Luke 16:1-15 provides us the parable of the shrewd manager. What does this mean for us as believers, or as church leaders?
Here is my current paraphrase:
An executive was told that one of his reports was “taking some liberties” with his expense account. This manager was hauled into his boss’s office and told to pack up his stuff and get out. The manager was terrified, because the job market was bad, and he was too proud to accept a position of lower title. So he quickly contacted some of the corporation’s customers, saying, “I am losing my job, but I will cut your bill in half before I go, if you will help me find a job”, to which they readily agreed. When the executive found out, he praised the dishonest manager for being clever.
When I think about this, what strikes me is not the dishonesty of the manager, but the willingness of his boss and his customers to accept this practice. It tells me that then as now, worldly people are motivated by money, and they are willing to overlook improprieties, if it means that they can profit from it.
The instruction at the end of the story is confusing. First Jesus tells us to use our wealth to “win friends and be kind” – like the dishonest manager. Then he tells us that we can use a person’s handling of finances to judge his overall integrity; that he who acts with integrity in small things, can be trusted with greater things.
We are reminded that the wealth that we “have” on this earth is given to us as stewards to manage, not solely to use for our own purposes; that we are to have our priorities straight before God, and to serve God first and not be focused on the monies.
So how does this apply to us as Christians? How do we apply it? Here is my list:
1) Our personal finances – our retirement, our portfolio, our stuff – are we using it for our comfort or for others benefit? Whom are we serving?
How can we get a handle on this truth – God does not want you to be happy and comfortable – He wants you to depend on His Grace. Serving God requires an element of dependence that we (especially Americans) are uncomfortable with. We want to make it on our own – forgetting often that all is His, and all we “own” is just on loan. It’s ours to use while we are here, but we can’t take it with us.
2) Our time – How much time do we spend earning money? How much time do we spend thinking about spending our money? How much time do we spend saving money? How much time do we spend investing money? How much time do we spend taking care of our stuff? Whom are we serving?
How much of our day to day is occupied with earning, saving, investing, and caring for our wealth? If you shop for 3 hours to save $25 on your purchase – you just “earned” is $8.33 per hour – Not including the gas you spent, and what you spent on the Orange Julius you bought at the mall. Will the hour per week or whatever you spend evaluating your 401k, IRA, portfolio or other investments actually make a difference? Does that difference materially impact your life? Does all the work you put into maintaining your cars, your house, your vacation home, your boat matter to anyone but you? Do you own this stuff, or does it own you?
3) Our trust or influence – How do we use our influence? How do we leverage the trust that we are given? For whose benefit? Whom are we serving?
Are we leading those who trust us toward Christ? Are we using our trust or influence for personal gain? Are we exerting influence towards actions that benefit others or those that benefit ourselves? Do you ever hear your self sounding like D-Day from Animal House (“You screwed up kid, you trusted us”) – and wonder what went wrong? Trust and influence are important resources – they should not be wasted.
If we take one thing away, we should be less focused on money and stuff, wiser with how we use our time and influence. Whom are we serving?