And also he said to this one, ‘You will be over five cities.’

Luke 19:19

Authority is an interesting concept in Scripture. Here this servant is given the five cities to have ‘authority’ over. Does this mean dictatorial / monarchical type rule? No, that is not consistent with what we know of Scripture. Instead the authority in view is representative more than anything. This master knows he can trust this servant to be his representative.

In spite of the smaller number of cities, this servant is given a lot to be responsible for. The trust is no less real.

Does this mean that in the future kingdom of heaven we will rule over cities? Well, we do not know as much as we think about the future. But what we do know is that the kingdom of Christ is not the same as the kingdoms of this world. They are but a pale shadow in comparison. Thus, the servants of Christ need not focus on dreams of grand rule, but of humble service.

Heavenly Father, thank You for working in our lives even when we cannot see the next step as clearly as we would like. We see that You are active in this world, but also in our lives. The comfort we must take, is not in the next step, but Who will take it with us! Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

And the second came, saying, ‘Lord, your Mina has earned five Minas.’

Luke 19:18

In our human thinking we will read this passage and say, ‘Too bad the second servant only earned five minas.’ But Jesus doesn’t say that. Yes the master gives this servant less responsibility. But he is still happy with the servant’s work.

In our lives we tend to look at others and judge our own performance that way. But Christ is the judge. And when we compare ourselves to Him, it keeps us humble. Humility does not make us think little of ourselves and put ourselves down for our five Minas compared to another’s ten. It makes us remember that it is all for Christ, and that becomes our focus rather than performance.

Jesus could have left this man out. Why tell us about the ‘five minas’ servant? He wanted us to understand there will be those who do more, and those who do less. But both are His servants. We should learn from this. Spiritual elitism or inferiority is not acceptable in the kingdom of God. All are equally under the eye of the Just Judge.

Heavenly Father, thank You so much for Your love and power! We are so frail and we worry about every little thing. But we know You understand all that we are and all that we do. You know our efforts and see our desires. You judge the inner man. Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant. Because you have been faithful in the trivial, you will have authority over ten cities.’

Luke 19:17

As humans we find it difficult to be faithful in the most mundane of circumstances. Glamor and popularity can make it easier to be consistent. But it is in the ‘unimportant’ things that we find a challenge. Faithfulness just for the sake of being faithful to your Lord, and not because of what you are actually doing, that is the secret to contentment. And, the Lord can then trust you with more.

Heavenly Father, thank You for leading our lives. We are so easily content to live in death with no abundance to our life. But You call us out of that to a life that is full and free. You are truly wise and good. Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

The first came, saying, ‘Lord, your Mina has earned ten Minas.’

Luke 19:16

This is meant to be understood as a lifetime of earning. This servant had not produced such a return overnight. But with careful and studious attention over the course of time, the benefit was earned.

Heavenly Father, thank You for the gifts You give us for life. Your investment in us is for our blessing and is so wonderful. I cannot thank You enough. May everything we do bring glory to You in this life and in the life to come for all eternity! You are the LORD of all! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

And it happened upon his return from receiving the kingdom, that he commanded these servants to be summoned (the ones he had given the silver to) so that he might thoroughly examine them to know how they had faired.

Luke 19:15

This is a perfectly reasonable course of action. There is nothing here to indicate it was his plan to take anything back. He was interested in their performance, not the money. He wanted to hold them accountable for the purpose of potential promotion.

Heavenly Father, we so easily rush to judgement. We are afraid of everything and the slightest thing can worry us. But in You we can have safety, peace, and a fair eye. Thank You for how Your Word influences our minds for the best. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

But his citizens hated him, and sent an ambassador after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man as king over us.’

Luke 19:14

These citizens would represent the Jewish people. Though a great number of Jews individually accepted Christ, the nation as a whole rejected Him. This is a sad commentary, but the Jewish people are not alone in this failure to genuinely turn to Christ at a national level.

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your faithful and genuine love for us in Your Son. You are the One we can look to for a true example of selflessness. In spite of all the glory You deserve, You have condescended to rescue us. Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

And he called ten of his servants and granted to them ten Minas, and said to them, ‘Do business until I arrive.’

Luke 19:13

The Jewish people were entrusted with the Oracles of God. But the application of the meaning here need not be limited to what the Lord entrusted to them. All of God’s servants are entrusted with His riches.

Riches of grace, love, mercy, wisdom, joy, peace, and hope are all ours in Christ. And meant to be shared. To ‘do business’ here is referring to having enough to invest so as to make a profit. The idea is for the servants to be a blessing and to receive one as well.

Also, this great man says, ‘do business until I arrive’ because his return is a forgone conclusion. The Lord is not simply ‘coming someday’, He is ‘about to arrive’!

Heavenly Father, we thank You today and every day. We often think of thanksgiving as something that we give. But it is also something we are. We are to be thankful. Indeed, we cannot stop being thankful people when Your Presence is clear to us. We thank You and are thankful! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Therefore, He said, ‘This noble man travelled to a distant country to receive to himself a kingdom, and to return.’

Luke 19:12

This great man represents Christ Himself. He goes out among the Gentiles to Garner a people for His Name while the Jews wait for His return. It is a fitting backdrop for this, one of the ‘talents’ parables of Christ.

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your love, compassion, and understanding. Even when we do not understand what is going on, You are in control. Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

And as the men heard these thing He proceeded to tell them a parable because He was near Jerusalem and because the men thought the kingdom of God was about to appear at once.

Luke 19:11

Messiah’s popping up here and there was a common occurrence in Christ’s day. The timing for the appearance of the Messiah had already been proclaimed in Daniel chapter 9 verses 25 and 26. And the look of Christ’s entry into Jerusalem also was predicted in Zechariah 9:9. Due to this, Jesus was not the only one claiming to be the Messiah.

But Jesus was The Only One. He was able to read the minds of all who were involved. His timing was perfect and He fulfilled prophecy after prophecy. Others seemed to be something, but He was so authentic that the Jews were in a tizzy as to what to do about Him.

Heavenly Father, the authenticity of Christ is powerful! Our lives are forever transformed by the blood of Christ. Your love is beautiful and Your grace is amazing. We can only imagine the glory of heaven. But we will live this life to bring all glory to You. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the perishing.

Luke 19:10

This world is dying! That is reality. We are surrounded every day by broken, dying, people. Life was not created to be like this. There is a problem to solve. And it is a very specific problem. We need LIFE. And not just any life will do. We need the life of Christ. Eternally saved people living Christlike in the ‘Christlife’ is the greatest need of this world.

Jesus impacts every area of life, and He should be considered for every choice in everything. But, He is not seeking to conform this world inch by inch to His design. No, He is seeking to change souls. Soul by soul He is rescuing us from this present world that is perishing. This world will be judged and destroyed. Individual people, as many as possible, will be saved out of it. When He comes to rule it will not be because this world has become so good, but because it has been so bad. But during it all He is converting souls, bringing them from the kingdom of darkness and into His marvelous light!

Heavenly Father, thank You for Christ! We are enthralled by the eternal perspective LORD! How can we do anything but stand speechless in awe of Your plan? We will seek to bring others to Christ by His working in us so that we may bring glory to You, Almighty God! Thank You for the opportunity and for Your work in each life. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.