A sermon preached at Covenant Presbyterian Church of Fort Smith, Arkansas on August 2, 2026.
As they heard these things, he proceeded to tell a parable, because he was near to Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately. He said therefore, “A nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and then return. Calling ten of his servants, he gave them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Engage in business until I come.’ But his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’ When he returned, having received the kingdom, he ordered these servants to whom he had given the money to be called to him, that he might know what they had gained by doing business. The first came before him, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made ten minas more.’ And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant! Because you have been faithful in a very little, you shall have authority over ten cities.’ And the second came, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made five minas.’ And he said to him, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’ Then another came, saying, ‘Lord, here is your mina, which I kept laid away in a handkerchief; for I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man. You take what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.’ He said to him, ‘I will condemn you with your own words, you wicked servant! You knew that I was a severe man, taking what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow? Why then did you not put my money in the bank, and at my coming I might have collected it with interest?’ And he said to those who stood by, ‘Take the mina from him, and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’ And they said to him, ‘Lord, he has ten minas!’ ‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. But as for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slaughter them before me’” (Luke 19:11–27).[1]
Today, we consider the Parable of the Ten Minas, perhaps less familiar than its counterpart in Matthew’s Gospel, the Parable of the Talents. The two parables are similar in principle but differ in important details. Most significantly, Luke tells us why Jesus spoke this parable: “because he was near to Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately” (19:11).
Contextually, the parable follows Jesus’ visit to Jericho, where the chief tax collector and notorious sinner, Zacchaeus, was sought and saved. In Jericho, the crowd was surprised by what they saw and surely shocked by what they heard, when Jesus declared, “Today salvation has come to this house . . . For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (vv. 9-10). The crowd heard all of this surely translating it into anticipation. In fact, we are only a few verses away from Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, when the multitude will “rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, saying, ‘Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!” (19:37-38a). Onward and upward, he will go into Jerusalem, the city of David, the city of the temple, the city from which the Messiah is expected to reign. And so, expectation was building.
But what is wrong with this picture? Why would Jesus not enjoy the accolades and ride the wave of frenzy without interruption? Because it’s not enough to be excited about Jesus. Our rejoicing, our praise, our enthusiasm about the Lord Jesus must be grounded in truth. Jesus therefore sets the record straight by telling a simple story, a parable, a parable that tells of his first coming but also his second, and a parable that tells of our life after his departure and upon his return.
The parable concerns a nobleman who departs to receive a kingdom, servants entrusted with his business, and citizens who reject his rule. He departs, and then he returns as king. What happens until he returns, and what happens when he returns, is what I want us to consider today.
The Kingdom Delayed
Jesus begins, “A nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and then return” (19:12). Of course, the nobleman is Jesus himself, but he would receive the kingdom differently than they expected: his path to the throne would lead through the cross.Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem, not first to sit upon an earthly throne but to be rejected, crucified, buried, raised, and exalted. After his resurrection, he will ascend into heaven and sit at the right hand of the Father.
In a vision, the prophet Daniel foresaw this moment, saying, “Behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man,” and he came “to the Ancient of Days.” To this Son of Man was given “dominion and glory and a kingdom,” an everlasting dominion that will not pass away (Dan. 7:13-14). In Daniel’s vision, the Son of Man comes into the heavenly court to the Ancient of Days and receives the kingdom. So, Jesus is the nobleman in the parable who goes away to receive royal authority. On earth, he appears to have been rejected. In heaven, he is crowned. On earth, his enemies celebrate his death. In heaven, the Father gives him dominion over every tribe, tongue, and nation.
Jesus’ followers, including his apostles, did not yet understand what we now know: The kingdom is already present, but it is not yet fully revealed. Christ has already defeated sin, Satan, and death through his cross and resurrection. He already reigns at the Father’s right hand and is gathering his church from every nation. Yet every knee has not willingly bowed. Death still intrudes, the church still suffers, sin still clings, and the nations still rage. We still wait for faith to become sight.
The kingdom has been inaugurated in Christ’s first coming. It advances now through the gospel. And it will be consummated at his return. We live between the coronation and the consummation, between the nobleman’s departure and the King’s return.
Yet, few things test our faith like delay. We can endure difficulty for a time if we know when it will end. We can carry a burden if we can see the finish line. But when the waiting stretches on, when prayers appear unanswered, when evil seems unrestrained, when Christ’s kingdom seems hidden rather than triumphant, delay can feel like absence. And we are tempted to measure Christ’s reign by what we can presently see.
But the delay of the kingdom is not the absence of the King. Christ is not pacing the courts of heaven, wondering whether his plan will succeed. He is reigning. His enemies have been decisively defeated, and the day is coming when they will be placed beneath his feet visibly and finally. Do not mistake delay for denial or hiddenness for weakness. The King has received his kingdom, and the King will return.
The King Rejected
Returning to the parable, how do the nobleman’s citizens respond to his departure? Jesus says, “his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us’” (19:14). This is the essence of human rebellion: “We do not want this man to reign over us.” This is not ignorance; it’s hostility. The citizens do not question whether the nobleman has authority. They reject his authority over them.
As Jesus moves toward Jerusalem, this rejection is already gathering. The religious leaders have opposed him throughout his ministry. In the days ahead, they will challenge his authority, plot his death, hand him over to the Gentiles, and mock his kingship. The sign above his cross will identify him as the King, while the crown upon his head will be made of thorns. In their words and deeds, you can hear their thoughts: “We do not want this man to reign over us.”
This is the language of the fallen heart. We may express it more politely. We may want Jesus as a Savior from consequences but not a Savior from sin. We may want him to bless our plans but not govern our lives. But Christianity is not the addition of Jesus to a life that remains under our own authority. To be saved is to be brought under the gracious reign of the King.
In the parable, note also that the citizens’ rejection does not prevent the nobleman from receiving the kingdom. Their protest does not veto his coronation. He returns “having received the kingdom” (19:15). Christ’s kingship does not depend upon human approval. He reigns because the Father has given him the kingdom. Men may reject, mock, and rebel against him, but they cannot dethrone him.
The Servants Entrusted
Now, let us return to the parable to return to the moment before the nobleman’s departure, when he calls ten of his servants, gives each one a mina, and instructs them, “Engage in business until I come” (19:13). Don’t confuse these servants with the rebellious citizens. The servants receive what belongs to the nobleman and are commanded to put it to work for his interests while he is away. A mina was the equivalent of three to four months’ wages, a modest sum, but enough to put to work. The point is not primarily the value of the mina, but that the nobleman places something of his own into the hands of his servants and requires faithful, purposeful, obedient service. The point of the mina is stewardship.
And this is a simple yet profound depiction of the Christian life, isn’t it? That we are to faithfully steward what God has given. What does this look like for each of us? For ministers, it means preaching the Word when it is welcomed and when it is resisted. For elders and deacons, it means shepherding, serving, visiting, praying, and watching over souls. For parents, it means teaching covenant children the faith, praying with them, correcting them, and showing them the beauty of Christ. For every Christian, it means worshiping faithfully, working honestly, giving generously, practicing hospitality, bearing witness, loving neighbors, forgiving injuries, using gifts, and doing ordinary duties to the glory of God.
But let us not miss the concluding phrase of his instruction: “until I come.” These words call for urgency, patience, and, above all, faithfulness. Urgency, because our opportunity is limited. Patience, because the results belong to the King. We are not called to speculate endlessly about the date of his return, nor are we permitted to drift into spiritual sleep because he seems delayed. We are to be found faithful, using what he has given, doing what he has commanded, until he comes.
The Servants Examined
Now, note in Jesus’ parable, the nobleman does indeed return but now as the king, “having received the kingdom.”And upon his return he orders the servants to be called “that he might know what they had gained by doing business” (19:15).Scripture is quite clear: The return of Christ the King will be a day of reckoning. The apostle Paul writes, “We make it our aim to please him,” because “we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ,” so that each may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil (2 Cor. 5:9-10). For those who are in Christ, this reckoning is not condemnation: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1). Our justification rests entirely upon Christ’s righteousness, not our record. The King who examines us is the Savior who bore our judgment, whose blood covered our sin. Yet grace does not make faithfulness irrelevant. God is pleased to accept in Christ and reward what his own grace has produced in us.
In the parable the first servant says, “Lord, your mina has made ten minas more” (19:16). Notice his humility. He says, “Your mina has made ten.” The money, the opportunity, and the ability all belonged to the king; the servant is merely a steward. Even the increase is credited to what the king supplied.
The king replies, “Well done, good servant! Because you have been faithful in a very little, you shall have authority over ten cities” (19:17). Faithful with one mina, he is entrusted with ten cities, a small stewardship, a vast reward. This is not wages mechanically earned, but grace crowning grace. The King delights to reward the faithfulness he himself enables, and faithful stewardship is rewarded with greater stewardship.
Similarly, the second servant reports that the mina has made five more, and he likewise is rewarded. The outcome is different, but there is no word of censure. The king does not demand identical results. He demands faithfulness.
The example of the second servant should free us from sinful comparison. One minister preaches to hundreds; another preaches to dozens. One parent sees a child mature quickly; another prays through years of wandering. One Christian possesses visible gifts; another serves in ways almost no one notices. Christian, Christ does not ask you to be someone else. He asks you to be faithful with what he entrusted to you.
Then a third servant is examined. He confesses to the king, “Lord, here is your mina, which I kept laid away in a handkerchief” (v. 20). He did not steal the mina, spend it, or lose it. He simply did nothing with it. He explains, “I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man. You take what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow” (19:21). His words reveal his heart. He has no affection for the king, no confidence in his reign, and no concern for his interests. He portrays the king as harsh and uses this distorted view to justify his disobedience.
Even on the servant’s own terms, his conduct makes no sense. If he truly believed the king was so exacting, why did he not at least place the money in the bank? His inactivity reveals more than laziness; it reveals a false understanding. It is as if he really doesn’t know the king. In return, he hears the king respond, “I will condemn you with your own words, you wicked servant” (19:22).
And this is a warning to all who bear the name of servant but do not truly know the King. Outward association with the church is not the same as living faith. Baptism, a profession of faith, theological knowledge, and years of church attendance cannot substitute for living faith in Christ. True faith is never perfect, but it is living. And living faith bears fruit. Faithful service grows from knowing the true King: holy, sovereign, generous, patient, and gracious. The more clearly we see what Christ has done for us, the more freely we will spend and be spent for him.
The Kingdom Revealed
The parable ends with severe words: “But as for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slaughter them before me” (19:27). While Christ’s return will bring salvation in its fullness for his people, it will also bring judgment in its fullness for his enemies. The Savior who seeks the lost will not forever permit rebellion. Matthew Henry says, “Whoever will not be ruled by the grace of Christ will inevitably be ruined by the wrath of Christ.”[2]In Christ’s first coming, he came in humility to bear judgment.In his second coming, he will come in glory to execute judgment. In his first coming, he was rejected by his citizens. In his second coming, every knee will bow. In his first coming, his kingdom was veiled in weakness. In his second coming, his kingdom will be revealed in power.
But the King who will return as Judge first came as Savior. At the cross, he bore the judgment his people deserved, so that enemies might be reconciled, rebels might become servants, and servants might be adopted as sons. But before you can serve the King faithfully, you must be reconciled to the King freely. Do not say in your heart, “We do not want this man to reign over us.” Repent of your rebellion and confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Trust the crucified and risen King and receive the salvation he purchased.
Resting in this gospel truth, let us not lose heart. The King may seem long delayed, but he is not absent. Your faithfulness is not forgotten. Your labor in the Lord is not in vain.No prayer offered in faith, no gift used in love, no truth spoken in courage, no child instructed in hope, no suffering endured for Christ, and no quiet act of obedience will be overlooked.Until the King returns, do not mistake delay for defeat. Until the King returns, do not be shaken by the world’s rejection. Until the King returns, use what he has placed in your hand.Until the King returns, make it your aim to please him. And when the King returns, may he find us trusting his grace, doing his business, and waiting for his appearing.Until the King returns, let us be faithful. Amen.
[1] Unless referenced otherwise, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version
(Wheaton: Crossway Bibles, 2001).
[2] https://www.biblegateway.com/resources/matthew-henry/Luke.19.11-Luke.19.27
Planter, Pastor, Preacher 