Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Kingdom Investments - November 16, 2008

For the last two months, most people do not want to talk about their investments or their retirement funds. We know it is bad and there is no need to see the detail of the damage. Financial market meltdown, economic tsunami, credit crunch, or whatever words of disasters can we come up with, cannot describe the reality of those severe losses. If we put so much faith in our financial market and those who control it, then are we surprised that every now and then a huge “correction” would take place? It begs the question of our ultimate security and confidence. Who can we really trust with our life savings and livelihood?

The familiar parable of the talents talks about investment of another kind… (Matthew 25: 14-30) Each of the three servants was entrusted with talents according to his ability. It is a story of financial activity. A talent was not the ability to sing or to write, but a large sum of money, approximately the amount a laborer would receive for 15 to 20 years of hard work. The master was a capitalist who wanted his money working for him while he was away, expecting a return on his investment. The first two servants gained a hundred percent return. They were commended as “good and trustworthy” servants, and they were rewarded with greater responsibility.

However, as you know, the third servant failed to invest his talent and gained nothing for his master. He was condemned as "wicked and lazy" for not investing his share. Here, the reward and punishment go beyond business talk in the financial world. “Enter into the joy of your master” and the reference to “outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” are Matthew’s language of the final judgment. The parable is a kingdom parable. Like last week’s parable of the ten maidens, Matthew uses them to address the question of how should one live while waiting for Christ’s return. What we do in the mean time matters eternally.

The story underscores the high-risk activity involved. The first two servants doubled the money entrusted to them, hardly a possibility without running the risk of losing the original principal. As Christians, what kind of risks are we willing to undertake? Can we do all the Christian faith activities of loving, caring, healing, giving, witnessing, reaching out, trusting and hoping without taking any risk?

The third servant was motivated by the opposite of faith; he was afraid. While fear can sometimes motivate people to certain degree and on different occasions, he was simply immobilized at the core of his responsibility and purpose. Fear of failure, fear of punishment and fear of loss have not only paralyzed this servant, but many other Christians and churches through the centuries. They stop living with a sense of purpose and mission; they bury their talent and hide it under ground. Churches in maintenance mode are like hiding their talents in the ground, hoping no one will come and steal them. They are afraid of the risk involved in growing. They are afraid that changes will upset too many people. They are afraid of a new reality beyond their comfort zone. Fear simply holds them back.

Obviously, Jesus is talking about stewardship here in this parable. By definition, stewardship is the responsibility for taking care of someone else's property or financial affairs. What the stewards have been entrusted does not belong to them. They are asked to look after them for a while. They do not own what is entrusted to them. They have to answer to the master for what they have done with it.

How often do we think of our life, our property, our family, our money and possessions as something entrusted to us? How often do we think that we are entitled to them? The issue is one of ownership and entitlement. What God has given us; we think we are entitled to have them. We have worked hard all our life for them; they become our savings and security. We believe that we alone can decide how we use our wealth, and who should benefit from them. Those who have faced bankruptcy realize how true the saying is “easy come, easy go”! Indeed, life itself is a most precious gift. Ask those who have ill health, those whose children were born with defects. They will tell you never take life and health for granted. We are advised to manage this gift of life very well! As stewards, we are managers of all that has been entrusted to us.

There is the story of a pastor who got up on Stewardship Sunday and announced to his congregation: “I have good news and bad news. The good news is that we have enough money to cover the deficits in our budget. The bad news is that it’s still out there in your bank accounts.”

Since this is a kingdom parable, we should ask ourselves what kinds of investments we are talking about in the Kingdom of God. If there is a “Kingdom Fund”, what would you be investing in? If we are the fund managers, what are we keeping an eye for in our portfolio? What do we value most? Would it be people, time, money, building and property, or the natural environment? Yes, these days, business people are even talking about ethical and responsible investments – as in fair trade, concerns for the environment and ecology. The value in the business of investment is changing; it is more than just numbers, dollar amount, percentage of return and bottom lines. There are other things and consideration that are deemed to be important and of value. Do we keep kingdom values ahead of other values when we manage all our God-given gifts? Or, do we base our decisions on self-serving principles? As a parish, what are we willing to invest in? - Our young people and people outside of the church?

At the end of the parable, the master gave the third servant’s talent to the one with ten talents, and said, “For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away.” On the surface, it almost sounds like “the rich will get richer, and the poor gets poorer.” However, Jesus probably puts the emphasis on the fact that gifts exercised will increase, while gifts left unused will waste away. Those who are willing to risk and use their gifts will be given more.

It has been mentioned that when one person shares the light of a candle with another person, the first person’s light isn’t diminished in any way. A candle loses nothing when it shares its light, and there is now twice as much light in the room. Could it be true of sharing love and sharing the gospel? Our ability to love does not diminish by sharing it; and there will be more love in the world. The power of the gospel is not diminished by someone sharing it; in fact, there will be more believers in the world.

On the other hand, there are also examples of things that disappear if they are not used. Unused muscles deteriorate and become useless. Unused money in dormant accounts will disappear as the bank charge monthly fees. Could it also be true of the gospel? If we hoard it for ourselves, if we refuse to share it with others, will it waste away?

To be fair, the master is not a harsh and unforgiving man as the third slave made him out to be. He is actually very generous in giving them talents that they would never have earned in a life time. But perhaps our expectation of God may determine for us how God turns out to be? For those who believe God to be gracious, giving, and forgiving; to them God is like that. For those who believe God to be harsh, demanding, and judgmental; to them God is just that. While certainly God is not created by our own images of God, it is possible that our inadequate beliefs about God may create perception blinders. We may not be able to see the whole picture of God as Jesus has revealed to us. Like the religious leaders of his day, the scribes and the Pharisees, we could fail to have a more accurate perception of God, if we stubbornly hold on to our spiritual blinders.

Similarly, the good quality of the first two slaves consists partly in seeing their master as the giver of good gifts. The evil of the third slave could only see his master as a cruel dictator. The first two slaves seem grateful for what they have been given. The third slave rationalizes his inactivity by blaming the master, out of fear. Such paralyzing fear is totally unproductive, leading to nothing but gifts wasted. Many people have sound beliefs about God, but fail to act on those beliefs. Such beliefs never influence their actions. Their lives are controlled not by God, but by fear, by playing it safe and self interests. They are lazy and poor performers, thinking that they could get away with it. Hiding their talents is a refusal to accept the responsibility given by God.

Therefore, the story invites us to make choices in life that really matters. We are asked to invest wisely. The gift given here is not the gift of salvation. We do not have to work for it. The gifts entrusted to us are for our use, for the good of the kingdom of God, and for the sake of the Gospel. Are we putting them to the best possible use, or are we letting our gifts waste away, hidden and under-utilized? Next week, in the parable of the sheep and the goat, our actions or inaction are further defined by Christ the King.

Yes, the gift of salvation is assured, just as we come with confidence to receive the Body and Blood of Christ. How we respond as we go out into the world is our gifts to God in return… Amen.

Fr Victor+
www.stjd.ca



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