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Transcript 384B — Parables Concerning Salvation [ Mt 25 & Lu 17]
HC: Good evening. Welcome to Open Forum.
CALLER: Good evening. Would you explain Luke 17:10 and Matthew 25:29 & 30?
HC: In Matthew 25 we read, "For unto everyone that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance. But from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
Now this of course is the conclusion of the parable of the ten talents is it not? Actually, he gave one servant five talents, another two, and another one. And then the man with the five talents used his talents to gain five more, the one with two talents gained two more, and the one with one talent hid the talent and gained nothing from it. And then when the master came and they gave their account, then the lord commended the man with the five talents who had gained five more, He commended the man with the two talents who had gained two more. But He said of the one, "You should have put your money into business and gained additional. But instead you have hid it, and therefore you are to be cast into hell."
And then in that context He said, "Therefore take the talent and give it unto him which hath ten talents." Now the parable is talking about the offer of salvation that God gives to all men. He comes to some more abundantly than to others. But to the whole human race there is sufficient information, just in the fact that God has created this world so that man knows that he needs a Savior, that man knows that he's a sinner and that he ought to become right with God somehow.
The man with the one talent is like someone who is offered the way of salvation, or he knows that he ought to do something about his sins, but he does nothing about it. There is no fruit that comes from his life. He simply disregards the fact that he has to become right with God. And of course he is subject to hell. What blessings he did have on this earth because he enjoyed the blessings of creation, he enjoyed the blessings of being in a church, perhaps, or a Christian family, or whatever, all of this will be taken away from him, and he will be cast into hell. Whereas the man who responded to the Gospel, and his life became fruitful to the Gospel, God will lavish His blessings upon him, so that he becomes free from his sins, he becomes a son of God, he receives eternal life. He is an heir of all the blessings that God speaks of, all the promises that God speaks of in the Bible. The Bible just goes on and on about the marvelous blessings that come to those who become born again believers.
Now that's really, I believe, in a nutshell, the sense of this parable
Now in Luke 17, what was the verse that you were concerned about? Verse 10 ?
There we again have a parable, where Christ is saying in verse 7: ''But which of you having a servant plowing or feeding cattle will say unto him, by and by, when he comes from the field, Go and sit down and eat, and will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself and serve me, until I have eaten and drunken. And afterward thou shalt eat and drink. Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded? I trow not. So likewise ye. When ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants. We have done that which was our duty to do."
Yes, there's a very distinct relationship to Matthew 25. We do not obey Christ and become a born again believer, that is, respond to the Gospel, become exercised by the Gospel and therefore receive eternal life because we deserve it. Nor do we receive all kinds of rewards on top of eternal life. We don't receive any of these things because we deserve it. We receive these things as an act of God's grace. It's totally an act of God's grace. Our response to the Gospel is what is to be expected when God the Father is drawing us, when He has become our Savior and Lord. It is the expected response. Under no circumstance is it a response that ought to bring credit to us or make us worthy, or give us the idea that now we're entitled to something just a little bit more than somebody else.
CALLER: Thank you very much.
HC: Thank you so much for calling and sharing that. Good night.