New Year’s Message

A VERY SMALL MATTER

Luke 19:11-27

Key Verse 19:17 

“Well done, my good servant!” his master replied. “Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.”

Welcome to the first Sunday worship service of the year 2003. We pray that the Lord God would bless us to have a fruitful year. In order for us to have a fruitful year, we need to first have fellowship with a fruitful person. Where can we find such a person? We can find one in Jesus’ parable. 

With this in mind, let us read the key verse once again. “‘Well done, my good servant!’ his master replied. ‘Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.’”

This passage is Jesus’ parable; it came directly from Jesus’ mind which sees everything that occurs or will occur in human history in a single panoramic view (including all things in the past, present, and forever). Indeed just one reading of the parable helps us to get a sense of the important events in God’s redemptive history as well as the time frame that they should be fulfilled in. Jesus’ coverage in this parable is extensive, covering things of the past, present, and the eternity to come. So we can study the passage again and again, and still dig up lots of meanings. But for our own purposes, we would like to think about just six key points, and think about how they are applicable to us.

First, we must think about our duties as Christians first, rather than just our privileges as God’s children (11).  

Look at v. 11. “While they were listening to this, he went on to tell them a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once.” At the time Jesus was at the house of Mr. Zacchaeus, the chief tax collector. His house was located in Jericho. Jericho was a city near Jerusalem. It is like the city of Paramount sitting right next to the city of Downey. [Actually, it’s a couple of hours northeast of Jerusalem, toward the Dead Sea and Jordan; it is definitely more than a Sabbath’s journey away, so to speak.] Probably Jesus was having a dinner fellowship with his guests. There, Jesus declared, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham, for the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” Wow! Most people despised tax collectors like Zacchaeus. Yet by simply inviting Jesus to his house, Zacchaeus was not only saved but also promoted to the position of being called a son of Abraham! Upon hearing this, the imagination of some people in the audience began to run wild: they began to entertain the idea that, in a matter of a few weeks, if not a few days, God through Jesus might restore the “Messianic Kingdom” starting in Jerusalem by drastically toppling the Roman rule, and restoring King of David to Israel, so that Israel would dominate over all the peoples on earth. When this happens, a lot of people, especially those who were close to Jesus like the guests at Zacchaeus’ house, would not have to work full-time. Who knows - perhaps Jesus might even recruit them and appoint them to be members of his cabinet or at least to hire them as security guards for Jesus’ royal palace!  

What was their problem? Their problem was that they did not think about their duties as the descendants of Abraham; they just indulged in its privileges, like the privilege of being called “a kingdom of priests and holy nation” or “descendants of Abraham”! They are like a man who loves to get invited to a party and enjoy free meals, but never invites anyone to his home or serves others! Or they are like a man who loves to finish off food on a dish, but never puts the dish back to the sink and washes the dishes. Or they are like a student who likes the idea of getting all A’s but never even does his homework. Or like a man who wants to boost up his image by getting a job which pays a lot better than average Americans make (perhaps earning $20 or even $200 an hour), but is unwilling to put himself through a painful professional training program. Or he is like a missionary who wants to enjoy the honor of being called a missionary, but never actually goes out and does the missionary work! 

Second, we must remember our position as servants (not just as a royal priesthood), for while all must wait for his coming again as king, one must in the meantime choose to live his or her life either as Jesus’ enemy or Jesus’ servant; there is no middle ground (12-14). 

Look at vs. 12-14. “He said: "A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. 'Put this money to work,' he said, 'until I come back.' But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, 'We don't want this man to be our king.'” When we read this passage (along with v. 27), we find two categories of people: Jesus’ servants and Jesus’ enemies. Assuming that Jesus is alluding to the destiny of all peoples on earth in this parable, both Jews and Gentiles, the saved and unsaved (which I believe is the case here), this parable therefore leaves no person in additional categories other than as Jesus’ servant or Jesus’ enemy. All are Jesus’ subjects. But some are friendly while others are hostile. The friendly ones are the ones who affirm Jesus’ lordship, and the hostile ones, which Jesus calls “my enemies,” are the ones who deny Jesus’ kingship. 

So here is a question for each one of us: “Do I truly accept Jesus as my personal King?” (Not as my personal gopher but my King; not just as another boss, but as the King of kings; not just as a Savior, but as the only Savior; not just as any king like Burger King, but as the real King in the truest sense of the word “king,” with real power and real authority, even greater than the powers invested in a Caesar Augustus or the President of the United States George W. Bush; not just a king with mere political powers, though, but the King who holds and establishes all powers and all authorities on Earth!) More fundamentally than this question is another question, “Do I really accept Jesus as the king of kings, Lord of lords, not just with lips but in my day-to-day life of obedience, obeying him just as any subject would obey his or her king [in the ancient world]?” 

We need to ask these questions because there are a lot of people (“Christians” included) who, despite their titles or what they say, in fact live as enemies of Jesus Christ. These people appear to be good, Bible-believing Christians but in reality are Jesus’ enemies who originally emerged not in later centuries after Christ ascended, but even in the first century when he and the apostles were present. For example, the apostle Paul, who lived within less than a generation of Jesus, says in an epistle, “Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things” (Phi 3:17-19). 

Another reason we need to ask a question like this is because a lot of people, especially among Christians, do not live as Jesus’ “servants” in the truest sense of the word “servant,” but instead live as their own bosses. And I am especially directing this question to myself, for I do not find myself always his servant, but on many occasions as my own boss. If you want to know whether or not one has a servant’s attitude, there is a fabulous way to find it out: catch that person, especially when that person is busy with many other duties, and assign an onerous task to him, asking that person to get that task done immediately – now, see how he responds to your request. About a month ago, I asked a person to take the podium out of the storage room in our basement, disassemble it, leaving only the three sidesl, so that I could build a new podium using the decorative parts. But he conveniently forgot about it. And the podium still is sitting outside, intact. At first I was angry. But I was surprised to find out that it was I who should have done the job. Who am I to issue instructions to a busy man like him, and to do that kind of a menial job? Anyway, a servant never issues orders to his or her boss. And I was surprised to find out that a lot of Christians treat Jesus or their pastors as their personal gophers. But look! Jesus is no longer a servant. Of course, he is going to come back, but not as a servant but as the king. And here is another real point for us to consider: prior to his departure, Jesus issued a lot of commands for his servants to obey. One of them was his world mission command. “Make disciples of all nations.” What does “all” mean? All means all. This means that we had better examine ourselves by considering how we have been obeying what he has commanded us. Say to your neighbor, “Jesus is King. I am his servant.” John F. Kennedy once said, “my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.” Likewise, we also need to say, “my fellow Christians: ask not what Jesus can do for you – ask what you can do for Jesus.” Of course, this does not mean that Jesus is not going to do anything for you. In fact, he can and is willing to do everything for you, but only if you are willing to do anything he asks you to do.  This brings us to our third point. 

Third, we must use our possessions for his purposes, for all the possessions one has here on this side of the grave, be they physical or spiritual, visible or invisible, come with the responsibility of using them to serve God’s purposes, particularly to advance his kingdom, and not for self-seeking purposes (13).

Look at v. 13 again. “So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. 'Put this money to work,' he said, 'until I come back.'” The mina was a unit of currency during Jesus’ day, worth about three months worth of man’s wages. In his parable Jesus simply calls it “money.” But in view of the general scheme of the parable, especially the central subject, that is, the coming of the Kingdom of God, we can safely say that the mina (or money) represents two things: first, such resources with which to build God’s kingdom (money, talents, time, energy, church fellowship, physical facilities like church buildings, and spiritual assets like the Word of God, especially the gospel, and most importantly Jesus himself!); and second, the fruit that comes out of the money invested. 

“Put this money to work!” When we consider this command while remembering our position as a servant in mind, we can say that three things are true. First, as a servant, we cannot claim ownership over whatever we have. After all, what we have now has been given to us by someone through someone else. Nothing has come from our own hands. In the final analysis, we say everything came from God. So everything belongs to God. The Bible claims that Jesus is God. He is the one who created everything and sustains everything. So Jesus is the true owner of everything we have. Second, as a servant, we have no right to let the capital invested in us to lay idle and thus depreciate; we do not have the right to abuse it or to fail to use it. Non-use is often as bad as wrong use. Wrong use causes waste and perhaps even destruction. Third, in order for us to ensure that what we invest will reap the greatest amount of return, we must think, study, and pray hard.

This causes us to stop and think again about everything we have, everything we do (or, as may be the case, don’t do) with what we have, and how we do (or don’t do) what we do (or don’t do). This year I picked Deuteronomy 6:5 as my New Year’s key verse: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart with your soul and with your strength.” In other words, he wants me to love him with everything I have. At first, I was concerned that my weight might hinder my zeal to do his work. But I was greatly relieved because I recognized this means that I have a lot of “extra” energy saved up, so I can serve him until I even burn off all of my excess fat!

Fourth, his enemies will find the second coming of Jesus a surprise, but they will have to face it whether they like it or not (14).  

However, what if you have second thoughts and think that you are your own boss, living your own life, minding your own business? In other words, what will happen to you if you continue to live your life as if you were your own king? A good place to find the answer to this question is in v. 14. Look at v. 14 again. “But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, 'We don't want this man to be our king.'” One thing that needs to be recognized here is that not all people openly say, “I don’t want Jesus to be my king.” Although they don’t openly declare this, they nevertheless still live as Jesus’ enemies. This is just like a lot of people being used as instruments of the devil, even if they do not say, “Oh, I am the devil’s servant.” Another thing for us to make note of here is that if a person lives as his own boss, Jesus’ coming again as the king will be a tremendous surprise. After all, many deny that Jesus will come again. But just because someone rejects the idea that Jesus will come back does not mean that Jesus is not going to come back. After all, didn’t the psalmist say in Psalm 33 that “the Lord foils the plans of the nations and thwarts the purposes of the peoples, but the plans of the Lord stand forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations” (Psa 33:10,11)? 

Fifth, we must be careful about what we do with our lives, for everyone must give an accounting of what he or she has done while in the body, and this will happen when Jesus comes again. For when Jesus comes, he will ask the servants whom he had given his resources what they had gained with them (15-26). 

Let us read this part responsively: “¹⁵"He was made king, however, and returned home. Then he sent for the servants to whom he had given the money, in order to find out what they had gained with it. ¹⁶"The first one came and said, 'Sir, your mina has earned ten more.' ¹⁷" 'Well done, my good servant!' his master replied. 'Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.' ¹⁸"The second came and said, 'Sir, your mina has earned five more.' ¹⁹"His master answered, 'You take charge of five cities.' ²⁰"Then another servant came and said, 'Sir, here is your mina; I have kept it laid away in a piece of cloth. ²¹I was afraid of you, because you are a hard man. You take out what you did not put in and reap what you did not sow.' ²²"His master replied, 'I will judge you by your own words, you wicked servant! You knew, did you, that I am a hard man, taking out what I did not put in, and reaping what I did not sow? ²³Why then didn't you put my money on deposit, so that when I came back, I could have collected it with interest?' ²⁴"Then he said to those standing by, 'Take his mina away from him and give it to the one who has ten minas.' ²⁵" 'Sir,' they said, 'he already has ten!' ²⁶"He replied, 'I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but as for the one who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away.” We would like to think about three points here. 

True reward or punishment will not come until after Jesus comes again. This is a tremendous notion to consider. However, we are not going to elaborate on this in further detail, except to say that the wicked receive all the rewards they are going to receive while on this side of the grave while the righteous receive some rewards, but mostly a lot of punishment, while on this side of the grave, and will receive all their rewards in the World to Come. 

For the righteous, the rewards that are going to be given will be in accordance with what one has done while in the body. This is suggested in today’s parable, particularly where Jesus rewards the servant who earned ten minas with ten cities, and the servant who earned five minas with five cities. Other Bible passages unanimously support this truth. For example, Psalm 62:12 reads, “[Y]ou, O Lord, are loving. Surely you will reward each person according to what he has done.” Then Proverbs 24 begins with the injunction saying, “Do not envy wicked men.” And in v. 12 continues, “If you say, ‘But we knew nothing about this,’ does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?” We find these selfsame prophetic messages spoken by servants during the New Testament period. For example, the apostle Matthew says in Matthew 16:27, “[T]he Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.” Paul says in Romans 2:6, “God will give to each person according to what he has done." Then in Revelation 22:12, the apostle John says, “Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.” This then teaches us that our life here on earth is the only opportunity for us to prepare, brace, and secure our lives for what is coming.

The key to success, the key to being called “a good and faithful servant” by Jesus, is to first be trustworthy in a very small matter. The question for us is, “How was the good servant able to generate such a good return (ten cities) on his single mina?” We find the answer to this question from what the master said, “Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter.” This is strange. But it came directly from Jesus’ mouth. Normally, the person to ask the secret of success is the very person who became successful. But to our surprise, it was Jesus who added this comment: “Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter.” This makes us stop and think more deeply. And it occurs to me that, in the case of the good servant, it was Jesus who helped the man to become fruitful, so Jesus revealed the secret of his good servant’s success. What credit then is to be given to the good servant? What did the good servant do? In what respect was he “good”? We know the answer: he was “trustworthy,” and he was “trustworthy in a very small matter.” Here, the word “trustworthy” is the same as “faithful.” And not all people are faithful. Not all people are trustworthy. This is increasingly so in this society where even the once very reliable airline company United Airlines filed for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Protection! But this servant proved trustworthy. And he first earned Jesus’ trust in a very small matter. See, trust must be earned. It is never given. Joseph in Genesis teaches us what it is to earn someone’s trust, and earning trust in a very small matter: first, by going on an errand to look for his brothers for his father while he was a young boy; performing some duties in the house of Mr. Potiphar; or doing chores in the prison cell like cleaning the bathroom or removing the graffiti on the walls. As he proved his trustworthiness, the Lord God eventually promoted him to a position way higher than the position at the bottom of society. Today, as we make plans for the New Year, we pray that the Lord God would give us insight into what it is to be trustworthy in a very small matter. In order to prove our trustworthiness, however, we do not need to go to the LA County Jail. No matter where we are, we can find tons of “very small” matters by which to prove our trustworthiness to the Lord. And we pray that the Lord God bless us to be fruitful, especially in doing 1:1 Bible studies on each campus. In doing so, we need to have “long” patience, for God uses time to test our faithfulness to him.

Sixth, those who reject Jesus’ kingship will have to suffer the second death (27).

Look at v. 27. “But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them--bring them here and kill them in front of me.’” Here, the expression “kill them” refers to the second death which is to be shut out from God’s presence, and to live in eternal condemnation in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. One word: A very small matter.

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