A number of details in the account of the Parable of the Ten Minas intrigued me.
First owner of the estate was traveling to another place so that he could be made king of his home area. He is a powerful and well-connected man. He may be a strong man, ruthless maybe? Ruthless may be too strong, but his kingship is opposed by his subjects who send a delegation after him to say, 'We don't want this man to be our king' (14). This element of the story says something.
The man becomes king and returns and the bulk of the parable is about the three servants he left in charge. Apparently the king dealt with his servants publicly since people were shocked when the king took the mina from the last servant and gave it to the one with 10.
Here’s where it gets interesting. The story concludes with the king ‘establishing’ his kingdom, But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them--bring them here and kill them in front of me'" (27).
What does this say about Jesus when He comes to establish His kingdom?
With the Zacchaeus story, we see God’s kindness, seeking and saving the lost. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost (10). Now in the next story we see that when God comes He will judge those who oppose Him.
I don’t know that I have ever seen God’s love and wrath juxtaposed like this here in chapter 19 before. It caused me to think about when Jesus returns. That will be a great day for those who believe, but a frightening day for those who don’t…
Hmmm… I invite you to think about this. I know I am…
Lord, I am thankful that You revealed Yourself to me and gave me the grace to believe and trust. I pray for those who do not yet believe. Help me to live in a winsome way so that they come to faith in You. Lord, may I take up the message of Jesus to Zacchaeus and seek and save the lost, and leave the judging to You. However, give me an urgency about sharing the Gospel, because I don’t know when You –Jesus, the King, will return. In Your name, I pray. Amen.
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