Highest Compliment
As I was thinking about what makes people continue on a journey, I thought about compliments. Not sure about you, but I love a sincere compliment. I may have a hard time receiving it, but deep down I love hearing that I have done a great job or made someone’s day. I love how it makes me feel. As I was noting compliments I’ve heard before, I felt inclined to see what Google had to say, so I searched, “list of compliments.” Did you know that someone has actually written down 100 compliments. Here are just a few:
- You look great today.
- You’re a smart cookie.
- I bet you make babies smile.
- You have impeccable manners.
- I like your style.
- You have the best laugh.
- I appreciate you.
How do you feel when you receive a compliment? Like I said earlier it makes me feel good. Did you know there is a scientific reason for that?
Have you ever heard of dopamine and serotonin? Dopamine and serotonin are both neurotransmitters, chemical messengers in the brain, that communicate via neurons. Serotonin is associated with feelings of happiness, focus and calm, while dopamine is associated with feelings related to rewards, motivation, and being productive. It has been shown that receiving praise and compliments activates the brain to release the neurotransmitter dopamine which we just learned is associated with reward, motivation and being productive.
All this to say there is a reason we feel good about ourselves when we get complimented and praised. And in all seriousness who doesn’t like to be given praise for a job well done?
Actually the phrase, “well done, good and faithful servant,” are words that God keeps having me hear. If you are not familiar with them, they are from the parable found in the Gospel of Matthew chapter 25. Luke also wrote about it in chapter 19 of his Gospel.
Did you know that Jesus loved to use parables? He communicated clearly by using many stories, analogies, and metaphors. Parables have been used since ancient times to convey truth in a memorable way.
In Matthew 25 Jesus speaks of a man going on a journey (vs 14). He starts that segment with the word “again.” When “again” is used, much like the word “therefore,” we need to examine its purpose.
This parable starts with, Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them.
That first word tells me we need to see how Jesus ended the parable prior. “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.”
The prior story is telling us that we need to remain watchful for the bridegrooms’ (Jesus’) return. We need to be prepared. You can’t expect someone else to give you what you need. You must have everything ready to enter the wedding banquet. To those who weren’t prepared, they had to go get oil for their lamps and by the time they returned, the doors had been shut. When they knocked, Jesus’s response was that he didn’t know them.
Why did we need the summation of the prior parable? All because of the word “again.” This parable in Matthew 25 is called: The Parable of the Talents.
The story is about a man going on a journey. He calls his servants and entrusts his goods to them. To one he gives five, another two, and the last one talent, all according to their ability. In the Greek, talent means to bear a certain weight, hence a coin or sum of money.
When the man came back he wanted an accounting for what was done with the talents. The one who was given five, went to work and gained five more. The one who was given two also went to work and gained two more. After both of these accounts, the man said, “well done, good and faithful servant.”
To the servant who hid his talent, when the master found out what he had done, he didn’t give him praise. Matter of fact he called him words like wicked and slothful. He then gave his talent away to the one who had ten. The master then casts the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
This parable speaks to me because I am not sure how many talents I have been entrusted with but when the master returns I want to hear the compliment of, “well done, good and faithful servant.”
There is an old English expression that says “imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.” This means that when someone is trying to imitate what one does, owns, or thinks, it’s a compliment to that person.
I believe the first two servants in the parable did just that. They imitated what their master would have done, in order to have the return he would have expected.
Did you know that is much like the Christian life? The highest compliment we can give Jesus is to imitate His life. The Bible was written as a manual for us to follow. It shows us exactly how to live a life that imitates what Jesus did and would do.
In Hebrews, the writer says that we need to throw off everything that hinders and the sin that easily entangles us. We need to run with perseverance the race marked out for us. We need to fix our eyes on Jesus, who is the pioneer (to develop or be the first to use or apply) and perfecter of faith.
If we want to hear when our race is finished, “well done, good and faithful servant,” then the time has come to pay Jesus the highest compliment and start living a life that imitates His.
