Good morning! I’m glad to welcome you to worship today at Hillcrest Baptist Church. 

The theme of this parable focuses upon wasted opportunities. In Matthew 24, Jesus gave a description of the days preceding His Second Coming. In Matthew 25, He taught of man’s readiness for His Second Coming. This is the second of three parables in Matthew 25 relating to the Second Coming of Jesus, the first parable was about the 10 virgins. 

As followers of Jesus, God has given to us spiritual gifts and talents, and a limited amount of time to use and invest in the Kingdom of God. We have been given everything we will ever need to be what God wants us to be, and to do what God wants us to do. 

The parable of the virgins, the focus is upon our waiting; and, in the parable of the talents, the focus is upon our working. In other words, while we wait for the glorious return of the Lord Jesus, we are to work by taking the gifts, talents, abilities and ministries He has given us and invest them into the lives of others for the glory of God. 

As we study the parable of the talents in Matthew 25:14-30, as a believer, ask yourself: AM I LOSING OR USING MY TALENTS?