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Now as they heard these things, He spoke another parable, because He was near Jerusalem and because they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately. 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, 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 mina 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 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, which I have kept put away in a handkerchief. For I feared you, because you are an austere man. You collect what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.' 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. 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 mina from him, and give it to him who has ten minas.' (But they said to him, 'Master, 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. But bring here those enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, and slay them before me.'"
- Luke 19:11-27
Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, and said to him, "Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house." So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully. But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, "He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner." Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold." And Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost."
Now as they heard these things, He spoke another parable, because He was near Jerusalem and because they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately. 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, 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.'" A mina was worth about three months' salary. We note that at this point Jesus is on His way to Jerusalem, and that His disciples expected the kingdom to appear immediately. They have not understood His warnings about what is to happen at Passion Week (see Tuesday's reading).
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 mina 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 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, which I have kept put away in a handkerchief. For I feared you, because you are an austere man. You collect what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.' 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. Why then did you not put my money in the bank, that at my coming I might have collected it with interest?'" Jesus is preparing the disciples (and their followers to come -- and therefore us) for life when He, like the ruler, is far away. So the parable is about what we do while we await His return, and also what His return will ask of us. My study bible says that it illustrates the use of gifts given by God. One mina was still a fairly large sum of money, and this represents each person's blessings from God. Citing Romans 12:4-7, it notes that the amount each receives is based on that person's abilities. Jesus has earlier said, "He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much." Whatever we're blessed with, it implies a responsibility, and it is something we must make a choice about. We should note the tie between the fear and hatred of the people, and also the ways in which they perceive the ruler. However they've chosen to see is how the ruler responds to them. My study bible suggests that the bank implies other faithful who may help us learn about "making investments" in life. This man's own handkerchief tying up the money would imply selfishness, a kind of way of not seeing past his own nose, his own interests. He doesn't ask for the help that is available.
And he said to those who stood by, 'Take the mina from him, and give it to him who has ten minas.' (But they said to him, 'Master, 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. But bring here those enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, and slay them before me.'" What do we do with what we've been given? This is something to take to heart. Everybody has some gift, even when we tend to discount it. The question is, what do we work for? Where do we find help and guidance?
Jesus' parable leaves us in a place where we face our responsibilities. Life is always going to ask us to make a choice. What's the best use of our time, our lives, our efforts? What do we do with the life we have, and whatever talents or qualities we have? There's nothing that is not worth the effort. My study bible says that "idleness is as much a rejection of God as outright wickedness." What I take this to mean is that if we demean our lives by refusing to honor the value of our own efforts and our own substance, then we're also denigrating God somehow. We're expressing contempt for the life we've been given by our Creator. If you think about it, it doesn't really matter what kind of work we do -- in the picture given to us by Jesus what matters is what we work for, and that we make this commitment. All labor has dignity if it is done in the spirit of the work we do for the One who loves us, our Creator, our true ruler. We may be given hierarchies that the world admires, but this parable isn't about how much money we make. It's how much we produce for God's purposes. It's about how we live our lives with dignity, via our own choices of what we work for and Who it is that inspires us. It's about looking at our choices and setting our lives in a certain purpose and direction, and truly seeing them as worthwhile and with purpose. We're all equal in that sense. It's just about how we choose, and how we share in recognizing responsibility and commitment, and that starts in the heart. The one who has is the one who makes this choice, and that's open to all of us. It's not dependent upon what anybody else thinks about us, nor about what others do for us or to us. It's not dependent on where we're born, or what we're born into. To make this choice, it's important that we see ourselves as children of God, made for good, no matter what we see chosen by others. And help for this is available!
