Sermon: The Parable of the Ten Minas (Luke 19:11-27)- “Investing for Jesus”
A screen lowered in the front of the sanctuary, and a short video began playing as a lead-in to the sermon series on Luke. It depicted a wall being erected in computerized stop-motion with a number of symbols being painted on it in the process. Following the video, the screen transitioned into Pastor Mark’s prerecorded sermon. He was a little more dressed up than I had expected, sporting a dress shirt and jacket along with his jeans-- kind of different from the casual attire I had seen in his other sermons. I have to admit that it also took him a little longer to pick up speed in this sermon than I had expected, and though it was a little more serious than his usual, it was still pretty informative and enjoyable. All my Scripture citations are NRSV out of force of habit, even though a slightly different translation was used in the service.
Pastor Mark started out by explaining the concept of the threefold office (munus triplex for us Latin nerds), the notion that Jesus performs three central roles in his earthly mission: priest, prophet, and king. After a bit of background on this concept, he explained that this particular parable in Luke gives us a glimpse of Christ in the kingly role, and as Pastor Mark prepared to dive into the parable, he urged us to think about our investments and what sort of stewards we are.
Following the encounter with Zacchaeus (which we would be hearing about later that evening since Mike and I were attending the sermons a little out of order), Jesus begins to discuss the Kingdom through a parable.
As they were listening to this, he went on to tell a parable, because he was near Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately. So he said, "A nobleman went to a distant country to get royal power for himself and then return. He summoned ten of his slaves, and gave them ten pounds, and said to them, 'Do business with these until I come back.' But the citizens of his country hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, 'We do not want this man to rule over us.' (Luke 19:11-14)
Pastor Mark read the passage and then summarized it for us. This is the story of a young heir going away so that he might return again and reign, and it’s important to note that Jesus told this parable on his way to be crucified in Jerusalem, the act which began the process of Christ’s departure and eventual return to establish the Kingdom. In Jesus’s absence, He establishes us as stewards, and the Church must be a faithful witness until his return (which is the reason that Mars Hill has made it their mission to start churches around their community, around their country, and around the world). We must invest our lives well during Christ’s absence so that we can ensure that He will reap a great return on His investment with the coming of the Kingdom. Also, the “pounds” in this passage are sometimes translated as “minas” or “talents.” Mark’s translation said “minas,” and he explained that a mina is roughly three months’ salary which, for the average Mars Hill attendee, would be about $15,000.
When he returned, having received royal power, he ordered these slaves, to whom he had given the money, to be summoned so that he might find out what they had gained by trading. The first came forward and said, 'Lord, your pound has made ten more pounds.' He said to him, 'Well done, good slave! Because you have been trustworthy in a very small thing, take charge of ten cities.' (Luke 19:15-17)
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In Pastor Mark’s translation, the first steward was told “Well done, good and faithful servant,” and this became a frequent riff in the sermon. “Well done, good and faithful servant,” is exactly what we want to hear at the last judgment that heralds the coming of the Kingdom. Of course, Pastor Mark also emphasized that, as stewards, we should be starting small. After all, no one starts out their career as a CEO. We have to start humbly and treasure whatever small opportunities come our way. Humility is the key. Pastor Mark explained that pride is exemplified in wanting a position of leadership that we don’t deserve. (Yes, God, I’m paying attention. Message received. Praying about it. Moving on.)
Pastor Mark took a moment to clarify what is meant by the Kingdom of God. Though the sermon had been uncharacteristically serious up to that point, he took a little deviation to riff about harps and fluffy clouds, adding in, “I don’t know about you, but I’d call that Hell!” This got some laughs, particularly from me. Pastor Mark went on to explain that the Kingdom of God is really just the world as God intended it to look from the creation account in Genesis 1-3, where Christ is the ruler, and all curses on humanity have been lifted. There is no oppression. People are loved. God is honored. Life is valued. We will be granted new bodies on a renewed earth, and there will be glorious cities dotting the landscape that will be centers for culture and feasting and joy and art!
(Quick side note: I realize that Mark Driscoll sometimes gives off the vibe of being a macho manly man who would rather eat a bloody steak at a cage fight than go to an art gallery, but he actually has a really deep appreciation for the arts, and he talks constantly about needing to incorporate art of all kinds into a church setting. He really encourages artistic innovation, particularly in music, and that’s one reason that Mars Hill features so many new bands in their worship services-- to expose church members to the musical innovation taking place right there in their neighborhoods. Just a little food for thought.)
Pastor Mark continued to paint a picture of the Kingdom of God in which we are given responsibilities in the Kingdom. We are given dominion, not unlike the servant who is given ten cities over which to rule. Pastor Mark explained that the goal is to “rule under the risen Lord in humility and affection,” and that is a perfectly acceptable ambition to have. We should desire to be humble servants of a kingdom of compassion. (Yes, God, I’m still listening.)
Then the second came, saying, 'Lord, your pound has made five pounds.' He said to him, 'And you, rule over five cities.' (Luke 19:18-19)
Things got a little dicey for me here, and I’m not sure I completely agree with Pastor Mark’s vision of the Kingdom of God, but it was still a really interesting point. Based on the stewards receiving different rewards, Pastor Mark suggested that there will be different levels of reward and responsibility in the Kingdom based on the investments of time and energy we make here on earth. The lesson here is not to waste your life on frivolous things since your life will be assessed to determine the levels of reward you receive in Heaven. Um . . . okay. This sounded a bit like works-righteousness to me, and personally, I’m more of a Matthew 20:1-16 person. That’s the parable of the workers in the vineyard, and it suggests that, at the end of the day, everyone who came to work in the vineyard will receive the same wages regardless of when they began their work. We are all granted eternal life and eternal joy in Christ, and I’m not sure there’s a way to quantify that into levels, but that’s just my take on it. It’s tough setting one parable against another just because there are so many possible layers of meaning, and Jesus said so much about the Kingdom of God that we are still trying to unpack nearly two millennia later.
The idea of tiered rewards in the Kingdom may have been a little cringe-worthy, and I definitely put a question mark in my notebook when Pastor Mark said that Christianity is about both the heart AND the business, but I do agree with him that we need to invest our lives wisely. After all, they’re not really ours; they’re just on loan. Pastor Mark went ahead and brought the point home by telling the church members that Christ wants us to go out and make a difference in the world. He also referenced his friend and colleague, John Piper, but I couldn’t get the quote down in time. He then talked about a group of Christians in South Africa that he met while traveling. He described them as strong, aggressive, Christian men and explained that their credo was, “We want our lives to count for God.” I’m still a little leery of the tiered reward thing, but I thought this credo was a good sentiment, so I filed it away in the back of my head for later review.
Then the other came, saying, 'Lord, here is your pound. I wrapped it up in a piece of cloth, for I was afraid of you, because you are a harsh man; you take what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.' He said to him, 'I will judge you by your own words, you wicked slave! You knew, did you, that I was a harsh man, taking what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow? Why then did you not put my money into the bank? Then when I returned, I could have collected it with interest.' (Luke 19:20-23)
There were two things that Pastor Mark really hit home about this steward’s actions: He did nothing with the initial investment, and he tried to pin the blame for his inaction on the ruler himself. “Sometimes, sin is not doing anything at all,” Pastor Mark told us. He asked if this is what we had done with our Christian lives. Had we just wrapped them in a handkerchief and hidden them? Were we hiding behind our “spirituality” as an excuse not to go out and get our hands dirty? (Just going to reiterate that this is him saying that, not me.) Imagine you received a large inheritance and let it just sit around; you’d be a fool not to use it somehow. Well, there is a world in need and a Second Coming on the way, and we’ve got a chance to invest our lives rather than just wrapping them up and leaving them in a sock drawer. We have to do something. Anything is better than nothing, even if it’s just something little like reading the Bible or volunteering to serve once a month. We have to be faithful to the call to action presented in the Bible, and if you haven’t been doing this already, then it might be time to get started.
He said to the bystanders, 'Take the pound from him and give it to the one who has ten pounds.' (And they said to him, 'Lord, he has ten pounds!') 'I tell you, to all those who have, more will be given; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. But as for these enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them-- bring them here and slaughter them in my presence.'" (Luke 19:24-27)
Pastor Mark pointed out that while this may not seem fair, it is still wise investing on the ruler’s part to give the third servant’s share to the shrewdest and most productive of the other stewards. “See, Jesus isn’t a complete socialist,” Pastor Mark quipped. After all, there are some righteous rich people who invest their lives and their resources well for Christ. Jesus actually treats us as investments here on earth, and as we grow and mature and make wise investments of time and energy and even money, he upgrades our responsibilities. Pastor Mark stressed that, for a lot of us there, this would be a hard and convicting word. Still, we must always think about our investments faithfully and with an eye toward the Kingdom.
Returning to the last verse of the parable, Pastor Mark repeated his next point several times to hit it home: God’s enemies will be slaughtered. People who made dissent and discord during the ruler’s absence will be slaughtered. People who don’t want to obey God will be slaughtered, and just as well because they wouldn’t be able to find joy in service to the Lord anyway. They would be miserable in the Kingdom of God and make misery for others, and so, they will be slaughtered. Pastor Mark was also careful to hit home that it is Christ’s decision who will be saved, and not everyone makes the cut. This comment was definitely indicative of Pastor Mark’s Calvinist leanings, and it even seemed like a bit of a jab at Rob Bell. Whether he really meant to respond specifically to Rob was unclear, but the comment was definitely a challenge to the Love Wins/C.S. Lewis/Jacob Arminius mentality. Of course, though he didn’t say it today, Pastor Mark has said in the past that he does not believe in “double predestination”; while God does preordain certain people to get into Heaven, God does not preordain others to go to Hell. Still, he explained that there is a dichotomy between citizens of the Kingdom and enemies of God, and enemies don’t get into the Kingdom and wouldn’t really be happy there anyway. Pastor Mark got a serious look on his face and said pointblank, “Some of you are His enemies. . . . You’re going to be slaughtered.” Just as the rewards in the Kingdom fit investments in life, Pastor Mark ensured us that punishments in Hell fit earthly crimes, but it’s not too late to turn things around and start investing wisely. We should invite enemies to join the Kingdom, because our King endured substitutionary atonement for our sins, and while Christ is not cruel, he is still a just judge.
It was a potent evangelistic sermon with an extreme call to action and a touch of fire and brimstone there at the end, and I couldn’t help but wonder if this was the sort of charged motivational sermon that Bill Hybels might secretly want to give Willow Creek’s explorer population.
From here, Pastor Mark took the opportunity to go ahead and examine Mars Hill’s investments, and the ensuing numerical breakdown was pretty staggering. After such a convicting sermon, it was a tremendous sigh of relief and pat on the back for the people in that room. Pastor Mark explained that the ten Mars Hill campuses have roughly 10,000 attendees per week, with as many as 19,000 on their busiest Sundays. There were 1,246 baptisms this past year. There were 1,500 services held. $15 million was collected. There were seven million sermon downloads. There are new church plants coming, and the current campuses are having to expand to accommodate all the new people. In the Acts 29 Network of churches affiliated with Mars Hill, there are 400 churches in the United States and in 13 other nations as well. 500 pastors are currently being prepared to plant churches, and 175,000 people attended Acts 29 churches on Easter Sunday. Pastor Mark suggested that these numbers hinted that Mars Hill might get to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant,” but he reminded us that the church does all this not to get glory, but because they love Jesus.
He left us with some questions for discussion:
Which servants have you benefitted from in your own life? Where have you been blessed just to show up and be served by someone? Think of all that you have received, and be grateful.
Do you understand the Last Judgment? Keep in mind that we as Christians are judged too. The cross may have already decided who was going to Heaven, but our stewardship here on earth determines our reward in the Kingdom.
If Christ showed up right now, would He be pleased with you? Would He like how you’re investing?
Do you really want to hear “Well done, good and faithful servant”? If not, then maybe you need to reposition your life and your investments accordingly.
Lastly, what changes do you need to make? Remember that it’s not too late. The King has not yet returned. There is still time to change and invest ourselves in new and different ways.
Pastor Mark prayed and thanked God for the Mars Hill Church. As he did so, the screen that had been lowered down front was raised again, and the stage was visible once more. Though his face was no longer being projected, we could hear the words of the prayer as Pastor Mark asked God to give the church strength and courage but to take away any sense of entitlement we might have and to make us good and faithful servants whose actions would be pleasing to God.
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