*Luke 16:1-18
Jesus tells a story about a shrewd manager who secures his future by using his position to win favors.
- Parable of the Dishonest Manager:
- Jesus tells the story of a manager accused of squandering his master’s possessions.
- Facing dismissal, the manager devises a plan to secure future favors by reducing the debts of his master’s debtors.
- He calls each debtor and reduces their debts substantially, ensuring their goodwill once he loses his job.
- Commendation and Lesson:
- The master praises the manager’s shrewdness (not his dishonesty), recognizing the cleverness of his plan.
- Jesus uses this parable to teach that “the children of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than the children of light.”
- He encourages his followers to use worldly wealth in ways that will result in lasting spiritual relationships.
- Faithfulness and Trust:
- Jesus stresses that trustworthiness in small matters reflects faithfulness in greater responsibilities.
- Conversely, if someone is dishonest with little, they will be dishonest with much.
- He challenges his audience to handle worldly wealth faithfully to be entrusted with “true riches.”
- Loyalty and Service:
- Jesus asserts that no servant can serve two masters, emphasizing that one cannot serve both God and money (“mammon”).
- Reaction from the Pharisees:
- The Pharisees, who love money, ridicule Jesus for these teachings.
- Jesus rebukes them, highlighting how they justify themselves before others, but God knows their hearts.
- He explains that what is highly esteemed among humans may be detestable to God.
- Law and the Kingdom:
- Jesus states that the Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John the Baptist, and since then, the Kingdom of God is preached.
- He asserts that everyone is forcing their way into the kingdom.
- Despite the coming of the kingdom, Jesus maintains that the Law remains valid, and not even the smallest part of it will disappear.
- Teaching on Divorce:
- Jesus reminds his listeners that anyone who divorces and marries another commits adultery, and the same applies to someone who marries a divorced person.
Luke 16:1-18 teaches us to be wise and faithful with what God has given us, whether it’s money, time, or talents. Jesus reminds us that we cannot serve both God and money—we must choose what matters most. This means using our resources in ways that honor God, helping others instead of being selfish. It also reminds us to be honest and trustworthy in small things because how we handle little responsibilities shows whether we can be trusted with more. By putting God first and living with integrity, we build a life that truly matters.
Luke 16:1-18 (WEB)
16:1 He also said to his disciples, “There was a certain rich man who had a manager. An accusation was made to him that this man was wasting his possessions. 2 He called him, and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Give an accounting of your management, for you can no longer be manager.’3 “The manager said within himself, ‘What will I do, seeing that my lord is taking away the management position from me? I don’t have strength to dig. I am ashamed to beg. 4 I know what I will do, so that when I am removed from management, they may receive me into their houses.’ 5 Calling each one of his lord’s debtors to him, he said to the first, ‘How much do you owe to my lord?’ 6 He said, ‘A hundred batos of oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ 7 Then he said to another, ‘How much do you owe?’ He said, ‘A hundred cors of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’8 “His lord commended the dishonest manager because he had done wisely, for the children of this world are, in their own generation, wiser than the children of the light. 9 I tell you, make for yourselves friends by means of unrighteous mammon, so that when you fail, they may receive you into the eternal tents. 10 He who is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much. He who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. 11 If therefore you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? 12 If you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own? 13 No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other; or else he will hold to one and despise the other. You aren’t able to serve God and Mammon.”14 The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, also heard all these things, and they scoffed at him. 15 He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts. For that which is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.16 “The law and the prophets were until John. From that time the Good News of God’s Kingdom is preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it. 17 But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tiny stroke of a pen in the law to fall.18 “Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery. He who marries one who is divorced from a husband commits adultery.