The parable of the talents. The master gave five to one servant, and from this he made a gain of five; he gave two to a second servant, and from this he made a gain of two. The third servant was given one talent to steward, and he brought back the same one talent. This displeased the master: he took the one talent and gave it to the one who now had ten.
Matthew 25: 29 ‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
On the surface, the parable is about money and investing, but this conclusion to the parable doesn’t sound right. Everywhere else in Scripture, we read that the ones with money are to give to the poor. Is Jesus telling us otherwise here? Further, is Jesus saying that poor investors will be punished in the outer darkness? This seems unlikely – or, at least, unlikely given what we understand elsewhere of the reasons for such punishment.
It seems clear He is not teaching such things, as He continues – immediately after concluding the parable:
Jesus is explaining how His disciples – and how we – are to understand this parable. “Talent” was a measure of money; it also can just mean “talent,” as in the gifts we have received from the Holy Spirit. The parable teaches us to use whatever gifts (talents) we have received to increase the wealth of the master. In other words, we are to use our talents in the service of God’s Kingdom.
If we use our talents to serve God’s Kingdom, He will reward us by increasing our talents (think “spiritual gifts,” not “prosperity gospel”) such that we can be of even more use. As Jesus said, “For to everyone who has, more will be given…”
