A Servant Who’s Not Serving

ALL – Psalm 31:1-8
ALL – Proverbs 8:1-11
OT – Exodus 26:1-27:21
NT – Matthew 25:1-30

You remember that line from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast song, “Be Our Guest”? “Life is so unnerving for a servant who’s not serving…” It’s a good line, except that Lumiere painted poor Cogsworth as the unfaithful servant, when he was actually the one seeking to obey their master, the Beast. Servants are not just meant to serve everyone; they’re supposed to serve their own masters.

Jesus told a parable about the Kingdom of Heaven in which a man went away to another country, leaving three servants and giving each of them some money to invest for him while he was away. Now this was a really good master. He knew his servants well, and he did not give any of them more than they could handle.

Two of the servants did as their master told them. They invested the money and gained a return. They served him. For their faithful service, the master rewarded each of them with greater privileges and responsibilities.

But one of them did not obey. He did not invest the money at all, not even in an interest-paying bank account. He was too scared about what his master might think or do (Matthew 25:24-25).

The NIV concludes, “For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him” (Matthew 25:29).

This verse seems confusing. All three servants still had money to give to their master, even if the third one had only the original money. What does a person need to “have” to be given more? What is it that will make a person lose everything if he “doesn’t have” it?

The answer isn’t “money,” though you might possibly argue that at least “a gain” is necessary. But how do you measure gain in the spiritual realm of the Kingdom of Heaven? Not with money!

What did the first two servants have that the third servant didn’t have? They had faithful, responsible service. The monetary gain simply showed that they had been hard at work, serving as their master commanded them to do. Servants are meant to serve. And since this parable says that the master gave each servant a task that fit his abilities, we can assume that faithful service to our King Jesus will result in the kind of gain He desires. Jesus knows our capabilities and entrusts us with service we can do. It’s not up to us to compare our abilities to others. It’s not up to us to worry about whether our service will give Jesus the return He’s looking for. It’s up to us to serve. If we don’t…?

For the man who uses well what he is given shall be given more, and he shall have an abundance. But from the man who is unfaithful, even what little responsibility he has shall be taken from him. – Matthew 25:29, The Living Bible

Jesus’ faithful servants receive a reward. Servants who don’t serve lose everything. What’s holding you back?

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