Jesus tells a parable about a Master who is away at a wedding banquet. When he comes back, if he finds his servants waiting and ready, “he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night… You must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.” Luke 12:37-40
I don’t relate so well to masters and servants as I have never been either – as far as this world is concerned. But I have seen a situation where some employees were standing around talking and generally not doing their jobs. Others were working. Then a manager/supervisor walks through and everyone scoots to their station and tries to act busy – like they have been doing their jobs all along. But the manager knows and rewards the employees accordingly.
Peter asked Jesus if he was talking to them or to the whole crowd. Jesus doesn’t answer the question directly, but rather talks about the faithful and wise manager who is put in charge of his servants. Suddenly, this takes a turn from being about all the servants to being about the management and leadership. I think Jesus was saying to Peter, “I’ll show you how this shoe fits your foot!”
“Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the menservants and maidservants and to eat and drink and get drunk. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.” Luke 12:42-46
It has been about 2000 years since Jesus told these stories and made these statements. Some think he has forgotten about us and maybe isn’t coming back after all. But he has given us instructions which have been passed down from generation to generation and can be found in the Bible. The question is, am I going to be a faithful servant and be ready or will I be the one who has given up on his return and turned to my own ways?
But more than that, I wonder what exactly he has entrusted me with? This is an important question for me to answer because, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” Luke 12:48b I think I have been entrusted with the Good News of the Kingdom of God. Throughout my life, I have been blessed to grow up with biblical instruction in my home, in my church, and through friendships and reading books written by fellow servants of Christ. I have been given grace through the suffering and blood of Jesus Christ and invited to be part of God’s kingdom and have accepted that invitation. These are the ‘much’ I have been given and from me ‘much’ is then required. I cannot just sit on this knowledge of Christ and his kingdom, but I need to share this knowledge with others. I have become a manager of the Good News and I can choose to share it with others or I can ignore it and party away. But there will be consequences if I choose to not share this Good News with others.
“That servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows.” Luke 1247-48a Yes, there are consequences if we do not do what we are asked/instructed to do as managers of the Good News. And the more instruction/information we have about what it is we are to be doing, the more responsible we become.
When Christ returns, will he find me working hard or will he find me retired and taking it easy? Ready or not, he will return.
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