As preached by Brother Luke
Holy Wisdom Church
Holy Wisdom Church
And to the one who has, more will be given, but to the one who has not, even that will be taken away. [25:29]
When I was a youngster in Elementary School, I played the cello in the school orchestra and took private cello lessons. But as circumstances would have it, my cello teacher was in a car accident and I had a series of substitute teachers, then it was summer break and I did not resume cello lessons after the summer. I don’t think I am alone as an adult looking back and regretting not having followed up with childhood music lessons.
We have an expression in English: use it or lose it. I went online to discover a wide variety of applications of that expression. Today’s gospel lesson can be read as a warning or it can be seen as prompting us to value the gifts we have been given. In this case, I was given the gift of music lessons, but I let it go. Now it cannot be recovered. It is lost. It is a shame to let an opportunity like that slip away. Too bad as a child we often don’t have the foresight to see what could develop from that early opportunity. And later in life it is something that can make us sad when we imagine what might have been. And that is a place of regrets, that is the place the gospel colorfully describes as outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. But life, and this gospel message, isn’t just about lost opportunities. And of course, it is not just about childhood opportunities lost.
Gifts from God, what I would like to call opportunities, don’t stop flowing our way just because we grow older. It is an everyday phenomenon. They may look different but they are still within our grasp. And as youngsters, we may well have seized many opportunities and grown with them. This is the part of the gospel that speaks of doing well with small things, and greater things will follow. We may hear criticisms of the understanding of the gospel as being about doing well and reaping rewards. This is sometimes described as the prosperty gospel. And yet those who take joy in the gospel message might be forgiven for presuming that the message is not only about pain and suffering. An expansive view of the gospel message embraces both realities. And this gospel passage opens with the image of a wealthy man entrusting talents to his servants. How we respond to that gift is the main point. Jesus is not asking us to throw away such gifts as an act of humility or poverty but rather to use them.
We are heading into the fall which includes the celebration of Thanksgiving. Indeed, giving thanks is a fundamental part of Christian belief. Giving thanks for the gifts we receive from God. This understanding can be expanded to encompass everything in life as a gift from God. How do we respond to what God has entrusted to us? Whether it is as basic as the gift of life or the world we live in and care for, or a specific talent we may have and can develop; if we engage with it and with life, more will flow from that effort.
Still, the last phrase sticks in our minds: Throw this useless servant into the outer darkness where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. I can remember being told many times by choir directors as we were practicing music that the final phrase, or the finale, is the most important part of a performance because this is what will remain in peoples’ minds and ears. No matter what else happens, try to end well. The whole piece matters but the end reverberates longer. So, it is with today’s gospel reading. The ending is what so often sticks in our minds. And yet, the greater part of the story is devoted to the gifts and how by using those gifts still greater things will follow. So don’t be fooled by the last phrase, remember the beginning, remember the gifts. As the Psalmist says: Be strong, take heart and hope in the Lord. [Ps 31:24] That’s the real message here.
