We are mere servants; we have done no more than our duty
There is a common tendency of regarding service to God as a form of commercial transaction: that God is obliged to reward our good deeds, and to be quick with the reward. When he is not, or when he does not seem to respond quick enough, then we grow impatient, we question his goodness, his power and even his existence. Then we are ready to look for other solutions to our needs or demands.
In the gospel reading Jesus tells us that we should serve God like faithful servants who do not demand gratitude for carrying out their tasks. We know that by this he does not mean that God is like a slave master who demands nothing from us but faithful service. On the contrary, ours is a Father who will say to the faithful servant: welcome my good and faithful servant, come and share the joy of your Lord (Matthew 25:21). God "...is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us..." (Ephesians 3:20). We have the assurance of Jesus about the servant who is found busy at his duty: "Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them" (Luke 12;37).
The invitation of today's gospel is to trust in God and go on faithfully carrying out our tasks with the confidence that even when the reward does not seem to be forthcoming, we know that every bit of effort will be rewarded in his own good time. It is an invitation to have confidence in God no matter how bleak the situation may appear. The Responsorial Psalm summarizes well the proper attitude we should have: “Trust in the Lord and do good, that you may dwell in the land and be fed in security. Take delight in the Lord, and he will grant you your heart’s requests.”
