In the Name of the Father, and of the +
Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
What man intended for evil, God meant for the good, to save
many people alive.[1]
Such is the assessment of Joseph when reflecting on how his brothers tried to
kill him and he ended up a slave in Egypt. Joseph is one of very few people in
the Old Testament who is portrayed as being nearly flawless. He is a prophet of
God and works faithfully for his masters in Egypt. Even when Potiphar’s wife
repeatedly tempts his flesh, Joseph remains faithful to God and his Egyptian
master.
Being thrown into prison, Joseph is such an exemplary inmate
that he is eventually given charge over other inmates. Such loyalty leads to
him being made the second most important man in Egypt, steward over all that
belongs to Pharaoh. Joseph had complete authority over everything in Pharaoh’s
household, having the complete trust of someone the Egyptians believed to be a
son of the gods. Joseph is the picture of the ideal, the faithful steward.
The steward in today’s parable is found to be much less deserving
of faith. This steward has authority similar to that of Joseph. He has complete
control over all of his master’s possessions. He may do with them as he sees
fit. The primary concern of the master is that the steward uses his possessions
to increase the wealth of the master. Yet this steward has demonstrated himself
to be wasteful. He is the prodigal steward, using money that doesn’t belong to
him to indulge the lusts of his flesh in food, drink, and women. He is like the
prodigal son throughout the first half of that parable.
We join the parable as the master learns of his steward’s
wasteful actions and brings the accusation before the steward. There is not a
moment of denial by the steward. His actions speak for themselves. He can’t
deny it because his sins shine brighter than a spotlight on a dark stage. Once
the account books are turned over to the master, the steward will be cast out
of his position, having gained a reputation that will certainly prevent him
from ever working in this town again.
Most of us are well trained in reading parables. We know to
look for the “God” figure and the “man” figure, locating the forgiveness of
sins or a similar description of God’s character and mercy toward man. This is
especially true of the parables in St. Matthew’s Gospel. It is also generally
true of St. Luke. But St. Luke also has much to say about possessions and the
right use of possessions by the Christian.
The Parable of the Shrewd Steward does not have a “God”
figure. The master is not standing in the place of God. Rather, this parable is
revealed in the concluding sentence, “For the sons of this world are more
shrewd in their generation than the sons of light.”[2]
This is a parable concerning the actions of the sons of this world and how it
is an example to the sons of light.
When the steward calls the debtors together, he still technically
has the authority to write and rewrite the contracts of debt. Until the account
books are in the hands of the master, the steward retains the authority to
change them. He is acting according to the letter of the law as opposed to the
spirit. This man, who has lived wastefully on another man’s wealth, is too
proud to beg and is too weak to dig ditches. He is not a paragon of virtue. He
is, however, shrewd.
This word, “shrewd,” has negative connotations. It sounds evil,
or at least mean. Perhaps it even rings in your ears as someone who is miserly
and lashes out at those around him. The original word carries no such meaning.
It simply refers to practical wisdom, knowing what actions to take in a
particular situation. This is different from the “wisdom” we usually think of.
Wisdom is generally reserved for theoretical wisdom, that is, having the
knowledge of the best course of action. To be shrewd is to have practical
wisdom of the situation and knowing the best steps to take.
For example, it might be wise for a carpenter to soften the
corners of a table to give it a finished, beautiful appearance. It is shrewd of
the carpenter to soften the corners and the edges to reduce splintering. The
wise Christian knows the value to his body and soul of attending the Divine
Service every Sunday and every other day it is offered. The shrewd Christian bathes
the children the night before so that Sunday morning is efficient and attends
the earliest service so that the children are still slightly subdued by the
early rising.
At the end of the parable, the master does not commend the
steward’s lies or prodigal living. He commends his shrewd actions. The steward knows
his future is bleak unless he takes action. He decides to use the remaining few
minutes of his authority to craft deals with those owing debts to the master.
This is not an act of revenge. It is an act of practical wisdom. By cutting the
debts, the debtors will look upon both the steward and the master with great
favor.
Make no mistake, the actions of the steward will cost the
master financially, but those same actions will benefit the master in
reputation. From the perspective of the steward, he has benefited both himself
and the master in the eyes of the debtors. The master understands this and
commends such shrewd actions. The steward will still lose his job but has
virtually guaranteed himself a place to stay and new job prospects once he is
fired. He has also strengthened the loyalty of the debtors toward the master,
probably making him more money in the long run.
Do not imitate the actions of the steward in obeying the letter of the law to benefit yourselves in this world. That is not the message of this parable. The teaching of the parable to is to align your actions with your priorities for the future. The actions of the steward guarantee him a comfortable future in this world. He is a son of this world and acts shrewdly to improve his life in this generation.
You are sons of the light. What future are you prepared for?
Do your actions speak of shrewd preparation for that future? Do not be anxious
about what you will eat or wear or where you will lay your head.[3]
These are short-term concerns, and your Heavenly Father has promised to take
care of them for you. Compared to the parable, worrying about tomorrow is like
the steward worrying about which path he will use to walk home after the master
fires him. It is something you need to make decisions about but not something
worth your anxiety.
The goal of the steward is that when his lifelong career
fails, he is received into the homes of others that will care for him the rest
of his days. The goal of the Christian is that when you fail, that is, when
your body gives up its final breath, you will be received into the everlasting heavenly
mansion prepared for you by Christ.[4]
You will be received into the bosom of Abraham, gathered into the general
assembly and church of the firstborn, to God the Judge of all, and to Christ
the Mediator of the new covenant, whose blood of the sprinkling speaks better
things than that of Abel.[5]
The steward took action toward his goal. He used practical
wisdom, he was shrewd, in deciding what steps he can take to ensure a desirable
outcome. How shrewd are you? It is true, there are no steps, no actions, no
amount of wisdom that will give you heaven. Salvation has come unto you. You
have been called by Christ and delivered from sin, death, and the devil. This
was done while you were yet in your sin. Even now, as a baptized child of God,
it is not up to you to keep yourself in the faith. It is not by your own reason
or strength that you continue to be a Christian. This, too, is a gift of God.
Yet there are plenty of actions, steps, foolish thoughts,
and sins that can drive you away from salvation. Being lazy and not attending
to the miraculous gift of faith you have been given is the sin of sloth. Sloth
is enough to turn you away from God. Idolatry, wrath, envy, greed, pride, and
lust all easily turn you away from God.
So, I ask again, how shrewd are you? For what are you
preparing yourself? Make no mistake, every action today is preparing you for
something tomorrow. Honestly reflect on how you spend your time and evaluate
what it is that you are preparing yourself for. Are you preparing to have a
conversation about a foreign war with no direct impact on daily life? Are you
preparing yourself for retirement? What about when the war is over, or you find
that you are retired? What if you die before you retire? For what have you
prepared yourself for?
There is some debate among Christians whether video games
are themselves sinful. Some say yes, and some say no. What cannot be denied is
that time spent in a video game has produced nothing. Oh, it might produce the
topic of a few conversations, perhaps a basis for a friendship. But what
happens to that friendship when that video game is obsolete? What has happened
to the foundation? Minecraft has been described as virtual Legos. I’ve seen the
ability of Minecraft to help children with autism relate to the world around
them. But then again, at the end of the day, if it is virtual Legos, what has
the child built? Even the child with autism—he has become better able to
communicate with other people on computers, but has it helped him communicate
with his mother? Or his peers?
Such leisure
activities as movies, television, and even video games might have their place,
but we must remember that not only do they produce nothing, they do not prepare
you for anything. They are virtual—that means they are not real. If such idle
activities have a place, it cannot be for a considerable length of time.
So, I ask again, how shrewd are you? What are you preparing
yourself for? You do not know what will happen tomorrow, let alone next week,
or in 5 years. You can plan so that you give your family the best opportunity
to have a roof over their heads and food in their stomachs, but you should not
be anxious over these things. They are auxiliary. What you know for certain is
that death will come. So long as Christ waits to return, death will come. That
is the certainty of the future. What are you doing to prepare for death?
You can select a funeral package at Bross and Spidle and you
can begin making payments, but these too are auxiliary. What about eternity? With
the time that you have been given, are you preparing yourself to walk further
away from Christ, staring at your smartphone, your favorite 24-hour news
station, and chatting on social media? It is very easy to use the settings on
your phone to see just how much time you spend looking at it and even which
apps are demanding your attention. Or are you making for yourself friends by
unrighteous mammon?[6]
“Unrighteous” in this case does not mean “evil” but rather
“that which cannot save you.” Are you using your time, talent, and treasure to
build up the Church—both the building and those called by God to gather around
His Word and Sacraments? Every possession in this world is mammon, it is
unrighteous because it cannot save you. But all mammon can certainly damn you.
It is dangerous. All earthly possessions are dangerous because they so easily
become idols. Thanks be to God He has given to His children the Holy Ghost, by
which we are made wise. We are wise as serpents and innocent as doves.[7]
The unbelieving world hates God; hates Christ; and hates Christians. Persecution is on our doorstep. Are you shrewd enough to handle it? Or will you fold when you get sick, when your neighbor gets sick, or the government tells you to stay away from Church? Are you preparing for a long, comfortable life on this side of glory or an eternal life with Christ? Are you willing to endure the short fires of suffering in this life to avoid the eternal fire of hell or is such delayed reward too much for you to endure?
This is the lesson of the Shrewd Steward. You have been
given such wonderful gifts of God. You have been given the forgiveness of sins,
life, and salvation. You are an eternal being, created by God to endure
forever. Prepare yourself for eternal life with Christ by using the temporal
gifts you have been given in the ways that God has commanded. Serve God and
your neighbor by forgiving each other, covering the sins of your brother,
walking alongside the erring and the weak, and by devoting your time, efforts,
and treasure to the work of the Church.
This is what it is to be a shrewd Christian. Learn from the
actions of the Shrewd unbelievers but do not work toward their goals. Use their
dogged determination toward the goal which you have already been promised, lest
you should lose that eternal reward. ‘What is the world to you, with all its
vaunted pleasure; when Christ and Christ alone is your treasure! The world
seeks praise and wealth—all that mammon offers—yet it is never content, though
gold fill all its coffers. Jesus is your treasure, your life, your health, your
wealth, your friend, your love your pleasure, your joy, your crown, your all,
your bliss eternally. Once more, then, declare, what is the world to you?’[8]
You have Jesus.
In + Jesus’ name. Amen.
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