Shall We Reap Tears? (Matthew 25:24-30)
Years ago, at a congregation where I was preaching, a deacon’s wife got a boyfriend and left her husband. Tracy, our deacon, was absolutely devastated. About a week after Allison had moved out, Tracy caught me after Bible study on Wednesday evening so we could talk. I will never forget Tracy’s anguish. He collapsed on me—and Tracy is a big fella—and sobbed and sobbed and sobbed. Through his tears, he kept saying, “What am I going to do?” His wife’s actions led to many tears.
How many times have you seen tears rolling down someone’s face? Can you recall when one of your children broke a favorite toy and ran to you sobbing? How many of you men can remember your wife’s tears over a careless word? Have you ever witnessed someone’s tears over sin as he responded to the invitation hymn? And you’ve surely gone to the funeral home and seen the tears of broken hearts.
Some people will weep throughout eternity. Jesus said: “In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out” (Lk 13:28). Learn this lesson: “Doing nothing leads to reaping tears.”
Scripture (Matthew 25:24-30)
You know this parable well. A master gave his servants talents based on their abilities before going on a long journey. A talent equaled about 16-and-a-half years of earnings for the average worker. When the master returned from his trip, he found that two of the servants doubled the talents they had received, and he richly rewarded them. However, the servant who received one talent did nothing; therefore, he reaped tears.
verses 24-25:
The servant found his master to be a “hard” man. The word “hard” in the original means that the master, according to this servant, exploited people; the slave, therefore, didn’t expect to benefit from his master’s success. Because the master was a hard man, the servant became afraid and hid his talent in the ground.
verse 26-27:
This servant was “wicked and slothful.” “Wicked” means “good for nothing” or “useless.” “Slothful” describes someone who is timid or shrinks back. The servant was good for nothing because he got scared and didn’t do a thing.
The servant could have gained interest by investing the talent. The servant had the ability; remember he has been entrusted with over 16 years’ worth of savings. That’s a lot of trust to put in someone.
verses 28-29:
The master stripped the slave of his talent and handed it to the servant who had ten talents.
verse 30:
The worthless servant was cast “into the outer darkness.” “Outer darkness” in Matthew’s Gospel refers to hell. In hell, people weep (they reap tears) and they gnash their teeth in their anguish.
Application
“Doing nothing leads to reaping tears.” The worthless slave didn’t do a thing and found himself reaping tears in hell. If you bury your talent and do nothing to help this church grow, you will be cast into hell where you will reap tears.
Since doing nothing leads to tears, how should you live?
One: Decide
Decide what you will do with your talent. The wicked and lazy servant chose wrongly; will you choose wrongly?
Romans 12:6-8. God gives gifts—talents—to his people. Granted, prophecy was a miraculous gift that’s no longer available, but every single other gift is available to you. Decide what talent you have to help this church grow. Decide how you will use your talent.
Two: Dare
Dare to do the Lord’s work. The worthless and lazy servant refused to Dare; he said, “I was afraid.” You cannot be afraid to do the Lord’s work; you must Dare.
Refusing to Dare leads to a harvest of tears: “As for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death” (Rev 21:8). Think about it—the fearful will find themselves in hell with murderers and idolaters and the sexually immoral.
Dare to do the Lord’s work. Step out of your comfort zone and Dare to act for the Lord. Do you fear inviting your neighbor to worship? Do you fear approaching a visitor to our assembly? Are you nervous about asking a family member to study the Bible? Do you fear asking a friend about his soul? Dare this week and every day you live so that you do not reap tears.
Three: Do
The worthless and lazy servant refused to Do, and he did nothing with his talent.
You must Do with your talent. God expects you to do. “My beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain” (1 Cor 15:58). You aren’t simply to Do; you are to abound in the Lord’s work.
You might say that you have a hard time abounding in work because you’re not as young as you used to be. Well, our late Brother Gerald Starns abounded in God’s work. He was dying—on his deathbed—and often called the office asking for tracts and handouts on God’s plan of salvation. Do you know why? He was sharing Jesus with the hospice nurses who cared for him. If Gerald could do that, you can find something to Do.
What will you Do? How will you abound in the Lord’s work like God commands and Gerald exemplified?
Conclusion
One thing you must do is obey the Lord Jesus Christ: “Being made perfect, [Jesus] became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him” (Heb 5:9). Are you obeying Jesus? Is he the source of your eternal salvation?
This sermon was originally preached by Dr. Justin Imel, Sr., at Church of Christ Deer Park in Deer Park, Texas.