On earth as it is in heaven

Matthew 25:1-30 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

“Then the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten virgins, who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. ² Five of them were foolish, and five were prudent. ³ For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, ⁴ but the prudent took oil in flasks along with their lamps. ⁵ Now while the bridegroom was delaying, they all got drowsy and began to sleep. ⁶ But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ ⁷ Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. ⁸ The foolish said to the prudent, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ ⁹ But the prudent answered, ‘No, there will not be enough for us and you too; go instead to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’ ¹⁰ And while they were going away to make the purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast; and the door was shut. ¹¹ Later the other virgins also came, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open up for us.’ ¹² But he answered, ‘Truly I say to you, I do not know you.’ ¹³ Be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour.

¹⁴ “For it is just like a man about to go on a journey, who called his own slaves and entrusted his possessions to them. ¹⁵ To one he gave five talents, to another, two, and to another, one, each according to his own ability; and he went on his journey. ¹⁶ Immediately the one who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and gained five more talents. ¹⁷ In the same manner the one who had received the two talents gained two more. ¹⁸ But he who received the one talent went away, and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.

¹⁹ “Now after a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. ²⁰ The one who had received the five talents came up and brought five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you entrusted five talents to me. See, I have gained five more talents.’ ²¹ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’

²² “Also the one who had received the two talents came up and said, ‘Master, you entrusted two talents to me. See, I have gained two more talents.’ ²³ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’

²⁴ “And the one also who had received the one talent came up and said, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow and gathering where you scattered no seed. ²⁵ And I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.’

²⁶ “But his master answered and said to him, ‘You wicked, lazy slave, you knew that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I scattered no seed. ²⁷ Then you ought to have put my money in the bank, and on my arrival I would have received my money back with interest. ²⁸ Therefore take away the talent from him, and give it to the one who has the ten talents.’

²⁹ “For to everyone who has, more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away. ³⁰ Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

In today’s text, through His teaching in parables, Jesus completely refutes two very prevalent deceptions being shared today regarding the kingdom of heaven. The first deception or misconception is that a loving God would not exclude anyone from heaven. In the parable of the ten virgins Jesus says: “Then the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten virgins, who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were prudent. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them,  but the prudent took oil in flasks along with their lamps. ⁵ Now while the bridegroom was delaying, they all got drowsy and began to sleep. But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’  Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the prudent, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the prudent answered, ‘No, there will not be enough for us and you too; go instead to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’ And while they were going away to make the purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast; and the door was shut. ¹¹ Later the other virgins also came, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open up for us.’ But he answered, ‘Truly I say to you, I do not know you.’ Be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour.”   2 Peter 3:9 says:  The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.  God’s desire, His wish is that no one would perish, but he allows each one to choose whether or not they will be ready when He comes. Verses 10-11 of 2 Peter 3 say:  But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.  Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness?   Since we do not know the day nor the hour, today, now is the time to repent. Now is the time to no longer test God’s patience. Now is the time to live in holy conduct and godliness. Now is the time to be ready. For those who doubt that Jesus would allow anyone to be condemned to Hell, the end of today’s text says:  “Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”  In Matthew 13:41-42 He also says:  “The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will weed out of His kingdom every cause of sin and all who practice lawlessness. And they will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”   There are other additional references made by Jesus regarding those who will not enter the kingdom of heaven, but still God wishes that all would come to repentance. Those who are left out of heaven, are left out by their own choices.  

The second misconception or deception that Jesus refutes is that His compassion would make Him more closely aligned with socialism than with capitalism. We fail to truly understand the kingdom of heaven when we try to limit it to anything on earth. The prayer Jesus taught us to pray says: Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Earth is to align with the realities of heaven, rather than limiting heaven by what we know on earth.  In the parable of the talents Jesus says:   “For it is just like a man about to go on a journey, who called his own slaves and entrusted his possessions to them. To one he gave five talents, to another, two, and to another, one, each according to his own ability; and he went on his journey.”  Notice first that they did not all begin with an equal amount, but rather were given an amount according to their ability. God has given each person distinct and individual abilities. In our society and culture we try to create equality by lowering the ones with more, in order to bring them to the level of those who have less. That mentality causes the best to become average. If all are made to be equal, where will excellence come from? Where will the best and brightest in any field be?  The parable continues:  “Immediately the one who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and gained five more talents. In the same manner the one who had received the two talents gained two more. But he who received the one talent went away, and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. Now after a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. The one who had received the five talents came up and brought five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you entrusted five talents to me. See, I have gained five more talents.’  His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ Also the one who had received the two talents came up and said, ‘Master, you entrusted two talents to me. See, I have gained two more talents.’  His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ And the one also who had received the one talent came up and said, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow and gathering where you scattered no seed.  And I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.’ But his master answered and said to him, ‘You wicked, lazy slave, you knew that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I scattered no seed.  Then you ought to have put my money in the bank, and on my arrival I would have received my money back with interest.  Therefore take away the talent from him, and give it to the one who has the ten talents.’ For to everyone who has, more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away. Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”   Contrary to what many today would have us believe, the solution was not to take from the one with the most to give to the one who did nothing, but rather it was the opposite.   This may seem unfair to those today who do not truly understand that equality with God is not that we are all the same or have the same amount, but rather that we do the best we can with what we have been given.  In Philippians 4:11-13 Paul says: I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. We cannot fully appreciate the equality we have in Christ if we are focused on what others have. In the parable, the master’s words to both the one with ten talents and the one with four were: ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’   If the one who was given just one talent had done his best, according to his ability, I have no doubt that he too would have heard those same words. In the end we will not be rewarded or judged based on how much wealth we have attained in this world, but rather on whether we have responded faithfully to God. In Matthew 6:19-20 Jesus says: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”  To the extent that our hearts are focused on heaven, we will be content in whatever circumstance we are in and we are ready for Jesus to come.

Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ; precious Holy Spirit; may I live each day ready for Your return. May I recognize that I cannot fully comprehend the things of heaven if I limit them by what I know on earth. May I be compassionate and generous to those who have need. May I not be envious of those who have more. May I truly learn to be content in You and may I be faithful with all that You have given me.   Amen.