The Unprofitable Servant

Luke 17:5 "And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith...6. But which of you having a servant, plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat? 8. And will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird theyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink? 9. Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not. 10. So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants, we have done that which was our duty to do."

I love these verses. I have wondered if the parable that the Savior next shared, was meant for the apostles not then, but for years later, when they would be all alone. All the apostles met a martyrs fate. I can see a discouraged Peter or James or any of the other twelve sitting by a fire on a lonely Roman road. As the embers dimmed he would remember what must have seemed like long ago when he heard the Savior say these words,

"But which of you, having a servant, plowing or feeding cattle will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat?"

He would remember all that the Savior had done, "plowing and feeding cattle," planting gospel seeds, establishing the church and blessing peoples lives. He would remember the close of the Saviors ministry- did he rest? No, "make ready wherewith I may sup and gird thyself and serve me..." He would remember how the Master Servant knelt before him, washed his feet at the final supper and broke bread at the last supper. Tears would roll down the apostle's cheek as he remembered the night of suffering by the Servant of all mankind at Gethsemene and the cross on Golgotha, "which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain , and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit- and would that I might not drink the bitter cup, and shrink-

Again he would remember the words spoken long ago,"9. Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not. 10. So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do."

When men hire employees or "servants" it is to make a profit. No one wants to be an "unprofitable servant." But the Savior wanted the apostles and us to remember his atonement. When we make the atonement part of our life our faith will increase. There is no service that we can render, no work we can do, that will ever compensate for Christ's atonement on our behalf individually and collectively. Thus we are all "unprofitable servants" in a positive way.

King Bengamin said, " I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitables servants. And behold, all that he requres of you is to keep his commandments...therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he doth bless you and prosper you."

Have a great week! Don't trip on a conker Eric