You're listening to Mountain View Church Audio, Christ-centered teaching from the Wilderness City, Whitehorse, UConn. Here's this week's message. What if at the end of your life, the greatest regret is not what you did wrong, but what you never did at all? What if the greatest danger to your faith is not sin that explodes, but passion that slowly cools down? We often fear big failures, but many times the real danger is quiet inaction. Small daily choices that slowly shape who we become. Imagine this scenario. You come home exhausted and your son accidentally breaks something. You feel anger racing. So you could yell or you could pause, breathe and correct with patience. Your anger does not define you. Your choice does.
Because the difference between virtue and vice is not what we feel, it is what we choose each day. And character is not formed in extraordinary moments, but in ordinary decisions of obedience. Welcome to Mountain View Church. My name is Herbert. I'm the children's pastor. Throughout the series Virtues and Vices, we have discussed the constant battle we carry on in the human heart. We have seen how virtues reflect the character of Christ within us, while vices...
Twist that character and distance us from God's purpose. We have learned that pride competes with humility, that selfishness battles love, that impatience challenges perseverance. But today, we come to a silent and dangerous confrontation. Faithfulness versus apathy. Because some vices are noticeable, but apathy does not always make noise. It does not always destroy immediately.
It simply cools. It stops. It varies what God has placed in our hands. If virtues build the kingdom, apathy hinders it from within, as we are going to learn in our scripture reading. Hi, my name is Dagmar. Our scripture reading is from Matthew 25, 14 to 30. You're welcome to follow along with the physical Bible. Search the table of contents to locate the corresponding page number for Matthew. Alternatively, you can download the Bible app or visit bible.com.
Now, after a long time, the master of those servants came and selected accounts with them. And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, Master, you delivered to me five talents. Here I have made five talents more. His master said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little. I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master. And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, Master, you delivered to me two talents. Here I have made two talents more.
His master said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little. I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master. He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping for where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed. So I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.
but his master answered him you wicked and slothful servant you knew that i reap where i have not sown and gather where i scattered no seed then you ought to have invested my money with bankers and at my coming i should have received what was my own with interest so take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have in abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness, in a place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. To understand this passage well, we need to know that this teaching from Jesus begins in chapter 24.
and continues in chapter 25. It all happens on the Mount of Olives, a place where Jesus and his disciples often passed to rest on their way to or from Bethany. On this particular day, Jesus had just left the temple for the final time. His disciples, still amazed by its beauty, remember his striking words recorded in Mark chapter 13, verses 1 and 2, where we read. And as he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, Look, teacher, what wonderful buildings! And Jesus said to him, Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down. And for a Jew at that time, such a declaration pointed to two major events, the coming of the Messiah and the end of the age. These chapters contain Jesus' teaching in response to the disciples' question about
The destruction of the temple that we can find in Matthew 24, verses 1 and 2, and that historically was fulfilled in 70 BC. The sign of his coming that we can read in Matthew 24, verses 4 to 14. And Jesus clarifies that these signs are not the end, but the beginning. And then the end of the age, starting in Matthew 24, verse 3, in which includes the parable we are looking at today. So we can say that in this teaching, Jesus speaks of the end of the age and also of vigilance and responsibility, especially for those of us who await his kingdom. The wait will be longer than the disciples, and we also could imagine. And faithfulness is demonstrated not only in the expectation of the future, but also in concrete obedience in the present.
Even though these chapters, 24 and 25, are known as a discourse about the end of times, it does not seek to satisfy prophetic curiosities, but to form faithful, vigilant, and responsible disciples until the return of Christ. Now, looking closely at the parable of the talents, we see that it complements Jesus' teaching from the parable of the ten virgins. As together, they illustrate the two inseparable aspects of the believer's life, the inner and the outer self. The Parable of the Ten Virgins, founded in Matthew 25, verses 1 to 13, focuses on the inner spiritual condition, symbolized by the presence or absence of oil, alluding to the presence or absence of the Holy Spirit.
In contrast, the parable of the talents directs attention to the external, that is, to how what is in the heart is expressed in concrete actions. In other words, the parable of the ten virgins teaches us that the Holy Spirit help us to remain vigilant until Jesus comes back, while the parable of the talents teaches us to work intentionally for him. Thus, while we await Jesus' return, we must faithfully take part into the tasks of their kingdom. So let's look. at the meaning of some words that I will be using in this sermon. The first one, faithfulness. And according to the Cambridge dictionary, the quality of being loyal to someone or something. And also we find another definition from the Greek word for faithfulness, which is pistos, of person who show themselves faithful in the transaction of business, the execution of commands, or the discharge of official duties.
Faithfulness describes a trustworthy character, implies active loyalty to the Lord. It is expressed in obedience and diligence. Faithfulness, therefore, is not just feeling, but a constant action and remaining steadfast and fulfilling one's promises. Apathy, according to the Cambridge Dictionary, is a behavior that shows no interest or energy and demonstrates that someone is willing to act. And then talent. In the Bible, a talent was not a skill or ability like we use the word today. It was a very large amount of money. Technically, it was a unit of weight, about 34 kilograms, or around 75 pounds, of silver or gold. And to understand how valuable that was, one talent was worth about 20 years of a laborer's wages.
In today's terms, if we calculate 34 kilograms of gold at current Canadian market prices, it would be worth around $7 million. And then Jesus begins the parable in Matthew 25, verse 14. referring to the kingdom of heaven. And the key point regarding the monetary value of a talent is that God does not hold back and therefore gives us much in terms of resources because it is to work for his kingdom and carry out what he has placed in our hands. There is some key lessons from Matthew chapter 25 verses 14 to 30.
And the first key teaching of this passage is that God gives real gifts. Verse 14. For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. Faithfulness acts. Apathy doesn't.
The master entrusts his servants with talents, in this parable, large sums of money, to each according to his ability. Here, in this verse, there is something very important to emphasize. All three receive something. In the same way, God has entrusted each of us with something he expects us to use for building his kingdom, such as time. Maybe we don't all have the same amount of time available, but we all have some time that we can invest in the kingdom. Spiritual gifts. God never asks us to use a gift we do not have. He simply calls us to be faithful with the one He has already placed in our hands. If you are not sure what your spiritual gifts are, these tools can help you discover them. But before opening this link...
Pray God to help you understand better, to discover your calling, or ask for guidance to any of the pastors of your church. Influence is another resource. We all influence at least someone in our family, friends, colleagues, or neighbors, even without realizing it. The gospel itself. The gospel is the most valuable resource God has entrusted to us. So share it at every opportunity, especially with those who don't know Jesus.
And knowing that we all have received a gift from God, I invite you to think about this. The question is not, how much do I have? The question is, what do we do with what we have? The second key lesson to learn is that faithfulness acts, apathy only intents. As we can read in Matthew 25, verses 16 and 17. And 16 says, He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more.
So also, he who had the two talents made two talents more. The first two servants immediately put to work with what they had received, taking risks and multiplying it for their master. They did not waste time. They did not overthink it. They did not compare themselves. They simply acted. The third key lesson is knowing without acting. And Matthew 25 continues in verse 18 like this.
But who had received the one talent went into the ground and hid his master's money. The third servant buried his talent, did nothing to reproduce it, not even put it in the bank, as the master told him in the parable, to earn the minimum that talent could earn. And his inaction is considered wickedness in the kingdom, doing nothing with what God gives his sin. And the sin is not doing something wrong. but in failing to do what was right with what the master entrusted to him. In Matthew 25, verses 26, Jesus does not say the servant was unlucky, misunderstood, or cautious. He calls him wicked, that the Greek word is ponere, and means morally wrong and evil, and lazy, that means negligent, unwilling to act.
And those are moral categories, not neutral description. So Jesus himself interprets the servant's inaction as a moral failure. The consequence Jesus gives is the same use for judgment, as Matthew 25, verse 30 tells us, and cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. And this shows that the issue is not poor performance, it is unfaithfulness, which is sin. And related to this, we can also see what James 4, verse 17 says.
So, whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. The fourth key lesson, the judgment, and is found in Matthew 25, verses 19 to 25. Now, after a long time, the master of those servants came and settled account with them. And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, Master, you delivered to me five talents. Here I have made five more. His master said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little. I will send you over much, entering the joy of your master. And he also, who had the two talents, came forward, saying, Master, you delivered to me two talents. Here I have made two talents more.
His master said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little. I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master. And 24, he also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, Master, I knew you to be harming, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed. So I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground.
Here, you have what is yours. Faithfulness rewarded. Apathy exposed. The parable, it points to the return of Christ. Each person will give an account on how they manage their time, their gift, their resources, their opportunities, their calling.
and faithfulness rewarded. When the master returned, there was an accounting, and each servant had to answer, reminding us that Christ will return. The parable is not just about money, but about preparation, stewardship, and responsibility in the kingdom. Therefore, we learn that faithfulness brings recognition, greater responsibility, and joy in the work done. Well done, good and faithful servant.
Enter into the joy of your Lord. The master said to the first and second servants, and both received the same approval, even though they produced different amounts. They had the same reward. Enter in the joy of your Lord. And it goes beyond a price, transcending into an eternal relationship with the master. But we also learned that apathy exposed. This is the answer of the third servant to his master. So I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground.
Here, you have what is yours. And he might think what he did was right, because at that time, borrowing money was a valid practice to protect it. So it might have seemed wise, but in reality, what this person showed was a lack of faith. And without faith, one loses confidence, courage, and the passion to fulfill what has been entrusted to us. Apathy, in the end, is not showing interest or energy.
And it shows that the person is unwilling to act. And here are some reasons why apathy is something that we need to avoid practicing in our life. Lack of interest. When we ignore our gifts, responsibilities, or opportunities, it often shows we are not really interested in growing or serving beyond ourselves. Lack of wisdom. When we look at life only through fear or limitation, we miss the possibilities, the impact we could have, and the purpose behind what God has given us. But also lack of commitment. When we hold back our time, abilities, or resources, it usually means we are avoiding responsibility or long-term effort. Instead of being faithful, we settle for doing the minimum and avoid taking risks.
And last, lack of love. When someone acts mainly to protect themselves instead of serving others, it reveals a heart more focused on avoiding loss than showing devotion, care, and faithfulness. Then, the fifth key lesson is faithfulness shows in doing, not just knowing. The parable of the talent teaches us that God places real, valuable resources in our hands and expects us to use them actively for his kingdom as we await Christ's return. Faithfulness is the loving response of those who understand the trust God has given them. Apathy, however, quietly rejects that trust and lets his gifts sit on use.
And at this point, as believers, we must recognize that sometimes we can know the Scripture and not live according to what it teaches. We can know the truth and live bound to sin, especially through apathy. We can know our calling and still lack of courage to live it out. And even though God's kingdom moves forward through people who are faithful and obedient, apathy can whisper excuses like, you're too busy, sir, when you have more time, wait until you feel ready, maybe when your health improves. If we listen to those voices, we end up missing the joy and reward God wants to give us through faithfulness. In conclusion,
The parable of the talents in Matthew 25, verses 14 to 30, reminds us something essential, that God has entrusted each of us with something valuable, our time, gifts, resources, opportunities, and even the gospel come from Him and have a purpose. And He will hold us accountable for what He has placed in our hands. And because of that truth, He expects faithfulness. The intention of the parable is not to produce guilt, but to awaken responsibility. And again, the issue is not how much we have, but what we do with it. The faithful servants acted and were welcomed into their master joy. The third servant did nothing, and his inaction revealed his heart. Apathy says later. Faithfulness says now.
As we wait for Christ's return, may we not bury what God has given us. May we found faithful in the ordinary daily choices that will His kingdom. Let's pray. Father, thank you for trusting us with gifts, time, and opportunities to serve you and others. Forgive us for the moments we have allowed fear or apathy to stop us from acting. Give us courage to be faithful.
Diligent to serve in hearts that seek your glory above our comfort. Help us to use what you have placed in our hands for your kingdom. May we live in such a way that we hear, well done, good and faithful servant. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
If you prayed to receive Jesus today or would like to connect with our church community, visit mountainview.church and click the connect link. If this podcast and radio ministry has been a blessing to you, please consider partnering with us or making a tax-deductible donation at mountainview.church. Thanks for listening to Mountain View Church Audio. Join us next week for more Christ-centered teaching from the Wilderness City of Whitehorse UConn.