Brookfield Church of Christ
Sep 27, 2026 Sun a.m. Matthew 25:14-18
The Parable of the Talents: Stewards, Not Owners
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      • Matthew 25:14-15ESV

      • Matthew 25:16-18ESV

  • Central Idea: Everything we have belongs to God, and He expects us to use what He has trusted to us faithfully until He returns.
    INTRODUCTION

    A talent = about 6,000 denarii = close to 20 years of wages for a laborer.

     Even the servant with "only one" was trusted with a great deal.

    I. The Master Owns Everything

    Matthew 25:14 ESV
    “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property.
    Note the language. They are his servants, and these are his goods.
    The servants owned nothing. They only managed what belonged to someone else.
    Deuteronomy 8:17–18 ESV
    Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’ You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day.
    James 1:17 ESV
    Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
    1 Chronicles 29:14 ESV
    “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you.
    We belong to Him also
    1 Corinthians 6:19–20 ESV
    Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
    1 Peter 1:18-19: We were redeemed "with the precious blood of Christ."
    Practical Action Item
    Take a stewardship inventory this week. Write down what God has put in your hands: your time, abilities, money, possessions, relationships, and influence.

    II. The Master Entrusts According to Ability

    Matthew 25:15 ESV
    To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away.
    The amounts were different, but the trust was real.
    Romans 12:6–8 ESV
    Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.
    1 Corinthians 12:4-7, 11: There are different gifts, but the same Lord, and each is given "for the profit of all."
    1 Peter 4:10 ESV
    As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace:
    Beware the comparison trap.
    More given means more required
    No member of the body of Christ is a "no-talent" Christian. The one-talent servant's danger wasn't having too little. It was thinking his little didn't matter.
    Practical Action Item
    Identify one gift and put it to work in your congregation this month. Ask an elder, deacon, or a mature Christian, "Where do you see me being useful in the Lord's work?" Then commit to one specific area.

    III. The Master Expects Faithful Action

    Matthew 25:16–18 ESV
    He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money.
    The faithful servants acted, and acted right away
    Ecclesiastes 9:10: "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might."
    Ephesians 5:15-16: "Redeeming the time, because the days are evil."
    Colossians 3:23–24 ESV
    Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.
    The unfaithful servant buried his opportunity
    James 4:17 ESV
    So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.
    The Master will return and settle accounts.
    2 Corinthians 5:10 ESV
    For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.
    Practical Action Item: "Dig up" one buried talent this week. Think of one thing you know God wants you to do but have put off because of fear, busyness, or excuses. Maybe it's inviting a friend to worship, studying the Bible with someone, restoring a broken relationship, or giving generously. Write it down, set a date, and do it before next Sunday.
    CONCLUSION
    The Master owns everything, so we are stewards, not owners (Psalm 24:1; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20).
    The Master entrusts according to ability, so every Christian has something to use (1 Peter 4:10).
    The Master expects faithful action, because He is coming back to settle accounts (1 Corinthians 4:2; Romans 14:12).
    The goal: Every faithful steward longs to hear
    Matthew 25:21 ESV
    His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’
    We do not want to hear
    Matthew 25:24–30 ESV
    He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours.’ But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

      • Matthew 25:14NIV2011

      • Deuteronomy 8:17–18NIV2011

      • James 1:17NIV2011

      • 1 Chronicles 29:14NIV2011

      • 1 Corinthians 6:19–20NIV2011

      • Matthew 25:15NIV2011

      • Romans 12:6–8NIV2011

      • 1 Peter 4:10NIV2011

      • Matthew 25:16–18NIV2011

      • Colossians 3:23–24NIV2011

      • James 4:17NIV2011

      • 2 Corinthians 5:10NIV2011

      • Matthew 25:21NIV2011

      • Matthew 25:24–30NIV2011

      • 1 Corinthians 11:23–24ESV

      • 1 Corinthians 11:25–26ESV

      • 2 Corinthians 9:7ESV

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Brookfield Church of Christ
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