Doing Business Till Jesus Comes: The Call to Profitable Servanthood

The words of Jesus often challenge our preconceived notions, and His parables are particularly potent in this regard. In Luke 19:11-15, Jesus tells the parable of the minas, a story that serves as a powerful reminder of what it truly means to be a follower of Christ. The core message is clear: if you have received the gift of salvation, you have been called to active and fruitful service. The ultimate goal for every Christian, and all that God will require of us, is to be a good and faithful servant.

The parable begins with a nobleman who goes away to a distant country to receive a kingdom, entrusting ten of his slaves with one mina each and the command to “Do business with this money until I come back” (Luke 19:13). This nobleman is Jesus Christ, and His departure and promised return speak to His ascension and second coming. The mina represents the gift of salvation, a foundational and equal gift given to every believer. The parable’s central tension lies in the contrast between the slaves, who are part of the nobleman’s household, and the citizens, who hate him and reject his reign. This distinction highlights a crucial truth: every person is accountable to God.

The phrase “Do business with this money until I come back” is a direct and compelling command. What did Jesus mean by these words?

1. Salvation and Service are Inseparable

First, if you have received salvation, you have become a servant of God. The mina, signifying our salvation, is not a static gift to be hoarded. Instead, it is a capital investment from God. The very purpose of our redemption is service. The nation of Israel was redeemed to serve God, and Jesus calls men and women to be His disciples—followers and servants of the Master. The Great Commission is not to make “our” disciples but “disciples of Christ.”

The Church is composed of redeemed believers who have been “bought for a price” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). We are no longer our own. We have been freed not to indulge in evil, but to act as “bond-servants of God” (1 Peter 2:16). This makes it impossible to separate salvation from service. Jesus is both the Savior and the Lord of every believer. You cannot have one without the other. The argument between “Lordship Salvation” and “Free Grace” ultimately misses this point. While salvation is a free gift of God’s grace, it is also a call to recognize Christ’s lordship and participate in the economy of God’s kingdom. Christian service is not a payment for salvation; it is the natural and necessary response to it.

2. Your Salvation must turn a Profit for God

The nobleman’s command to “do business” means to trade and to make a profit. Your salvation is a capital you have received, and you are called to make it profitable for God’s glory. When the nobleman returns, he summons his slaves to “learn how much they had made by the business they had done” (Luke 19:15). This is a powerful metaphor for the day of judgment, where we will give an account for how we stewarded the gift of salvation.

3. We are to Do Business until he Returns

Christian service is not a temporary commitment. There is no retirement from the mission of God. We are to be fruitful, as Jesus teaches in the parable of the vine and the branches (John 15:1-11). We were chosen and appointed “that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain” (John 15:16). This mandate for fruitfulness continues until Christ’s return.

What makes a True Servant?

The parable reveals the characteristics of a good servant through the examples of the first two slaves.

First, a true servant is a profitable servant

A Christian is a good servant when their salvation has profited or reproduced. This means that their saved life has resulted in the salvation of other souls, and in actions that glorify God. It means becoming a good parent, a faithful minister, or simply a person whose life becomes a means for others to hear the Word of God. Unfortunately, much of modern Christianity has devolved into a self-benefiting religion, offering a gospel that focuses on personal gain rather than God’s kingdom. The true measure of a good servant is the profit they bring to their Master.

Second, a good servant is a faithful servant

The faithful servants were those whose mina gained interest—one gained ten, another gained five. Their faithfulness was demonstrated by their diligent use of what they were given. Faithful servants are not those who simply show up but fail to produce. God desires interest on His investment. This faithfulness is tested in “a very little thing” (Luke 16:10), whether it’s our stewardship of worldly possessions or our commitment to the tasks God has entrusted to us (Luke 12:42-44). Faithfulness is tested in wise stewardship, whether you are a parent, a church leader, or a member of the community.

A warning: the worthless servant

The parable also includes a sobering warning about the unprofitable servant. The third slave, who hid his mina in a handkerchief, represents a form of spiritual paralysis rooted in a distorted view of God. He saw his master as a “demanding man” (Luke 19:21) and was motivated by fear rather than love and devotion. Our service is a direct reflection of our perception of the Lord Jesus Christ. While Jesus does have high standards, His demands are not burdensome but are for our ultimate good.

The worthless slave’s salvation did not profit God, and he received no reward. While the parable doesn’t explicitly state that he wasn’t saved, it raises a profound question: can one truly be saved if their life produces no fruit and no service for Christ?

Conclusion

Jesus’ command, “Do business until I come back,” is a call to action for every believer. It challenges us to examine our lives. Is your Christian life a profitable one? Has your salvation produced fruit for God’s glory?

If not, it may be time to examine your relationship with Christ. Is He truly the Lord of your life? Are you truly saved?

If your answer is yes, then the call is simple: continue doing business for God until Jesus comes. Start looking for opportunities to make your salvation profitable. Like the early disciples, begin in your “Jerusalem,” your local community, and then expand your reach to Judea, Samaria, and the “ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). The reward for a good and faithful servant is a promise of authority and joy in the eternal kingdom. Let us strive to be those who hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”