ARTICLES

Parable of the Talents
A commentary on the parable of Mt 25:14-30

This parable is part of the last Scriptures of the Gospel of Matthew, and it is in the portion of the Gospel that touches the following issues:

It is a parable for our times, the final times before the second coming of Jesus Christ.

It is in this part where the Bible explains that a dispensation has ended and that a new and different one is beginning. Jesus was indicating that a time had finished.

The words of the Lord during His final days on this earth were signaling the end of the working of the Holy Spirit from "outside" of men, which certainly was spectacular, but ineffective in obtaining men to be transformed.

As an example, let us remember:

The walls of Jericho fall by the power of God, nevertheless God, who wants to be in the midst of His people, must dwell in a tent separated from them. Saul is suddenly counted among the prophets, but his inner person does not change and he is at the end rejected. Samson receives strength from God, but lives life in his own ways.

The time began in which the Holy Spirit would dwell IN men.

The power of God would start to manifest from the inside of man. He would first transform man, to after that, through the changed person, exteriorize the fruit of the Holy Spirit that would dwell in them.

The transformation was to be continue until His Son would be formed in men. Christ in us.

These are the words of the parable:

Mat 25:14-30
For it is as if a man going abroad called his own servants and gave them his goods.
And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to each according to his ability. And he went abroad at once.
And going he who had received the five talents traded with them, and made another five talents. And likewise he who had received two, he also gained another two.
But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the earth and hid his lord's silver.
After a long time the lord of those servants came and took account with them.
And so he who had received five talents came and brought another five talents, saying, Lord, you delivered five talents to me. Behold, I have gained five talents above them.
His lord said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful over a few things; I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.
He also who had received two talents came and said, Lord, you delivered two talents to me. Behold, I have gained two other talents above them.
His lord said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.
And he who had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew that you were a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter.
And I was afraid and went and hid your talent in the earth. Lo, you have yours.
His lord answered and said to him, Evil and slothful servant! You knew that I reaped where I did not sow, and gathered where I did not scatter, then you should have put my money to the exchangers, and coming I would have received my own with interest.
Therefore take the talent from him and give it to him who has ten talents.
For to everyone who has, more shall be given, and he will abound. But from him who has not, even that which he has shall be taken away from him.
And throw the unprofitable servant into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

What are the parables?

It will be useful to be reminded of what they are, because if this story has to do with us, and it seems clear that the "man going abroad" is representing Jesus,the servants and the talents must also have some meaning that will be convenient for us to understand.

In the Gospel of Matthew, after Jesus finished mentioning the parable of the Sower, he adds a phrase: "He who has ears to hear, let him hear."

This phrase overflowed the rim of the disciples' curiosity, so they -intrigued by things they didn't quite understand- ask Him why He spoke like that, in mysteries.

The Lord answered the following:

Mat 13:10-16
And the disciples said to Him, Why do You speak to them in parables?
He answered and said to them, Because it is given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of Heaven, but it is not given to them.
For whoever has, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance. But whoever does not have, from him shall be taken away even that which he has.
Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they see not, and hearing they hear not; nor do they understand.
And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah which said,
"By hearing you shall hear and shall not understand; and seeing you shall see and shall not perceive; for this people's heart has become gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and they have closed their eyes, lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them."
But blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears, for they hear.

What are the parables? They are revelations of the mysteries of the Kingdom of God, which have the power to CONVERT and HEAL the heart that embraces them, but expressed in a language that only hearts sensitive to God can understand.

May God concede us ears TODAY to hear what the Spirit is speaking to the Church.

Let me share what I have observed in this parable:

I find that this parable can be divided in seven sections, each part offering essential information for the christian.

  1. Mat 25: 14-15
  2. Mat 25: 16-18
  3. Mat 25: 19-21
  4. Mat 25: 22-23
  5. Mat 25: 24-27
  6. Mat 25: 28-29
  7. Mat 25: 30


Section 1 - JESUS IS THAT MAN WHO, GOING ABROAD, GAVE HIS GOODS TO HIS SERVANTS

Mat 25:14-15
For it is as if a man going abroad called his own servants and gave them his goods.
And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to each according to his ability. And he went abroad at once.

Since it is possible for us to look back on 2007 (NOTE: Date this message was preached) (+3/5 = 2010/12) years since the first coming of Jesus Christ and we know the history from those days till today, from these two verses we can understand that Jesus was explaining what was to happen in the years and centuries to follow.

Other Scriptures widen the explanation, presenting the same concept. (I have extracted these Scriptures to identify where the paralellism with the words of the parable is, but, despite the absence of the contexts, the essence of what has been brought together continues in line with the Scriptures).

Let us read:

Joh 13:33
Little children, I am with you yet a little while. You shall seek Me; and as I said to the Jews, Where I go, you cannot come, so I now say to you.
Joh 13:36
Simon Peter said to Him, Lord, where do You go? Jesus answered him, Where I go you cannot now follow Me, but you shall follow Me afterward.
Luk 24:49-52
And behold, I send the promise of My father on you. But you sit in the city of Jerusalem until you are clothed with power from on high.
And He led them out as far as Bethany. And lifting up His hands, He blessed them.
And it happened as He blessed them, He withdrew from them and was carried up into Heaven.
And worshiping Him, they returned to Jerusalem with great joy.
Joh 20:22
And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit.
Acts 2:1-4
And in the fulfilling of the day of Pentecost, they were all with one accord in one place.
And suddenly a sound came out of the heaven as borne along by the rushing of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And tongues as of fire appeared to them, being distributed; and it sat upon each of them.
And they were all filled of the Holy Spirit, and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Acts 2:16-21
But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel:
"And it shall be in the last days, says God, I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh. And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.
And in those days I will pour out My Spirit upon My slaves and My slave women, and they shall prophesy.
And I will give wonders in the heaven above, and miracles on the earth below, blood and fire and vapor of smoke.
The sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood, before that great and glorious Day of the Lord.
And it shall be that everyone who shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

The parallelism with the beginning of the parable indicates:

  • That if the first words speak in images about events that later occurred, then...

  • The words that follow also have happened or will happen.
  • This is a prophetic parable.

Yet, before going deeper, we need to define two expressions of the beginning, the "talents" and the "servants", to understand what the parable is talking about. And we need to know if this is for others or for us.

We have it clear that in the natural world the talents are several kilograms of silver and that servants are those who work for a lord. Let us now try to understand it from the divine -or spiritual- perspective, obtaining our facts from the information within this story.

Talents
From the verses read above that show the Lord Jesus being that man that went abroad, it also seems clear that the talents given to the servants are represent the Holy Spirit the Lord breathed on His disciples.

Peter, speaking to the multitude in Pentecost, repeats the words of Joel that say: "I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh". This text could confirm that we are not mistaken in considering that the talents represent the Holy Spirit, because that is what He gave to His servants.

In Ephesians 4:8 reference is made to Psalm 68:18, where it is mentioned that He, after captivating the captivity "gave gifts to men". We could be tempted to think that Jesus also gave other things apart from the Holy Spirit; yet, on one side, the gifts are "of the Holy Spirit", which means they are no loose elements and on the other side, in these words scholars recognize that it is the Holy Spirit himself what is meant, together with what He brings with Him.

Servants
And we know that the Spirit fell on the disciples that were waiting in the upper room.

Should we consider "servants" of Jesus Christ only the 12 apostles, because the Scriptures constantly mention them as being "His disciples"?

(John -chapter 15- mentions that Jesus considers His disciples to be all those that take care of His words and obey them, as all good servants do. There is a great relationship between "disciple" and "servant". Jesus even goes beyond that, stating a few paragraphs ahead: "I won't consider you servants anymore, but friends,...").

I believe that they are not the only servants he is talking about. Certainly they were the twelve chosen ones for the specific task of the apostleship of those early days, but the Scriptures call "disciples" those who followed (and follow) Him.

In the upper room of Pentecost, according to Acts 1:15 there were 120 people. And on all of them came the Holy Spirit .

And when Peter finishes his speech before the multitude, this happens:

Acts 2:36-41
Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God made this same Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.
And hearing this, they were stabbed in the heart, and said to Peter and to the other apostles, Men, brothers, what shall we do?
Then Peter said to them, Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ to remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all those afar off, as many as the Lord our God shall call.
And with many other words he earnestly testified and exhorted, saying, Be saved from this perverse generation.
Then those who gladly received his word were baptized. And the same day there were added about three thousand souls.

Three thousand people were added. Maybe not all of them received the Holy Spirit, but these verses teach us that if the Holy Spirit fell on many of them, then certainly "servants" are not only those who are occupied with the ecclesial affairs, like pastors, evangelists, teachers, prophets or apostles, but that the term embraces the whole body of believers.

Let us see more Scriptures:

Joh 15:1-8
I am the True Vine, and My Father is the Vinedresser.
Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away. And every one that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bring forth more fruit.
Now you are clean through the Word which I have spoken to you.
Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it remains in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.
I am the Vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered. And they gather and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
If you abide in Me, and My Words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done to you.
In this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit, so you shall be My disciples.
Rev 20:11-15
And I saw a great white throne, and Him sitting on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And a place was not found for them.
And I saw the dead, the small and the great, stand before God. And books were opened, and another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
And the sea gave up the dead in it. And death and hell delivered up the dead in them. And each one of them was judged according to their works.
And death and hell were cast into the Lake of Fire. This is the second death.
And if anyone was not found having been written in the Book of Life, he was cast into the Lake of Fire.
Rev 21:10-27
And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain and showed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of Heaven from God,
having the glory of God. And its light was like a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal.
And it had a great and high wall, with twelve gates. And on the gates were twelve angels, and having names inscribed, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel:
From the east three gates, from the north three gates, from the south three gates, and from the west three gates.
And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
And he who talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city and its gates and its wall.
And the city lies four-square, and the length is as large as the breadth. And he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand stadia. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.
And he measured its wall, a hundred and forty-four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.
And the foundation of its wall was jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass.
And the foundations of the wall of the city had been adorned with every precious stone. The first foundation, jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald;
the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprasus; the eleventh, hyacinth; the twelfth, amethyst.
And the twelve gates were twelve pearls. Respectively, each one of the gates was one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, as transparent glass.
And I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty is its temple, even the Lamb.
And the city had no need of the sun, nor of the moon, that they might shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it, and its lamp is the Lamb.
And the nations of those who are saved will walk in the light of it; and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it.
And its gates may not be shut at all by day, for there shall be no night there.
And they shall bring the glory and honor of the nations into it.
And there shall in no way enter into it anything that defiles, or any making an abomination or a lie; but only those who are written in the Lamb's Book of Life.

We conclude herewith, that the expression "servants" used in the New Testament corresponds to all who, having believed the work of the Lord Jesus on the cross and having received Salvation, continue onwards in obedience to Him to give fruit and glory to the Father.

All the people redeemed by the Lamb of God are "servants", and it matters not if we have or not any responsibilities within the Church. The fact of being believers makes us "servants".

What do the silver talents of the parable represent? - The Holy Spirit.
Who do the servants of the parable represent? - Us.



Section 2 - FOR ALL AND WITH A PURPOSE

Mat 25:16-18
And going he who had received the five talents traded with them, and made another five talents.
And likewise he who had received two, he also gained another two.
But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the earth and hid his lord's silver.

All

Observe that the three servants received. None remained not receiving. The parable does not say how many servants this man going abroad had. It just says that he "called his servants..." We can imagine that he only had these three servants, or that these were his foremen and that there were more people. We don't know, but it does explain that each one got "according to his ability".

That means that those who receive HAVE ABILITY (much or little, it doesn't matter) to do something with it.

After Pentecost, Acts tells us of several more situations where the Holy Spirit was given: At Paul's conversion, Acts 9:17, with Peter at Cornelius' house, Acts 10:44-45, with Paul in Ephesus, Acts 19:1-7. Obviously the Holy Spirit did not fall on all. It seems then that one could excuse oneself saying: Well, it's not for me... I did not receive anything... This parable does not touch me...

But one of the Scriptures we read before shows Peter being very clear: ALL are (we are!) enabled to receive Him:

Acts 2:38-39
Then Peter said to them, Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ to remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all those afar off, as many as the Lord our God shall call.

Could it then be that the Holy Spirit is something God expects us to receive? And that He is calling us to receive it? If it is so (and I believe it is so), then what this parable says is -for all of us! Having been redeemed by Jesus the Christ we are also enabled to receive talents!

They knew they had to do something with it

"And going he (...) traded with them." (with the talents). He didn't wait. He had it clear that what had been received was to fulfil a purpose.

He understood that the value of what had been given to him was for obtaining more of the same.

The parable does not mention if their lord told them that they had to increase it; we deduce he did, because at his return he wanted to know what gain they had obtained with it.

There was a purpose: To increase it. For it to grow. For it to produce more. For it to produce new benefits, benefits that were not there before, and that only come if what one has is applied.

What they had received was not theirs

The third servant, although he did different, leaves with us another detail in his verses. He says: "I (...) hid your talent".

He didn't do what was proper, but he knew well that -although it had been given to him, although it was in his hands- that talent was not his. He could not use it at his own will. He had it, but that talent still belonged to his lord.



Section 3 - THE REWARD TO THE DEDICATION

Mat 25:19-21
After a long time the lord of those servants came and took account with them.
And so he who had received five talents came and brought another five talents, saying, Lord, you delivered five talents to me. Behold, I have gained five talents above them.
His lord said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful over a few things; I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.

The owner of the talents returns

The three servants knew he would return. They knew it was inevitable. They had no idea how long they had to wait, but they knew he was coming back.

They knew thay had to give account for what they had received

They were aware that there was a day when they would have to confront the owner of the talents to show if they had acted responsibly. They had to give account of what had been done with what they had received. At that moment, the only valid thing would be to show results.

They knew that the received talents were to make them work

The disposition with which they came before their lord at his return and their own words demonstrate that they understood the purpose: they were to gain more of the same by using them. Plus the attitude of the third servant indicates that there was also risk of losing them.

They had to return everything to the owner, the capital they had received and the surplus

Nothing was for them; they had to return everything! And during the absence of their lord, they didn't even think they would be rewarded for doing what was expected for them to do. They were servants. They didn't do the job for a future reward, they simply did it because they had to .

To the servants that produced - Enter into the joy of your lord

It was onla after delivering at his feet what they had received and waht they had gained that the lord gave them rewards.

Their responsible work with the lord's goods gave them the grace of being invited to participate of the intimacy of their lord, to participate in what was his. They wouldn't have received this if they would have not appreciated the value they had.

And yet, the greatest surprise was at the end!

After having emptied their bags, putting the received and the gained at the feet of their lord in that great serious moment as they gave account, suddenly the lord puts everything back in their hands!

To whom had 10 talents it was given the talent withdrawn from the fearful servant, and we learn that this time it was given to him as his property. The talents switched owners. They were his now. The lord made the servant the owner of what to that moment he only administered. After the man's return from abroad, the reward the faithful servants receive is the ownership of every gram of silver they had in their hands.

The process of working with the received goods had been a test to reveal if they would fulfill the will of their lord. Their faithfulness was rewarded converting them in owners of what they had obtained for their lord.



Section 4 - QUANTITY COULD NOT BE THAT IMPORTANT

Mat 25:22-23
He also who had received two talents came and said, Lord, you delivered two talents to me. Behold, I have gained two other talents above them.
His lord said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.

There is no explanation to this, nor anything that I could deduced; the only thing that may be observed is that in God's thoughts quantity does not weigh that much. The lord had given to each servant according to his ability. And he wouldn't request more than what the ability of that servant could accomplish.



Section 5 - THE SERVANT THAT DID NOT PRODUCE

Mat 25:24-27
And he who had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew that you were a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter.
And I was afraid and went and hid your talent in the earth. Lo, you have yours.
His lord answered and said to him, Evil and slothful servant! You knew that I reaped where I did not sow, and gathered where I did not scatter,
then you should have put my money to the exchangers, and coming I would have received my own with interest.

Excuses

He presented explanations of why he didn't do what he had to (invest), and why he did what he shouldn't have done (hide it).

To be honest, he almost convinces us... Could it be because we are also prone to give excuses?

But works weighed more than words. He did not do as his lord expected. He didn't move according to the will of his lord, but according to his own criteria. He made different. He followed his own reasonings (with other people's property), he acted in his own will, in the way he considered the surest for himself, instead of doing what the lord wanted. And then he thought he would be able to explain it convincingly. Well,... he couldn't.

It is not sufficient to return what was received

The lord did not agree that his money had been protected. He did not agree with its hiding. He did not agree that it had not been introduced to the productive circuit. As commendable as it seemed from the servant's point of view, apparently careful (of the money or of himself?) the disobedience weighed more. The owner doesn't like it when his servants do what they want with his goods. He expects that with what is his things will be done as he says.

Not to increase it is wrong

Not to use it is wrong. At least a little, because there are no fixed minimums to gain; but what has been received must in some way be invested for it to produce. Even if others work with it; even if indirectly, but it must grow. The talents have the capacity in themselves to produce more.

"In the earth"

That Jesus, when telling this parable, doesn't only say "he hid the talent", but that he adds the detail that he hid it "in the earth" (to a certain extent unusual) indicates a possible symbolism in this.

In the Scriptures, "earth" is a figure of "humanity", of the natural man, of the frialty of man.

If we attend to this symbolism, this servant hid the talent "in his earth" (and not in the ground of action), maybe to enjoy it alone, maybe to stand out above others saying "I also got a talent" as who has received the Holy Spirit and presumes saying "I am also one of those that received it!", or maybe because he ignored how to invest it.

The attitude of this servant PLACED him IN the category of EVIL and SLOTHFUL

Not to occupy in developing the capacities of the talents, not to allow the value of that talent to expand through its use, is considered evil and sloth.

"Evil" in this case means: "of a false heart".
"Slothful" is not to oppose the will of the lord, but not to do according to it.

If we read again the beginning of the story we observe that the lord, after calling his servants, "gave" them his goods, and to each one according to his ability. From this we understand that the servant had possibilities of doing something, because if not he wouldn't have received the talent. But he did nothing for that talent to grow, and instead he tried to preserve his own skin, when confronted with an eventual loss.

But it is not only that he didn't go into trading, to increase the richess of his lord.

The lord "gave" his goods to his servantswhich also implied that they had "to take care of them". And "to take care of" is an action! The dictionary explains it with these words: To put attention and diligence in the execution of something. In the execution of something!

Someone could want to help saying: To hide it is a way of taking care for it not to be lost!

But here we are talking of a talent, an element that has the capacity for growth. We should then compare it with other growing things to see if the attitude of the servant is excusable or not.

Let us compare the situation in this way: As if the lord, instead of giving them kilograms of silver would have given them his cattle, his vegetables and his fruit trees, and this servant buried it all to return them as he had received them.
The example is brute, but -doesn't it explain?

To conceal in order to protect or to hide in order to preserve what in itself has the capacity for developing, is not proper with God's issues.



Section 6 - THE FIRST LOSS

Mat 25:28-29
Therefore take the talent from him and give it to him who has ten talents.
For to everyone who has, more shall be given, and he will abound. But from him who has not, even that which he has shall be taken away from him.

Take it away from him

By hiding it under the ground he obviously did not use it. He himself said that he didn't want to risk losing what had been entrusted to him, as a way to ensure that he would be able to return it all back safely. But the owner didn't consider the situation in the same way he did. To those that had increased what they had received, he rewarded them giving them the talents that had been entrusted to them, together with the gain.

From the one that didn't use it, he took it away.



Section 7 - THE SECOND LOSS

Mat 25:30
And throw the unprofitable servant into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Unprofitable servant

Not having used what was received from the lord put him in the category of "unprofitable" ("useless" in other Bible translations), because he really didn't serve the lord. Yes, he was a servant and had abilities, but he was unprofitable because he did not use them. And a useless servant, is no servant despite him bearing that title, so he lost all the rights he had been granted.

Throw him out!

Because of not using his lord's talent, he not only lost the near 22 Kgs of silver (plus some aditional gain the lord would have also given him), but he was also expelled from the place he lived in that was within the property of his lord; therefore also the daily blessings he enjoyed to that moment were lost. The lord didn't want him anymore around his people..

But,...where does an expelled one go?

The terms used by this Scripture: "the outer darkness" are words usually found in verses that express the miseries of those condemned to hell.

If this implies that one can be expelled from the Kingdom of God, I am in no condition to ensure.

Nevertheless, if after having received the Holy Spirit we don't give Him permission to extend Himself through our lives TO PRODUCE GAIN for the Lord, I think He will not be pleased.



WHAT LESSON DO WE LEARN FROM THIS PARABLE?

That we believers in Jesus Christ are his servants.

Our Lord promised that after returning to heaven He would send us His Holy Spirit. According to that promise, He poured it on many of us.

The servants that have received the Holy Spirit must act so that the fruits of the Spirit can be expressed; there ought to be such a union between the believer and the Holy Spirit that the benefits will appear. To be servants implies "serving" and if upon that we receive the Holy Spirit, there is the GREAT RESPONSIBILITY of GIVING FORTH FRUIT.

It doesn't say what quantity we are to gain, but the talent must not be "hidden". In the parable of the Sower the ground gave fruit to 30, 60 and 100 to one; here too, it is according to each one's ability. If one walks with the Holy Spirit, something will be added to the Kingdom of God. How much? God will decide that as we walk.

If no fruit is brought forth despite having received the seed, that land will be rejected (even if for some time it held a talent in its bossom). If we have received His Holy Spirit, but He cannot develop, expand, grow, if He is not seen, we will suffer great loss.

The owner of the talents, (the Owner of that Holy Spirit) knows that with those silver talents (with the Holy Spirit) gain can be obtained (benefits that add to the Kindgom of God). If the servant that has received it/them does not occupy himself in trading with it/them, he will be considered useless, and he will lose all his rights as servant.

And he will be thrown into the outer darkness (although there was a day when he had the Holy Spirit in his heart).

Can there be a possibility of being rejected despite having received the Holy Spirit ?

The last two sentences seem to oppose the apostle's words when he declared that the Holy Spirit is the "earnest" of our inheritance, indicating (or at least it is how we tend to interpret this) that if we have received Him, then our inheritance and our salvation -are guaranteed!

The issue leaves me thinking... Can it really be that the narrow way is in fact narrow?

I believe with all my soul that the Holy Spirit of God within our hearts is the guarantee of our salvation, but analizing the parable of the talents as I have shared it with you, I believe that this will be fulfilled -only if we let HIM grow in our lives!

If the Holy Spirit cannot produce HIS fruit through us, if we don't carry fruit, if the Father cannot be glorified with them, and -in the words of this study- if the Holy Spirit cannot produce through us for the Kingdom, then it could happen as the following two instances mention:

Luk 13:7
And he said to the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig-tree, and find none. Cut it down, why does it encumber the ground?
Mar 11:13-14 and 11:19-21
And seeing a fig-tree with leaves afar off, He went to it, if perhaps He might find anything on it. And when He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season of figs.
And Jesus answered and said to it, No one shall eat fruit of you forever. And His disciples heard.
(...)
And when evening came, He went out of the city.
And passing on early, they saw the fig-tree dried up from the roots.
And Peter, remembering, said to Him, Rabbi, behold, the fig tree which You cursed has withered away.

Again these paragraphs seem to oppose the apostle's words about the guarantee of our salvation, and yet, -have we interpreted his words correctly?

Or have we interpreted them according to our wish?