The Talent Thief
Jesus tells a story in Matthew 25 about a man who shared what was his with his servants. The man returns and commends two servants as good and faithful while the other is openly rebuked. The good servants used what they were given and made an increase for their master. The last servant only buried his talent in the earth. To Jesus’ audience, a talent was a large sum of money, but this parable isn’t about money. It is about using the gifts and talents that God gives us. The question we all must answer is what are we doing with what God has invested into our lives?
Have you ever wondered why the one servant would bury his talent in the dirt? You can’t make sense of the story until the master returns. The master is commending the good servants when he is suddenly approached by the servant with one talent and now we see the heart of this servant revealed. It seems he might be convicted by the actions and affirmation received by his peers.
My point here is not to try and judge the master or the servant. The obvious application is that Jesus is the Master and we are His servants. We are all responsible to use wisely what God has given us before He returns. Instead, I want to expose a force that isn’t mentioned in the story but is surely present. The Bible warns us to guard our minds and be alert because Satan is always looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8). None of us are above Satan’s trickery and attacks. With this in mind, here are three ways the devil might have been working in the shadows of this story:
The devil will trick you into comparing yourself to others. Maybe the servant with one talent compared himself to the others and felt he had nothing to offer. He may have had something different and even something less, but he still had something. The hard truth is that God does not make us equal in gifting or ability. The master gave to every man according to his ability, not their value. Few things will steal your joy and confidence like comparing yourself to others. It is no wonder why the Bible warns us against it (Galatians 6:4-6).
The devil will trick you into believing something about God that isn’t true. The servant calls his master a “hard man” — it is an accusation of being unnecessarily harsh and difficult to please. The truth is the master gave his servants something of great value because he trusted them. He believed in their ability to do with the gift what he desired; he was anything but harsh. The devil would love to make you believe God is not good and that accountability is evil. It is the same lie the serpent used with Eve in the Garden of Eden and he will use it on you too.
The devil will trick you into living by what you feel. The servant confessed fear as the reason for his action or lack of it. What he believed about his master had a direct influence on the ruling emotion of his life, even if his belief was wrong. The answer to fear is found in 1 John 4:18, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear.” If you want to live an emotionally healthy life, you must know God as He really is and not as the devil makes Him seem. Remember, we are stewards of what we have been given, not owners. Fear, as controlling as it can be, doesn’t excuse us from responsibility. We are empowered by the Spirit to do the works of God (Philippians 4:13).
The gospel writers don’t record Satan lurking in the shadows of this parable but they didn’t when Jesus rebuked Peter either. Only moments after receiving powerful revelation Jesus says to him, “Get behind me, Satan.” The devil shows up uninvited, preying on unguarded thoughts and emotions. All these tricks of Satan are for one purpose, to keep you from fulfilling the will of God in your life and ministry. It is time to shine the light into the shadows to expose the devil and his deceptive ways.
Every ability in your life was given to you by God and to be used for God. There is a place in the kingdom of God for you. What are you doing to improve your craft and bring an increase to the Master?
