The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1911-09-30
vIRsINIASs WEEKLY SERMON
THE ONE TALENT MAN
pY PROF. a. n. RoRgnT~os, LIZ D..
eft Iewtasstt@y NY.
AtAtS 2s es-a6

Ia the picture ef tho one talent man
50 drawn by his master when he
comes u make his report. The mas
ter in irony SAYS. Thou wicked and
slothful servant thou knewest that
l reap where I sowed not. ard gath
cred where 7 had not strswsd He
takes uP the mans very words. Then
IL you knew all that you ought To-
have put my money out TO the sx-
changers. and then l should have
received my o@n with interest. II
you did NOT have sense enough or
confidence enough In me TO do the
basiness yourself. you should have
put my money out 10 those who DID
know how TO use money So the
mai 10 simply pressed TO the wall.
aud then comes the condemnation
nSke away the talent which he
haa
The one talent man beoo~ es the
no talent man, Now. that is not
necessary IL does aot have to be 40
80. A man may. begin with ons
talent and he may @stn many more.
That Is tho law OF life. 1t is the
law OF nature that II you do not Use
your arms you soon will be una bic
TO use them. 20 II is with the mind,
atrophy follows failure to use, II
you DO not love God. you will become
SO that you cannot love Him. In
tho great Mammoth Cave IN Ken
lucky the .ash In the river do not
see: they cannot see In the darkness
and now they no longer have eyes
The places where the eyebal1s used
to he are there and glare at you
as reminders OF the time when the
fish were out In thu light where they
could see The unused talent shall
be taken away. For him that hath,
TO him shall be given: and he mat
hath not, from him shall be taken
away even that which he hath" That
sounds like harshnesa. but IL 10 the
law Of nature, II is the law of God.
My lazt word about the one talent
man 10 that he Loaf his own soul
Take him, and cast him out into
the outer darkness''-the darkness
outside Cast him away from the
light. There shall be the weeping
and ynashing OF teeth" These words
in the Greek have the article. 1t Is
the figure OF the waiting Of the lost
and the swapping Of the teeth of
wolves dogs and other Wild beasts
This man is hurled out there with
the wall OF those who are lost, and
the swapping OF the teeth OF the wild
animals az they creep up behind
q
at him.
Was this man real Christian
We are not told no. but he had his
opportunity. Al any rate, he IL not
one now Probably he WAS Ike a
nominal church mGn Der who does
( not work at his business. Alas, how
many there are like that In every
church. Their names are on the roll
but they amount to nothing: they dc
nothing; they give nothing; they just
simply putter along. feeling thai
somehow they are all right because
their names are on the roll OF the
/ church. But they may find that the
/ books on high do not correspond
| With the church lists Of our church
clerks. John the Bsps,st said: bring
forth fruits worthy of rcpen ance.
sesus at the close Of His Sermon or
the Mount, said that the test In the
| end of the day wi. be not what fnel
say, hut what thev have done, What
they are, There must bs character
IRE fruit will prove whether The tree
ia good or bad. ana We get this teach
tnr from James, from Peter and from
Inul This Is indeed the teaching
of Jesus our Master profession is rt'
the proof Of Christianity. We must
have life. and Z We have life we
slal bear fruit Modern Christians
need this lesson Of applied Chris
tianlty. 1t is the difference between
nrofenssi onalisn and reality. Jesus
had only scorn for those VINO had
the name. but not tho life.