THE
UNDERESTIMATED TALENT
A
talent in the context of the parable is a variable unit of currency
used in ancient Roman Empire. It is worth more than one thousand
dollars in US currency. In all His parables, Christ always used
enduring symbols, everyday things that existed in his time period
and continue to exist in ours. These symbols drive home his
teaching and his principles, making it practically impossible for
man to forget what he learned. Even if the principles are
forgotten, the parable lives on in our minds. There is one thing
that is amazing about the parables of Jesus Christ: they cannot be
outlived. Whenever a parable from Jesus Christ comes to the
understanding of man, it always brings forth indisputable facts.
The meaning of the parable becomes new every day as we increase in
the level of our meditations. The rapid changes of the modern era
cannot make His parables become obsolete or anachronistic. In fact,
some of the parables are manifested in many current events.
The
dictionary definition of “talent” states that it is a marked innate
ability or natural endowment. In this parable, Christ uses talents
to point the Church to the gift that God gave to mankind. God
gave us all the ability to be channels of His Glory. Talent is
not an acquired skill or wisdom. Talents of God are quiet gifts that
manifest in opportunities, wisdom, understanding and unquantifiable
instinctive abilities – this includes the ability to make wealth.
Many of the wealthy people of our time think their wealth results
from their personal abilities.
One
of the most important talents is opportunity, and it is the most
trivialized talent. Many people are of the opinion that God did not
give them talents. Contrary to their thought, God gave everyone on
the surface of the earth a talent. It is your ability to manage your
talents that determines how many you will have. For example,
the servant who had ten talents was given one more because he had
shown that he could manage 10. You may not be extremely wise and
perhaps you do not have great understanding. You may not think
you possess the ability to do great things, but certainly you have
one powerful talent -- opportunity. Opportunity is the most
underrated but the greatest of all gift of God. The talent of
opportunity is to man the way an operating system is to computer.
Opportunity is the vehicle of all talents of man and it is the
medium through which man manifests his talents for the glory of God.
It is also the medium through which God appraise the usage your
talent and commend or condemn the worth of it. The result of the
application of the usage of talent speaks for people who put their
talents to work through the opportunity that was available to them.
Conversely, the mouth of the wicked servant that reports a reason
why he did not put his precious talent into use invites condemnation
and judgment.
In
this parable, the master did not place much emphasis on the gain
made on the talents. Rather, his anger was centered against the man
with one talent that refused to use his own gift. Opportunity
presented itself to the servant but he never put the talent to use
and as a result he could not account for a gain or a loss. It is a
great opportunity that we are able to behold the glory of God each
day. David was talking of the importance of talent of opportunity
and he said in his Psalm, “This is the day that the Lord has
made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24) It is a
great opportunity that we can walk around on our own; when we come
across those without legs we will see the reason why we should use
those legs to walk into the environment where God will be glorified.
It is of the Lord’s kindness and mercy that we are not mentally
insane. If you have been to a mental home you will see the reason
why we should apply our wisdom to glorify God whenever the
opportunity permits us. We are presented a talent of opportunity to
know the revealed truth of the word of God so that we can justify it
to operate upon the revealed truth to set us free. We are at
different places at different times as opportunity avails in order
that we may operate on our talents in touching others and leaving
behind the trail of God’s glory.
Some
think that we must get to heaven before giving account of what we
did with our talents. It is not your talent that calls you into the
service of God. Instead, it is whatever you do with your
talent that becomes your righteous services towards humanity and
therefore, God. The way you touch them with the beauty of Jesus
Christ is a return on the gift God has given you. Your talent of
opportunity accounts for itself before the Almighty God when you
cash in on it to glorify God.
Abraham was sitting by his tent near the Mamre tree at the heat of
the day, and then he saw three strangers. Opportunity presented
itself to Abraham to be used for the glory of God. It was available
for Abraham to extend God’s attribute of loving kindness to the
supposedly strangers. Abraham hurried out to invite the strangers in
and little did he know that he was inviting divine visitation to his
home. He lavishly entertained them; he did not know that he was
rendering an account to the Creator of all the talents He had given
him. The righteous application of the opportunity given to Abraham
spoke for itself. God did not give verbal commendation to Abraham
for the entertainment like the master did in the parable of Jesus
Christ. The Heavenly God did more: He gave him the heir of the
promise. He said, “I will surely return to you about this time
next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.” (Genesis 18:10)
In
the pathway of your life, when you come across the destitute, the
orphans or anyone you can touch with the love of God, apply the
underestimated talent of opportunity. You never know, Heaven might
have come down in your presence to evaluate your talent. “Anyone,
then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.”
(James 4:17)
When
opportunity prompts you, show a little kindness to demonstrate
Christ ambassadorial attributes in you. Heaven will surely return to
you with blessing when you least expected it.
Michael A. Eleyinafe
