Life Audio. Hi, from the Salvation Army. You're listening to Words of Life. Welcome back to Words of Life. This is our final episode of our series on the parables of Jesus with Major Cam Henderson.
We've really enjoyed having him on the show, so Major, thank you so much for bringing us this series. If you've enjoyed it, please take a moment and leave us a rating or review wherever you listen to podcasts. It really helps others discover Words of Life. Check out the show notes for some additional resources and visit Words of Life Podcast dot org to learn more about the show.
Well, hello, and welcome to our fifth segment on the parables of Jesus. And this one is a strange parable. In fact, I marked it as the strangest. Parable.
So we'll get into it and see if you agree with me that this is an odd one. One of our favorite passages in all the New Testament, maybe the whole Bible, is in Luke chapter 15. We love to remember the beautiful and true story of the lost sheep. It's true in my life. What does he say?
The shepherd will leave the ninety-nine others and go search for the one who is lost. We know about the lost coin, but then comes the ultimate parable. Maybe the lost son who squanders his inheritance, his father's generosity to him, and he comes home and is forgiven. While the older son wants to ruin the story with his anger and his jealousy. I've been here the whole time, slaving away for you, and you haven't done one good thing for me and my friends.
He complains to his dad. Do you remember who Jesus told these stories to? If we look at Luke chapter fifteen, verses one through three, the very first he says, tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus teach, and this made the Pharisees and teachers of the religious law complain that he was associating with such sinful people, even eating with them, and so Jesus told them this story. I think Jesus is talking to the Pharisees and the religious leaders, talking to them about the lost sheep, and the lost son. He's indicating something to them about why he came.
He's also indicating what our attitude is: that rejoicing happens when those returned. He even says we had to celebrate. We must. It's necessary that we celebrate this happy day when your brother, my son, comes back to life when he's lost but is now found. The stories are told to Pharisees and religious leaders about celebrating when his most precious things are found.
And then he begins what we have as chapter sixteen, knowing that the Pharisees and religious leaders are still there and still listening. But it's as if Jesus literally turns his body now to tell a story to his disciples about a man that was ruined. This might be the weirdest parable of them all. In fact, the Interpreter's Commentary says that while other parables teach and encourage a high quality of behavior, in this parable there's nothing edifying. The man in this story, in this beginning, is incompetent, and by the end he shows flagrant dishonesty.
So in Luke 16, Jesus tells the story of a man who was a cheat and wasted his master's money.
So the boss told him he was going to fire him.
So let's look at that just a moment here. There was a certain rich man who had a manager handling his affairs. One day, a report came that the manager was wasting his employer's money.
So the employer called him in and said, "What's this I hear about you? Get your report in order because you are going to be fired." So the manager thought to himself, "Now what?" My boss has fired me. I don't have the strength to dig ditches, and I'm too proud to beg. I know how to ensure I'll have plenty of friends. They'll give me a home when I'm fired.
So he's devising this plan. He panics. The swindler decides quickly that he needs to make friends. He doesn't like to dig ditches, and he doesn't want to beg for money. Too proud, so he's going to make friends.
He cheats his master again, though, by helping the people reduce their debts to the master. He says, "Here, change that hundred measures of oil.
Now you only owe him fifty. And you, change that hundred loads of wheat, only eighty. And remember, I'm the one who helped you." He might be saying. When the master heard of it, he was kind of impressed and surprised with the man's shrewdness. I wonder if he thought, "Where was this ingenuity when you were working for me?" Oh, he's probably still fired.
He was wasting money and cheating, but it taught him a lesson, even from this snake of a man. Use what resources you have to benefit others and make friends.
Okay, that's a very simple lesson. It makes sense. It seems obvious. You can imagine the disciples over here nodding their heads in agreement, learning what to do with their wealth and any status and power they may have. And the Pharisees and the religious leaders are nodding their heads too, slowly, suspiciously.
Yes, true. We agree with this, I guess. Use the resources given to us to benefit others and make friends. Sure, we agree.
Well then, why weren't the religious people doing that? God had given them such wealth and power, and they were keeping it to themselves. They were making it so hard on others to understand and follow God. They were arrogant and sneering at the poor, rather than using their wealth to care for them and bless them. They should be making friends with them and blessing them and making more joy.
If only they were faithful and could be trusted. Listen now to what Jesus is saying to those religious leaders. Use your worldly resources to benefit others and make friends, and then when your possessions are gone, they'll welcome you into an eternal home. If you are faithful in little things, you'll be faithful in large ones. But if you're dishonest in the little things, you won't be honest with greater responsibilities.
And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven? And if you're not faithful with other people's things, why should you be trusted with things of your own?
So Jesus. Speaks to them very clearly about what their problem is. They've been given so much worldly good, and they did so little good with it. How could God give them spiritual good things too? They would just waste it.
And actually, He had, God had given them light so they could be a light to nations. In Isaiah chapter forty-two and in forty-nine and sixty, over and over again, He says so that all may come to the light. And come to God, but they hoarded the blessings of God, and instead they kept it for themselves, thinking that they were given it as a gift to be held on to and savored and enjoyed themselves.
Well, I guess others could come and enjoy the most favored things with them, but to take that blessing of God out to others and give it away to benefit others and make friends, that was not going to happen.
So instead. In Acts thirteen forty seven, God saw that they weren't doing this, and God fired them. That promise to take light to the nations and to take salvation to the ends of the earth was given away to Paul and to others who would preach the good news.
So here's how Jesus ends this part in verse thirteen: No one can serve two masters, for you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.
So Luke helps us get the connection in verse fourteen.
So we just read that, and then verse fourteen says, "The Pharisees, who dearly loved their money, heard all of this and scoffed at him. But Jesus was ready for that too." Do you remember what the swindler did to the master, hoping to take care of himself and take care of his friends by cutting off parts of what the master was due?
Now Jesus goes directly at the religious leaders, because all of a sudden, since John the Baptist began preaching the kingdom, people are eager to get in on the kingdom. It has freedom and good news of forgiveness from sin. But don't think for a minute that all those words in the law of Moses are forgotten or abolished. Do you want just one example? He says, "Any man here is committing adultery who is married and divorced, or married to a divorced woman." So you ignore parts of God's law that are inconvenient to you, and make it easier to follow.
But that's just one example. Perhaps because of the person who is standing near who needed to hear that one. But do you remember Malachi? The people were cutting corners, and they had ignored the warning to bring in the whole tithe. And remember too that he wished they'd stop the sacrifices because they were bringing their worst and offering it as a as a sacrifice rather than giving God their first and their best.
Remember Hosea six when God said to the leaders, "I desire mercy, not sacrifices." You cut corners, thinking you appease me by offering sacrifices. All the while, ignoring what I really desire—that you would show mercy. But you're hard on your people, and you cheat God out of obedience to His law and His desires. This odd parable. It may be the only one of its kind.
Was told by Jesus in order to instruct bad actors, who we know are listening, to use what they know of how the world works to get ready for when they lose it all. Warning: You better start finding another job. Remember how parables work. One group is being taught, and the others are being confused. In something of a miraculous work, Jesus was revealing truth and warnings and instructions to some.
And at the exact same time, was keeping mysteries locked up to others, and considering this strange parable as if the interpreter commentary just can't help but do what us preachers do—they just can't help but expound on something beyond the text. And I'm glad they did because it was a challenge in considering myself and the people of my core or my church here in Atlanta. Jesus' comment in verse eight that the children of this world are better at something than the children of light must have intrigued the commentators. What could they be better at?
Well, let me just read what they said. The worldly thoroughly cares for his senses, while the follower of Christ becomes casual about his soul. The golfer takes lessons and reads books, but the religious man forgets prayers. The salesman becomes an evangelist for some gadget, while the disciple of Jesus rarely mentions the Savior of the world. The steward of this story has lost foresight.
He planned an earthly future because he saw what was coming. Do the followers of Christ realize the way Jesus' teachings stress the end that is coming and plan for an eternal destiny? Most men believe in savings accounts and pension plans and annuities and insurance preparations for this world, but what about a home in the hidden land? Jesus says, "I go to prepare a place for you." But those whom most profess to love Him are sometimes careless about that welcome home. These examples they give are not intended to be true of every person of the world, not every person of the light.
But they're good reminders to be as careful in heavenly things, just as the worldly might be to teach us to be careful in these worldly, albeit temporary things. It's a neat parable, very strange. I hope we've understood it well enough together. This strange parable, if our ears are perceiving it correctly, can invite us first to consider if there's any way we're cutting corners on worship and obedience to God, and then secondly, if we're using what we've been given to care for others. Or are we keeping it for ourselves?
Third, are we considering the spiritual part of our lives as intently or more as our worldly care for our lives? Heavenly Father, thank you for this series on the parables. They teach us so much if we have ears to hear. We love you. We praise you.
Thank you for your word. In Jesus' name, Amen. The Salvation Army's mission, doing the most good, means helping people with material and spiritual needs. You become a part of this mission every time you give to the Salvation Army. Visit salvationarmyusa.org to offer your support.
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