Shrewd as Serpents; Innocent as Doves

Luke 16:1–13 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. “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.”

A man asked God how long a million years was to him. God replied, “It’s just like a single second of your time, my child.” So the man asked, “What about a million dollars?” The Lord replied, “To me, it’s just like a single penny.” The man gathered himself up and said, “Well, Lord, could I have one of your pennies?” And God said, “Certainly, my child, just a second.”

If I had to say what the biggest idol before God is in the U.S., I would say money and perhaps independence. Many people want money thinking it will give them independence. As Christians that means we are to live counter culturally. So does that mean we sell all we have a live in the wilderness like John the Baptist?

The next three week’s, we will be looking at what Jesus has to say on stewardship. Stewardship is an ethic that embodies the responsible planning and management of resources. The concepts of stewardship can be applied to the environment and nature, economics, health, property, information, theology, etc.

Today we will be looking specifically at the concept of finances and how we use them. The parable we are about to delve into is a difficult one, so lets take a moment to place it in God’s hands for understanding.

Pray

Introduction:

Last week, Jesus was talking to the Pharisees and he gave three parables on God’s intent to find the lost. Over the next three weeks, we will see His attention go back and forth between his disciples and the pharisees as He addresses stewardship. This week, Jesus is talking to His disciples and he shares a story. Allow me to paraphrase.

There once was a rich who owned a large home. For this reason, he needed a head housekeeper. The head housekeeper was in charge of all the household staff, the food and cleaning supplies, and the maintenance needs. In time, it was reported back to the owner that the head housekeeper was not being honest in his work. He was taking things from stock for his own personal use and selling some on the side to fill his own pockets. So the owner called the housekeeper and demanded an audit of finances along with an inventory check.

The housekeeper, knowing that this would reveal what he had done and the outcome would be he would be fired, began to take note of what his future prospects would be. He did not fancy the idea of hard labor. He was not cut out for that kind of hard labor. As head housekeeper, he had been able to live a life of some status and the idea of begging just did not set well with him, especially since he would never earn enough money to live up to the standard he had become accustomed to.

As he thought on it, it occurred to him that his best hope was to gain the best wishes of other people of influence. If he did them a favor, they would be indebted to him and help him find a good position where he could help them in the future. So he called a couple of the owners customers and asked what they owed his master. When they shared, he encouraged them to lower the supplies and he would overlook the change before leaving his employment. In doing so, he was able to win the allegiance of these customers who were not honest, but at least in places of influence. This would allow him to have work references as he looked for employment elsewhere.

Once the housekeeper had left and it was discovered what he had done, the owner of the home shook his head in appreciation of the mans shrewdness in providing for himself.

Upon first reading, this is always a difficult parable to understand. Is Jesus saying that what the housekeeper did was right? It takes some further exploring to find what Jesus is actually saying.

Jesus was very clever. He knew how to get people’s attention and one of those ways was to say things that were not what people expected to hear. This tends to get people’s full attention. However, in the following verses we find the explanation.

Luke 16:8–9 NASB95

“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.

Essentially, Jesus is contrasting how men of this world use their funds compared to how Christians should use their funds.

Selfish motives

Prosper self, build earthly kingdom

Secure their earthly future

This puts a different light on things. However, Jesus is saying that we can learn from these people of the world. It is not their motives or their dishonesty we learn from. It is the fact that they are strategic with the use of their funds. Satan has really done a number on Christians regarding wealth. Either we get the idea that God will automatically supply us wealth, or we are afraid of wealth and think God desires us to live in poverty. Neither is correct. It is not the gaining of wealth or the use of wealth that is wrong. It is what our motives are and how we use it.

If we are looking at only prospering ourselves and securing our financial future, then there is a problem. However, if we use it not only to supply our needs but as a strategic tool to lead others to Christ, then it is well used. Compassionate ministries has always been a big part of the Nazarene church from its inception. People have spiritual needs, but it is difficult to lead them to Christ when their bellies are empty and they are homeless.

For the worldly wealthy, dollars open doors for them to get what they want. For the Christian, dollars provides food and shelter in order to share the good news of Jesus Christ. It is a matter of using funds to gain opportunity. People know they need their physical needs met to survive here on earth. We know they need their spiritual needs met to secure their future in heaven. Wealth used for such purposes is not wrong, but wisely used. In doing so, we are also providing for our own future in heaven. I am not talking about our works, but about our obedience to God.

When Jesus sent out twelve of his disciples in , He told them

Matthew 10:16 NASB95

“Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves.

We need to be innocent in our motives, but shrewd in making opportunities to share the good news.

The next thing we see is that it is...

B. A Matter of Trust ()

Luke 16:10–12 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?

Jesus makes a statement here:

Luke 16:10 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.

Then He follows the statement with a conclusion:

Luke 16:11–12 NASB95

“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?

Essentially, it is stating this...

If you are careful with a little, you will be careful with a lot.

When I was a children’s pastor at College Church in Nampa, I knew B. Edgar Johnson. B. Edgar was the General Secretary for the International Church of the Nazarene from 1964-1990. In other words, he was the Chief Operations Officer for our entire denomination. Someone told me once that he was so diligent when it came to finances, that if he used a stamp for personal purposes, he made sure he paid it back (stamps were .05 - .25 during those years). B. Edgar is a great example of someone who was faithful in a little and therefore trusted with a lot.

The reverse is also true. If someone is dishonest in little things, chances are they are dishonest in larger things.

In these two verses, Jesus directs our attention to two different situations. The first is...

Did you know that one of the Gifts of the Spirit is that of giving? That implies people who have something to give.

We know the Early church of acts gave to each other generously and the Church of Macedonia was commended for their generous giving. In we find the passage on giving being a Gift of the Spirit.

We know the Early church of acts gave to each other generously and the Church of Macedonia was commended for their generous giving. In we find that giving is a Gift of the Spirit.

Romans 12:3–9 NASB95

For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith. For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness. Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good.

Romans 12:3-

In Acts, we are taught to give out of our excess. Those who had abundance gave to those who were without.

So how do these people come by their excess? It is God given! Why these people? Because they were faithful with a little and God gave them more based on their proper use of it.

Note: This has to do with giving to help people in need, it is not talking about giving to the church. We are all called to give a tithe. That is 10% of our gross income. However, this is another place of obedience in our wealth. If we are faithful with our tithe, God does supply our needs. I hear a lot of people complaining about their financial struggles and are praying for God to give aid. I am here to tell you, God does not give the full aid a person needs until they are first being obedient to Him with their tithes.

Some are good with their tithes, but not real good beyond that. God will supply their needs, but probably not much else. However, if you see a good Christian that seems to really have a lot of funds, if you could see all the details of their life, you will probably discover that they are a generous giver.

Our verse could read: “He who is faithful with a little, God will give much!” Another way of saying it is, “If you are faithful and generous with what God gives you, God will give you more. However, if you are an unfaithful housekeeper, God will not even provide for your own needs.”

People with the gift of giving, literally become caretakers of God’s funds. God places His trust in them to distribute His blessings.

Now this is on the personal level, but

Next we see it is imperative to...

Luke 16:13 NASB95

“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.”

We cannot serve two Gods, and money has a tendency to become a god. Notice how Jesus keeps referring to the money. In verse 9 He says, “wealth of the unrighteous” and in verse 11, He refers to “use of unrighteous wealth.” Paul and Peter called it “filthy lucre.” The reason behind such designations is not that money in itself is evil, but the idea of money tends to bring corruption. Satan uses the power that can come with money to turn men’s heads. So our wealth is never something we should take for granted, but we need to hold it lightly as it easily can lead us down a path of destruction.

We cannot serve God and wealth. Either all our finances belong to God and we serve God, or we serve ourselves and use our wealth for ourselves and successfully become our own god. It is a pretty sad choice.

Notice that Jesus keeps referring to

I once heard an old Indian parable about a guru who had a star disciple. He was so pleased with the man's spiritual progress that he left him on his own. The disciple lived in a little mud hut. His only clothing was a loincloth, a small covering around his midsection. He lived simply, begging for his food. Each week, the disciple washed his loincloth and hung it out to dry. One day he came back to discover the loincloth torn and eaten by rats. He begged the villagers for another loincloth, and they gave it to him. But the rats ate that one too. So he got himself a cat. That took care of the rats, but now when he begged for his food, he had to beg for milk for his cat. So he got a cow to feed his cat, but now he had to beg for hay to feed his cow. So, in order to feed his cow, he decided to till and plant the ground around his hut. But soon he found no time for contemplation, so he hired servants to tend his farm. Overseeing the laborers became a chore, so he got married to have a wife to help him with the farm. His wife didn't like the mud hut he lived in and demanded a real house. So the man had to grow even more crops and hire more servants to keep his wife happy. In time, the disciple became the wealthiest man in the village. Years later this man's guru was traveling nearby, so he stopped in to see his old student. He was shocked at what he saw. Where once stood a simple mud hut, there now loomed a palace surrounded by a vast estate worked by many servants. “What is the meaning of this?” he asked his disciple. “You won't believe this, sir,” the disciple replied. “But there was no other way I could keep my loincloth.”2

I once heard an old Indian parable about a guru who had a star disciple. He was so pleased with the man's spiritual progress that he left him on his own. The disciple lived in a little mud hut. His only clothing was a loincloth, a small covering around his midsection. He lived simply, begging for his food. Each week, the disciple washed his loincloth and hung it out to dry. One day he came back to discover the loincloth torn and eaten by rats. He begged the villagers for another loincloth, and they gave it to him. But the rats ate that one too. So he got himself a cat. That took care of the rats, but now when he begged for his food, he had to beg for milk for his cat. So he got a cow to feed his cat, but now he had to beg for hay to feed his cow. So, in order to feed his cow, he decided to till and plant the ground around his hut. But soon he found no time for contemplation, so he hired servants

to tend his farm. Overseeing the laborers became a chore, so he got married to have a wife to help him with the farm. His wife didn't like the mud hut he lived in and demanded a real house. So the man had to grow even more crops and hire more servants to keep his wife happy. In time, the disciple became the wealthiest man in the village. Years later this man's guru was traveling nearby, so he stopped in to see his old student. He was shocked at what he saw. Where once stood a simple mud hut, there now loomed a palace surrounded by a vast estate worked by many servants. “What is the meaning of this?” he asked his disciple. “You won't believe this, sir,” the disciple replied. “But there was no other way I could keep my loincloth.”2 It's easy to get sucked into a materialistic lifestyle of accumulation. But making the accumulation of stuff the center of our life is cancer to our soul. As Jesus said, “You cannot serve God and wealth.”

It's easy to get sucked into a materialistic lifestyle of accumulation. But making the accumulation of stuff the center of our life is cancer to our soul. As Jesus said, “You cannot serve God and wealth.”

(Lectionary Series: Kindle)

Conclusion:

This passage of scripture was selected months ago for this Sunday. I had no idea what would be happening now or what this scripture passage was about, however I believe this was no mistake that it came now. I believe God is answering our prayers to get us out of debt. I believe He has a mission for us. It includes the Baptist building and the vision God is developing. However, if God is going to be faithful in this big thing, we need to be faithful in our personal things. I do not know about you, but I know that I am carrying far more debt than I should. I have been slowly making changes to get out of debt. This sermon has spoken in large part to me. I am determined to do what I must to get out of debt.

How has it spoken to you? It may be to get out of financial debt, but it may be something else. Stewardship is often equated to finances, but it covers lots of things. Our time, our talents, our skill sets, our relationships; all our things we have stewardship over.

This morning we are going to close with Communion. It is a good time to reflect and take inventory of what you are steward over. Is there something you have squandered that you need to confess to God and make a vow to change? Take a moment as I play the following medley by Twila Paris, and listen to hear what God is calling you to do as we prepare for Communion.

YouTube

Search My Heart, O God Medley/Twila Paris

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5qj_ke_Lds

Communion

Living Bible (TLB)

Proverbs 21:20 CEB

Precious treasure and oil stay in the home of the wise, but fools swallow them up.

20 The wise man saves for the future, but the foolish man spends whatever he gets.

The question is, which future are you saving for; the earthly or the heavenly?

Go forth; Be generous to someone; and use the opportunity to build God’s Kingdom. :-)

Pray and Dismiss

Shrewd as Serpents; Innocent as Doves

I. Shrewd as Serpents; Innocent as Doves

A. Use Money for Kingdom Building ()

1. Unrighteous use of funds:

a. Selfish motives

b. Prosper self, build earthly kingdom

c. Secure their earthly future

2. Righteous use of funds:

a. For others

b. Build God’s kingdom

c. Secure our heavenly future

B. A Matter of Trust ()

1. The use of our own funds.

C. Be Wholly Devoted ()

Shrewd as Serpents; Innocent as Doves

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I. Shrewd as Serpents; Innocent as Doves

A. Use Money for Kingdom Building ()

1. Unrighteous use of funds:

a. Selfish motives

b. Prosper self, build earthly kingdom

c. Secure their earthly future

2. Righteous use of funds:

a. For others

b. Build God’s kingdom

c. Secure our heavenly future

B. A Matter of Trust ()

1. The use of our own funds.

C. Be Wholly Devoted ()