Day #255: Luke 16:1-2

Luke 16:1-2 (NIV)
1 Jesus told his disciples: "There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions.
2 So he called him in and asked him, 'What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.'

This passage of Luke begins a section dealing with the wise use of one’s possessions. This parable is one of the most difficult to interpret, but it explains how Jesus’ followers ought to use worldly wealth. Jesus was pointing out that everyone, fully warned of the coming divine judgment, should follow this manager’s example.

All people are in a worse predicament than this manager because their eternal destinies hang in the balance. Instead of frantically holding on to possessions which soon will disappear, possessions should be given away, especially to those in need. Money will not last, but people, God’s word, and his Kingdom will. Will your investments reap eternal dividends?

This manager handled financial matters for the rich man. He had extensive authority over the rich man’s financial affairs, even the ability to make contracts in the master’s name. A person in such a position should have complete integrity. Unfortunately, this manager did not. He was thoroughly dishonest. Having been informed of the problems, the rich man called him in and demanded a financial report. As a consequence, the rich man would strip the manager of his authority, but first he required that the steward prepare the documents. This would take some time, and the manager used this time to his advantage.


SO WHAT? (what will I do with what I have read today?)

If your mailbox is similar to Sharon and mine, at least once or twice a week, we get an opportunity to invest in something. The truth is, there are more opportunities for investment than there is money to invest. This week I want us to look at what the Bible says about God's Investment Strategy.

A Reminder: "Stewardship is the responsibility of managing some assets or affairs or property of someone else's." What are you to manage? Everything that God has given you. What has God given you? Everything!

I have shared with you that Jesus spoke more about money than He did about heaven. Jesus spoke more about money than He did about hell. One of every six verses in the gospels deals with money. So, the natural question is WHY? I think it's because God knows the tremendous influence and power money has over our lives. We spend so much of our time earning it, making it, and spending it, that He needs to tell us how to use it wisely.

It is my belief that the way we spend the money and resources that God has blessed us with is the acid otest of our faith. Luke 16:11 says, "If you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?"

Why is this verse so key? Because in God’s economy, money and possessions are not what is most important – people are. People are the true riches that Jesus is talking about here. The truth is, if you don’t get anything else this morning, get this. God entrusts us with worldly wealth, so we can use it to impact people. You’ll hear me say this several times, but the greatest impact we can make on people, the greatest use of our money is to get people into heaven.

Now, the key to understanding this parable, a parable is a story which uses symbolism to underscore a eternal truth, is v. 18 where Jesus says, "The people of this world are more shrewd than the people of the Light." He's talking about believers.

What is Jesus saying? Jesus is not commending this man for being dishonest but He does say there are some things He did that we ought to learn from. v. 1-2 "Jesus told his disciples `There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. So he called him in and asked him, "What's this I hear about you? Give an account of your management because you cannot be a manager any longer." Notice the word manager.

Remember what we said a steward was? A manager of someone else’s possessions! The guy in this story is a steward. He is us! The Bible is saying that God is the owner of everything. You don't really own anything. You get to use it for 60, 70, 80, 90 years but then it will pass on to somebody else

The Bible says that this man had to give an account to his master! Folks, One day God will ask me to give an account of what I did with the money I had on earth. That's the final test, the big final. Romans 14:12 (NIV) confirms this - "So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God."

In this particular situation the man was a crook. The manager knew he'd lose his job because of his dishonesty, so he plans this clever scheme. Stay tuned - we'll see more tomorrow. I love you guys. Stay faithful.