God gave you abilities. He gave you resources. He expects you to invest them to advance His kingdom.

Are you?

In Matthew 25, Jesus tells several stories to illustrate what the kingdom of heaven is like. In verses 14-30, He tells the story of a man going on a journey who first calls together his servants. He gives each of them some money to invest. The amount they received was according to their abilities. So one man gets $5,000. One gets $2,000. The third man gets $1,000.

Remember, this is a story to illustrate God’s kingdom. Not everyone is given the same ability. Not everyone is given the same amount of resources. But everyone is expected to use their abilities and resources.

The story continues…

The servant with the $5,000 invested it and doubled it. Same with the servant who’d been given the $2,000. But the one who’d been given the $1,000 buried it in the ground so he wouldn’t lose any of it.

When the man returned from his journey, he called the servants together so he could settle up with them. The two servants who doubled the money were both told the same thing:

“Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!”

These servants were faithful with the abilities and resources they were given. And they were commended and rewarded for it.

The third servant didn’t fare so well. He confessed that he was afraid of what might happen if he were to lose the $1,000, so he simply hid it in the ground. The master said to him, “You wicked, lazy servant!”

Don’t miss that. The servant’s cautious way of living was equated with being wicked and lazy!

The Message paraphrase puts it this way:

“The master was furious. ‘That’s a terrible way to live! It’s criminal to live cautiously like that! If you knew I was after the best, why did you do less than the least? The least you could have done would have been to invest the sum with the bankers, where at least I would have gotten a little interest.”

The response of the master is fascinating to me. He’s furious because the servant lived cautiously. And by living cautiously, he did “less than the least.”

I wonder how often we live cautiously and think we’re actually pleasing God.

Save for retirement.

Put the kids in a safe school.

Avoid bad neighborhoods.

Don’t hang around with the wrong people.

Stay in a job we hate, because the insurance is good.

Avoid the extremes. Live cautiously. Play it safe. The problem is this: that’s doing less than the least. “It’s a terrible way to live.”

Please don’t misunderstand, I’m not suggesting we live foolishly. But I can’t help thinking that many of our decisions are fear-based, not faith-based. We live cautiously because we’re afraid, not because we’re being wise.

Now I’m only guessing, but I suspect the master would have been much more pleased if the servant had invested the $1,000 and lost it all than to have buried it in the ground because he was afraid of losing it. At least he wouldn’t have been criticized for being wicked and lazy.

So what about you? God gave you abilities and resources. What are you doing with them?

Are you living cautiously? Are you afraid to fail? Terrified of making a mistake and embarrassing yourself? Always making the safe choice?

Let me say this as sensitively as I can…get over yourself. This life isn’t about you anyway. This life is all about God and the advancement of His kingdom. He’s not interested in how safe you can play it. He’s not giving extra credit to those who arrive at heaven’s gates with the biggest bank account and without skinned knees.

So take a risk. Take a big risk. If you’re going to fail, then fail big. But at least try. Don’t bury your resources in the ground.

God has given you abilities. He has given you resources: money, cars, a place to live, food, influence, skills, experiences, connections, knowledge, dreams, desires, etc.

What are you going to do with them?

Do you need to teach a class? Mentor a younger mom? Change your major? Start a business? Quit your job and move to Kenya? Give away $10,000? $20,000? Write a book? Run a marathon? Make a movie? Get your master’s degree? Start a ministry to feed the homeless? Adopt a child? Or two?

What has God put in your heart? What has He given you to invest?

What are you waiting for?

Don’t live cautiously. It’s criminal.