the virtual sol cafe: Was the manager shrewd or dishonest?

From Shirley and Dave:

We had a great, yet difficult, discussion June 4 on the parable of the "Shrewd Manager" (Luke 16). Thanks so much Dave for leading the discussion.

One of the verses that was looked at was verse 9: "I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings."

Christ doesn't say money is evil, as expected, or even the root of all kinds of evil, but rather a method to earn rewards in heaven if we use it as shrewdly as the worldly people use it. Christ doesn't even say here (not that I disagree with the concept) that money is not ours but rather God's and we are the stewards. There is some implications of that, but is it simply just a means put into our hands, one that can be used to serve God (or earn his favor, as this parable implies), or one that can be used to just accumulate more money?

Was Christ commending the manager?
Was Christ denouncing having money?
Does God decide who is rich and who is poor?
Is it easier to be rich and do God's will, or poor and do God's will?
How can we be shrewd or street-wise about "our eternity"?

2 comment(s):

On Saturday, June 10, 2006 11:06:00 AM, Kevin said...: I think you are absolutely correct that v 9 is the key to the passage, but the surrounding context also gives us a clue as to what the passage is about. The very next passage talks about being trustworthy with worldly wealth. What does this mean? And the passage after this makes explicit the opposition between God and money. "Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other." This must be Christians' attitudes towards money. If this is so, then what does it mean to be "trustworthy" with money? It can't mean the same thing that "trustworthy" means to the world, for that means responsible in maintaining and accumulating wealth. No, "trustworthy" must mean the opposite, in a typically paradoxical sense. The question is, "So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?" If you have hoarded money rather than distributing it, will God trust you with true wealth? (And if God does entrust us with true wealth, do you suppose we will keep that either, or give it away in like fashion?) So now, working our way backward to the passage in question, we are commanded to use money to "make friends" in order to be welcomed into eternal dwellings. Well, who are we to make friends with? Who does the steward make friends with? The poor and the indebted. Ironically, then, it is the poor who welcome us into eternal dwellings.

To give my answer to some of those questions, I don't think Christ commends the shrewd manager, but he uses the manager as an example. If even worldly people know how to use money for greater ends, how much more ought we? I think that, in connection with the greater teachings of Christ, he is denouncing having money. God doesn't decide who has money and who doesn't, but in a sense he does decide who is spiritually rich and poor. I don't think it's ever easy to do God's will, rich or poor. The challenges are just different. The only caveat is that rich people may have the extra stumbling block of self-reliance. And how to be shrewd about eternity? Well, that's for you to decide
On Friday, June 16, 2006 4:34:00 PM, Sam said...: I wish I could have been there for the discussion. I like this passage because it challenges our boxes about Jesus. We're looking for the story to tell us what we should be like -- like the good Samaritan. We often expect Jesus' stories to be only about good guys doing good things, but instead he uses what's necessary to get the point across. I've heard and read many commentators try to bend things to make out the manager to be a good guy. But he's not, in the beginning he's accused of being wasteful and he never denies it, and he certainly doesn't change his ways. He is both dishonest and shrewd. The key, as I read it, is as you and Kevin have said, the money. Jesus was looking for a metaphor for worldly wealth and found one in money made dishonestly. Not that all worldly wealth is dishonest, but wordly wealth compared to heavenly wealth is like dishonest wealth compared to honest wealth. Compared to heavenly riches, all wordly wealth is like dishonest wealth, it's hyperbole.

The same type of comparison coimes up again in verse 10. Little=worldly wealth and much = heavenly riches. So, be like the manager and use wordly riches to gain friends (for heaven).

So it does give us a backhanded example, but not with a hero we like. And the more important point is how to view worldly wealth compared to heavenly wealth, and, given that understanding, what to use it for. The Rich Man and Lazarus story in verses 16-31 provides good commentary for this parable. And, as has been said, it all challenges our notions about money. Often we do want to love God and money, at least a little, we like what our money gives us, it's hard to give it all to Jesus, but Jesus continues to show us what following him is about.

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One of the verses that was looked at was verse 9: "I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings." Christ doesn't say money is evil, as expected, or even the root of all kinds of evil, but rather a method to earn rewards in heaven if we use it as shrewdly as the worldly people use it. Christ doesn't even say here (not that I disagree with the concept) that money is not ours but rather God's and we are the stewards. There is some implications of that, but is it simply just a means put into our hands, one that can be used to serve God (or earn his favor, as this parable implies), or one that can be used to just accumulate more money? Was Christ commending the manager? Was Christ denouncing having money? Does God decide who is rich and who is poor? Is it easier to be rich and do God's will, or poor and do God's will? How can we be shrewd or street-wise about "our eternity"? 2 comment(s): On Saturday, June 10, 2006 11:06:00 AM, Kevin said... I think you are absolutely correct that v 9 is the key to the passage, but the surrounding context also gives us a clue as to what the passage is about. The very next passage talks about being trustworthy with worldly wealth. What does this mean? And the passage after this makes explicit the opposition between God and money. "Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other." This must be Christians' attitudes towards money. If this is so, then what does it mean to be "trustworthy" with money? It can't mean the same thing that "trustworthy" means to the world, for that means responsible in maintaining and accumulating wealth. No, "trustworthy" must mean the opposite, in a typically paradoxical sense. The question is, "So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?" If you have hoarded money rather than distributing it, will God trust you with true wealth? (And if God does entrust us with true wealth, do you suppose we will keep that either, or give it away in like fashion?) So now, working our way backward to the passage in question, we are commanded to use money to "make friends" in order to be welcomed into eternal dwellings. Well, who are we to make friends with? Who does the steward make friends with? The poor and the indebted. Ironically, then, it is the poor who welcome us into eternal dwellings. To give my answer to some of those questions, I don't think Christ commends the shrewd manager, but he uses the manager as an example. If even worldly people know how to use money for greater ends, how much more ought we? I think that, in connection with the greater teachings of Christ, he is denouncing having money. God doesn't decide who has money and who doesn't, but in a sense he does decide who is spiritually rich and poor. I don't think it's ever easy to do God's will, rich or poor. The challenges are just different. The only caveat is that rich people may have the extra stumbling block of self-reliance. And how to be shrewd about eternity? Well, that's for you to decide On Friday, June 16, 2006 4:34:00 PM, Sam said... I wish I could have been there for the discussion. I like this passage because it challenges our boxes about Jesus. We're looking for the story to tell us what we should be like -- like the good Samaritan. We often expect Jesus' stories to be only about good guys doing good things, but instead he uses what's necessary to get the point across. I've heard and read many commentators try to bend things to make out the manager to be a good guy. But he's not, in the beginning he's accused of being wasteful and he never denies it, and he certainly doesn't change his ways. He is both dishonest and shrewd. The key, as I read it, is as you and Kevin have said, the money. Jesus was looking for a metaphor for worldly wealth and found one in money made dishonestly. Not that all worldly wealth is dishonest, but wordly wealth compared to heavenly wealth is like dishonest wealth compared to honest wealth. Compared to heavenly riches, all wordly wealth is like dishonest wealth, it's hyperbole. The same type of comparison coimes up again in verse 10. Little=worldly wealth and much = heavenly riches. So, be like the manager and use wordly riches to gain friends (for heaven). So it does give us a backhanded example, but not with a hero we like. And the more important point is how to view worldly wealth compared to heavenly wealth, and, given that understanding, what to use it for. The Rich Man and Lazarus story in verses 16-31 provides good commentary for this parable. And, as has been said, it all challenges our notions about money. Often we do want to love God and money, at least a little, we like what our money gives us, it's hard to give it all to Jesus, but Jesus continues to show us what following him is about. Post a Comment Links to this post: <$BlogBacklinkTitle$> <$BlogBacklinkSnippet$> posted by <$BlogBacklinkAuthor$> @ <$BlogBacklinkDateTime$> Create a Link [back to blog main page]