There are a variety of reasons why a person may be living in poverty. Disabilities and sickness can prevent a person from getting a decent-paying job. Lack of education and poor work ethics can also contribute. Some people have actually been raised in poverty and don’t know any other lifestyle, so they succumb to their upbringing. There are also others who once enjoyed a life of luxury but lost all of their money to bad investments and never recovered. So, the cause of poverty can’t be pin-pointed to one single contributing factor.
But, there is another reason why people may be living in poverty that Jesus illustrates as he tells the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25. In this story, a wealthy man gave his servants differing amounts of money (talents) to do business with while he left the country for a season of time. Upon his return, the master asked his servants what they did with the money he had given them. One of the servants had doubled the five talents that were given to him by investing wisely … he “put it to use.” Another servant, however, brought back to the master one single talent … the one that his master had originally given to him. He didn’t invest it or use it. Instead, he hid it. The master called that servant a “wicked and slothful servant” because of his misuse of what was given to him.
What can we glean from this story since all of Jesus’ stories had surface meaning as well as deep underlying truths? I’d like to submit to you that EVERYONE have been given SOMETHING from God that He has entrusted them with, to use, to invest, to benefit themselves as well as His kingdom. Just like in this story, each of us has been given differing amounts to utilize. (It almost seems unfair doesn’t it? … that God would give one person MORE than another person). If you look upon the ONE TALENT that you’ve been given and compare it to the FIVE TALENTS someone else has been given, and begin to envy others and have a “that’s not fair” mentality, you will disdain what you’ve been given and hide it away … the very thing God gave you to bring blessing into your life. That ONE TALENT can be doubled and tripled if invested wisely and used correctly. That ONE TALENT can bring a person out of poverty … but it first must be PUT TO USE.
Matthew 25:23
His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’
