Dishonest Managers

What a deliciously complicated parable we preachers confront this coming weekend (Luke 16:1-3)! The dishonest managers (the Jerusalem religious/political establishment) have cooperated with the unrighteous Romans for nearly a century when Jesus speaks this parable.  The local managers have profited handsomely as a result.  They have avoided the disastrous military confrontation that would certainly have resulted from non-cooperation.  Of course we can see in hindsight that this would be the result, since that is precisely what happened in the various Jewish revolts of the two centuries around Jesus’ earthly life and ministry.

In the meantime, however, they have rejected the Prodigal Son.  They have ignored Lazarus at their gates.  They could have used their wisdom to serve the people of the land, the tax collectors and sinners.  Instead, they used their gifts of position and power to enrich themselves.  Money and power can be wonderful tools if we use them for God’s purposes.  They can be terrible weapons if we use them purely for our own benefit and enrichment.

In this section of Luke’s gospel, we hear three stories of the mismanagement and misuse of God’s gifts. No one can be a disciple unless we release all that we hold tightly to ourselves (see Luke 14:33).  The Prodigal Son sprayed money from the fire hose of foolishness.  The Corrupt Steward stole and mismanaged until he was caught short.  The Rich Man purchased the splendid isolation of ignorant entitlement.  That ended up as his “eternal home” (such as it was).

The Prodigal Son thought the solution was to get a real job.  The Corrupt Steward thought the solution was to create a personal safety net.  The rich man thought there wasn’t any problem at all—until it was far too late.

Stewardship is using God’s gifts for God’s purposes.

So, God had given the Jewish establishment a way to fulfill Abraham’s call to bless all the families of the earth.  That tool was called the Roman Empire—peace, roads, mail and a secure financial system. Instead, they stole from the Master for their own purposes.  Those purposes were national identity, political independence and personal enrichment.

So those managers were about to be sacked.  The Christian movement would take advantage of the Roman resources to become a worldwide movement of blessing.  In the process they proclaimed Jesus as Master and Lord, not Caesar.

A steward is a channel of God’s grace.

We North Americans are the wealthiest Christians in history.  And yet we use these gifts mostly to make ourselves feel better.  God will not bless such behavior.  So where is the good news in this text? God can and will use even my most selfish behavior to bring about good results.  And if I choose to cooperate, there is no limit to the good that can be done.  We will be used, whether we cooperate or not.  The question is only whether we will agree to participate and thus to benefit from God’s project.

If God can use that Corrupt Steward, there may be hope for me as well.