Precious Lord, bless the needs of this dear reader today and all days; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.
Here is our text for today from Luke 16: 1 Then Jesus said to the disciples, "There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was squandering his property. 2 So he summoned him and said to him, "What is this that I hear about you? Give me an accounting of your management, because you cannot be my manager any longer.' 3 Then the manager said to himself, "What will I do, now that my master is taking the position away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. 4 I have decided what to do so that, when I am dismissed as manager, people may welcome me into their homes.' 5 So, summoning his master's debtors one by one, he asked the first, "How much do you owe my master?' 6 He answered, "A hundred jugs of olive oil.' He said to him, "Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it fifty.' 7 Then he asked another, "And how much do you owe?' He replied, "A hundred containers of wheat.' He said to him, "Take your bill and make it eighty.' 8 And his master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light. 9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes. 10 "Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. 11 If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own? 13 No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth."
Jesus talked a lot about money and its influence on people. Jesus knew that money has a spiritual effect on people, usually a negative one. In this parable He tells of a person so rich he had a business manager who handled his day-to-day affairs (he must not have been married!). But the rich person hears that he has been defrauded by this manager and so he calls him in for an audit of what he has done. He in effect, fires the man and wants this audit completed before he leaves. The man, being shrewd in the ways of the world, settles matters in ways most would not agree, especially the rich man, but guess what, the rich man complements the man for knowing how to take care of himself. The manager cut the debt owed to his boss in huge ways in hopes of being taken care of once he found himself on the street.
The point of Jesus' story to us is to be smart but for the right things not the things of this world, using every situation to help educate us in the things that matter. We are called to be good stewards of what God has shared with us in ways that glorify God. God will know where our hearts lie. The Message version closes with verse thirteen reading: "No worker can serve two bosses: He'll either hate the first and love the second Or adore the first and despise the second. You can't serve both God and the Bank."
PRAYER: Loving God, help me today in the things that are Yours and the things that I selfishly think are mine. I know all are Yours. Help me to be creative and resourceful with what I have to better Your Kingdom. Help me to be a person that loves You above all else. I ask this in Christ Jesus' precious name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord.
Eradio Valverde
