When the gospel was first preached Peter concluded that Jesus of Nazareth was both “Lord and Christ.” The Greek word for Lord could just as easily be translated master. How often do you think of Jesus as your Master?
When the New Testament was written, the word ‘lord’ was often used as a sign of respect, similar to the way we use the word ‘sir.’ Yet, the followers of Jesus undoubtedly intended more than ‘sir’ when they called Him, “Lord.” They considered Jesus to be their Master.
The Apostle Paul referred to himself and his missionary companions as bond-servants of Jesus. Paul called Timothy a bond-servant of Christ and applied it forward to all who teach and preach. In their letters, James, Peter, and Jude all introduced themselves as bond-servants of Jesus. In the book of Revelation not only does John regard himself a bond-servant of Jesus, but also Moses and God’s angels. In fact, all saints are considered bond-servants of Christ. The bond-servant exchanges his will for the will of the Master. The servant’s single aim is to glorify his Master by doing His will.
The unglorified position of the slave was the focus of last week’s article. Jesus described a slave that served his Master without thanks, without an expected reward. He received only the acceptance of his Master.
In the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30) slaves are shown in a different light. A master puts three of his servants in charge of a large sum of money, each given an amount appropriate to their ability. As is true of all slaves, they were expected to carry out their master’s will. In the parable, the will of the master is not stated explicitly. Yet, it is clear that they were each expected to put the money to use to make more money for the master.
In the parable, Jesus revealed how the slaves handled their assignments. Two of the slaves did according to the master’s will. They put the money to use and gained more money for their master. And what did they receive?
The master returned to settle accounts with the slaves. The first slave was entrusted with five talents (a very large sum of money), and he gained five more for the master. (Notice that it was for the master, not himself. He did not receive a percentage of the profits, a commission, or even a bonus. He did not even receive thanks.) The master then said, “Well done, good and faithful slave.” Though not a word of gratitude, it was genuine acceptance.
The slave who was entrusted with one talent was afraid and hid the money so that he could return it to his master upon his return. It is true that nothing was lost, but nothing was gained. The master expected gain. So, his words to this slave were strong: “You wicked, lazy slave!”
Three things then happened:
- The man with one talent had his talent taken away. (It was not his money to begin with.)
- The man with one talent was rejected and cast away from the master.
- The man with ten talents was given the talent from the unfaithful slave. (None of the money was his; not the original five, not the profit of five, and not the one from the unfaithful slave.)
The master approved of the man with ten talents and gave him one more talent, that is, more responsibility. (What were you expecting?!)
The master did say something more to the two faithful slaves. He invited them: “Enter into the joy of your master.”
When we learn that the only thing that matters is to glorify and please our Master, we will understand the treasure of entering the joy of our Master.
Mark Stinnett
July 19, 2026
