Stewardship

Webster Dictionary

stew•ard•ship: the conducting, supervising, or managing of something especially: the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one’s care

Jesus in chapter 16 is speaking concerning wealth but more importantly our stewardship of what He has given...

He begins by speaking to His disciples

But in verse 14 the pharisees get involved

Jesus gives some very pointed teaching and contradicts what is common in the thinking of man

Stewardship = God Taking My Money (Tithing) WHY GIVE???

Not because God needs it… Psalm 24:1 (Just like we sang this morning)

Psalm 24:1 NASB95

The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains, The world, and those who dwell in it.

Not because the church needs it… “I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail!”

Not because the pastor needs it… in fact i am going to give away $100.00 to help illustrate something...

Let me illustrate what I am trying to convey… (pull out cash)

Have someone come up… If I give you my money $10 would it be difficult for you to give away $1 to someone else?

It is pretty easy to give something away that isn't yours isn't it!?

Remember Genesis? You and I are created in His... IMAGE!!! God is a giving God… When we give, we become more like Him!

Think about that as we go through this chapter…Luke 16:1-9

Luke 16:1–9 NASB95

Now He was also saying to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and this manager was reported to him as squandering his possessions. “And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an accounting of your management, for you can no longer be manager.’ “The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig; I am ashamed to beg. ‘I know what I shall do, so that when I am removed from the management people will welcome me into their homes.’ “And he summoned each one of his master’s debtors, and he began saying to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ “And he said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ And he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ “Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ And he said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’ “And his master praised the unrighteous manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the sons of this age are more shrewd in relation to their own kind than the sons of light. “And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by means of the wealth of unrighteousness, so that when it fails, they will receive you into the eternal dwellings.

Perspective on Wealth

There are multiple ways to possibly understand this parable…

I tend to lean with those who see this manager/steward giving up his portion in order to please his master.

The steward has sacrificed what he could have taken now and has given it to others so that he can receive gain later.

Jesus Has a desire for His followers/disciples to have a heart like God’s stewarding our money and gifts He gives us with both the short and long term views in perspective!!!

Luke 12 where your treasure is there your heart will be also

Money is not evil but as Paul states in 1 Timothy 6:10

1 Timothy 6:10 NASB95

For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

Jesus is not stating that money or having wealth is wrong, rather what is your heart, how are you using it for His glory

Money cannot go with you, its value and effectiveness is limited to your time on earth…, how will you use it for others…unselfishly

Luke 16:10-15 give us truths we are all familiar with yet have such a hard time implementing into our lives...

Luke 16:10–15 NASB95

“He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much. “Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous wealth, who will entrust the true riches to you? “And if you have not been faithful in the use of that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own? “No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were scoffing at Him. And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.

Truths to Live By...

As a steward/manager of His riches… faithfulness is key!

Money… Time… Talents… Family… Others...

How can God trust you with “True Riches”!!! Kingdom service to God and others!

Joshua as they enter the land challenges the people… “choose this day who you will serve” you and I are always serving someone or something… WHO will it be!?

Jesus states clearly… “you cannot serve two masters” … “You cannot serve God and wealth”

Notice Jesus does not say you cannot be wealthy and serve me…

However the rich ruler he would speak to would find this impossible.

Zaccheus on the other hand would find great joy in serving God with his wealth

These are wonderful truths and lessons on money and wealth for Jesus’ disciples listening and they are just as good and relevant if not more so today for you and I… HOWEVER… the pharisees were listening too Luke 16:14-18

Luke 16:14–18 NASB95

Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were scoffing at Him. And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God. “The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John; since that time the gospel of the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it. “But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one stroke of a letter of the Law to fail. “Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries one who is divorced from a husband commits adultery.

The Heart of the Matter

Folks… God knows and sees the heart! These Pharisees were lovers of money!

They equated wealth with righteousness!

They were not keeping up with the Jones’ they were the Jones!

Feeling self justified by impressing men...

Swindoll’s Ultimate Book of Illustrations & Quotes Truth

These brothers were rich. They were also wicked. Both lived a wild, unprofitable existence, using their wealth to cover up the dark side of their lives. On the surface, however, few would have guessed it, for these consummate cover-up artists attended the same church almost every Sunday and contributed large sums to various church-related projects.

Then the church called a new pastor, a young man who preached the truth with zeal and courage. Before long, attendance had grown so much that the church needed a larger worship center. Being a man of keen insight and strong integrity, this young pastor had also seen through the hypocritical lifestyles of the two brothers.

Suddenly one of the brothers died, and the young pastor was asked to preach his funeral. The day before the funeral, the surviving brother pulled the minister aside and handed him an envelope. “There’s a check in here that is large enough to pay the entire amount you need for the new sanctuary,” he whispered. “All I ask is one favor: Tell the people at the funeral that he was a saint.” The minister gave the brother his word; he would do precisely what was asked. That afternoon he deposited the check into the church’s account.

The next day the young pastor stood before the casket at the funeral service and said with firm conviction, “This man was an ungodly sinner, wicked to the core. He was unfaithful to his wife, hot-tempered with his children, ruthless in his business, and a hypocrite at church.… but compared to his brother, he was a saint.”

You see we serve a God who is far more concerned with the heart than going through the motions… Christ illustrated in an unusual way...

Divorce...Some Pharisees took a loose view of divorce. It was acknowledged that a man should not commit adultery. But if a man wanted another woman, many of the Pharisees condoned divorcing his present wife for no good reason and marrying the desired woman. In this way they thought adultery did not take place. However, as Jesus pointed out, this was a perfect example of justifying themselves in the eyes of men but not being justified before God

Martin, J. A. (1985). Luke. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 247). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

The Pharisees prided themselves in their faithful obedience to the Law of Moses, but they did not receive the Saviour of whom Moses wrote!

Jesus once again reiterates the importance of listening to His Word… This Life is temporary…Luke 16:19-31

Luke 16:19–31 NASB95

“Now there was a rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, joyously living in splendor every day. “And a poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores, and longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man’s table; besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores. “Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried. “In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. “And he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.’ “But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony. ‘And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.’ “And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, that you send him to my father’s house— for I have five brothers—in order that he may warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ “But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ “But he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’ “But he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’ ”

Life is Temporary

Our status in this life does not indicate our spiritual status and is nowhere near as important as our place after this life

Notice the rich man has no name only recognized for his wealth / buried it ends

Lazarus remembered and oh how the tables turn / carried away by angels

Notice that even in the life after the Rich Man treats Lazarus as lower class

Realizing his eternal state he does not want his brothers to come there… Hell is eternal!

Send someone!

They have Moses and the prophets… the Word of God LISTEN!

Send someone from the dead!

They will not hear, they will not listen…EVEN if One Rises From the Dead!

As Luke records for us this story, the ones reading this would recognize this to be the Resurrection of Jesus Christ Himself… the Son of God!

CHURCH… it should be a joy for us to give, to give up things, pleasures, our hold on wealth, because you and I are created in the IMAGE of God, called to be imitators of Him as His children,

WE GIVE because He gave the greatest gift of all… His Son Jesus Christ to pay the debt you and I owed for our sin!

HE OWNS IT ALL!!!

HE PAID IT ALL!!!

AND HE DESERVES OUR ALL!!!