This is the first of two posts on a faith subject that is short on teaching coverage but long on faith maturity: freedom. Spiritual freedom is one of the most under-taught gospel disciplines, particularly in light of the featured space that freedom is given in Scripture. Two disparate events in Jesus’ ministry, His teaching of the parable of the talents (this post) and His sharing of the story of the rich young man (post two), provide insight into the importance of curating freedom in our personal spiritual journeys. More importantly, these events teach us about two perceptions that can impact how we might curate spiritual freedom: our personal perception of God and our personal perception of ourselves.
Our Personal Perception of God
While you are likely familiar with the parable of the talents, which Jesus shared when describing the nature of the kingdom of heaven, you may still want to take a moment to read Matthew 25:14-30, paying particular attention to the third servant’s perception of his master. (We’ll pause here for a minute while you read the passage…seriously, go ahead and read it…Got it read? Okay, moving on.)
While servants one and two were diligent in multiplying their talents of five and two (to ten and four, respectively), the third servant buried his one talent in the ground for safe keeping, or maybe just for safe hoarding. When called by the master to give an account of how he used his talent, the third servant led off with his perception of the master and a flimsy excuse for how that perception affected his actions.
It’s easy to berate the third servant, especially in contrast to the efforts of servants one and two. It’s also easy to think “I would never be that way in my relationship with God.” However, the third servant was likely featured by Jesus to show us how we can be “that way” quite easily. It all boils down to how our perception of God impacts our actions with God, just as the third servant’s perception of the master impacted his actions regarding the master.
In fact, the sequence of interaction between the master and the third servant in this parable is an insightful look into interaction we might find ourselves having with God at any given moment. Looking at this interaction phrase by phrase, it starts with our personal experience with God, which shapes our perception (from the third servant: You are a hard man). This is followed by our perceived evidence supporting our experience (You reap where you do not sew), which then creates a feeling (I was afraid). This feeling then leads to an action or conclusion based on that feeling (I went and hid your talent in the ground).
Mind Exercise
Try this little mind exercise: step into the conversation, phrase by phrase, between the third servant and his master, using your own answers in place of those of the servant.
1. EXPERIENCE/PERCEPTION: You are a hard man.
The third servant had a very narrow and negative perception of the master, saying he was “a hard man.” (Jesus is not clear on whether this was a true assessment of the master. Could he have been a hard man, reaping where he did not sow? We are left to wonder. However, the other two servants didn’t seem to have a problem with the master.) Take a moment to recall a time in life when you have had a negative perception of God, whether a moment, or a period of life. For example, maybe there was a time when God seemed distant, or aloof.
2. PERCEIVED EVIDENCE: You reap where you do not sew.
The third servant stated his observations that created his view of the master as a hard man, “reaping where you did not sew.” Keeping with the personal example of God seeming distant, stated evidence could be observations such as: entreaties go unanswered, nothing seems to happen as a result of prayer, God is not attentive to the details of life.
3. MY FEELING: I was afraid.
The perception that the master was a hard man generated in the servant a sense of fear. The perception that entreaties and prayers go unanswered, that God is not attentive to the details of your life, might easily generate a sense of feeling ignored, feeling alone.
4. MY ACTION: I went and hid your talent in the ground
The servant’s perceived experience and evidence generated a real feeling and a real action in response to the feeling. We do that too. The most likely action as a response to feeling ignored by God when praying? Quit praying.
Using the example of God seeming to be distant, here is what the conversation might look like, a conversation that may build over a period of months, even years.
1. EXPERIENCE/PERCEPTION: God, I’ve known you to be a distant God.
2. PERCEIVED EVIDENCE: You do not seem to be listening to my entreaties, nor attentive to details in my life.
3. MY FEELING: I felt ignored and on my own.
4. MY ACTION: So, I quit praying.
Thankfully, this sequence can work the other way. Here is an example of how this conversation might play out when starting from a positive perception of God.
1. EXPERIENCE/PERCEPTION: God, I’ve known you to bring beauty from ashes.
2. PERCEIVED EVIDENCE: You have redeemed loss in my life, bringing good out of bad.
3. MY FEELING: This makes me grateful
4. MY ACTION: I will share with others about your redemptive work.
The outcome is directly related to the initial perception. Life elements such as our positive and negative life experiences—our church traditions, our history, our personal engagement with prayer and God’s Word, blend together to create our personal perception of God. This, in turn, produces either a net-positive or a net-negative perception. When our perception is a net-positive, we put ourselves in a position to multiply what God has given us—to live life abundantly (John 10:10), to say yes to what God wants to do in us and through us. Conversely, when we allow life elements to generate a negative perception of God, we live the restricted life, which is on full display with the third servant. We hoard. We protect. We play defense. Jesus very vividly explained that nothing good comes from this type of life. It was a bad outcome for the third servant, and it will be for us.
Putting Into Practice
Consider these steps to release yourself from a restricted perception of God and to begin to curate spiritual freedom in your personal faith journey.
1. Measure your sources of spiritual input:
What sources are feeding your soul and mind that create your perception of God. Think: life circumstances, history with the church, personal prayer time, Bible engagement, disappointments. Putting these all together, do they create a net-positive or net-negative perception of God?
2. Rebalance your sources of spiritual input:
We are told in 1 Peter 2:2 to “crave pure spiritual milk.” The two purest forms of “spiritual milk” are prayer and Scripture. If the resources you spend (such as time, energy, emotions) on your sources of spiritual input were depicted as a pie chart, how big are the pie slices representing prayer and Scripture? What adjustments can be made to ensure that the two purest forms of spiritual milk, and the best sources for a healthy perception of God, have an over-sized representation in your pie chart of spiritual input?
3. Reconsider your perception of God:
The psalmist Asaph, in Psalm 73, began his psalm wanting nothing to do with God (possessing an extremely negative perception of God, in fact). After a “sanctuary experience” that he described in verse 17, he finished his psalm wanting EVERYTHING to do with God. His final words: “…for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all your works.” After a period of time with prayer and Scripture as your primary sources of input, write your personal psalm that reflects a renewed perception of God.