The Unprofitable Servant — Luke 17:1-10
Preached August 16, 2026, at Middle Cross Baptist Church, Hixson, TN

It was a joy to be with my good friend Pastor Kevin Weaver and the folks at Middle Cross Baptist Church in Hixson, Tennessee, this past Lord’s Day. It was their Youth Sunday, and one of the things that blessed me before I ever stood to preach was seeing so many of their young people serving in different capacities throughout the service.

I have watched the Lord use Pastor Weaver at Middle Cross, and it has been a blessing to see the grace of God upon that church. I am grateful for his friendship, and I was genuinely honored to be invited to share the Word of God with them.

The message I preached was from Luke 17:1–10, entitled “The Unprofitable Servant.”

It was not specifically a message to young people, but while I was preaching it, I could not help thinking that this is a lesson I wish I had learned much earlier in my Christian life.

Years ago, when I first really considered this parable, I did not like it. I pictured that servant working all day in the field, coming home tired, and then being told to prepare his master’s meal before eating his own. After everything he had done, Jesus told him to say, “We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.”

Something in me wanted the servant commended.

As the years have passed, I have realized that the problem was never with the parable. The problem was with the servant reading it.

Without realizing it, we can begin keeping an account with God. We remember the years we have served, the sacrifices we have made, the prayers we have prayed, the things we gave up, and the times we remained faithful. Then when life becomes painful or God does not answer as we expected, there can arise somewhere deep inside us the thought, “Lord, after everything I have done for You…”

That is an invoice.

And one of the great lessons of this parable is that faithful service never places God in our debt.

Jesus is not saying that His servants are worthless or meaningless to Him. He is dealing with our claim upon the Master. After everything I have ever done for Christ, I can never stand before Him and say, “Now You owe me.”

The truth is exactly the opposite.

He found me.
He forgave me.
He purchased me with His blood.
He gave me life.
He supplied the strength.
He opened the doors.
He sustained me through the valleys.
And even the ability to serve Him has been grace.

The Christian life is not, “I have served, therefore I deserve.”

It is, “I have received, therefore I serve.”

There is tremendous freedom in tearing up the invoice and quitting the miserable business of keeping score with God. When I look again at Calvary and remember all that Jesus Christ has done for me, I cannot say, “Lord, You owe me.”

I can only say, “Lord, You owe me nothing. I owe You everything.”

I hope this message will particularly help someone who has served the Lord faithfully for years but has quietly become weary, disappointed, or even a little bitter because life has not turned out the way you thought faithfulness should make it turn out.

Look again at the goodness of your Master.

You may discover that there is an invoice in your hand that grace is asking you to tear in two.