Luke 16:1 "And he said also unto his disciples,
There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was
accused unto him that he had wasted his goods."
LUKE 16:1-18 NIV
The Parable of the Shrewd Manager
4 I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’
5 “So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’
6 “‘Nine hundred gallons of olive oil,’ he replied.
“The manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred and fifty.’
7 “Then he asked the second, ‘And how much do you owe?’
“‘A thousand bushels of wheat,’ he replied.
“He told him, ‘Take your bill and make it eight hundred.’
8 “The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light.
9 I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.
11 So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?
12 And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?
13 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and the wealth of money.”
14 The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus.
15 He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts. What people value highly is detestable in God’s sight.
17 It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Law.
The Parable of the Shrewd Manager
16:1 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.’
3 “The
manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do now? My master is taking away
my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg— 4 I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’
5 “So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’
6 “‘Nine hundred gallons of olive oil,’ he replied.
“The manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred and fifty.’
7 “Then he asked the second, ‘And how much do you owe?’
“‘A thousand bushels of wheat,’ he replied.
“He told him, ‘Take your bill and make it eight hundred.’
8 “The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light.
9 I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.
11 So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?
12 And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?
13 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and the wealth of money.”
14 The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus.
15 He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts. What people value highly is detestable in God’s sight.
Additional Teachings
16 “The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the Gospel news of the Kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is seeking it.17 It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Law.
The unjust steward was covetous. He had not
been faithful to his master or to his master's debtors. He had wasted
his master's goods on himself. When found out, his self-serving nature
considered the options, and decided there had to be a change. He decided
to use his lord's money to make friends so that when he was fired he
would have someone to help him.
His master was apparently wealthy enough that he didn't take offense at the steward's discounting of the debts owed to him, but rather he commended the steward. He didn't commend his dishonest ways, but he was commending the fact that he had finally used his lord's money to plan for the future instead of wasting it on himself. Although the steward was motivated by what he would ultimately gain, there was prudence in his actions. This was lacking before.
In this sense, the children of this world (lost people) are wiser than the children of light (born again persons) because they plan for the temporal future.
Jesus is telling us to use money (the unrighteous mammon) to make to ourselves friends that would receive us into "everlasting" habitations. The use of the word "everlasting" denotes that Jesus is now talking about our eternal future. The people who have been saved and blessed by our investments in the Kingdom of God will literally receive us into our everlasting home when we pass on to be with the Lord.
Our material possessions have been given to us by God so that we are actually stewards of His resources. The Lord gave us this wealth to establish His covenant on this earth - not so that we could consume it upon our own lusts in selfishness.
You have been blessed to be a blessing!
His master was apparently wealthy enough that he didn't take offense at the steward's discounting of the debts owed to him, but rather he commended the steward. He didn't commend his dishonest ways, but he was commending the fact that he had finally used his lord's money to plan for the future instead of wasting it on himself. Although the steward was motivated by what he would ultimately gain, there was prudence in his actions. This was lacking before.
In this sense, the children of this world (lost people) are wiser than the children of light (born again persons) because they plan for the temporal future.
Jesus is telling us to use money (the unrighteous mammon) to make to ourselves friends that would receive us into "everlasting" habitations. The use of the word "everlasting" denotes that Jesus is now talking about our eternal future. The people who have been saved and blessed by our investments in the Kingdom of God will literally receive us into our everlasting home when we pass on to be with the Lord.
Our material possessions have been given to us by God so that we are actually stewards of His resources. The Lord gave us this wealth to establish His covenant on this earth - not so that we could consume it upon our own lusts in selfishness.
You have been blessed to be a blessing!
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