Matthew 25:18 Commentary - Dr Peter Masters

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Matthew 25:18

Comments

The last of the three servants behaved very differently when faced with the same situation. What the other two servants regarded as a privilege he regarded as a burden. Later in the parable we learn the attitudes that prompted him to act in this way. For now we note that although he intended to hand back his master’s goods, he did nothing with them. By digging a hole and burying it he put it entirely out of use. He was deliberately wasting this amazing opportunity. The master never expected any of his servants to behave in this foolish way. He quite reasonably assumed that they would welcome his gift and take advantage of it.Would anyone do this? It doesn’t make sense. The parable contains gripping material and the preacher should take advantage of it. Here are the means of being elevated above a mere servant, of having new experiences, and he buries it. The pleasure of watching the growth of money was all buried. The rich acted as the welfare state of those days. As a rich man he could have done so much good. Also, in those days there were tremendous returns on their money. All of this was buried. This is the staggering thing. Why did he do it? There could have been a number of reasons – later in the parable he explains the attitude towards his master that made him act as he did. It could have been cowardice: he was frightened of the opportunity in case he failed. It could have been a desire to be independent; he was so prejudiced against his master that he was not prepared to be beholden to him in any way. It might have been cynicism: of that whole world of business that he knows nothing about. Suggests a number of attitudes which parallel those who reject God. Having seen the attitude in another, we may be helped to see it in ourselves. The parable raises a number of possibilities, and most of them lead us to consider aspects of behaviour in the unbeliever that are seldom talked about.

Application

God send the gospel into the world, and causes his light to shine in the darkness. Although he certainly knows how hard the hearts of men are, and how stubborn and rebellious men and women are, so that they will never turn to Christ of their own free will, yet the reasonableness of what God does exposes human unreasonableness. The parable represents God by a benevolent master who magnanimously sets up a wonderful opportunity for his lowly servants. God expects that we, who hear of a way of salvation, of free forgiveness from all our sins and peace with God forever, should respond with amazement at the goodness and mercy of God and embrace that goodness with all our hearts. The fact that it is otherwise does not surprise the Lord, but it demonstrates our wickedness and it grieves his heart.

As rebels against God we take his truth and we bury it in the ground putting it out of use. We are in possession of the most precious article that we could have access to in this world and yet we do nothing with it. Don’t men and women realise the potential of the gospel to give them life? Why don’t they respond? The explanation is given a few verses later. It has to do with the servant’s perception of his master.

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Matthew 25:18 Commentary and Bible Study