The Parable of the Talents
Matthew 25:14-30 - this is a parable about trust, faithfulness and a day when the Master comes home to settle accounts.
The setup
A rich man was heading out on a long journey. Before he left, he entrusted three servants with large amounts of money (talents - likely worth several hundred thousand dollars each) to manage in his absence. They did not receive the same amount. Each was given a different measure of responsibility, based on what the master knew they could handle: five talents, two talents, and one talent.
Then he left.
The servant with five went to work. He put the money to use and doubled it. The servant with two did the same. Both took what they were entrusted with seriously. Both took risk to try to accomplish something with what they had been given.
The servant with one talent was afraid, however. He did not want to lose his master's money, so he hid it in the ground. He kept it "safe." He did nothing with it.
Fear vs. Faithfulness
Fear
Fear tries to protect what you already have and calls that wisdom. It buries the gift so nothing can go wrong, but that means nothing can good can happen, either. In this story, fear looked like caution. It was actually unfaithfulness.
Faithfulness
The first two servants took the master's trust in them seriously enough to put it to work. Faithfulness required action. The risk of using what they were given (and potentially facing failure) was the only path to "well done."
The master returns
After a long time, the rich man came home and settled accounts.
The ones who took the responsibility seriously and took the risks ended up prospering. To each of them the master said, "Well done, good and faithful servant." He entrusted them with more, and invited them to share his joy.
The one who avoided the work received a harsh judgment. His unused talent was taken away. What he had called safety, the master named unfaithfulness.
What this means for us
Jesus is not mainly teaching a lesson about money. The Master is God. We are the servants. The talents are whatever He has placed in our hands — our abilities, our time, our opportunities, our influence, our resources, and the gospel itself.
None of us received the same mix. That is the point. God does not compare your five to someone else's two. He asks whether you were faithful with what He has given you.
A day is coming when accounts will be settled. Jesus told this story so we would live as people who expect the Master to come back. The question is whether He will find will find us as having been faithful and what He will say.
If you want to hear "well done," the path is not hiding what God gave you because you are afraid of failing. If you have said yes to Jesus, then it's time to put what He entrusted to you to work, and trust that God is able to make you fruitful to His purposes.