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

 

 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 

 

Yesterday we read that 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.'  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.'"  Let us first note that the text tells us the purpose of Jesus telling this parable:  because He was near Jerusalem and because they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately.  So we must consider why Jesus tells the disciples this story at this time, and what it means for them.  My study Bible comments that the parable illustrates the use of gifts given by God.  Indeed, in the version of this parable in Matthew's Gospel, the sums of money are given in talents rather than minas.  Both were a great deal of money (a talent was larger), but we should understand how our modern English word came into being from this parable.  According to some, a mina was worth several months' wages for a typical worker, so this is not a trivial sum but is equal to a significant commitment of the time of one's life and labor.  Here, my study Bible says, the minas represent the goodness God has bestowed on each person.  The amount each receives is based on that person's abilities (Romans 12:4-7).   The wicked servant could not evade responsibility for ignoring what he was given, as idleness is as much a rejection of God as outright wickedness, my study Bible says.  Keeping it in a handkerchief is symbolic of earthly pursuits; this word for handkerchief can also be used for the shroud covering a face or head for burial.  The bankers represent other faithful people to whom the man could have gone to help him use his resources properly and wisely.  Since help was available to hin in the Church, my study Bible says, the man has no excuse.  

Jesus speaks a parable which refers to God-given wealth.  Of course, we might consider wealth to be of a variety of substances, from our own gifts and talents, to our capacity for hard work, our time, and any number of things we could consider.  But first let's ponder the text's telling us that Jesus gave this parable because He was close to entering Jerusalem, and some thought that the kingdom of God would appear immediately.  So, He's telling this parable in the face of expectations that this heavenly kingdom was near in a material sense, which He would receive and establish in Jerusalem.  But Jesus prepares the disciples for the time to come by giving this parable teaching that our outcomes depend upon what we do with our resources.  As disciples, we are considered to be servants to the Master, to work for this kingdom and for its manifestation, and in this we take our substance.  God invests us with abilities, capacities for all kinds of things we can do as we live our lives, and we are expected to bring a "profit" out of them.  Are we capable of love?  Of the pursuit of humility which leads to the virtues Christ speaks about?  Do we have material wealth, and do we use it in the ways we're taught by Christ, especially through charitable giving?  What do we do with the resources we're given to work for that Kingdom, making a profit for it?  God's love and the gifts of the Spirit are another kind of currency which we can invest in the world and through which we build the Kingdom also, for even if we think we have nothing else, God's love makes it possible for us to love in return, inexhaustible in its Source.  The authority bestowed as reward is an authority in the Kingdom, a Christian equivalent to the positions political allies or servants might gain when a government of their party comes into power.  But authority in the kingdom of God is something else altogether, a part of the blessings of the Kingdom distributed by Christ in ways mysterious to us, and perhaps for a future not revealed to us.  In the meantime, we have spiritual investments and profits to make for the Lord while we still live our earthly lives.  Jesus is teaching here that the time of our lives is not simply a space or stretch of existence to pass and to fill us, but something that forms the ground  of all the ways we might build up the Kingdom, and that each resource we have is precious in God's sight.  Are we faithful in living and carrying out Christ's commands?  How do we invest or spend our time and talent, our resources of life, our energies?  How do we pass our time in ways profitable for the kingdom of God -- or do we spend it all in earthly pursuits of the flesh alone?  All of these things will count in the fullness of the Kingdom He will manifest at His return.  How do you invest your talent, time, and gifts?  On this day of Thanksgiving in the United States, let us consider all the ways we have a wealth of things to give, God's good work to pursue in God's name, and consider ourselves truly blessed.

 

 

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

 

 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.'"

 

- Luke 19:11–27 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus entered and passed through Jericho, as He continues on His way toward Jerusalem.  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.'  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.'"   My study Bible comments that this parable illustrates the use of gifts given by God.  In Matthew's Gospel, this parable is told using the example of the monetary unit called "talents" (τάλαντα/talanta in Greek).  A talent was a very large sum of money (originally it was a weight equivalent measure for pure metal such as silver or gold).  According to this numismatic website, one drachma or denarius was a day's wage; a talent at the time of the New Testament was worth 6,000 denarii.  Here in Luke's Gospel, Jesus tells this story using mina as the currency, which was worth less than talents but still substantial enough.  A mina was worth 100 drachmae, so the equivalent of 100 work days for one of these servants.  At any rate, our modern use of the word "talent" comes from the parable found at Matthew 25:14-30.    These large sums of money (either talents or minas) represent the goodness which God has bestowed on each person.  According to my study Bible the amount that each receives is based on that person's abilities (Romans 12:4-7).  It says that God does not show partiality in the ultimate reward, for all are invited to share in the same reward (authority over a city for each mina earned).  The wicked servant could not evade responsibility for ignoring the mina entrusted to him.  My study Bible comments that idleness is as much a rejection of God as outright wickedness.  To put away the mina in a handkerchief is symbolic of burial clothes, or treating the mina in a very "earthly" way.  Putting the money in a bank could represent the Church, where there are collective resources to guide us to use our natural abilities and resources wisely.  My study Bible comments that since help was available to him in the Church, the man has no excuse. 

In Matthew's Gospel, the parable of the Talents is given just prior to Jesus' discourse on Judgment (Matthew 24:31-46).  In that context, it's a reminder about how we use our resources, including time, talent, skills, and effort -- as well as material resources -- in terms of the Judgment and exercising compassion and care, especially toward the "least of these."  Here in Luke's Gospel, this parable appears just prior to Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem, and so the setting poses this parable within the context of establishing Christ's Kingdom in this world.  It also is told just prior to His Passion, death, and Resurrection, and so the parable also works to teach us -- and the disciples -- about what He expects from them, and us, while He is away in a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return.  As such, we are His servants, and we are asked to be profitable servants while we await His return.  In the final verse of the parable, the nobleman says, "But bring here those enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, and slay them."  So there are those who serve him, and those who do not, and we read the reward to each, including the faithless.  Our nominal faith is meant to be exercised, lived, and expressed through our skills, talents, resources, abilities -- and not hidden away.  This gives us an impression of what it is to be part of living Kingdom.  This not an ideas-bound idea of faith in the kingdom of God.  That is, this parable does not teach that faith is just an assent to a set of ideas or a code.  Rather, Jesus teaches us active participation, and participation that is meant to go somewhere, to grow and to generate new resources, profitable returns on investment, and a dynamic strength, even met with great reward -- and one presumes, then, new investment and profit to be generated.  If we stop to consider who this "nobleman" is, and what sort of kingdom we're talking about, we come to the conclusion that this is not meant to illustrate a worldly kingdom, but rather a spiritual one.  And so, in that light, we must consider that these are gifts of the Spirit, the kind of wealth that belongs first of all in potential for the faithful, and so must be made the most of.  When Jesus says, "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," He is echoing statements made earlier within the context of asking for spiritual gifts.  In chapter 11, Jesus tells the disciples, "So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you," and, "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!" (see Luke 11:9-13).  When Jesus is explaining the purpose of speaking in parables to His disciples, He tells them, "Therefore take heed how you hear. For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him."  This is clearly in reference to spiritual understanding and spiritual gifts.  Later on, He says, "For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more" (Luke 8:18; 12:48).  So spiritual gifts are not only precious, but must be used and work to maximize potential, yielding much more than might be expected -- and for the Kingdom, this is the natural order of things.  It is the unnatural order that such gifts remain buried or hidden, put away and not used -- and most definitely those with no faith whatsoever miss this equation entirely.  What Jesus seems to promise in this story is that for each of us there are particular gifts waiting to be used -- and when those gifts are spiritual in nature, they are of a substance to multiply.   This is exemplified in the miracles of the loaves and fish.  Moreover, our own capacity for spiritual gifts means that God will seek to give us more challenges to meet, more "authority," so to speak, capacities within which we can use those gifts for His Church.  Let us rise to meet those challenges to which we're called, for Christ always promises us more.

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

 

 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 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus entered and passed through Jericho, on His way toward Jerusalem with His disciples.  Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich.  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.' "  My study bible has a long note on this parable, which is similar to one found in Matthew 25:14-30.  In Matthew's version, Jesus uses "talents" to illustrate the parable, which were a Greek currency.  Here, Jesus uses the "mina" which was a Hebrew unit of currency.  Both the "talent" and the "mina" were equivalent to a certain weight of precious metal, gold or silver.  In the ancient world, by Christ's time, both were used to measure the value of something for exchange.  It is from the "talent" used in the parable as reported by Matthew that we get our modern understanding of the word talent as a gift or innate ability given by Creator.  Here in Luke's version we note that each begins with the same sum; illustrating that God does not show partiality.

"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.'"   This wicked servant bears responsibility for ignoring his talent.  My study bible says that idleness is as much a rejection of God as is outright wickedness.  To put away the talent in a handkerchief is to waste it:  a handkerchief is used for "waste products" of the body such as sweat, blood, spittle, or food when eating.   There is another meaning to this also.  In the parable of the Talents, the wicked and lazy servant buried his talent in the ground.  The word used for "handkerchief" here can also the head cloth, in which the dead were wrapped for burial.  So there is an association here with using God-given gifts for "earthly" pursuits.  The bankers, my study bible says, represent other faithful people to whom the servant could have turned to help to use his gifts wisely.  This help is also available in the treasury of the Church, its saints, its teachings, the Scriptures old and new.  That the citizens hated this ruler, and sought to overthrow him, symbolizing Christ who is about to enter Jerusalem at the beginning of what we know as Holy Week, and will be rejected by the nation.

So, the question is here, what do we do with the gifts we're given by God?  Each one of us, the parable seems to say, is gifted -- or rather, invested -- with something by God.  God invests in us God's wealth of gifts to give:  intelligence, or talent, athletic ability, strength, physical health, our looks, a capacity to hear and appreciate beautiful music, or poetry, or even a gift to sit in a church and appreciate the beauty that is there in the sermons, carols, hymns, liturgy, icons, worship services, or even in the silence where we may find our own prayers to God.  All of these things are capacities which we do not create ourselves, but with which God gifts us.  If we look at the parable in the way that it is given, we may come to conclude that, in fact, God invests these things in us.  Each of us has something that we bring to the table, so to speak, precisely because God has invested these things in us.  There are times when our capacity for love of a spiritual life enables us also to make the best of what we might nominally call a "bad" thing, but which in the hands of the capacity for revering and finding God and the Spirit's work in our lives, become a good thing.  It is up to us also to find these hidden gifts in all circumstances, for they are also gifts of God.  A child with Down's syndrome comes to be revealed as an extraordinarily loving member of a family, tying others together in the beauty of that love, for example.  An elderly parent or grandparent becomes a focal point of care, encouraging through the lens of our faith not only a shared responsibility but an expression of love and revelation of the capacity for meeting a challenge with sacrifice and ingenuity, a cause of joy in the fulfillment of giving a gift of life and peace through infirmity.  We do not know where all of these gifts lie hidden in the fields of life, for they are ours to discover through the use of the gifts with which God graces us, and most especially that is true of the gift of faith.  Faith may reveal all kinds of hidden treasures and profits we may make through any and all things, so we perhaps might call faith the greatest gift of all.  When times becomes difficult, it might present us with a scenario in which it is especially hard to be appreciative of blessings.  At this time, as possibly at no other, it is the great gift of faith for which we are truly grateful, and from which we seek -- for His sake -- to multiply profit for the kingdom of God.  Faith is indeed a gift, a talent, we need to use in order to multiply, and not to bury or squander our capacity for things not worthy of such a great price.

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

 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

Yesterday we read that 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.'"   As they go toward Jerusalem, expectations regarding the manifestation of the kingdom of God -- and the Messiah entering Jerusalem -- are very high.  We can't escape this understanding of the time of the Incarnation in Israel.  Jesus responds to such expectations by giving a parable which illustrates and emphasizes the use of our own gifts given by God.  It is important to note that while in this story the currency is one called a mina (a single mina was equivalent to about three months' wages for a laborer), this story in Matthew (Matthew 25:14-30) is illustrated with a currency called a talent (a very large weight of gold or silver, worth 60 minas).  It is no accident that through that version of the parable, we gain our modern English meaning of the word "talent."  The amount each one receives, my study bible says, is based on his or her abilities (Romans 12:4-7). 

"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.'"   The citizens who hate and reject the nobleman refer to those who will reject and put Jesus to death in Jerusalem; the return after receiving His kingdom clearly refers to Christ's second coming and to the ultimate judgment.  My study bible says that this wicked servant couldn't evade responsibility for ignoring his gifts, as idleness is as much a rejection of God as outright wickedness.   To put away the mina in a handkerchief is not only to fail to use it, but the word for handkerchief in this case begs us to think about its meaning.  It indicates not just a cloth used for perspiration of blowing one's nose, but was also used as a shroud for the head of a corpse.  In Matthew's version of the parable, this wicked servant says he buried the talent he was given, and this is in some sense equivalent.  Whatever the meaning, he has wasted his talent on things worth discarding or burying; one interpretation of burial is to say he used his talent only for earthly pursuits.  Additionally, a bank in this case would represent the Church, a place where the mina would be put to use, and there are others to consult to help to use it wisely. 

 So what are wise uses of talents or gifts?  Jesus does not give us an image of barter here.  The nobleman doesn't leave people with commodities to trade.  These gifts given to the individuals are all the equivalent of a form of exchange, of currency, money.  That is, they can be turned into many possibilities, and can always be used no matter what the "market" seems to demand.  In this sense, the money (whether that be "minas" or "talents" in the ancient currencies of Christ's time) is something that can be used in all kinds of ways, and through our own choice, and at any time.  It is up to each person what he or she will do with it.  This is an important distinction, as we tend to think of talent in the modern sense as meant for one thing or another.  In this sense, a gift from God might be, for example, intelligence.  What are we going to use our intelligence for?  Another gift could be the gift of understanding or insight into people.  Are we going to use that gift of understanding to help and heal, to direct to the purposes of God -- or to manipulate, coerce, and use others for more "earthly" goals?  A currency stores value and is, as well, a medium of exchange.  Even the reference to the bank is an ancient Greek word for "table" (and used, still, to mean "bank" in modern Greek).  But its root indicates the table of exchange -- and a place where we may take advice on what to trade that currency for, how to put it to work, where to invest it or purchase with it, and even to make it grow so that others may use it later.  In this sense, the bank as symbolic for Church teaches us that when we don't quite know what to do with our time, talents, capacities, and direction in life, we go to pray.  In prayer, we may "park" our abilities in a place where they may grow and bear interest.  We place our faith in the vault of the whole of the Church, the Body of Christ, from which we seek guidance, where we can trust such an investment will bear interest for the Kingdom.  If we think of all that we have as currency -- that which is inherently of great value, and capable and meant for exchange -- then we start to think of ourselves as agents.  That is, we are always left with the question of what we choose to do, where we place our trust, invest our time and effort, and perhaps most importantly, where we can go without wasting time and ability when we await the clear understanding of what we are to do.  Prayer, in this sense of investment, becomes something we can always do with our free time ("pray without ceasing" - 1 Thessalonians 5:17), as well as an intentional use of our God-given capacities for doing good.   Our lives as endowed with tremendously valuable gifts by God become, in the sense of the currency or medium of exchange of the parable, means by which we may choose what fruit they will bear -- and our intentions and choices create real outcomes.  Faith becomes, in this perspective, the indispensable way to invest in what we truly need to create lives that build something worthwhile in the world.  Indeed, with this given point of view, it is faith that will make all the difference in the outcome.  In what do you invest and put your faith and trust?  Where does your effort go?  Let us remember prayer as a constantly available means of directing our energies and effort, and seeking the way to create the best outcome for our lives and our world.   To be given a gift in the form of currency indicates that within the infinite choices for exchange lies a command for creativity and imagination -- and in that vein, who knows what valuable opportunities exist even in the elements of our lives we consider to be impediments, handicaps, even flaws?  There is the proverbial lemonade -- or why not even lemon chiffon pie? -- that comes from lemons, as the American idiom goes.  Let us learn to make of our lives what our faith can help us to make, for the glory of God.