Matthew 24:45-47 says, “Who then is the faithful and prudent slave, whom the master has set over his household to give them food at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing. Truly I say to you that he will set him over all his possessions.” Faithfulness is shown toward the Lord, whereas prudence is exercised toward the believers. Household refers to the believers (Eph. 2:19), that is, the church (1 Tim. 3:15). Give them food refers to ministering the word of God and Christ as the life supply to the believers in the church. Here to be blessed is to be rewarded with the authority to rule in the manifestation of the kingdom. In the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens the Lord will set the faithful slave over all His possessions. This will be a reward to him.
In the parable of the faithful slave in Matthew 25:14-30, the master said to the slave who was given five talents and who also gained five talents: “Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful over a few things; I will set you over many things. Enter into the joy of your master” (v. 21). This parable shows that if the believers are faithful to the work entrusted to them by the Lord in this age, in the future they will be given the authority to rule in the coming kingdom. They will even be given more responsibilities in the coming kingdom and will participate in the Lord’s joy, the highest enjoyment of the Lord in the kingdom. Furthermore, verses 22 and 23 reveal that the same reward will be given to the two-talented one as to the five-talented one. This indicates that although the gift given to the two-talented one is smaller than that given to the five-talented one, the Lord’s appraisal and reward to both are the same. This reveals that the Lord’s appraisal and reward are not related to the size and quantity of our work but to our faithfulness in using His gift to the fullest extent.
At the judgment seat of Christ some believers will suffer loss because of being disapproved by the Lord.
First Corinthians 3:12-15 says, “If anyone builds upon the foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, grass, stubble, the work of each will become manifest; for the day will declare it, because it is revealed by fire, and the fire itself will prove each one’s work, of what sort it is...If anyone’s work is consumed, he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.” Wood, in contrast to gold, signifies the nature of the natural man; grass, in contrast to silver, signifies the fallen man, the man of the flesh (1 Pet. 1:24), who has not been redeemed or regenerated by Christ; and stubble, in contrast to precious stones, signifies the work and living that issue from an earthen source and have not been transformed by the Holy Spirit. Wood, grass, and stubble signify the knowledge, realization, and attainments that come from the believers’ natural background—such as Judaism or other religions, philosophy, or culture—and the natural way of living—which is mainly in the soul and is the natural life. All these worthless materials are the product of the believers’ natural man together with what they have collected from their background. Hence, they will be burned by the Lord’s judging fire at His coming. These believers will not only lose their reward because of being disapproved, but their being saved will also be as through fire. This prophecy should be a solemn warning to us today concerning our Christian work.
Matthew 24:48-51 says, “If that evil slave says in his heart, My master delays, and begins to beat his fellow slaves and eats and drinks with the drunken, the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know, and will cut him asunder and appoint his portion with the hypocrites. In that place there will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth.” The evil slave does not expect his master; hence, he does not like to live the kind of life that is for his master’s coming. Moreover, the evil slave beats his fellow slaves, that is, mistreats the fellow believers, and eats and drinks with the drunken, that is, keeps company with worldly people, who are drunk with worldly things. Therefore, when the master comes back, he will cut asunder the evil slave and appoint his portion with the hypocrites. This indicates that the defeated believers will be unable to participate in Christ and the glory of His kingdom in the manifestation of the kingdom but will be weeping and gnashing their teeth in outer darkness.