Preached Sunday, November 4, 2012 from Philippians 4:14-17
Theme: Our future position in Jesus’ kingdom depends upon our present use of the graces that He gives us.
(Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.)
I ask that you turn with me to Luke 19—and to a parable that our Lord told.
Jesus and His disciples had been making their way to Jerusalem. A little while before, He had been teaching them about the blessings of His kingdom. He had told them that He was on His way to Jerusalem because, before the glories of His kingdom could come, He must first be rejected by the leaders of His people, die on the cross, and be raised from the dead the third day. They didn’t really understand much of what He was telling them; but they were certainly filled with great expectations about the blessings and glories of His kingdom.
And who among us could blame them? While on the way to Jerusalem, they spent some time in Jericho where He had healed a blind man. And a little while after that, He had marvelously saved a wicked tax-collector named Zacchaeus. They were seeing the great things He was doing; and were eager that His kingdom reign begin then and there.
But it’s then that we find these words:
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).
It’s a stunning parable, isn’t it? And I’d like to call your particular attention to verse 13; and to what the nobleman in the story had said to His servants; because I believe that it expresses the command that our Lord would give to us this morning. It’s translated in a few different ways. The New International Version has it, “Put this money to work . . .” The old King James has it “Occupy . . .” But I like the New King James translation the best—”Do business till I come.”
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Now; that’s a command that isn’t for everyone. It’s a command that’s intended specifically for those of us who have sincerely embraced the salvation that the Lord Jesus has purchased for us on the cross, and who live consciously in the light of His second coming and the glories that will follow. But it’s because we have trusted in Him, and because we now rest in His saving grace, that it’s a command we very much need to hear.
You see; we are like those servants in that parable. We are the servants of our Master—the Lord Jesus. We became His servants when He saved us. And then, after He saved us, He poured His grace upon us in a multitude of rich ways. He washed us clean of our sins and set us free from the past, so that we can go on and live as ‘new creations’. He has declared to us that we now have the right to approach His Father freely, and ask for anything in His own name. He has given us His word—written down for us in Scripture—to be our guide and the rule of our lives. He has given us authority as His ambassadors in this world, and has commissioned us to proclaim His gospel and make disciples. He has sent the Holy Spirit to take up residence in us, to empower us and ‘gift’ us for different areas of service to His people. He has promised to provide for all our needs if we will put His kingdom and His righteousness first in our lives.
When I think of all this, I’m reminded of what the apostle Peter said at the beginning of His second letter;
Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust (2 Peter 1:2-4).
That describes God’s grace to us. But what Peter then went on to say is that it’s our responsibility to take these provisions of grace and put them to work! We’re not to simply hold on to them and do nothing with them—drifting along idly to heaven. We’re to build on them and put them to productive use. He went on to say;
But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:5-11).
I don’t believe you could find a better commentary on our Lord’s parable than that! Our salvation is completely brought about by God’s grace, and is ours through faith. We don’t have to work to receive His grace. But the story He told is meant to teach us that our future position in His kingdom depends upon our present use of His grace—and that, having received His grace, we are to put it to diligent use and ‘do business till He comes’.
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Now; let’s look a little closer at this parable, and draw out some of the principles we find in it. And the first principle that I’d like to point out to you is that . . .
1. WE LIVE IN THE SEASON OF OPPORTUNITY FOR PUTTING HIS GRACE TO PRODUCTIVE USE (vv. 11-12).
If you’ll look at verse 11, you’ll see that the Gospel writer Luke explains why the Lord told this parable to those who were following along with 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.”
You see; people in that time thought that Jesus was going into Jerusalem in order to commence His reign as King of kings and Lord of lords as soon as He got there. They mistakenly thought that the glories of the kingdom would be brought about and begin to be experienced “immediately”. Even today, there are many skeptics of the Christian faith who believe that Jesus and His apostles were mistaken; that they erroneously believed and taught that the kingdom would appear in their lifetime—and since it didn’t, they argue that you can’t really trust anything that the Bible says.
But as this parable shows us, that’s not what Jesus taught. He told this parable to them in order to correct their mistaken expectation—to show that the kingdom would not “appear immediately”; but that a a long, undefined interval of time would occur before the glories of the kingdom would be experienced on earth.
Now; I believe that another thing this parable tells us has to do with what our Lord Himself was about to do. He began the parable in verse 12 by saying, “A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return.” To go to a “far country” suggests that a long trip was involved; and that a certain amount of time would pass before the nobleman would return. And it was before the nobleman left on this trip—and because it involved a long period of time—that he called his servants to himself and gave them a task to perform. This is a picture to us of the Lord Jesus, who was then on His way to Jerusalem to present Himself to the Jewish people as their long-awaited Messiah and to then be rejected by them.
The Bible tells us that “He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him” (John 1:11). They would crucify Him; and then He would be raised from the dead on the third day. But I don’t believe the “long trip” was meant to picture His trip to Jerusalem. I believe our Lord’s “long trip” is the one He made back into the heavenly glory after His resurrection and ascension. It would be from there—in heavenly glory—that He would receive His kingdom; and it would be from there that He would return to earth one day to take possession of it in Jerusalem. But there is an interval of time between His departure and His return—an interval during which we, His servants, are to be ‘doing business till He comes’.
And that means, dear brothers and sisters in Christ, that you and I are living right now in the season of opportunity. Do you remember what our Lord once said?—”I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work” (John 9:4). Well; the time is coming for each one of us when we will no longer be able to do the work that the Lord has given us to do because God will have called us from it by death. And in an even greater sense, the time is coming when no one will be able to do the work of the kingdom because our Lord Himself will have come.
I don’t know how else to put it. If you are of the frame of mind to simply declare yourself a Christian—and then do nothing as you sit idly waiting to be taken up to heaven—repent of that attitude! This is not the time for us to be resting. We are living in the season in which the Lord allows us to invest the grace He has given us productively, and to put it to good use!
Now is the time—during each day that we are allowed live on this earth, and in a state of anticipation of the Lord’s glorious return—for ‘doing His business.’
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As we read on further in Our Lord’s parable, we find another principle; that . . .
2. THE GRACE HE HAS GIVEN US IS MEANT TO BE PUT TO USE (vv. 13-15).
In verse 13, we read of what the nobleman did before he left on his long trip. “So he called ten of his servants, delivered to them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Do business till I come.'”
A mina was not a bird, by the way. It was a unit of money. It was roughly the equivalent of three-month’s worth of an average working man’s wages. It wasn’t much in relation to all that this nobleman had; but it was still a significant amount of money. It was enough to “do business” with. And notice that each one of the ten servants that he called to himself got the same amount. There was no difference between them in terms of what they received. The only difference between them would be revealed by what they did with what they were given.
This is just like you and me in terms of the Lord’s perspective, by the way. Each one of us is given equal opportunity to serve Him; and the only difference between us will be measured by what we did with what we were given.
And so, the nobleman left. Verse 14 tells us, “But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We will not have this man to reign over us.'” And this is just what happened to our Lord. In John 19:15, when Pilate made Him stand before His own people, they shouted, “’Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!’ Pilate said to them, ‘Shall I crucify your King?’ The chief priests answered, ‘We have no king but Caesar!'” But what’s fascinating is that, even though His people rejected Him as their king and crucified Him, it didn’t change anything. He still took possession of His kingdom—because it was not they that were giving it to Him. When our Lord returns, He will return in power and rule over His kingdom as what He is—King of kings and Lord of lords.
And I believe that that’s when the main part of the story of this parable takes place—at Jesus’ glorious return. Jesus goes on in His parable then to say, “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” (v. 15). And the thing to notice is that from the very beginning when he first gave the minas to the ten servants, to the very end when he came and asked for an accounting of what was done, the expectation of the nobleman—the whole time long—was that they would be putting what He had given them to productive use.
As Christians, we sometimes have the mistaken idea that there will be no judgment for us whatsoever. Now; I believe that, as redeemed people, we will never experience a “judgment” in the sense of the condemnation for our sin. Praise God, there is no ‘no condemnation’ for those who are in Christ! Jesus took all the punishment for our sins upon Himself and paid the price in full. But there will be a “judgment” in the sense of an evaluation. We will be evaluated in terms of how we did with what God has given us. Did we put it to good, productive use? As the apostle Paul once wrote, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10)—and I remind you that Paul wrote those words to Christians!
The grace that the Lord Jesus has poured out upon us is meant to be put to use. That is His expectation of us right now. That will be what He will evaluate on the day of His return. May we—by His grace!—make good use of His grace while we can. May we be pleasing to Him on the great day of review!
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So; how do we make good use of His grace?
I believe that we do so by taking advantage of the provisions He has made for the growth of that grace. He has given us the Scriptures to be our guide in life; and we make good use of it by reading it daily, and studying it diligently, and obeying it faithfully. He has given us the right to come before His Father in prayer; and we make good use of that provision by praying often about everything—both in our individual lives and together as a church family. He has entrusted His gospel message to us; and we make good use of that provision by learning how to explain it and by sharing it regularly, and by living the kind of life that is consistent with what we proclaim. He has placed His Holy Spirit in us; and we make good use of the glorious provision of this divine Helper by allowing Him to fill us and empower us for service. He has given us each other; and we make good use of that provision by making sure we meet regularly to encourage and edify and serve with one another.
Sometimes people think that the words of our Lord’s parable only apply to people in vocational ministry. But all the unique talents and abilities that the Lord has given you are His gracious “mina” to you; and they are to be put to work in ‘doing His business’. If you have a vocation and are trained in a particular field, you are to be His ambassador in that field; and do your work as unto Him and not unto men. If you have particular skills and abilities, they are to be used to advance His cause. If you have been given material goods, they were ultimately given to you by Him to be put to work in some way for His purposes.
And with all that in mind, look at the third principle we find in this parable; that . . .
3. A PRODUCTIVE USE OF HIS GRACE RESULTS IN ETERNAL REWARD (vv. 16-19).
We’re told that the nobleman called the ten servants to himself to see how they did with what had been given to them. “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.'”
We’re not sure how much most of the other ten earned; but these two did wonderfully well! One took his one mina and earned ten more—giving his master eleven altogether! The other took his one mina and earned five more—giving his master six altogether. Both of them received the highest commendation they could receive—”Well done, good servant!” I don’t believe there will be anything more valuable on the great day of review than to hear our Lord say that to us!
But in addition to the commendation from our Lord, there’s also a reward. And did you notice the greatness of that reward? A mina, as we have said, is probably around three-month’s worth of wages. But our Lord called it “a very little”. I don’t know about you; but I certainly don’t think of three-month’s wages as “very little”! But compared to the reward they were about to receive, it was very little! For each additional mina their one mina earned, they received a city! It’s hard to think of anything greater that could be given than a whole city! A city for a mina! This symbolism gives us just a faint idea of what’s in store for our Lord’s faithful servants in future heavenly glory! It truly staggers the mind! Paul probably said it as well as it could possibly be said when he wrote, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18).
Laboring faithfully for our Lord while we have the opportunity, and making as much productive use as we can of the grace He gives us, is something that we will never regret! Great is the reward for faithfully ‘doing business till He comes’!
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But then comes that third servant. And this is where we find a final principle; that . . .
4. A REFUSAL TO PUT HIS GRACE TO WORK WILL RESULT IN LOSS AT HIS COMING (vv. 20-27).
Now; I call it a ‘refusal’; because I can’t think of any better way to put it. He had the same mina given to him as the others had been given. He had the same command as they did. And he had the same opportunity of time. But as our Lord puts it; “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'” (vv. 20-21).
To call the master an “austere” man was to say that he was rigorous and exacting. “Hard”, as one translation has it. Perhaps he feared his master because he thought he could never measure up to the expectations he had for him. But there was more to it than just that. He apparently thought his master was unjust. He characterized him as collected what he didn’t deposit, and reaping what he didn’t sow. There was great arrogance in what this servant said; because he behaved as if the mina as if it were actually his—and not his master’s.
Sadly, this servant spoke just like many ‘professing Christians’ speak. They talk about the time that they have as if it were “their time”; or the possessions they have been given as if they were “their possessions”; or the talents that God gave them as if they were “their talents”; or indeed their very life as if it were “their life”. When God tells us what to do with these things, it’s not an intrusion! Praise God that He lets us enjoy and use these things; but the rich graces He pours out on us are His, not ours! He has the right to dictate what is done with them.
So; what did this man do? He took the mina that the master had given him and hid it in a handkerchief. He tucked it away somewhere and did nothing with it. He accomplished no more with it than if the master had given the mina to a dead man. And again, sadly, that’s what a lot of ‘professing Christians’ do with the grace that the Lord Jesus has given them. They hide it, tuck it away somewhere, and accomplish nothing with it—thinking that, somehow, that would be acceptable to the Master.
And look at what our Lord said next; “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?’” (vv. 22-23). Perhaps this teaches us that, even if we don’t put the resources God gives us to productive use, we could at least pass them on to someone who can. The Lord goes on to tell us, “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” (vv. 24-26).
I believe that our Lord is teaching us about two different types of “having”. There’s the kind of “having” that we’re used to—the kind where we think that we possess a thing and have it in our hand for a short period of time. But there’s another kind of “having—a kind in which we truly “have” a thing to the glory of our Lord and to the service of His kingdom. There are a lot of us who think that we “have” what the Lord has given us in that first sense; but He is looking to see what we will do with it—and to see if we show ourselves to really “have” it in the second sense. The proof is in whether or not we faithfully ‘do business’ with it ’till He comes’. And sadly, there will be many like that wicked servant—who thought they “had”, but who proved by their refusal to put it to work that they didn’t really “have” at all. Even what they thought they had will be taken from them; and given instead to those who truly “have”.
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At the end of this story, the nobleman said, “But bring here those enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, and slay them before me” (v. 27). Clearly, this is speaking of the way our Lord will come as a mighty conqueror to take possession of His kingdom at His return. A lot of folks have tried to speculate whether or not this third, wicked servant was among those who were destroyed. But I don’t believe that really a question worth asking. After all, if someone is trying to figure out from this parable whether or not they can be an unfaithful, unproductive servant and still be among the redeemed, they’re of the wrong frame of mind already.
Really, the point is clear enough; isn’t it? The Lord would have none of us be unproductive! He has richly poured out His grace upon us; and He fully expects us to make good productive use of it. We are living in the season of opportunity right now; and He promises to richly, immeasurably reward those who put that grace to work in a productive way.
He is coming soon; dear brothers and sisters. Let’s ‘do business till He comes’!