¹⁴"Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a trip. He called together his servants and gave them money to invest for him while he was gone.

¹⁵He gave five bags of gold to one, two bags of gold to another, and one bag of gold to the last- dividing it in proportion to their abilities- and then left on his trip.

¹⁶The servant who received the five bags of gold began immediately to invest the money and soon doubled it.

¹⁷The servant with two bags of gold also went right to work and doubled the money.

¹⁸But the servant who received the one bag of gold dug a hole in the ground and hid the master's money for safekeeping.

¹⁹"After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money.

²⁰The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of gold said, `Sir, you gave me five bags of gold to invest, and I have doubled the amount.'

²¹The master was full of praise. `Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let's celebrate together!'

²²"Next came the servant who had received the two bags of gold, with the report, `Sir, you gave me two bags of gold to invest, and I have doubled the amount.'

²³The master said, `Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let's celebrate together!'

²⁴"Then the servant with the one bag of gold came and said, `Sir, I know you are a hard man, harvesting crops you didn't plant and gathering crops you didn't cultivate.

²⁵I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth and here it is.'

²⁶"But the master replied, `You wicked and lazy servant! You think I'm a hard man, do you, harvesting crops I didn't plant and gathering crops I didn't cultivate?

²⁷Well, you should at least have put my money into the bank so I could have some interest.

²⁸Take the money from this servant and give it to the one with the ten bags of gold.

²⁹To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who are unfaithful, even what little they have will be taken away.

³⁰Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'"

What is the Lord teaching us in this story? Everything on the earth belongs to the Lord. He created it all and He owns it all. Everything that you and I use here is only borrowed to start with. I have never seen a loaded hearst pulling a U-haul trailer behind it. We don't take this world's goods to heaven with us. We leave it all behind us after we die. So, with this preface in mind, what is the story about? The story is about the heart of man, his priorities, and his money. And it's a story about you and me. The Lord commands us "to occupy" while He is gone (to Heaven). "To occupy" means to be responsible with what earthly goods we are each blessed with until Christ returns or until we die, whatever is first.

While the owner (the Lord) was away temporarily (in Heaven) but soon coming back, (the second advent) three individuals were selected on the earth. Two (love) servants were saved. They loved the Lord. They paid their tithes and were faithful with their money to invest it into God's work in His church. They used their money to build up God's kingdom. They used their money wisely in this regard. One had more money than the other one which is usually the case in church circles. One saint may have more than the one sitting on the other side of the church building in a Sunday morning worship service. But that is ok. These men were "other centered" rather than "self centered."

It is ok to have two bags of gold rather than five bags of gold. It is ok to have five bags of gold rather than two bags of gold. God does not love one more than the other. The emphasis is not on the amount of money you and I have. Rather the emphasis is on how faithful you and I are with what God has been given to us. Since all blessings come from God, what you and I have comes from God's hand of provision. So it is a fact that some Christians have more than others. Are you and I faithful to Him with what He has given us?

The third servant did not love the Lord. He was not saved. He belonged to the devil. Maybe he was an infiltrator into a local church congregation from a nearby witchcraft or satanic coven sent to cause division and trouble. What do you expect an individual like this to do with his money? Jesus indicated that one will spend their money on those things that they love the most. Your money will follow your heart. Jesus said this man hid his money rather than give any of it to God. His money followed his heart. He kept it all for himself. He was selfish. He was "self centered" rather than "other centered." At the judgment he was "weighed in the balance scale and found wanting." The Lord asked him about his faithfulness to Him. The man admitted to the Lord that he had not been faithful to God with his life nor with his money. The man had served himself first. He gave the Lord no regard.

The man was cast into outer darkness where hell is located. Hell is the garbage dump of the universe down wind, so to speak, and out of sight from those in Heaven. It's a bottomless pit of endless burning that never ceases. It's pure torment forever and ever. The man didn't want to go there. He probably never believed that hell existed. While on earth he served the devil and did the devil's will. Now, he gets his reward. He gets to spend eternity in a lake of fire with his master. They burn there together gnashing their teeth because of the endless pain and weeping tears of self pity.

So, what is the conclusion to Jesus' story?

"To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who are unfaithful, even what little they have will be taken away. Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."