A Story About Investing

Near Jerusalem. Jesus told this story right after He visited Zacchaeus, “as they heard these things” (19:11). He “was near Jerusalem,” and many people “thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately.” They expected Jesus to become King right away. A king who goes away. In the story, “a certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return” (19:12). A nobleman is a man of high rank. He would be gone for a while, and then he would come back as king. Work to do. Before he left, he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas, one for each servant. A mina (say: MY-nah) was a sum of money. He told them, “Do business till I come” (19:13). They were to use his money for him while he was away. The story uses money, but its lesson is about the king and his servants. Not everyone wanted him. “But his citizens hated him,” and they sent a message after him: “We will not have this man to reign over us” (19:14). To reign means to rule as king. A picture. Many Christians see the nobleman as a picture of Jesus. After He died and rose again, Jesus went back to heaven, and He is coming back as King. What this means for you. If you belong to Jesus, you are His servant, and He has given you work to do while you wait for Him. Some people still say no to Jesus as King. You can say yes to Him today.

As they heard these things (19:11). Jesus had just told Zacchaeus that salvation had come to his house. Now, “because He was near Jerusalem and because they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately,” He told a parable. The story answers a real question: would the King take His throne at once, or would there be a time of waiting? A far country (19:12). “A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return.” He would leave, receive his kingdom and come back. Between his going and his return there would be time. Doulos (19:13). “So he called ten of his servants, delivered to them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Do business till I come.’” The word for servant is doulos (say: DOO-loss), a servant who belongs to his master. Each one received a mina, a sum of money, and the same command. Matthew 25:14-30 has a similar story about talents. Basileuo (19:14). “But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We will not have this man to reign over us.’” The verb is basileuo (say: bah-sih-LEW-oh), to reign as king. They did not merely ignore him; they refused his rule. A picture. Many Christians see the nobleman as a picture of Jesus, who rose from the dead, went back to the Father and will return as King. For you. Two groups appear in the story: servants who are given work, and citizens who refuse the king. If you belong to Jesus, you are His servant, and He has given you work to do until He comes.

Jesus was close to Jerusalem. Some people thought God's kingdom would come right away. So Jesus told a story about a man who would be king. The man went far away to be made king. He would be gone for a while. Then he would come back. Before he left, he gave his servants work to do. Each servant got one bag of money to use. But some people hated the man. They said, “We don’t want this man to be our king!” Many Christians see this king as a picture of Jesus. Jesus went back to heaven, and He will come back. Until then, we have work to do for Him. Some people still say no to Jesus as King. But you can say yes to Him!

Jesus told a story about a king. The king went far away for a while. His servants had work to do until he came back.

The king comes back. “When he returned, having received the kingdom,” the king called his servants to find out how much each one had gained (19:15). Your mina. The first servant said, “Master, your mina has earned ten minas” (19:16). He called it “your mina.” The money belonged to the master from the start. Well done. The king answered, “Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities” (19:17). Faithful means someone who can be trusted. One mina was “a very little” next to ten cities! The second servant. “Master, your mina has earned five minas.” The king said, “You also be over five cities” (19:18-19). His result was smaller, and the king still rewarded him. Already his servants. These men did not do business to become the king's servants. They already belonged to him. In the same way, we do not serve Jesus to earn His love or to be saved. We serve Him because He has saved us: “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works” (Ephesians 2:10). What this means for you. God notices small things done for Him: telling the truth, helping at home, doing your schoolwork well, being kind when no one sees. Be faithful in the little things He gives you today.

The return (19:15). “And so it was that when he returned, having received the kingdom, he then commanded these servants, to whom he had given the money, to be called to him, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading.” The master who went away came back, and his servants answered to him. Your mina (19:16). “Master, your mina has earned ten minas.” The servant called it his master's money. All he had gained came from what he had been given. Pistos (19:17). “Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities.” The word for faithful is pistos (say: pis-TOSS): trustworthy, someone who can be counted on. The king praised faithfulness, and the reward was far larger than the work. Five minas (19:18-19). The second servant had gained five, and the king said, “You also be over five cities.” Both servants did what their master asked, and both received authority from him. Servants first. These were “his servants” (19:13) before they ever did business. Faithful service did not make them his; it showed that they were his. Believers are saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8), and then they are “created in Christ Jesus for good works” (Ephesians 2:10). Not in vain. Paul told believers that their “labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58). The Lord sees what is done for Him. For you. The king measured faithfulness by what each servant did with what he had been given. Be someone the King can trust with little things.

The king came home and called his servants. The first servant had earned ten bags of money. The king said, “Fine! You are a good servant.” He said, “I see that I can trust you with small things.” One bag of money was a small thing. Ten cities to rule was a big thing! The second servant earned five bags. He got to rule over five cities. Both servants were faithful. Faithful means someone you can trust. They did what the king asked while he was gone. These men already belonged to the king. They did not work so they could become his servants. They worked because they were his. You can be faithful in small things too.

The first servant made ten bags of money. The king said, “Fine! You are a good servant.” God sees when we serve Him.

Another servant. “Master, here is your mina, which I have kept put away in a handkerchief” (19:20). He kept the money safe, but he did nothing with it. In his own words. He explained, “For I feared you, because you are an austere man. You collect what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow” (19:21). Austere means hard and strict. He was afraid, and he thought his master was harsh. Out of his own mouth. The king answered, “Out of your own mouth I will judge you, you wicked servant” (19:22). If the servant really believed his master was strict, he could at least have put the money in the bank (19:23). He did not do even that. What God is really like. God is not a harsh master. “The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, Slow to anger and great in mercy” (Psalm 145:8). Jesus said, “My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matthew 11:30). What this means for you. Do not hide what God has given you because you are afraid of getting it wrong. Ask Him for help, and try. A small step of obeying Jesus is better than doing nothing.

Kept in a handkerchief (19:20). “Master, here is your mina, which I have kept put away in a handkerchief.” He gave back exactly what he had received. Nothing was lost, and nothing was gained. Austeros (19:21). “For I feared you, because you are an austere man.” The word is austeros (say: ow-stay-ROSS), strict or harsh. He was afraid, and he saw his master as a man who takes what is not his: “You collect what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.” Judged by his own words (19:22-23). “Out of your own mouth I will judge you, you wicked servant.” The king repeated the servant's view and asked, “Why then did you not put my money in the bank, that at my coming I might have collected it with interest?” Even the servant's own belief should have moved him to do the smallest thing. His fear did not make him faithful; it left him doing nothing. A true picture of God. The first two servants found their master generous: one mina became authority over cities. Scripture shows the Lord's real character: “The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, Slow to anger and great in mercy” (Psalm 145:8). Jesus called Himself “gentle and lowly in heart” (Matthew 11:29). For you. A wrong picture of God leads people to hide from Him and do nothing. Knowing Him as He is leads to glad, faithful service. If fear of failing keeps you from obeying, bring that fear to Jesus and take the next step He shows you.

Another servant came to the king. He had hidden the money in a cloth. He told the king, “I was afraid of you.” He said the king was a hard man. So the servant did nothing with the money. He kept it safe, but he did not use it. The king said, “You evil servant!” The servant should have at least put the money in the bank. Is God hard and mean? No, He is not! God is kind and good. He gives us good gifts to use for Him. We do not need to be afraid to try. Doing nothing is not the way to serve Him.

One servant hid the king's money. He was afraid and did nothing with it. God is good, so we do not need to hide.

Given to the faithful. The king said to those who stood by, “Take the mina from him, and give it to him who has ten minas” (19:24). They answered, “Master, he has ten minas” (19:25). Use it or lose it. The king explained, “to everyone who has will be given; and from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him” (19:26). The servant who used what he was given received more. The one who did nothing lost even what he had. The king's enemies. Then the king judged the citizens who had refused to have him as king (19:27). Saying no to God's King is serious. Jesus told this story on His way to Jerusalem, where many would reject Him. “He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him” (John 1:11). God is not cruel. God says, “I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live” (Ezekiel 33:11). He is “not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). What this means for you. Jesus is coming back as King. Right now is the time to receive Him as your King and Savior. Then you can serve Him gladly, with everything He gives you, until He comes.

Taken and given (19:24-25). “Take the mina from him, and give it to him who has ten minas.” Those who stood by said, “Master, he has ten minas.” The king answered with a rule of his kingdom. The rule of the kingdom (19:26). “For I say to you, that to everyone who has will be given; and from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.” What is used for the King grows. What is hidden away is lost. The citizens (19:27). “But bring here those enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, and slay them before me.” The story ends with the judgment of those who refused the king's rule. Jesus spoke these words on His way up to Jerusalem, where He would be rejected: “He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him” (John 1:11). Not cruelty. The judgment is real and serious, but God takes no delight in it: “I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live” (Ezekiel 33:11). The Lord is “longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish” (2 Peter 3:9). The time before the King returns is time for people to turn to Him. For you. Jesus is coming back as King. Every person must answer the citizens' question: will you have this Man to reign over you? Receive Him as King today, then serve Him faithfully until He returns.

The king told the men to take the hidden money. They gave it to the servant with ten bags. The men said that servant already had ten bags! The king said that whoever uses what he has will get more. The one who does not use it will lose it. The king judged the people who refused to have him as king. Saying no to God's King is very serious. But God is not mean or cruel. He does not want anyone to be lost. Jesus came to save people who once said no to Him. Right now, anyone can say yes to Jesus as King. Then we can serve Him gladly until He comes back.

The king gave that money to the first servant. Jesus is the King who came to save us. We can say yes to King Jesus today!