Welcome And Study Setup

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You're listening to Heed the Word with our pastor and teacher Ken Davis. Pastor Ken is the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Southwest Metro in Burleson, Texas. Please join us as we study the Gospel of Luke verse by verse.

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Wouldn't it be great if having received salvation you could lead five or ten more people to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, thereby multiplying the work that was done in you? Wouldn't that be awesome? What a blessing that would be to God. But look, if you can't do that, if you just cannot do it, Jesus, then at least take that which you've been given and entrust it to those that will do something with it.

Why Luke’s Gospel Matters

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The Gospel of Luke is the third account in the Gospels of the life and teachings of our Savior, Jesus Christ. As believers, there are a few studies that will benefit us more spiritually than studying the life and teachings of the Master. Jesus tells his disciples to go into all the world and preach the gospel, the good news to all creatures. As believers in him, we are to do the same. It's because of Jesus that we've been forgiven. It's because of him that we have hope. Shouldn't we be ready and willing to share with the lost and dying the hope that is without us? Don't forget to stay with us after today's message to hear more information about Heatherword, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching. But for now, please open your Bibles to the Gospel of Luke, chapter 19, verse 12, as we join Pastor Ken.

The Parable Of The Minas

Comparing Minas And Talents

Equal Gospel, Varied Rewards

Longing To Hear “Well Done”

The Excuses Of The Wicked Servant

Invest What God Entrusted

Stewardship, Loss, And Fairness

Talents, True Faith, And Judgment

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Therefore he said, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. So he called ten of his servants and delivered to them ten minas, and said to them, Do business till I come. But his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us. And so it was that when he returned, having received the kingdom, he then commanded these servants to whom he had given the money to be called to him, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. Then came the first, saying, Master, your minor has earned ten minas. And he said to him, Well done, good servant, because you were faithful in a very little thing, have authority over ten cities. And the second came, saying, Master, your mina has earned five minas. Likewise he said to him, You also be over five cities. Then another came, saying, Master, here is your mina. I have kept it put away in a handkerchief. And we'll go on in just a moment from that. But I want to point out a couple of things about this parable that are going to differ a little bit from the parable in Matthew that we're going to review as well. First of all, he called ten servants to him, okay? And he gave each of those servants one mina. And when he came back, he asked a report of them. Now we're only given a report on three. We don't know about the other seven. But of those three, we find this one had taken that one minah and gained ten. Another had taken that one mina and earned five. A third had taken that one mina and had done nothing with it. Now, to the one that had gained ten, he was given ten cities. To the one that had gained five, he was given five cities. And to the one that was given just the one and earned nothing, he was given no reward. In fact, the what he had will be taken from him, as we'll see in a moment. And so what we see here is this each of us has been given one thing. Now, the parable in Matthew speaks of talents, and in that parable, they were given different degrees of talents. But in this parable, each was given just one thing, one minor. And we're going to look when we come back to this parable, what that one minor that each one of us has been given is, and what we're to do with it. But having those things in mind, I want you to turn with me to Matthew chapter twenty-five. Matthew twenty-five, verse fourteen, Jesus said, For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability, and immediately he went on a journey. Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents, and likewise he who had received two gained two more also, but he who had received one went and dug in the ground and hid his Lord's money. After a long time the Lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them. So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, Lord, you delivered to me five talents, look, I have gained five more talents besides them. His Lord said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant, you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things, enter into the joy of your Lord. He also, who had received two talents, came and said, Lord, you delivered to me two talents, look, I have gained two more talents besides them. His Lord said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant, you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things, enter into the joy of your Lord. Now you can mark your place there because we will be back, but at that point I want you to go back to Luke 19. We'll be back and forth for a little bit today. Now, think of this. In the parable of the talents, one had been given five, one had been given two, and another had been given one. And Jesus said, each according to his own ability. That means very simply, friends, this. Each of us has been given some degree of ability, some talent, some gift, some ministry that we are to perform. Now, granted, some of us have more ability than others. And to those who have more ability, more opportunity will be given. And as we are faithful in that service, more opportunity yet will be given to us. But here's the thing: whether you have great ability or meager ability or very little ability, the opportunity is there for you to receive the same reward. God was not expecting the man who had two talents to earn five, but proportionally he earned what he was able to earn with what he had been given. And because he was found equally faithful, he received an equal reward. Do you see as we go there? He said to both the one who had earned five and the one who had earned two, the same thing. Well done, thou good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Lord. He says, You were faithful over a few things, you'll be made ruler over many things. So it was the same reward that was given, regardless of ability, regardless of degree. Now, as we saw in Luke, in the situation with the minas, while there are varying levels of ability, and while there are varying levels of gift, there is an equality there as well. And that equality is this each one of us has been given the gospel message. That one gospel message. And we are each to be faithful with the gospel message that God has entrusted to us. Now, some of us are going to be more aggressive with that message, and we will go and we'll take that one thing and we'll earn ten times what someone else may. And yes, there will be varying degrees of reward in that sense. There will be. So many people say, you know, man, I don't care if I get a lot of jewels in my crown or not. I just want to get into heaven. I can clean out stables, and that's just fine with me. You know, you say that now. You may not feel that way then. Now, don't get me wrong, I'd rather be a stable boy in heaven than a king anywhere else. There's no doubt about that. But the fact of the matter is, I have a desire to be pleasing to my God. And I want, when I stand before him and have to give an account to him for all of you and for all that he's entrusted to me to care for and to minister to, I want to be able to hear him say, Well done, thou good and faithful servant. That's my desire. I don't want to get in by the skin of my teeth, although I'll take that if that's all I have. But I want to be pleasing to him. Not that I can earn my salvation because I can't. Not one of us can. But don't you want to be pleasing to him? Don't you want to be that sweet smell in his nostrils? That he says, hmm, they're doing good. Don't you long for that? I know I do. I know I do. And yet so often we fall short. Thank God for his grace, amen. Thank God for his grace. Back to Luke 19. Let's see, let's pick up in verse 15. And so it was that when he returned, having received the kingdom, he then commanded these servants to whom he had given the money to be called to him, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. Then came the first, saying, Master, your minor has earned ten minas. And he said to him, Well done, good servant, because you were faithful in a very little have authority over ten cities. And the second came, saying, Master, your minor has earned five minas. Likewise he said to him, You also be over five cities. Then another came, saying, Master, here is your mina, which I have kept put away in a handkerchief. For I feared you, because you were an austere man. You collect what you did not deposit and reap what you did not sow. Now, first of all, is this a true statement? Not even a little bit true. This is a flimsy and pale excuse, because this master is not expecting to reap where he did not sow. In fact, he did sow. He gave this man a mina, he gave him seed money with which to start this business, with which to trade and to earn more of that which he had given. So the master had every right to expect that there would be some return on his investment. That isn't austere, that isn't stern, it's reasonable, it's to be expected. And yet this man, this wicked servant, this lazy servant, uses this as an excuse. For I feared you. Because you are an austere man, you collect what you did not deposit and reap what you did not sow. You know what I think? I think the truth of the matter is this guy didn't think his master was coming back. He figured, ooh, I've got a mina. That's three months' wages. I'm just gonna keep this put away in a handkerchief for a little while. And as soon as I hear word that that delegation that got sent out there didn't receive him, and the king that he was going to receive the kingdom from maybe threw him in jail, and hey, I figure he's not coming back. So if I hold on to this for a little while, maybe I'll just get to keep it for myself. But if he does come back, I've still got it, so I'll just give it back to him, you see. Now I can't prove that that's what went through the man's mind. That's what I think did. Isn't that our nature? The things that God has given us, don't we want so often to spend it on ourselves? To hold it back from God and to use it for our own desires? Because you know, sometimes even as Christians, we begin to doubt whether or not he's really coming back. And if he is coming back, surely it won't be for many, many years. Probably not in my lifetime. Now we all say, oh, hey, the Lord's coming back any day now. But our actions often don't reflect that belief, do they? But we have a desire to keep what we have for ourselves and to tuck it away in that little handkerchief and to say, let's just wait and see if he's really coming back. But he gives this excuse. You collect what you did not deposit and reap what you did not sow. I was terrified. Verse 22. And he said to him, Out of your own mouth I will judge you, you wicked servant. You knew that I was an austere man, collecting what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow. Now, in this statement, he is not saying that the man's evaluation of him was correct. He's not saying that he's an austere man. He's not saying that he's reaping what he did not sow. What he's saying is, okay, fine, let's say you did believe that. Let's say you really truly believed what you are saying that you believed. If you really believed what you're telling me you believe, then you would have done something differently than what you did. If you really believed what you believed, then you'd have done this. Why then did you not put my money in the bank that at my coming I might have collected it with interest? Look, he's saying, You have been entrusted with the gospel message. You have been entrusted with certain resources that God has given you. Now, it would be great, it would be fantastic if you would be so enamored with the Lord and so filled with desire to see his kingdom furthered that you would, of your own free will, take those resources and put them to work for the kingdom and earn five times or ten times what you had been given. You've been given salvation. Wouldn't it be great if having received salvation you could lead five or ten more people to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, thereby multiplying the work that was done in you? Wouldn't that be awesome? What a blessing that would be to God. But look, if you can't do that, if you just cannot do it, he says, then at least take that which you've been given and entrust it to those that will do something with it. He says, look, fine. He says, you thought I was an austere man, you thought that I reaped where I didn't sow. If you really believed that, then you would have invested my money with someone that would have earned some interest for me on it. And so what he's saying, Christian, simply is this if you won't do it yourself, then at least, at the very least, be involved in supporting those that will do the work. Pray for them. Give of your resources to missionaries, to gospel radio programs, to outreach ministries, to the local church, to any ministry that you know is going to reach the lost for Jesus Christ. You can't go on a care team yourself. Pray for the people that are going. Invest what God has given you. And if you don't have the courage to do it firsthand, then at least do it in a supporting role, so that when he comes, he'll have earned interest on that which he has entrusted to you. Why then did you not put my money in the bank, that at my coming I might have collected it with interest? And he said to those who stood by, Take the minor from him and give it to him who has ten minas. But they said to him, Master, he he has ten minas. For I say to you that to everyone who has will be given. And from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. That seems unfair. Do you agree? I mean, come on, let's be real. Doesn't that kind of seem unfair? You know, to say, I'm gonna take that little bit that you have and I'm gonna give it to the one who has so much already. If we think that that's unfair, we're looking at it from the wrong perspective. Think of it from a managerial perspective. If you have an employee who is highly productive, and you have another employee who is a drain on your business, aren't you going to take the resources that had been entrusted to that one that was a drain and entrust it to one that had been faithful in the stewardship that they were exercising over your resources? It makes good sense, doesn't it? And so what he's saying simply is this hey, if you will not use what you have for him, then what you have will be taken from you and given to those that will use it for him. Amen. Now, in these verses, we find no other punishment. We find no other punishment that is exercised upon this unfaithful servant except that he lost that which he had been blessed with. We are not told here that he will lose his salvation, and I don't believe that he will. He was a servant of the king, albeit an unprofitable one. So will we lose our salvation because we fail to do the work that God has given us to do? The answer is no, we will not. However, turn back with me to Matthew chapter 25, verse 24. Then he who had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed, and I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours. But his Lord answered and said to him, You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed, so you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. Therefore take the talent from him and give it to him who has ten talents, for to every one who has more will be given, and he will have abundance. But from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away, and cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Now, how many of you know of any good places where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth? Haven't found one yet, okay? So in this case, we see that not only does this servant lose that talent and gift. Now, notice this is a different parable. This isn't talking about the gospel message. This is talking about talents, gifts, abilities. That's what we're being told here because remember, it said that he gave unto each according to their ability. And we know when we look at the world around us that some people have incredible talent and others have very little. It isn't a matter of how much talent they do or don't have, or how many gifts they do or don't have. It's a question of how faithful are they with what they do have. Well, this man hadn't been given very much, but even that little that he had been given, he wasn't faithful with. And so we see that not only does he lose that which he had, but he is then cast into outer darkness, where there'll be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Guys, I can't think of any place that that describes besides hell. Can you? And so this man, did he lose his salvation? No, he never had it to begin with. You see, he called himself a servant. But did he behave as a servant? Jesus said, There are many who will say unto me on that day, Lord, Lord. And I'll say, Hey, I never knew you. And they'll say, But but didn't we do this in your name? And didn't we do that in your name? And he's like, Hey, depart from me, you workers of iniquity. See, it's not about what we say, it's about what is true. The Bible says that if you believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord, you will be saved. There are two things that are required there. You have to confess, yes, and a lot of us will confess. But what we believe in our hearts is revealed more through our actions than it is through our words. And by his actions, this wicked servant showed that he was no true servant at all. Turn to James chapter one, starting in verse 21. Therefore, lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror. For he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does. Guys, James also talks about the fact that, you know, faith without works is dead. We are not saved by our works. But if we are saved, the works will follow. There will be evidence in our lives that we are born again of the Spirit of God. There will be. Back to Luke 19. So we've seen what happened to the king. We've seen what happened to his servants. But what about the citizens? Let's read together. Going back to verse 26. For I say to you that to everyone who has will be given, and from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. But bring here those enemies of mine who did not want me to reign over them and slay them before me. Those who had rejected the rule of the king were slain in his presence, and those who reject the rule of Christ in their lives will meet a similar fate. Jesus is coming back, and he's coming back as a king. He came first as a savior, but at his second coming he'll come as a judge. Each of us stands in danger of that judgment. Now we can stand in judgment as his servant, in which we'll be evaluated and rewarded for the works that we have or haven't done, or we will stand before him in judgment as one who was not his servant, but his enemy, who refused to submit their life to him, and therefore there remains nothing for them but death. But that's our choice. It's a choice that's given to each one of us, and that is, will you receive him as your Lord? Now, if you receive him as your Lord, then yes, he expects that you will serve him, but you have to understand, as I said before, that service comes after salvation. You can't earn your salvation, but you do have to receive it. You have to believe on the one whom God sent, and that is Jesus Christ. You have to align yourself with him. You have to come to that point where you say, you know what? I have no king but Jesus. And if you do that, do that, then on that day of judgment you will stand justified, forgiven, given, cleanse every sin. Thank God for it.

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Amen.

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For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds. And to him who knocks, it will be opened. That's chapter 11, verse 10 of the book we are currently studying here on Heed the Word, Luke. Luke's gospel account of the life of Jesus is an invaluable study that we know God will use in your life. We do thank you for joining us today. This has been another edition of Heed the Word with our pastor and teacher, Ken Davis. As you likely heard at the beginning of today's program, this message is available free of charge on our website. Simply log on to www.heedtheword.org. That's heedtheword.org. Once you're there, select the listen online page. There you'll find the Heed the Word Media Player. For your convenience, today's message is available in MP3 podcast and mobile formats. By far, the best way to stay current with all the latest teachings from Pastor Ken is to subscribe to the Heed the Word podcast. So log on to HeedTheWord.org and continue studying with us today. If today's message has ministered to you and you live in the Burleson, Texas area, or will be passing through, we'd like to invite you to join us for worship. We meet each Sunday morning at 10.30 a.m. and Wednesday evenings at 7 p.m. You can log on to heedheword.org for driving directions and more information. So please stop by and visit us. Well, that's all the time we have for today. We encourage you to join us next time as Pastor Ken continues teaching through the Gospel of Luke on the next edition of Heatheword.