It is a curious fact, but true:
the New Testament frequently speaks about money, and the pulpit speaks about it
rarely. One can understand. To preach on the subject of money is somewhat
akin to begging, and always susceptible to being misinterpreted as to motive!
But such is not the case for the Sunday School teacher. We usually avoid the
subject because we don’t like the results. Christ understands us both. Here
is one of the premier lessons He gave on the subject.
Principle of Stewardship
(Luke 16:1-13 NIV) 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} "'Eight
hundred gallons of olive oil,' he replied. "The manager told him, 'Take
your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred.' {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 servant can serve two
masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted
to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money."
Our Lord had a gift for story
telling. Here we see the shrewdness of a dishonest manager being praised for
what it teaches us. We need to begin this lesson, therefore, by understanding
the Biblical concept of stewardship. It is taught from the very beginnings of
Scripture.
·
First, all that we have as we begin life, and all the
opportunities along the way, are gifts from God. He gives us the wealth; he
gives us the increase.
·
We, on the other hand, are responsible for the management of the
things given to us. We will be called to account for these things.
·
The confusion for most of us is over “dominion” versus
“stewardship.” Are we using these things in our own right, or are we caring
for them on behalf of someone else?
This last point is important. Much ink has been wasted
amongst Christians debating the current environmentalist movement. Some
conservative scholars consider that man has absolute dominion of the planet, by
gift of God. They cite this verse:
(Gen 1:26 NIV) Then God
said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule
over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all
the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."
The word “rule” in the verse
above comes from the Hebrew word radah, which can also be translated
“subjugate.” It clearly implies the dominion which some conservatives seek.
But kindly note where this verse occurs: before the fall of man in the
garden. When man was created, perfect, he was given dominion. But after the
fall the verb changes:
(Gen 9:2 NIV) The fear
and dread of you will fall upon all the beasts of the earth and all the birds
of the air, upon every creature that moves along the ground, and upon all the
fish of the sea; they are given into your hands.
Now the verb is “given.” It
comes from the Hebrew nathan, which means “bestowed” or “given.” The
point is clear, I submit. The perfect man (before the fall) is entitled to
dominion. The corrupt man (after the fall) may only exercise stewardship.
Dominion is given to the perfect; stewardship to the imperfect.
Carry this one step further. Who
is perfect among men? Only our Lord Jesus Christ. Only he, then, is entitled
to dominion; the rest of us are allowed only stewardship. The entire concept
of how we handle the things of this world is tied to the Lordship of Jesus
Christ.
Accountability
In this story many scholars have
seen a parallel between death (for us) and getting fired (for the manager).
The job is over (which for many Americans is worse than death). The desk must
be cleaned out; the books closed and presented to the owner. So it is with us
at death; we will soon be called to account for what we did with the good
things God has entrusted to our care. In particular, Christ suggests in this
story that we need to use those possessions to make ourselves welcome (by
others!) in heaven. Many have speculated about life in heaven on this cause.
I think the meaning is much simpler:
(Prov 19:17 NIV) He who
is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward him for what he has
done.
Let’s be certain we understand
what Christ is praising. It is not the dishonesty of the manager. The word
rendered “wiser” in some translations could better be rendered “more shrewd.”
Double entry bookkeeping had not been invented (the Italians devised it in the
late Middle Ages), so what the manager did was ethically dubious – but within
his authority. (A parallel today might be the authority of a credit and collection
manager.)
What Christ is praising is the
effect produced. Remember how you eat in these days. If you want to eat meat,
it’s usually at a feast. You need to get invited to the party – and in
particular a party which you cannot repay – if you’re in this manager’s
situation. So the manager has done a smart (shrewd) thing.
Christ then makes a telling
point: do the children of light apply the same degree of thought to entering
the kingdom of heaven? Do we pursue righteousness with the same intensity that
this manager pursued his next meal?
The Principle of Character
On many occasions we have taught
this: character counts. Being entrusted with big things does not so much
build character as reveal it. Even the worldly use this principle: you are
not promoted until you show yourself capable in what you have now.
The difference to the Christian
is that wealth is a “little thing.” To the world it is a great thing; to us
it is a small thing – in which we are commanded to be faithful. Indeed, if money
is trivial, what is important? I know a young man whose style of life is “more
money, more toys.” But (would he but listen) he who dies with the most toys,
dies. Then the judgment.
Principle of Lordship
(singular)
Christ expands the thought. We need
to know what verse 13 is talking about. The old King James called it “mammon,”
but that is just a transliteration of the Greek word, mammonas. It
comes from Chaldean, and it means “confidence in money.” Christ states the
simple fact that we cannot serve (recall that worship and service in the Greek
are the same word) two masters: human beings are so constructed that only one
master is allowed. So you have to pick. Which will it be: the confidence
that your money will cover your rear end, or the worship and service of the
Living God?
The Reaction
The Pharisees see this as
ridiculous. The reaction has not entirely evaporated yet:
(Luke 16:14-18 NIV) 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 men, but God knows your
hearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable in God's sight.
{16} "The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed
until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being
preached, and everyone is forcing his way into 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. {18} "Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman
commits adultery, and the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
The character of the worldly
There are two things to see in
the character of these worldly Pharisees:
·
They are self justifying. They are their own righteousness.
They know they are righteous, because they are the authorities on
righteousness.
·
They have a distorted set of values (Satan cannot create, he can
only twist). They know how important money should be.
The Reminder
It is sometimes said that Christ
is entirely radical; other times that he is entirely conservative. He
transcends all labels, for God is eternal. In these short sentences he reminds
his sneering listeners of these truths:
·
God has not changed his mind. There is nothing in this teaching
which would surprise a devout follower of the Old Testament.
·
They can see with their own eyes how the sinners of their time
received the kingdom with gladness. If they really knew God’s heart, this
would be overwhelming evidence of the kingdom at hand.
It is, by the way, quite
literally true that it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for God
to change his mind. We know
that Christ sustains the entire universe by his will. That universe will pass
away at his coming; this we know. But even then, our God does not change.
The note about adultery
The verse concerning adultery
seems out of place to us; like Luke had to get it in somewhere and hoped we
wouldn’t notice it being here. This is not so. It is an example – a very
pointed one – to the Pharisees. The common teaching of the time was such that
enabled a man to divorce his wife with great ease. He needed to find “some
uncleanness” in his wife. The most common teaching of this favored a wildly
liberal interpretation of that phrase (including such things as burning the stew.)
Christ is reminding them that no matter how much we twist the Scriptures to our
own ends, His will is still the same.
Lazarus and Dives
There is a great speculation
about this parable: perhaps it is no parable at all. In all the other
parables of our Lord no names are mentioned. This is the only time that a name
is assigned to one of the characters. It is not likely to be the Lazarus known
elsewhere in the New Testament (who was raised from the dead), but was it
someone known to the Pharisees?
We need to know a little
background of the times to understand this story. First, purple is the
Rolls-Royce of colors at this time. In Acts we encounter Lydia, the seller of
purple. The dye for this color came from a shellfish, and was rare and expensive.
To wear purple was to display your wealth.
The phrase, “fell from the
table,” takes some explanation too. Lawrence of Arabia tells us that in his
time it was customary, when feasting on meat, to take a small piece of the meat
in one hand (the other kept clean). You dipped it into a common rice bowl,
forming a greasy ball to eat. As the rich were stuffed, the leftovers were
passed on to the slaves. In Lawrence’s time a towel was used to wipe your hand
(at the end of the feast); in this time chunks of bread were used for the same
purpose. It was these chunks of bread that Lazarus desired; they would be
thrown on the floor for the lowliest to retrieve as their meal.
The rich man
(Note that the traditional name,
Dives, is simply the Latin word for rich.) Tell me something: what harm did
this rich man ever do? We are told nothing of how he obtained his wealth. For
all we know, he toiled honestly for his money, and was living in retirement.
Indeed, even in hell itself, he asks for help for his brothers, so he was not
totally devoid of charity.
In fact, there is only one thing
we really know about the man, morally: not what he did, but what he failed to
do. So often we see this as the story of condemnation of the unjust rich. It
is not. This is the condemnation of one who saw and did not care.
That is
justification for hell? So it appears. Perhaps you think that unjust. After
all, he didn’t kill anybody, did he? Perhaps that is the point Christ is
making (and will make most explicitly in Matthew 25:31-46). The trip to hell
is free, and the food is good along the way.
Lazarus
Lazarus too is briefly
recounted. We know two things:
·
He had a lot of trouble in his life.
·
So will we. (John 16:33)
On Hell
It is a curious thing, but almost
all the references to hell – and certainly all the detailed ones – come from
our Lord. It is as if the subject was too awesome for anyone else to
describe. Much might be said, but here there are three points to make:
·
Hell is final; it is irrevocable.
·
There is no second chance.
·
And for some, even someone who came back from the grave could not
convince them to repent.
Our Lord is clear about it: the evidence of the Law and
the Prophets – let alone His resurrection – should be sufficient. We have been
warned.
I can think of know better way to
close this lesson than with the words of Isaiah. I said earlier that nothing
in this lesson was new to the believer in the Old Testament.
(Isa 58 NIV)
"Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet.
Declare to my people their rebellion and to the house of Jacob their sins.
{2} For day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, as
if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands
of its God. They ask me for just decisions and seem eager for God to come near
them. {3} 'Why have we fasted,' they say, 'and you have not seen it? Why
have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?' "Yet on the day of
your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers. {4} Your
fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked
fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on
high. {5} Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for a man
to humble himself? Is it only for bowing one's head like a reed and for lying
on sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the
LORD? {6} "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose
the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed
free and break every yoke? {7} Is it not to share your food with the
hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter-- when you see the naked,
to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? {8} Then
your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly
appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD
will be your rear guard. {9} Then you will call, and the LORD will
answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. "If you do away
with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
{10} and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the
needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your
night will become like the noonday. {11} The LORD will guide you always;
he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your
frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never
fail. {12} Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up
the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer
of Streets with Dwellings. {13} "If you keep your feet from
breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call
the Sabbath a delight and the Lord's holy day honorable, and if you honor it by
not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,
{14} then you will find your joy in the LORD, and I will cause you to ride
on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father
Jacob." The mouth of the LORD has spoken.
(Isa 59:1 NIV) Surely
the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear.
I am a patriot, one who loves his
country. May God turn the hearts of this nation to righteousness.