I do not wish to threaten anyone, but I must speak the word of God in an honest way. When He comes, God will judge not only our conduct but also our service. Some may say, “I think that I am all right, and my conscience is clean. I neither go to the movies nor go dancing. At night when I search my conscience, I can say that it is without offense.” However, as we live on the earth, it is not sufficient for us to merely have a conscience without offense; the Lord must still judge the way we serve Him. We have all received at least one talent, at least one spiritual gift, from the Lord. We may not have received two talents or five, but we have received at least one talent. We cannot say that we are not saved, that we do not have the Lord’s life, or that we do not have the Holy Spirit. We have all these things. As a result of our having received these things, we have at least one talent, one spiritual gift, and we must use this talent properly and gain a profit for the Lord (Matt. 25:14-30).
The Bible shows that after the one who received five talents gained another five talents, the master said to him, “Well done, good and faithful slave...Enter into the joy of your master” (v. 21). The one who received two talents likewise gained another two talents. They both served the master faithfully and used their gifts to the fullest extent. In the same way, when we use the life, the Holy Spirit, and the talent we have received from the Lord, there will be a full result. The master said to both slaves, “Well done, good and faithful slave...Enter into the joy of your master” (vv. 21, 23).
The master also called for the slave who had received one talent. He cautiously came and said, “Master, I knew about you, that you are a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not winnow. And I was afraid and went off and hid your talent in the earth; behold, you have what is yours” (vv. 24-25). This slave was like a saved one who says to the Lord, “You are truly a hard man. You always ask me to do work that is very difficult. You sent me to preach the gospel in places where no one would believe in You. The people there are coldhearted and hardhearted; it is impossible to lead them to believe in You. They hardened their hearts toward You, yet You sent me to preach the gospel to them. Lord, since I was afraid, very afraid, I did not do the work. I have kept Your talent here. See, the life You gave me is here, the Holy Spirit You gave me is here, the salvation You gave me is here, and the talent You gave me is here. All Your gifts are here; I did not waste or lose any of them. This explanation should be good enough.”
I would like to ask, Is this explanation good enough? Of course it is not good enough, for this one did not faithfully use the gifts that he had received from the Lord. After listening to the slave who had received one talent, the master did not refute him or say, “Your word is not true. I am not a hard man. The work that I sent you to do was easy. If you had sown, there would have been growth; if you had reaped, there would have been a rich harvest. What you said is actually inaccurate.” The master did not refute him this way. Rather, he acknowledged the fact and answered him, “Evil and slothful slave, you knew that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I did not winnow. Therefore you should have deposited my money with the money changers; and when I came, I would have recovered what is mine with interest. Take away therefore the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has, more shall be given, and he shall abound; but from him who does not have, even that which he has shall be taken away from him. And cast out the useless slave into the outer darkness. In that place there will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth” (vv. 26-30). The master meant that since the slave knew that he was forcing his slaves to do what they could not do, the slave should have tried his best to use his talent. In the end the master took the one talent away from him and gave it to the one who had the ten talents; moreover, he cast out the useless slave into the outer darkness.
We should never think that once we are saved, we will have no problems. We should not think that as long as we do not do anything contrary to our conscience, we will be void of offense toward both God and man, nor should we think that as long as our conduct is perfect, we will have no problems. Actually, the way we serve and work for the Lord after we are saved is a great matter. In 1 Corinthians 3 Paul says, “Let each man take heed how he builds” (v. 10b). This means that we must all take heed concerning our work. We may build with gold, silver, and precious stones or with wood, grass, and stubble. One day the nature of our work in our service to the Lord will be tested by fire. If we have built with wood, grass, and stubble, our work will immediately be consumed when it passes through the fire. Only the work that is of gold, silver, and precious stones will remain. Hence, Paul says, “If anyone’s work which he has built upon the foundation remains, he will receive a reward” (v. 14). Apart from salvation, there is also the matter of reward. Therefore, it is not that if we work well, we are saved. The matter of salvation has already been resolved, but the matter of reward is an issue that has not yet been resolved. It depends on how we serve the Lord after we are saved.
If our work for the Lord is of gold, silver, and precious stones, we will receive a reward; if it is of wood, grass, and stubble, we will suffer loss (v. 15a). Some think that to suffer loss is to lose one’s salvation, that is, to perish. No, we will still be saved, “yet so as through fire” (v. 15b). Hence, we must not think that once we are saved, we will have no problems. After we are saved, there are still great issues to be taken care of. Our conduct is an issue, and our work also is an issue. When the Lord comes back, there will be a judgment. In that judgment He will determine whether we will receive a reward or punishment.
If we still live our life in a casual and sloppy way, the word in this message will be to our condemnation. One day Christ will descend and be manifested. His eyes will be like a flame of fire, and out of His mouth will proceed a sharp two-edged sword. His face will shine as the sun shines in its power, and His feet will be like shining bronze, as having been fired in a furnace (Rev. 1:14-16). He will come to judge His children. The sequence in Revelation 2:1 through 3:22 is first the church and then the world. Christ will bring in His kingdom through His judgment. People may rebel against Him and disobey Him today, but they should be prepared to face His judgment. Only one group of people, the overcomers, will be able to stand before the judgment seat in the future. Today they already live in the training of the kingdom, allowing the heavens to rule and reign, and on that day they will enter into the kingdom in full.