Using Your Talents

Announcer:

This is Today With Derek Prince. The internationally recognized Bible teacher and author presents to you Keys To Successful Living.

On yesterday’s program Derek Prince listed three requirements by which we can be sure our works will withstand the fire of God’s judgment. Today he will continue his theme ‘Eternal Judgment’ by showing us how to apply the parable of the talents from Matthew 25 to our own lives. Join him now as he continues his message at a conference in New Zealand, and listen at the end of today’s program for our address and this week’s special offer.

Derek Prince:

Does your picture of Jesus include that? Or are you just one of those who say, ‘Gentle Jesus, meek and mild’? Praise God, that’s true but it’s not the whole truth, there’s another side to Jesus. He is the Judge with eyes like a flame of fire, a two-edged sword that goes out of His mouth, a voice like the sound of many waters, feet like bronze in a furnace. And when John the Revelator met Him in that capacity he fell at His feet as dead. This impresses me. John, who had the closest relationship of all the disciples with Jesus. He’d lain on His bosom at the Last Supper, he’d been one of those who was there when Jesus had revealed Himself on the Sea of Galilee and made breakfast for them.

I like that, you know, just by the way. I like the fact that Jesus had breakfast ready for His disciples. Here’s this John who’s know Jesus so intimately, confronted by Jesus the Judge and he falls at His feet like one dead. You know, I think something like that needs to happen to the church. I think the church which has been living on a buddy-buddy relationship with Jesus needs to be confronted by Jesus the Judge. I think it wouldn’t do us any harm if we fell at His feet like someone dead. It would be something we need to learn. Now let’s comment on this parable. First of all, the one who made the most got the extra. This is a principle. One time God gave me a supernatural gift of faith in a very strange way. I used to pray for people with unequal legs and the short leg grew out. It happened to literally hundreds of people and I told them, ‘Now, God has touched you. His supernatural power is working in your body, help yourself.’ I saw lots of people supernaturally healed.

But, my good friends, my fellow ministers said, ‘You know, Derek, you have a reputation as a dignified Bible teacher. If you go around holding people’s feet and lengthening their legs, it may not fit in with your reputation.’ So I thought maybe they’re saying the right thing. I went to the Lord and this is what I feel He said. He said, ‘I’ve given you a gift,’ and I suddenly realized it was a gift, the gift of faith. ‘There are two things you can do. You can use it and get more or you can fail to use it and lose it.’ I made up my mind at that point I was going to use it and get more. And I say to the glory of God, I got more. But remember, whatever gift you have, there are two things you can do. You can use it and get more or you can fail to use it and lose it.

And then bear in mind, as I think we’ve said already, your service in this life will determine your position in eternity. The one who had gained ten minas was over ten cities, the one who had gained five minas was over five cities. It was in exact proportion to their faithfulness in this life. And notice Jesus did not say, ‘Well done, good and successful servant,’ He said, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.’ And some of us put much too much emphasis on success and much too little emphasis on faithfulness.

We are privileged today to see tremendous works of God in many what are called foreign mission fields. We could get a little puffed up and say, ‘Isn’t that wonderful! Thousands of people come to my seminars.’ But God has shown me, ‘Don’t forget, there was a generation before you that saw very little fruit but they labored and you’ve entered into their labors. And don’t you give yourself too high an opinion of yourself.’ I respect the pioneers, I respect those who labored and laid down their lives. When the first missionaries went to East Africa, four out of every five died before they’d been there many months. They

“didn’t see any results but they were seeds planted in the earth that brought forth fruit later. I tell you sincerely, the greatest single danger that you and I face is pride.”

Now, one more thing, the man who didn’t make anything, Jesus said to him, ‘Well, you maybe didn’t have the ability to make money yourself but you could have put it in the bank and I would have gotten my own with interest.’ That proves to me that it’s not always wrong to receive interest. It may be wrong in some places but not all.

Now what would that be for you and me? What could we do? We might say, ‘Well, I don’t have a big ministry, I’m not a preacher, I’m not an administrator, I don’t have a lot of talent. What can I do?’ Put it in the bank. What’s that? This is my understanding. Find a ministry that’s really bringing forth fruit, check it, test it and then invest in it. That’s putting the money in the bank. You’ll get your interest when the Lord comes. Amen.

Now let’s look at the next parable which is very similar but somewhat different, the parable of the talents. That’s in Matthew 25:14 and following:

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. And to one he gave five talents, to another two and to another one; to each according to his own ability, and immediately went on a journey.”

Now, notice in the minas each one got one mina but with the talents one got five, one got two and one got one. And he distributed them according to their ability. I want you to understand that God gives you talents according to what He knows you can do with them. If you can use five talents He’ll give you five. If you can only use two He’ll give you two and if you can only use one He’ll give you one. But it’s according to your ability that He measures what He gives.

And then it says:
“‘Then the one who received five talents went and traded with them and made another five talents. Likewise, he who had received two gained two more also. But he who had received one went and dug in the ground and hid his lord’s money. After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.’”

And brothers and sisters, the Lord is going to come and settle accounts with you and me.

“‘So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, 'Lord, you delivered to me five talents. Look, I’ve gained five more talents beside them.’ The lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’’’

Notice the same principle, what you do in this world will determine what you do in eternity.

“‘He who also received two talents came and said, ‘Lord, you delivered to me two talents. Look, I’ve gained two more.’ 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 into the joy of your lord.’’”

Now there’s a different principle there. Because one made five talents and the other made two but the words of commendation were exactly the same to each of them. In other words, it’s the percentage that God looks for. If you’ve received five, He expects a hundred percent. That’ll be fife. If you received two, He expects a hundred percent, that’s two. He knows what you’re capable of and He doesn’t ask more from you than He knows you can deliver.

Let’s go on:

“‘Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. I was afraid and went and hid your talent in the ground. There, you have what is yours.’ But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and lazy servant!’’”

Let me point out to you that laziness is wickedness. Most of our churches wouldn’t accept drunkards, they’d say you can’t take a place in the congregation. Many of our churches accept lazy people. But in the sight of God I think laziness is a worse sin than drunkenness. That’s just the way I see Jesus measuring things. Please understand, I’m not endorsing drunkenness, it’s a sin. But I think in the eyes of God laziness is a worse sin. Jesus said:

“‘You wicked and lazy servant! You knew that I reaped where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered. Then you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest.’’”

Again, the same principle. If you haven’t got the ability to make money yourself, invest it in a ministry that is bringing forth fruit.

“‘Therefore, take the talent from him and give it to him who has ten talents.’”

Notice, it’s the one who has that receives.

“‘For to everyone who has, more will be given and he will have abundance. From him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’”

That’s a phrase that’s used several times in the New Testament, ‘there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ I’ve studied where it’s used and I’ve come to the conclusion it’s only used about people who’ve been right close to the real thing. They’ve had every opportunity to get in. It’s not people who’ve been right out and never knew anything about God but it’s the people who’ve been right there all their lives and knew all about it and never entered in. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. There will be the tremendous bitterness of saying, ‘I could have been in this, I had the opportunity all the time but I never availed myself of it. Now I’m cast out forever into outer darkness.’ Terrible.

Let me say one more thing. The people who were rejected were the people who had the least committed to them, the one talent person. I find that’s true in the church. Basically, the people who’ve got a lot of ability will do something with it. The people who’ve got a good measure of ability will do something. But the one talent people sit back and say, ‘Well, I don’t have much, there’s nothing much I can do so I won’t do anything.’ They’ll be rejected, they’ll be cast out.

I want to speak to some of you. I don’t want to identify you but you are one talent persons. And you’ve underestimated your responsibilities and said, ‘I don’t have much, there’s not much I can do. God doesn’t require much of me.’ God does. He requires faithfulness whether you have a little or whether you have much.

I preached this in our church in Fort Lauderdale on the one talent people and I asked for a response from people who felt they were one talent and hadn’t been using their talent. The response was shocking! It was about half the congregation. I came to see this is a major problem with many believers. ‘I’ve only got one talent so what can I do with it? I’ll do nothing.’ Jesus will not accept that. He said, ‘You could have put it in the bank. Your one talent you could have invested in a ministry that was really bringing forth fruit.’ And then, much of that fruit would have been credited to you.

Announcer:

Tomorrow Derek Prince will conclude his teaching on ‘Eternal Judgment’ when he shares about the judgments of Israel, the Gentile nations and all the remaining dead at the Great White Throne. This week’s message is available on audiocassette No. RC4169 and also on video. Our special offer this week is The Spirit-filled Believer’s Handbook, an easy to understand guide for new Christians as well as mature believers to develop and maintain a strong balanced life. To receive your copy of ‘Eternal Judgment’ write today and include a contribution of $5.00 or more for audio cassette RC4169 or $14.95 for the video teaching. Include a gift of $15.00 or more for The Spirit-filled Believer’s Handbook. Derek Prince also welcomes your letters and your prayer requests. Our mailing address is Derek Prince Ministries, Box 19501, Charlotte, North Carolina 28219. That’s Derek Prince Ministries, Box 19501, Charlotte, North Carolina 28219. You may also call us at 1-800-448-3261. In Canada write to Derek Prince Ministries, Box 8354, Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3K 5M1, and please give us the call letters of this station when you write.

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