Luke 16:1-9

Sermon preached on April 22, 2007 by Laurence W. Veinott. © Copyright 2007. All rights reserved. Other sermons can be found at http://www.newlifeop.org/.

My brother Paul was a pretty good hockey player. He played defense and was a great body checker. He loved to hit opposing players and knock them to the ice. A few years ago Paul told me about a guy that he was introduced to at a business meeting. When they were introduced, the guy looked at him and said something to this effect,

"Paul Veinotte, I know you. I played hockey against you. In fact, the last time I saw you was when I was approaching the blue line staking toward you. The next thing I remember I was waking up in the hospital."

Paul told me that it was very embarrassing for him. He didn't remember the fellow and it may have even been a clean (legal) check that he put on the guy. But then again, Paul got quite a few penalties in his day, so it could have been an illegal check. But it really didn't matter either way. Paul was embarrassed to meet the guy again. It wasn't a pleasant experience for him to hear how he had put him in the hospital.

On the other hand, it's a really good experience to meet someone you have helped and been a blessing to in the past. Can you imagine how good it must have been for the two Israelite spies to meet Rahab again after she had saved their lives? I've heard many such stories like that. I've heard of allied airmen who were shot down over Nazi occupied France and how people in the French resistance saved them from capture and helped them escape to England. When they were reunited after the war it was pure joy.

In the passage before us Jesus is urging His followers to take such things to heart for how they use their earthly wealth will determine the kind of welcome they receive on the great Day of Judgment. Before us we have a very unusual passage. Jesus tells the story of a crook who defrauded his master. Yet at the end of it the master commends the unjust steward for acting wisely.

What are we to learn from this passage? What is Jesus teaching us? Obviously we are not to think that dishonesty or thievery is okay. Other passages in the Bible make it clear that we are to be honest and just in our dealings with others. It is a sin to cheat them. So we dare not leave this passage thinking that it's okay to be crooked in our dealings with others. That's not the lesson.

Rather Jesus uses the example of a very bad man and commends one good characteristic in him—telling us to imitate that one characteristic. If you look at the text you'll see that the master did not commend the unjust steward for his dishonestly—but for his wisdom. Jesus said,

"The master commended
the dishonest manager
because he had acted shrewdly."

Here Jesus urges His disciples to be wise in their use of earthly wealth so that it will lead to blessing for them in the future. As unusual as it seems, there is a parallel between how the unjust steward used earthly wealth and how we should use it.

The great lesson that Jesus teaches here is that

you are to use your wealth to benefit others so that when you die they will welcome you into heaven.

John Calvin writes,

"The leading object of this parable is, to show that we ought to deal kindly and generously with our neighbors; that, when we come to the judgment seat of God, we may reap the fruit of our liberality."

That's the parallel. The unjust steward used his position to win friends for himself, so that when he was put out of his job, they would welcome him and provide for him. In the same way, you Christians are to use your wealth to bless others, so that when you die and leave this life—they will be there to gladly receive you.

Norval Geldenhuys, (Luke, p. 415-16) writes on Jesus' intention,

"It was His object… to use the parable to call attention to the 'wise' and diplomatic manner in which worldlings generally act towards their fellow-men in order to achieve their own selfish aims. In contrast with the diplomatic, clever conduct of such people, those who are members of the kingdom of light too often act unwisely and undiplomatically towards others. Instead of behaving in such a manner that they bind others to themselves, they act so that people are unnecessarily repulsed—like the Pharisees who by their attitude of self-righteousness and self-exaltation repel the 'publicans' and sinners instead of attracting them and making them willing to receive their teachings."

William Hendriksen says that part of what Jesus is saying here is,

"Would that all true believers were as clever in spiritual matters as are these crooks in plying their trade."

John Calvin,

"But all Christ meant was… that heathen and worldly men are more industrious and clever in taking care of the ways and means of this fleeting world than God's children are in caring for the heavenly and eternal life, or making it their study and exercise. By this comparison He reproves our worse than spineless laziness that we do not at least have the same eye to the future that heathen men have to feathering their nests in this world. How wicked it is that the children of light, on whom God shines by His Spirit and His Word, should sleep and neglect the hope of everlasting bliss offered to them, when greedy, worldly men are so devoted to their own interests, so far-sighted and shrewd!"

There are many lessons for us here.

First, this parable shows us the proper use of wealth. Money. What is it to be used for? Some people think that it's to be hoarded up so that they can be satisfied, or so that they can indulge themselves in pleasure, or leave it to their children.

But that's not why we are given wealth. The rich fool wanted to hoard up his wealth so that he could indulge himself in pleasure. You'll remember that his barns produced such a good crop that he said to himself, (Luke 12:18-19)

"I will tear down my barns
and build bigger ones,
and there I will store
all my grain and my goods.
And I'll say to myself,
'You have plenty of good things
laid up for many years.
Take life easy;
eat, drink and be merry.'"

But you'll recall what God said about him,

"You fool!
This very night your life
will be demanded from you.
Then who will get what
you have prepared for yourself?
This is how it will be with anyone
who stores up things for himself
but is not rich toward God."

Also, in many places in the book of Ecclesiastes the hoarding of wealth is shown to be futile—because one may not be able to enjoy it; or because no matter how much it is it is never enough; or because it can be lost through some misfortune and there is nothing left for the children; or because he has to leave it to someone who is a fool, who has not worked for it. Ecclesiastes characterizes these things as,

'grievous evils'.

They are meaningless.

So what then is the proper use of money? According to Jesus here

you are to use money to bring blessings to others.

There's a parallel between the purpose for which we are given spiritual gifts and the reason we are given money. 1 Corinthians 12 and 1 Peter 4 make it clear that spiritual gifts are not given primarily so that we ourselves might be rich—but that we might enrich others though the use of those gifts. 1 Corinthians 12:7 says,

"Now to each one
the manifestation of the Spirit
is given for the common good."

And in 1 Peter 4:10 we read,

"Each one should use
whatever gift he has received
to serve others,
faithfully administering God's grace
in its various forms."

It's the same way with money. Writing about giving in 2 Corinthians 9:8-11 the apostle Paul wrote,

"And God is able to make all grace abound to you,
so that in all things at all times,
having all that you need,
you will abound in every good work.
As it is written:
'He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever.'
Now he who supplies seed to the sower
and bread for food will also supply
and increase your store of seed
and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.
You will be made rich in every way
so that you can be generous on every occasion,
and through us your generosity
will result in thanksgiving to God."

We are to use our money to help others. Indeed, Jesus uses this as an example in the story of the sheep and the goats. In Matthew 25:34-40 He said,

"Then the King will say to those on his right,
'Come, you who are blessed by my Father;
take your inheritance,
the kingdom prepared for you
since the creation of the world.
For I was hungry and you gave me
something to eat,
I was thirsty and you gave me
something to drink,
I was a stranger and you invited me in,
I needed clothes and you clothed me,
I was sick and you looked after me,
I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
Then the righteous will answer him,
'Lord, when did we see you hungry
and feed you,
or thirsty and give you something to drink?
When did we see you a stranger
and invite you in,
or needing clothes and clothe you?
When did we see you sick or in prison
and go to visit you?'
The King will reply,
'I tell you the truth,
whatever you did for one
of the least of these brothers of mine,
you did for me.'"

Jesus used the example of the righteous using their earthly goods to help others as the key to their reward.

One thing that is clear from this is that this goes way beyond tithing.

Some people insist that all we owe to God is 10% and that the rest belongs to us and we can do with it what we like.

But that's way to narrow. That's missing the bigger picture. The earth and everything in it belongs to God. Everything God has given you is a gift from Him. You're a steward of it. He doesn't just want you to use 10 per cent of it for His glory—rather you are to have an eye to His glory in all of it. Many of the commands in the Scripture about helping others with our money, our earthly wealth do not even bring tithing into it. They go beyond it and deal with our attitude, with our love, with how we conduct ourselves in our daily living.

For example, in the Parable of the Good Samaritan, (Luke 10) you'll remember that the priest and the Levite both neglected the injured man. They both passed by on the other side of the road. Can you imagine Jesus adding to that story,

"But that was all right because they had both already given their tithe."?

No. It didn't matter if they had given their tithe or given beyond it—their duty was to help the injured man. Because they didn't do it—they sinned. They Samaritan was not concerned about limiting his involvement. He did everything he could for the injured man. He bandaged his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them. He put him on his donkey and took him to an inn and took care of him there. The next day he gave two silver coins to the innkeeper and said,

"Look after him and when I return,
I will reimburse you
for any extra expense you may have."

He wasn't concerned about percentages. He was concerned about meeting the needs that were presented to him.

We see the same thing in James 2:15-16 and 1 John 3:17. James says,

"Suppose a brother or sister is
without clothes and daily food.
If one of you says to him,
'Go, I wish you well;
keep warm and well fed',
but does nothing about his physical needs,
what good is it?"

And 1 John 3:17 reads,

"If anyone has material possessions
and sees his brother in need
but has no pity on him,
how can the love of God be in him?"

Those teachings go beyond tithing and speak to our heart and our way of life. Someone could tithe their ten per cent and still fail to meet those demands. In so doing they would fail utterly in God's eyes. Everything you have belongs to God and is to be used for His glory.

But even here you can go wrong. The Pharisees knew that but they still went astray. Jesus said about them, (Matthew 15:3-9)

"And why do you break the command of God
for the sake of your tradition?
For God said,
'Honor your father and mother' and
'Anyone who curses his father or mother
must be put to death.'
But you say that if a man says
to his father or mother,
'Whatever help you might otherwise
have received from me
is a gift devoted to God,'
he is not to 'honor his father' with it.
Thus you nullify the word of God
for the sake of your tradition.
You hypocrites! Isaiah was right
when he prophesied about you:
'These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
They worship me in vain;
their teachings are but rules taught by men.'"

They tithed—and they recognized that everything they had was to be dedicated to God—but they still greatly missed the mark. Many of them broke the fifth commandment and did not honor their parents. They said that everything they had was devoted to God, and then concluded that they could not help their needy parents! What nonsense! We must always remember the connection that Jesus made in Matthew 25 between the needy and Himself—whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.

We must not be like the Pharisees. Rather, we must be like the Christians we read about in Acts 2 and 4 who were filled with the Spirit. In Acts 2:44-45 we read that after descent of the Spirit on the Christians,

"All the believers were together
and had everything in common.
Selling their possessions and goods,
they gave to anyone as he had need."

And in Acts 4:32 we read,

"All the believers were one in heart and mind.
No one claimed that
any of his possessions was his own,
but they shared everything they had."

Everything belongs to God. You are merely a steward of the goods you have. Jesus tells you that you need to be a good steward of it and use your earthly wealth in such a way that it is such a blessing to other people that when you die and enter heaven—they will be there to welcome you.

The second lesson we are taught here is that

you have to be very careful of the corrupting influence of money.

A more literal translation (than the NIV) of what Jesus said in verse 9 would be, (HCSB)

"And I tell you,
make friends for yourselves
by means of the unrighteous money
so that when it fails,
they may welcome you into eternal dwellings."

Jesus referred to earthly wealth here as 'unrighteous money'.

By this He didn't mean that money is in of itself evil. 1 Timothy 6:10 tells us that,

"the love of money
is a root of all kinds of evil."

Money itself is not evil. But it can have a corrupting influence. John Calvin writes,

"He calls it 'unrighteous mammon', so as to make riches suspect to us, for they usually involve their owners in unrighteousness. Of themselves they are not evil. But because they are rarely acquired without fraud or violence or other illegal methods, and rarely, too, possessed without pride or luxury or some other depraved attitude, Christ is right to make them suspect to us."

How true. They are rarely possessed with out pride or luxury or some other depraved attitude. Money can be a great snare. As Jesus said in Luke 18:24-25,

"How hard it is for the rich
to enter the kingdom of God!
Indeed, it is easier for a camel
to go through the eye of a needle
than for a rich man
to enter the kingdom of God."

Money can be a snare and be very harmful to us. As Paul continued in 1 Timothy 6 after he said that the love of money was the root of all kinds of evil,

"Some people, eager for money,
have wandered from the faith
and pierced themselves with many griefs."

The third thing we see here is

the grand welcome that Christians who have used their earthly wealth to help others will receive when they arrive in heaven.

What a welcome faithful Christians are going to receive. Jesus is going to be there to greet them. He is going to say to them, (Matthew 25:34-35)

"Come, you who are blessed by my Father;
take your inheritance,
the kingdom prepared for you
since the creation of the world."

He is going to say, (Matthew 25:21)

"Well done, good and faithful servant!
You have been faithful with a few things;
I will put you in charge of many things.
Come and share your master's happiness!"

How wonderful it will be to be greeted by Jesus with those words.

But there's more. Not only will Jesus welcome them, but those they have helped with their money will be there to greet them as well. William Hendriksen writes, (p. 770)

"Jesus wants his people similarly to look ahead and by means of 'the mammon of unrighteousness' so to support all good causes and needy people that when they givers die, there will be a grand welcome for them. Those heavenly inhabitants who, while still on earth, benefited by the kindness of these big-hearted ones will then be welcoming the new arrivals."

Isn't it wonderful that money, something that can be such a snare, something that can lead to such sin, can become something, by God's grace, that can be used to gain us a rich welcome in glory? John Calvin writes on Jesus words here,

"there seems to be an implicit antithesis, as if He were saying: 'Riches can defile their owner if he misuses them and can almost be enticements to sin; but they may be converted to the opposite and bring us favor.'"

Money can be harmful to us. But there is a way to turn it to our profit—by using it to help people in need so that when you enter heaven they will be there to welcome you warmly. Norval Geldenhuys, (p. 416) tells us that in our use of money, we,

"must be so free from the low, selfish and covetous motives that dominated the unjust steward of the parable that they will use the worldly goods entrusted to them by the Father in a manner that will bring blessing to others and be conducive to their own eternal welfare. Especially does it mean that they should be so free from avarice and so inspired by real unselfish love that, as God leads them, they will whole-heartedly share their material possessions with persons that need them. In this way they will gain for themselves an imperishable treasure in heaven. In the Hereafter those who were helped by them in life by the right use they made of their worldly goods will, as it were, welcome them and testify in their favor."

As we read in Revelation 14:13,

"'Blessed are the dead
who die in the Lord from now on.'
'Yes,' says the Spirit,
'they will rest from their labor,
for their deeds will follow them.'"

As Jesus said in Matthew 10:42,

"And if anyone gives
even a cup of cold water
to one of these little ones
because he is my disciple,
I tell you the truth,
he will certainly not lose his reward."

Part of that reward will be them there to welcome us. As Paul wrote about the Thessalonian Christians in 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20,

"For what is our hope, our joy,
or the crown in which we will glory
in the presence of our Lord Jesus
when he comes?
Is it not you?
Indeed, you are our glory and joy."

But someone might object,

aren't you fostering a 'works' religion?

Or even if you're not, isn't it ignoble for people to do something because they will get a reward?

I'm not advocating a 'works' religion. Christianity is about grace. People are saved by Christ's work—His life, death and resurrection from the dead. The salvation they receive is a free gift that is not earned or merited in any way. Jesus has done it all. He deserves all the praise, glory and honor for our salvation.

Yet, having said that, we must realize that those that are saved by Jesus have certain demands laid upon them by Him. They are called to serve Him with everything that is in them. They are called to obey His commandments—and a great many of those commandments have to do with loving others as we love ourselves. Jesus commands us to do those things and thereby, because of His grace, lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven.

Christians, do what Jesus says. Norval Geldenhuys asks about the last judgment, (p. 417)

"Do we use our worldly possessions in such a manner that there will be persons in Eternity who will be glad to receive us? Or will there be numbers who will point accusing fingers at us because we neglected or injured them through our unfaithful conduct in connection with the earthly goods entrusted to us?"

May God give you the grace so that it will be the former.

• Luke 16:1-9