Scripture Reflection-Stewardship Week 4 "Found Faithful with All"

Found Faithful with All (Week 4)

“He said to him, ‘Well done, good slave, because you have been trustworthy in a very small thing, take charge of ten cities.’” (Luke 19:17 NRSV)

In the congregation where I worship, it is not unusual for a six-year-old to read Scripture or receive the offering. It is not unusual for a layperson in the congregation to bring the message of the morning. We have high expectations of one another.

We often think we are capable of less than we are. We often think that others are capable of less than they are. We usually think of this parable of the talents as about money. But it is really about much more. It is about the varied gifts God has given to all of us and how they can multiply when we put them to work.

So much of Jesus’ words and his life with his closest followers is about reminding them of how much they can do, how much they can be used by God in continuing the work of Jesus in bringing God’s healing and reconciling touch, when they are faithful stewards of what God has given them.

As we read the Gospels today, they remind us of how much we can do when we are faithful stewards of what God has given us.

For reflection
• What challenging task have we attempted for our own benefit?
• What challenging task have we undertaken for God?
• What challenging task have we encouraged someone else to undertake?

Hermann Weinlick, writer of the Scripture Meditations/Sermon Starters, is a retired
Moravian pastor. He serves as the ecumenical officer for the Moravian Church in North
America. His work as a free-lance editor includes copyediting the Feasting on the Word
lectionary commentary