money. A talent is approximately enough money to support a war ship at the time for about a month. See that the master does not give specific instructions or promise a particular reward. But when he returns he gives tremendous rewards. What of the person who doesn't even use common sense to make moderate gains with the investment? That person loses what he is given.
With this proclamation of the Law Jesus condemns all that we would do of our own accord, following our wisdom. The servants who are commended are not acting like typical servants but are acting like their master. The servant who is condemned acts according to his character, not the character of his master.
What is our calling? We are to put our own desires aside. We are to lay down our way of doing things. We are to give up the kind of security that we think we can protect. Instead, we are to take on the character and actions of our master who has given us all we need. How could we do this, except our Lord has himself taken on our character? The Lord Jesus Christ has taken on human nature so he could come as we are except without sin. He then took our sin for us, becoming sin for sinful man. Hence we take on his character, living as our divine sin-bearer. This is not our work. It is the work of our Lord and Savior.
Lord, give us faith to do, in dependence on you, the works which you would do, to go where you go, to reap on your behalf where we did not sow, to gather where we did not scatter, to draw all people to you.
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