Kingdom Parables: The Shrewd Steward

A middle-aged man is in big trouble with his boss. He has helped himself to his employer’s funds one too many times. He has been caught, and now he is facing the music. In fact, he has been told to clean out his desk. He has been given a few days to clear up his accounts, but he knows that after that he is finished. The man is humiliated. He knows that at his age it will not be easy to find another job—particularly at the pay scale of his old job. He has some savings built up, but what does he do when those run out? He is facing financial disaster.

Then he hits upon an ingenious plan. His job entailed collecting debts owed to his employer. He decides that he will call each vendor in and offer them a deal. He tells them that he will be leaving his present position soon in order to search out new opportunities. And in order to keep their good will he is offering them a deal that they just can not refuse. If they will pay their bills immediately, they can settle for 60 cents on the dollar. Of course he assures them—with his fingers crossed behind his back—that he has full authorization from his employer to make them this offer. He hopes they will remember this act of good will when he comes calling on them to submit his resume. He uses his bosses’ money to buy the good will of any possible future employer. This the parable of the shrewd steward in a modern setting.

Now, did this man do wrong? This question brings us to the problem of this morning's text. Why did Jesus pick this guy to be an example? The most common feature of our Lord's parables is their shock value. They surprise and startle. They do not end as we assume they should, and this parable certainly does that.

In this parable, Jesus teaches us that we are to be good stewards of all God has blessed us with.

I. THE PARABLE OF THE SHREWD STEWARD

1. the main character in this story was a "steward" or “manager”

a. the NIV calls this man a manager ... it’s literally house-distributor, or ruler of the house, and is often translated as overseer

1) it’s one of the words the Apostle Paul will use to describe the work of a pastor—he is an overseer of the work of a local congregation

b. a manager is of course, to use that which has been entrusted to him to further his employer’s interest and not his own

c. a house-distributor in that day would have been a combination Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer

1) he would have been a highly trusted individual, and probably well compensated

2. he is responsible for using, distributing and investing his employer’s money and assets and overseeing the business

3. in this parable we see five parts: the accusation, the accounting, the action, the approval and the application

a. let me very quickly walk you through the parable and then move on to the most important part: the application

A. THE ACCUSATION

v. 1 “And he said also unto his disciples, There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods.”

1. it would seem that the temptation of the rich man’s wealth was too great for him and this steward begins to divert funds to his own purposes and pleasures

a. the phrase he had wasted is the root word for winnowing—the process of tossing wheat into the air to separate the grain from the chaff

1) it’s as though this guy is throwing his master’s money into the air in a spending free-for-all

2) a modern idiom might be, He was spending money hand over fist

2. not surprisingly it is not too long until his employer finds out about what he is doing

a. perhaps it’s a co-worker who squeals, perhaps it’s a business partner who discovers the mismanagement

b. the accusation is made: “Your steward is squandering your wealth.”

3. his rich man summons him and asks for an inventory of his goods and an audit of his books

a. in modern terms he was told, "Give me all your records and clean out your desk. Your fired!"

4. it come as a shock to many Christians that they are a steward of all that they possess and as a steward they don't own anything

a. we may possess many things but you do not own them

1) God does!!

b. the early Christians freely gave up their belongings because they realized that they did not own them in the first place

5. in what respects are Christian's "stewards"?

a. obviously as suggested by today's text we are stewards of our material possessions

b. we are stewards of our time.

“Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5:15–16, NIV84)

c. we are stewards of our spiritual gifts and abilities

“Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.” (1 Peter 4:10, NIV84)

d. we are stewards of the Gospel

“On the contrary, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts.” (1 Thessalonians 2:4, NIV84)

6. as Christians we have an enormous responsibility of managing our Lord’s wealth well

B. THE ACCOUNTING

v. 2 “And he called him, and said unto him, How is it that I hear this of thee? give an account of thy stewardship; for thou mayest be no longer steward.”

1. the man in the parable was in trouble because he had forgotten that stewardship involves not only responsibility and privilege but it also involves accountability

ILLUS. Warren Wiersbe writes: “Christians have a tendency to forget that one day an account of our lives must be given to the Lord.”

a. the Apostle Paul warns us that all believers must stand before the Lord Jesus and give an account of our stewardship of the Christian life

“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.” (2 Corinthians 5:10, NIV84)

C. THE ACTION

1. facing a future without his position, the soon to be ex-manager contemplates his options

a. he hatches a brilliant scheme

vv. 3-4 "Then the steward said within himself, "What shall I do? For my master is taking the stewardship away from me. I cannot dig; I am ashamed to beg. 4 I have resolved what to do, that when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses."

2. what is an out of work manager to do?

a. as he contemplates his options, he comes to the conclusion, that He is not physically able to do manual labor, and that he was to proud to beg

b. so he develops a plan to put himself on good terms with those who owe money to his employer; and to provide himself with friends who can help him out when he is unemployed

c. he resolves to make his masters debtors indebted to him

vv. 5-6 "So he called every one of his master's debtors to him, and said to the first, "How much do you owe my master?' 6 And he said, "A hundred measures of oil.' So he said to him, "Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.' 7 Then he said to another, "And how much do you owe?' So he said, "A hundred measures of wheat.' And he said to him, "Take your bill, and write eighty.'

3. what the steward is most probably doing is discounting the face value of notes by suspending the interest charges

a. since these charges are not legal within Jewish law—but commonly imposed anyway—his master has no grounds of action against him

b. the debtors would accept the offer gladly

c. he has effectively tied his master's hands while staying within the bounds of legality, and ingratiated himself with people he wants to remember him kindly

1) this guy is good!

D. THE APPROVAL

vv. 8-9 “And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.9 And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.”

1. in the first part of verse 8 Jesus gives the conclusion of the parable

a. the crowd, including the disciples, are undoubtedly waiting to hear how the crooked steward gets what is coming to him

b. what a shock they have when Jesus says, "So the master commended the unjust steward because he had dealt shrewdly."

1) I have no doubt that Jesus concludes the story with a slight grin on his face

2) as he does with so many of his stories, Jesus catches his listeners off guard

c. the thing that is a little hard for us to understand is verse 8

1) the rich man comes in, sees what he is doing knocking all these big amounts off the debts, commends him, and says, “Though you’re dishonest, you’re really smart, really savvy,” and commends him

2. but notice that it is the master not Jesus who commends this man for his shrewdness

a. the master in this story does not say that he is pleased by his steward's actions but is none-the-less, impressed

E. THE APPLICATION (which will be my second point)

1. OK, ready? Curl the toes up: The Holy Spirit is about to go foot-stomping!

a. at the very least, many Christians are guilty of mismanaging the Lord’s blessings

1) some of you are mismanaging your talents

2) some of you are mismanaging your time

3) some of you are mismanaging your tithe

b. at the very worst, some Christians are guilty of robbing from God

2. here is the singular message of this parable: God expects us to be faithful stewards of all we own and have

II. THE PRINCIPLES OF SHREWD DISCIPLESHIP vv. 8-13

1. so what are some of the lessons we can learn from this parable?

A. WE ARE CALLED TO USE OPPORTUNITIES WISELY

1. in the last half of verse 8, Jesus says, " . . . For the sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light.”

2. the idea that followers of Christ are to be shrewd is a little unsettling

a. what does it mean to be "shrewd"

1) when we think of shrewd individuals we may think of the lawyer who knows all the loopholes and is careful to stay just within the realm of what is legal; not at all concerned about moral principle or true justice

2) or we may think of the businessman who knows how to exploit his competitor's weaknesses or a customer's ignorance

3. good businessmen, either then or now, see the possibilities and seize the opportunities in the world around them

a. they are even willing to sacrifice present comforts for the prospects of future rewards on their investments

ILLUS. Scottish pastor and theologian William Barclay sums it up pretty well when he writes: "If only the Christian was as eager and ingenious in his attempt to attain goodness as the man of the world is in his attempt to attain money and comfort, he would be a much better man."

4. how many times have you and I had the possibility to do something great for the Kingdom only to fail in seizing the opportunity to do so?

B. WE ARE CALLED TO USE MATERIAL POSSESSIONS FAITHFULLY

vv. 10-12

1. in the bible there seems to be two under-laying principles concerning stewardship

a. the first is found in 1 Corinthians 4:2 – "Moreover, it is required in stewards that they be found faithful."

b. the second is the principle of reaping and sowing found here in ““Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. 11 So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? 12 And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?” (Luke 16:10–12, NIV84)

2. Mammon which is sometimes translated money, refers not just to money but to all our possessions

ILLUS. To quote Barclay again, " . . . what you get in heaven depends on how you use the things of earth. What you will be given as your very own will depend on how you use the things of which you are only a steward."

3. Jesus teaches his disciples that the shrewd believer will plan for his eternal destiny by properly managing what God has given him in this world

a. that begins with the stewardship of your eternal soul

1) you must be born again

b. your stewardship continues with the Christ-honoring management of every aspect of your life

C. WE ARE CALLED TO SERVE GOD WHOLLY

v. 13 "No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon."

1. the point is that we have to keep our priorities straight

a. wealth and possessions are to be used, not served

b. the truth about money and possessions is that we can either be stewards of them or we can be servants of them

2. the follower of Christ is called to yield himself totally to the service of God

a. there simply is no such thing as a part-time Christianity

1) in the vernacular of our day, it’s a 24-7 kind of position

b. Jesus has been speaking to the disciples but the Pharisees have been listening and their response is anything but spiritual

vv. 14-15 "Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, also heard all these things, and they derided Him. 15 And He said to them, "You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God."

c. they sneered at him

1) the Greek word means to "turn up one's nose"

d. these supposed men of God were greedy lovers of money and to make matters worse they justified their hypocrisy with Scripture

1) not unlike some Television Prosperity Preachers of our day who bend God's word to support their lifestyles, adding their own interpretation to what God had said

ILLUS. Jesse Duplantis, a televangelist with viewers across the globe, says God told him he needs a new jet. Specifically, God told Duplantis he needs a Dassault Falcon 7X, a three-engine private jet capable of carrying 12 to 16 passengers. The biggest reason he “needs” this jet is because it can fly non-stop to anywhere in the world. Jesse says it will keep him from having to pay over-priced aviation fuel. Cost? $54 million. In a promotional video, Jesse told his audience, "Now, some people believe that preachers shouldn't have jets. I really believe that preachers ought to ... have every available outlet to get this Gospel preached to the world." In fact, Duplantis said that "If Jesus was physically on the Earth today, he wouldn't be riding a donkey."

Conclusion

How Are You Doing With Your Stewardship?

In the Area of Material Possessions?

In the Area of Time?

In the Area of Gifts and Abilities?

In the Area of the Gospel?

Related Media

Related Sermons