“The master commended the dishonest manager.” What?!? What is Jesus teaching in this unusual story?

October 28-29, 2017

Introduction and offering:

ILL: One of my friends recently told me that he bought a scooter that wasn’t running for $100, spent $100 to get it running, and sold it for $1300—he turned an $1100 profit! This guy has a gift for spotting deals and turning a dollar. Another friend spotted a designer purse at a second hand store; she bought it for $40, and sold it a couple hours later online for $700. She too has a knack for spotting deals and making a profit. Call them smart, call them savvy, call them astute—they are financially shrewd. How many of you wish you were like that? Me too—I want to be shrewd.

But shrewd is also a word with negative connotations. Positively, it means wise, sagacious and clever. Negatively, it means wily or artful—like “a shrewd operator.” You better keep an eye on them. Today, I’m using it in the positive sense. Jesus wants us to be shrewd money managers—smart and wise.

This is part 3 of “Jesus on Money.” I’ve told you that money is one of those subjects that I return to every few years because it’s of universal interest and because it’s so important. Jesus said that money is a heart issue—and Jesus wants your heart. Jesus will mess with you on this subject—but it’s a good mess! Jesus wants something for you not from you!

We’re looking at what Jesus said about money in the gospel of Luke, and today we are looking at one of the most difficult and unusual of Jesus’ stories. It’s a story that makes you say, “What?” Here is the story, and then we’ll unpack it.

Luke 16:1–15

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 in