Any investors out there? I feel like, perhaps thanks to apps like Acorns and Robinhood more people than ever are talking about investing. Jesus told a parable about investing. It was not meant to teach us how to invest money but rather how to invest our talent, our gifts God has given us. Let’s look at it together today from Matthew 24.

14 “Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. 15 To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. 16 The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more. 17 So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. 18 But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. 19 “After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. 20 The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’ 21 “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ 22 “The man with two bags of gold also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.’ 23 “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ 24 “Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’ 26 “His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? 27 Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest. 28 “‘So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. 29 For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. 30 And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

The clear question is what are you doing with the talent that God has entrusted you with? I believe churches all over are filled with people who are like the last servant burying or sitting on their talents. God has gifted you and wants to use you to build His church. I was part of a church that had an excellent praise team. We put out a request for additional members and found out that we had several professional musicians in the congregation that never even thought about serving. One of them was even a multi Grammy winning musician in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It never occurred to them that God wants to use everyone’s talents and the church is better when we all use our gifts. In fact many of the most important things are the gifts that seem to be “behind the scenes”. Without those many things in the church would never happen. Today pray and ask God how He can use your gifts. You may just be surprised to see what happens.

In His Grip,
Pastor Dave