WHAT IS YOUR PRICE?  Part II
Daniel Valles 11/27/7   www. informedchristians.com

II Chronicles 25:7-9 records, “But there came a man of God to him, saying, O king, let not the army of Israel go with thee; for the LORD is not with Israel, to wit, with all the children of Ephraim. But if thou wilt go, do it, be strong for the battle: God shall make thee fall before the enemy: for God hath power to help, and to cast down.   And Amaziah said to the man of God, But what shall we do for the hundred talents which I have given to the army of Israel? And the man of God answered, The LORD is able to give thee much more than this.” 

Matthew 25:14-21 says, "For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods.  And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey.  Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two.  But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money.  After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them.  And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more.  His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord."

When the servant's master returned, he did not pat him on the back and say that he understood.  No, he charged his servant with negligence.  While we may not be entrusted with a heap of money per se, God has entrusted many of His children with children of their own.  Each of them is worth far more than a talent of gold!  Most people have more than one child, too.  When we consider the rebuke meted out on His servant for neglecting just one talent, we should soberly attend to each of our children and charges with diligence and attention.

Too many parents are like the unfaithful steward who buried his talent in the earth.  They assume that as long as they take their children to church (wrap them up), they will be safe, and will not be spoiled by the world that they are burying them in.

Perhaps the servant viewed take care of the talent as interfering with his other duties or activities.  Perhaps he thought that as long as it was buried in the ground, it was going nowhere, and would give him more time to spend on things he wanted to do instead of handling and managing the talent.  How many parents and caregivers neglect their first responsibility so they can focus on lesser needs and desires?  God command parents to train their children themselves (Deut. 11:19-21, Proverbs 22:6).  He explicitly lays out that the parent, themselves, is to raise their child.  Yet too many parents see it as optional, and that that responsibility off to other Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and then on Sunday they hand them off the child's Bible 'schooling' as well.  How many parents use both spouses working as an excuse not to train up their children?  Yes, there may be times that emergencies require drastic steps, but for many that I know who share jobs, they do not 'have' to - it just gives them something else to focus on, allows them extra spending money for their wants, gives them a 'better standard of living', etc.  At what cost your children?

We get all worked up when we read stories in the paper of parents who neglected the feeding and care of their children; yet, do we realize the anguish that it causes our Heavenly Father when we neglect the training and personal raising of our charges?  The unfaithful servant wrapped his talent in a napkin (Luke 19:20) before burying it in the dirt, thinking that it would be protected.  Do not wrap your children's lives in the covering of the public school and expect them to turn out all right.  They should be wrapped in the arms and care of whom they were entrusted to - their parents.

What is your price?  If I could put a blank price tag on a string, and hang it around your child's neck, I would then get a marker and get ready to write on that tag.  What would I write?  What is the price that you are willing to pay for your children?  I could also ask what will you pay for neglecting your children?  One of the saddest sights to see is a mother or father with a crushed and broken heart because their child has gone astray, and their relationship is broken.  Proverbs mentions several times the pain and heartache that a mother and father feels over their wayward children.  What will you pay?

If you have not yet done so, pray and ask God for wisdom and direction to raise them up right, courage to do what He would have you do, and a zeal to let no charge of negligence come from our Lord.  Dedicate your children and charges to the Lord, purposing to pay whatever price, in time and pursuits, to raise your children for His glory.  The faithful servants invested their time in managing and cultivating what was entrusted to them.  The results of their labour was not only evident in the talents themselves, but in the rewards for the servants as well. 

What is your price?  Is it self?  Does self come first before responsibilities?  Then self will have the greatest to pay.

Let us work for our Master's approval first and highest above all!  Let us not bury and hide from our responsibilities, but embrace them in being faithful stewards!

“…And the man of God answered, The LORD is able to give thee much more than this.”