"Tight lines" is a blessing fishermen offer each other, a wish for lines taut with the weight of good fish. May God grant that the lines written here be taut with His blessings.
Tuesday, 11 November 2008 | |||
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Gold Standard | |||
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I'm about to commit an exegetical sin. Klyne Snodgrass and
other commentators make it very clear that this Sunday's parable in
Matthew 25:14-30 is not about stewardship. But it's the text
for my sermon on what we're calling "Triple T Sunday," for that
old cliche about "time, talent and treasure." Actually, we've
got four T's going, because our folks are bringing frozen turkeys to give
away in Thanksgiving baskets as well. Our modern English use of the word "talent," to denote aptitude or ability was derived in the 15th century from reflection about the use of the Greek work talanton in this parable. Before that, a "talent" was only a unit of money. The pervasive use of the Christian Bible has often changed language, and here's another case where that has happened. In any case, the "talents" [or "bags of gold" in the TNIV -- a helpful translation] in Jesus' story were simply very large sums of money (maybe 20 years ordinary wages each). So one ought not jump too quickly to interpretations that focus on how one uses one's natural abilities to serve God. Neither should we focus too much on literal money, making the parable all about what we do with whatever financial resources God gives us. Instead we need to stay in the "Kingdom" frame of mind set by verse 1 of chapter 25 ("the kingdom of heaven will be like,") and reiterated by verse 14 ("Again, it will be like," although that translation is a bit of a leap). The parable is about how we receive the Kingdom of God into our lives. The huge value of what was entrusted to the three servants should recall the treasure in the field and the pearl of great price. What's at issue here is how we receive and what we do with the priceless gift of the Gospel, with God's welcome into His Kingdom through the grace of Christ. Stewardship is relevant here, because part of receiving the Kingdom well is to place all our resources at its disposal. But stewardship is not the whole story. The larger issue is receiving the Gospel and responding with good fruit in all of life. Witness, transformed character, stewardship of resources, and service to others are all part of producing a good return on our Lord's Kingdom message invested in us. So, at the least, let's forget readings of this parable that make it all about doing and becoming the best I can with my own individual abilities and resources. This is not about what I do with what I've got to offer (which is pretty pitiful). It's about what we do with the Kingdom God has offered us in Jesus Christ, which is beyond price. But, everyone from VCC, please don't forget to turn in your Triple T pledge anyway. :-) | |||
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I am the pastor of Valley Covenant Church in Eugene, Oregon. I love to flyfish and hike along the beautiful rivers in our area. I welcome your comments as I share sermon work in progress and occasional other thoughts.
Thank you for visiting this blog. I invite you also to visit my web page.
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