Matthew 25:24-27
He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, "Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours." But his master answered him, "You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest."
Christians are called to put their talents to work and to invest what God has given them for the sake of turning of a profit to His glory and the good of their neighbor.
2 Corinthians 9:6-7
The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
Christians are called to cheerfully sow the seeds they've been given in order to see them yield a fruit of righteousness.
The Christian life then often comes down to knowing what to bury and what to carry, what to lay down and what to pick up, what to die to and what to live for. We are called in resurrection hope to sow seed so that it may become even more fruitful and we are called in sanctified grace to labor like those who know it's not in vain.
1 Corinthians 15:58
Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
This distinction is worth making. We are called to bury seeds and to swing hammers, but if we're not careful and not paying attention, we will end up burying our hammers and hoarding our seeds.
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