4th Trinity
Matthew 25: 14-30
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| Eugene Burnand |
When I return, the kingdom of the human being permeated by the heavens will be like a Man, going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. He gave five bars of silver [talents] to one, two to another, and one to a third—to each according to his ability—and went away.
The one who got the five bars went right out and worked with them and earned another five; likewise, the one who got the two bars earned another two. But the one who got one shoveled up the earth and buried his master’s treasure.
After a long time, the master of those servants came back and settled accounts with them. And the one who got the five bars came forward and presented the other five, saying, “Master, you entrusted me with five bars of silver; see, I earned another five.
And his master said to him, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You were trustworthy in small things, I’ll put you in charge of greater things. Welcome, and enter into your Master’s joy.”
And the one who got two bars also came forward and said, “Master, you entrusted me with two bars of silver; see, I earned another two.”
His master said to him, “Well done good and faithful servant! You were trustworthy in small things. (In the future) I’ll put you in charge of greater things. Welcome, and enter into your Master’s joy!”
Then the one who got the one bar also came forward and said, “Master, knowing you to be a tough fellow, who reaps what he didn’t sow, and collects what he didn’t scatter, I was afraid and hid your bar of silver in the ground; here is what is yours.
His Master answered, “You useless and cowardly slave, if you knew that I reap what I didn’t sow, and collect what I didn’t scatter, then you should at least have put it in the bank so that I could have gotten back what was mine with interest. Take the bar of silver away from him and give it to the one with ten bars.
To him who has gained trust in the creating power of the spirit, to him more will be given, and he shall have fullness. To him, however, who denies the creative working of the spirit in his own being, from him shall be removed that which lives as treasure in his soul.
Throw the useless slave out into the darkness of outer being, where all must be sent who deny the spirit’s creative power. It is there, with wailing and gnashing of teeth, that men must spend their empty lives.”
5th Trinity
November 26, 2017
Matthew 25: 14-30
A kingly nature works in us while we are children. It doles out varying amounts of strengths and talents, the silver bars of our life on earth, to the various parts of our soul. Our life’s King trusts that what it has given to our souls, as our capacities of thinking, our ability to feel and to act, that these capacities will be like servants who will faithfully perform the tasks they were entrusted to do. They are to take the soul’s strengths and talents and increase them. These strengths and talents are not the soul’s to hoard; but above all, they are not to lie fallow. For, in the end, the King will call our soul to give an accounting of what each of its parts has managed to produce during the course of a lifetime.
We increase the souls’ store by overcoming fear and energetically working hard on ourselves. Using our will that we have strengthened, our feelings we have ennobled, our thinking that is pure and in check, we create our own sterling character. Clearly, according to the parable, no matter how much or how little we started out with, the King hopes for a doubling of our souls’ capacities. Such a doubling allows us to participate in his joy.
He would even be somewhat satisfied with the small increase that would accrue if we would hand over our thoughts and feelings and wills to some institution, like the church, or a private advisor like a guru - sort of like opening a salvation account at 1% interest.
What he condemns, however, is burying our soul’s endowment entirely in earthly
matters. For the silver of the soul will turn dark if buried too long in the earthly. Then it is no longer fit as service for the King.
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| tarnished silver |
We are evolving beings. We are meant to become richer and more complex through our work lived on earth. And the doubling of spiritual investments isn’t as difficult as with monetary ones. Because thoughts lead to actions; actions repeated over time create habits; sow good habits and you will end up developing a sterling character. Sow and tend a solid character and the king will be able to reap an entire destiny, a whole new lifetime. Out of the small things we do that add up to a destiny, He is able to give us a new assignment of greater things to accomplish. Together with Him, we can serve the true evolution of all of humankind.
