Sunday, July 29, 2007

Mat 25:22 He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, you deliveredunto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them.
Mat 25:23 His lord said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things: enter you entering into the joy of thy lord.

Christ often uses the "pattern of three" to indicate the physical, mental, emotion cycle of development. However, here he uses the same rhetorical device to illustrate an critical point about this cycle.

Notice that the words of praise and the reward for the first servant in the previous verse and this servant is EXACTLY the same despite the difference in their abilities and responsibilities.
The physical reward are quantitatively different because their mental abilities are different, but the emotional reward, their place in the heart of their master is the same. Both of these servants get the different benefits of their abilities, but they have the same standing with their master.

Physical and mental differences are important in for allotting physical and mental responsibities, but they make absolutely no difference in the reward involved. When you work to your ability, you earn the same reward, both in how you feel about yourself, how others feel about you, and how God feels about you.

The vocabulary here is the same as the previous verse.