“INVESTING FOR ETERNITY”
LUKE 16:1-13

I. Introduction
Has anyone here ever done the right thing for the wrong reason? Sure you have, and so have I. What is your motivation for doing the right thing? Or maybe, more to the point, why does anyone do the right thing in the first place?

Consider the unbeliever. Can unbelievers do good things? Of course, they can. They do them every day. Some of their deeds are small, like helping a little old lady to cross the street. Some of their deeds are big, like providing food for the world’s hungry children.

But why do unbelievers do good things? What motivates them? There are many reasons, but I would suggest that feeling good about self is a major contributing factor. Unbeliev-ers view, and often do, good deeds to display concern, love, and compassion for people, animals, the environment, etc. Unbelievers often use those good deeds to feed their egos, to salve their consciences, or to earn their eternal reward, whatever they believe it to be.

The OT speaks of good deeds unaccompanied by belief when Isaiah says, “…all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment (Isaiah 64:6).” The NT equates the best we have to offer and the best we can do with garbage when Paul calls those things “…rubbish in order that I may gain Christ (Philippians 3:8).”

The NT makes that point again and again. “…by the works of the Law (righteous deeds) no flesh will be justified (made righteous) in (God’s) sight… (Romans 3:20).” “…a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ… and, “…by the works of the Law shall no flesh be justified (Galatians 2:16).” Ephesians 2, 2 Timothy 1, and Titus 3 all teach the same thing. No human efforts at “being good” can ever save a soul.

Why is this? It is because any good work, any good thing at all, in order to be counted as righteous in the sight of God, must be done solely in Christ’s name and for His glory.
Colossians 3:17
17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

So if the glory of Christ isn’t our sole purpose and motivation, whatever we do that is called “good,” is merely counted as garbage. “…all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment.” So while it is true that unbelievers do good things, none of them are done in the name of Jesus, and for His glory. Thus, they are garbage because unbelief, no matter how beautifully it may present itself, cannot glorify God. So again, unbelievers do good things all the time. But while good thing are done, no eternal good accrues to the ones who do them. Why? They’re unbelievers!
I’m sure glad that we Christians don’t have that problem. Or do we? Why do you and I do good things? Do we do them to glorify God? Do we do them “…in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father,” or do we do them to make ourselves look good to our brothers and sisters in Christ, to feed our egos, to salve our consciences, and since we know we already have the promise of heaven, do we do them to “polish our halos,” as it were? Asked another way, are you and I, saved and heaven bound, doing good things for the same reasons unbelievers do them, for the wrong rea-sons? This is no minor issue.

Listen, God, in His omniscience and absolute sovereignty, will always accomplish His purposes through the good works that are done by men, regardless of whether or not they are believers. But eternal rewards are reserved solely for Christians. And this is impor-tant – not even all the good works done by Christians will receive a reward, but only those which are done “…in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father,” because it’s only those that bring glory to God.
*Matthew 6:1-4
1 “Beware of practicing your righteousness (your good works) before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.
2 “When therefore you give alms (gifts, offerings of money, time, efforts), do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. (Being honored by people is the only honor you’ll ever receive.)
3 “But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing
4 that your alms may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will repay you.”

Seeking the approval of others is ingrained in all of us, believer or not. For those of us who belong to Christ, seeking the approval of others carries with it the temptation to dis-obey the Lord’s command to us here in Matthew 6. For the unbeliever, it’s only standard operating procedure. In this morning’s passage in Luke 16 we’ll meet an unbeliever who is willing to manipulate everyone around him to further his own self-serving cause.

As we’ll see, he’s very good at it, so good in fact, that even those whom he defrauds and outwits find themselves admiring his skill and cunning. The subject in Jesus’ Parable of the Unjust Steward (a.k.a. the Shrewd Manager) is the kind of con artist who will steal the clothes off your back in order to secure his own future. But he’s so slick that, even in your nakedness, you find yourself praising him. “Wow, that guy’s really good at what he does!” Would you believe that we can actually learn something positive from the exam-ple of this unjust steward’s criminal mind?
And we may find ourselves surprised at how Jesus’ applies the lesson to us.
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II. Review
It’s helpful for us to note that the Parable of the Unjust Steward follows immediately after the Parable of the Lost Son. Remember that chapter divisions and verse numbers have been added to the Bible by men. The original writings had neither. So the parable that ends Luke 15 and the parable that begins Luke 16 are directly connected in the text. The question for us is how are they connected?

Both present us with a picture of cold-hearted unbelief and the damage it does to what is good and right in the eyes of God. And both present us with a picture of self-indulgence, self-righteousness, self-aggrandizement, and self-glorification.

In the Parable of the Unjust Steward – as well as the Parables of the Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin, and the Lost Son – Jesus is talking to the scribes and Pharisees. In Luke 15 His parables were directed at them, while the disciples listened. Now, in Luke 16, the Lord’s comments will be aimed at His disciples, while the scribes and Pharisees will listen in.
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III. Text
In 1 Corinthians 4:7 the question is asked, “What do you have that you did not receive?” In John 3:27, the question is answered; “A man can receive nothing, unless it has been given him from heaven.” True Christian humility understands this. But in the natural man’s arrogance, self-indulgence, and drive for self-glorification, he neither believes nor understands it.

In fact, the natural man, in his lost condition, believes the polar opposite. So he says, “I want whatever I want. I deserve whatever I want. And I will have whatever I want, regardless of whatever it might take to get it.” The natural man says, “If I’m able to get what I want by staying within the bounds of the prevailing laws, ethics, and morals, so much the better. However, if I have to bend or even go so far as to trample on the pre-vailing laws, ethics, and morals to get what I want, so be it.” Does the name “Bernie Madoff” and his massive Ponzi scheme ring a bell for anyone?

It is in such dedication to self we often see amazing degrees of skill, deceit, and cunning. We’ll see all of this in the person of the unjust steward.
*Luke 16:1-13 (Please stand with me in honor of reading God’s Word.)
1 Now (Jesus) was also saying to the disciples, “There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and this steward was reported to him as squandering (the rich man’s) possessions.
2 “And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this is I hear about you? Give an account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward.’
3 “And the steward said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the stewardship away from me? I am not strong enough to dig; I am
ashamed to beg.
4 ‘I know what I shall do, so that when I am removed from the stewardship, they (his master’s debtors) will receive me into their homes.’
5 “And he summoned each one of his master’s debtors, and he began saying to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’
6 “And he said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ And (the steward) 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?’ And he said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ (The steward) said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’
8 “And his master praised the unrighteous steward 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.
9 “And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by means of the mammon of unrighteousness; that when it fails, they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.
10 “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.
11 “If therefore you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous mammon, who will entrust the true riches to you?
12 “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?
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 cannot serve God and mammon.”

Did you know that one third of the parables Jesus told had to do with money? What does that tell you about money and how it affects people? What does that say about the impor-tance you and I place on getting it, spending it, investing it, saving it, giving it away, or even squandering it? How many of us are preoccupied, or at least anxious, about the money we do have…and the money we do not have?

The Bible tells us much about how we, as Christians, are called to view money, how we are called to obtain it, and how we are called to use it. When the issue of our money arises in the church it seems that most of us tend to squirm, at least a little. Why? Is it because the way we think about our money gets to the very heart of the way we think about everything else? I don’t know, I’m just asking. But why did Jesus spend so much time talking about, admonishing us about, and warning us about money? Is it because money is “the root of all evil”? Listen please, that is not what the Scriptures teach.
*1 Timothy 6:6-10
6 …godliness actually is a means of great gain, when accompanied by con-tentment.
7 For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either.
8 And if we have food and covering (clothes), with these we shall be content.
9 But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction.
10 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 a pang (“ŏdunē,” meaning grief and sorrow).

So are we to be free from money? No, we are to be free from the love of money, because that love of money can open the door to a wide variety of evil thoughts, behaviors, and actions. Welcome to the Parable of the Unjust Steward.
*Luke 16:1-2
1 Now (Jesus) was also saying to the disciples, “There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and this steward was reported to him as squandering (the rich man’s) possessions.
2 “And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this is I hear about you? Give an account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward.’”

The steward is the rich man’s business manager. He is the one who handles the domestic affairs and acts as the rich man’s treasurer. In simple terms, he has the checkbook and daily authority over it. He is expected to handle the rich man’s financial affairs, and anything the rich man assigns him to do, wisely and carefully. So obviously, this steward has been trusted by the rich man.

Right here at the outset is an application for us. You and I are God’s stewards on this earth, and He expects us to take care of His affairs and whatever He has chosen to dele-gate to us, wisely and carefully. Can God trust you with to handle His affairs wisely and carefully? Can God trust you with His checkbook? You do understand that your check-book is, in reality, God’s checkbook, don’t you? (back to the parable)

When the rich man finds out that his steward has been wasting the resources he has been entrusted with, the steward is called in, accused, asked to give an account of his actions, apparently fails to do so, and is subsequently fired.
*Luke 16:3-4
3 “And the steward said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the stewardship away from me? I am not strong enough to dig; I am
ashamed to beg.
4 ‘I know what I shall do, so that when I am removed from the stewardship, they (his master’s debtors) will receive me into their homes.’”

Whether the steward has been guilty of honest but poor management or criminal embez-zlement and outright fraud is really isn’t clear from anything we read in vv. 1-2. How-ever, the man’s character begins to come into focus in vv. 3-4. Unlike the lost son who found himself in the pig sty, came to his senses, humbly admitted the error of his ways, and went home to his father seeking forgiveness, this steward decides to plan a scheme that will defraud his soon-to-be former employer.

What will keep him from honest work and a sincere attempt to earn an honest living? Isn’t it the same thing we see all around us today? In v. 3 we’re told this steward is too lazy to do physical work and too proud to do menial work. And since he doesn’t have the luxury of today’s welfare payments, food stamps, energy assistance, housing allowances, free cell phones, and an endless list of government programs to keep falling back on, he will just go out and take what he wants any way he can get it.

(Isn’t the Bible amazing? This story could have been written today. Doesn’t that sound a lot like present-day America – where about half of all Americans are now working to support the half that does not or will not work?)
*Luke 16:5-7
5 “And he summoned each one of his master’s debtors, and he began saying to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’
6 “And he said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ And (the steward) 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?’ And he said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ (The steward) said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’”

And so the “con is on.” Whether this steward had been incompetent or deliberately devious in dealing with his master’s finances in the past, it becomes clear now that he will deliberately rob his former employer. Those who owe the rich man a certain amount of money will be more than happy to renegotiate their debt so as to pay less than they really owe.

However, it would appear that these men are not yet aware that the steward no longer has the authority to renegotiate their debt. So, the rich man’s debtors readily accept the stew-ard’s favor, knowing full well that in the culture in which they live, they will owe the steward a nice big favor in return. This slick but unethical and immoral steward is setting himself up to receive at least one favor from every one of his former master’s debtors.

The steward knows that the rich man is going to be praised for his “kindness and gener-osity” by all those who think he has graciously chosen to reduce their debt.
You might say that the steward has his former master “over a barrel.” The rich man can’t go back and say, “Sorry, it was all a big mistake. You really do owe me all of it.”

So the rich man is cheated out of what is rightfully his. The debtors fail to pay what they rightfully owe. And the unjust steward reaps the reward. Is all of that not typical of what we see happen all around us? The righteous are lied to, cheated, victimized, defrauded, and punished, while the wicked prosper. We look to heaven and we ask God, “Why do the wicked prosper?” You and I aren’t the first to ask that question. Job wanted to know the answer to that question. So did Jeremiah.
Jeremiah 12:1
1 Righteous are You, O LORD, that I would plead my case with You; indeed I would discuss matters of justice with You: Why has the way of the wicked prospered? Why are all those who deal in treachery at ease?

Doesn’t it sometimes seem as though God never deals with evil, such as the evil of this unjust steward? But, of course, we know that He will deal with it. We just don’t know when. The timing is up to Him, not us. Listen, our God, who cannot lie, has promised us that He will deal with it. Here is just one of those promises as it relates to evildoers who currently prosper, and to God’s own children who will prosper in glory.
*Psalm 73:18-19 (this is what awaits the wicked)
18 Surely You set them in slippery places; You cast them down to destruction.
19 How they are destroyed in a moment! They are utterly swept away by sud-den terrors.
*vv. 23-26 (this is what awaits us)
23 Nevertheless I am continually with You; You have taken hold of my right hand.
24 With Your counsel You will guide me, and afterward receive me to glory.
25 Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth.
26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. (back to Luke 16)

Knowing that, and knowing the future that awaits all those who live like the unjust stew-ard, we’re more than a little surprised by what Jesus says next, at least until we get hold of the point the Lord is making.
*Luke 16:8-9
8 “And his master praised the unrighteous steward 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.
9 “And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by means of the mammon of unrighteousness; that when it fails, they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.”
The rich man’s praise is hardly what you expect at the end of Jesus’ parable. But the praise bestowed upon the steward is not for his dishonesty, his deceit, or his thievery.
The unjust steward is praised in v. 8 because “…he had acted shrewdly.”

The word “shrewd” is used in most English translations of the Bible. The Greek is “phrŏnimōs,” meaning practical, skillful, and wise. It not only refers to the devious mind of the steward, as it does here in Jesus’ parable, but also to anyone who plans care-fully and wisely. And isn’t that precisely what this steward did? He had gotten himself into trouble and had cleverly, though unethically, immorally, and even illegally worked (or should I say, “conned”) his way out of it.

So again, the steward is praised for his quick thinking and his ability to take advantage of a bad situation. He is certainly not praised for how he got himself into that situation. Thus ends the parable. Now what is the application for us?

In v. 8 Jesus tells us something about ourselves that we’d rather not hear. He tells us, that when it comes to planning ahead, securing our temporal future, and, if I may use a cliché,
“thinking outside of the box,” unbelievers are way better at it than are we Christians. I suspect that’s one reason why the world often labels us as fools. In some respects, at least within the context we are now speaking, maybe we are. Jesus does say, “… for the sons of this age (them) are more shrewd…than the sons of light (us).”

In v. 9 what Jesus refers to as “the wealth of unrighteous mammon” includes money, but is not limited to money. The fact is that all the treasures of this fallen and unrighteous world, while all having a certain temporal value, will all pass away. So the Lord’s point is that while we are here in this life, we should be shrewd and busy ourselves looking for ways to use those treasures – all of that “unrighteous mammon” – for eternal causes.

For example, are we being shrewd in the use of our money, our time, our spiritual gifts, and our efforts for the furtherance of the coming Kingdom of God? Are we being shrewd in the use of this world’s “mammon” for righteous causes and the eternal well-being of both physically and spiritually needy people? None of the treasures of this world have any eternal value, but we should be shrewd in using them in order to help secure the place of others in heaven.

That’s what Jesus means in v. 9 means when He talks about making friends in heaven. Can you imagine the joy that awaits you in glory when someone comes to you and says something like this – “I am here because you cared enough to tell me about Christ,” or “I am here because you prayed for my soul,” or “I am here because your spent your earthly treasures to help secure my eternal future.” – Can you imagine that joy?
*Luke 16:10-12
10 “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.
11 “If therefore you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous mammon, who will entrust the true riches to you?
12 “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?”

In vv. 10-12 Jesus makes it clear that He disapproves of the unjust stewards actions. And then He tells us something that I think we already know, at least intuitively. If you and I prove trustworthy with a little, whatever it may be – time, money, spiritual gifts – then we can probably be trusted with much. But if we can’t be trusted to do and act shrewdly with a little, whatever it may be, then why would God, or anyone else, trust us with much?

Think about it. Have you been given some small opportunity to serve God and turned it down because you were hoping for something different or bigger? Listen, if you cannot be trusted with a little, why would you be trusted with a lot?

Remember that whatever you have, it belongs to God. “What do you have that you did not receive (1 Corinthians 4:7)?” How are you using it? Are you acting wisely, even shrewdly with it? That’s the question this morning. Are you investing for eternity?
*Luke 16:13
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 cannot serve God and mammon.”

We are called to use what God has given us for Him and for His Kingdom. He is the One we are to serve. Despite what so many of us try to do, we cannot serve both the interests of this world and the interests of the next. I know that we often think we can, but Jesus has said as plainly as can be. You cannot serve God and mammon (the treasures of this world, whatever they may be). It simply cannot be done! _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

IV. Conclusion
So acting shrewdly with God’s resources and for His glory, investing for eternity, is what God calls us to do. When you do that, God will be glorified. That is, after all is said and done, the ultimate purpose for everything, isn’t it – the glory of God? And when you act shrewdly, there will be a bonus. You will receive an eternal reward for your investment, and God will say to you… “Well done, good and faithful slave; you were faithful with a few things, (therefore) I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master (Matthew 25:23).”

~ Pray ~

Jim Timms – Pastor/Teacher
Lighthouse Bible Church – Lake Geneva, Wisconsin 53147
www.lighhousebiblechurch.net