Obeying God’s Law and the Parable of the Talents

When the master charged his three servants with managing his money there were some things they understood about him…

- there would be a deadline
- he meant what he said
- they were expected to not only preserve his capital but to also increase it
- if they failed there could be great punishment (death)
- if they succeeded there could be great reward.

The Master gives $100,000 each to his seven servants.

The first servant who had been a farmer decided to buy hammers for three dollars each and sell them for two dollars each. I won’t make much money but it’s better than farming. The master will be happy I’m making progress.

The second servant might think… I don’t want to be killed if I lose the $100,000 so even if I don’t make anything off of it I’ll put it in a safe place and he can have his capital back. No reward but no punishment either.

The third servant might think… I don’t want to lose the $100,000 but I don’t want to risk it either…. I’ll invest it in U.S. saving’s bonds. It won’t make very much money but it will make some and I won’t lose any. It’s a conservative investment but also a safe one. My master won’t be thrilled with me but he won’t kill me either.

The fourth servant might think… I don’t want to lose the money but I don’t want to risk it either… I’ll invest it in the stock market. There is some volatility in the stock market but if I do lose some capital my investment strategy is sound and my master will understand the risk involved.

The fifth servant might think… I’m going to Las Vegas to the Blackjack table. I can win big there. I’ll say my prayers and since Jehovah is on my side I can’t lose.

The sixth servant might think… the price of Gold is going out the roof… I need to get in on it and buys Gold at its highest and then the bottom falls out.

The seventh servant might think… hmmm, I need to buy low and sell high. The housing market is undervalued now but it should rebound. These other guys are either investing in safe conservative investment modalities or behaving with great risk. I want to do the best for my master that I can and reward his confidence in me.

All seven of these servants understood their master’s rules but all seven acted differently. Why? Because they each had a different perception of him. Some interpreted his laws out of a sense of fear, some out of a sense of love and still others out of a sense of love balanced with fear.

If we’re not careful the same mistakes can be made when it comes to obeying God’s laws. We might be overly restrictive with his laws if we are only motivated by fear. We might go too far if we think God’s love will forgive anything we might do. The best approach is to fully appreciate his love for us and the liberty it allows while respecting the restrictions he places on us and the punishment we might incur.