SCRIPTURE Matthew 24:45–51 “Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, that he shall make him ruler over all his goods. But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, my lord delayeth his coming; And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, and shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
COMMENTARY This parable is one of several Jesus told His disciples to explain how He was going to judge all mortals on the earth at His return (what we call “the second coming”) to determine who would be left alive to enter the millennial kingdom (see John 3:3) and who would be killed and sent to hell (Matthew 24:36–25:46). The issue is clearly a matter of spiritual life or spiritual death. In this passage, notice the change of heart of the acknowledged faithful (believer) servant who, upon thinking that His master’s (Jesus’) coming was delayed, began acting as an unbeliever.
This is one of a number of transition passages. This parable makes it very clear it is the same servant as it describes the change in his behavior of “that evil servant.” What was the destiny of that servant? He was assigned a place with the hypocrites – those who say they believe, but by their actions deny Him (Titus 1:16), where “there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth,” clearly hell (see, e.g., Matthew 25:30). The servant was described as a faithful, trusted believer at the start of the parable, yet because of his subsequent unfaithful actions, he ended up doomed (lost) for all eternity. This is Jesus Himself telling we are to remain faithful or risk losing our salvation. Yet much of the modern church persists in teaching the opposite.