Jesus didn’t name his parables – he just told them. Later, people who put bibles together added headings and titles – which often obscure as much as they highlight. Why name the story about the man and his two sons “The Prodigal Son,” and not, “The Merciful Father” or “The Resentful Brother?” Any of those names limit our view of the parable.
Parables are multi-faceted – you look at one head on, it appears to say one thing; you turn it just slightly, or look from the perspective of another character and, “Whoa, I never noticed that before…” And then there are some that, no matter how many ways you turn, it’s hard to grasp just what Jesus was saying.
Long intro to an odd reading. I was tempted to retrieve another of my “Top Ten Bible Passages” this week – but that would be wimping out. If we spend some time on this one, it will reveal more of itself.
This parable is sometimes called “The Shrewd Manager,” and sometimes “The Dishonest Steward.” Both? Yeah. So let’s forget titles and look at the story: A rich man finds out his caretaker is squandering his estate. He calls him in, tells him he’s onto him, and demands an accounting. The manager realizes he’s about to be fired. He doesn’t want to do manual work or beg – so he cooks up a scheme. He calls in the man’s debtors and lowers each one’s bill if he’ll pay up. Now he has some income to show the boss; the debtors get a deal; and the manager buys himself some friends. Oh – and, Jesus says, the boss commends him for his savvy. What??? And why is Jesus telling a story of ledgers and balances and profit & loss statements? Isn’t accounting a little out of his wheelhouse as a rabbi?
By some measures, Jesus talked about finance and how we use and get used by our money more than any other subject. Way more than he spoke about sexuality or peace or justice. Because he knew that our relationship with money speaks volumes about our level of faith and trust and openness to the grace of God. And because money and managers are great metaphors for understanding our relationship to the gifts God gives us to enjoy and nurture and invest.
How would you describe your relationship with money?
(easy / trusting / anxious / clinging / generous / organized / playful / indifferent / attached / ? )
Are there areas in your life in which you don’t feel you are a good steward of God’s gifts to you?
(time / relationships / vocation / health / place / nature / education / ? )
How about some areas where you use the gifts wisely and well?
Today, in prayer, invite Jesus into all those parts of your life. If your relationship with money is not as easy as you’d like, pray about that. Tell God your anxieties. We’re called to be un-anxious – and sometimes we have to name our worries so we can let go of them.
Do you fear judgment about your use or misuse of any gifts in your life? This is a good day to name those fears, and repent for anything in particular that weighs you down. God wants us to be real and to trust in God’s loving grace.
Jesus told his followers they were no longer servants but friends. We can afford to look at our records as stewards without fear of being “fired” – and in the security of an awesome, eternal retirement plan.
What does "squander" mean to the rich owner and what does "squander" mean to us?
ReplyDeleteSay humanity is the manager; God is the owner.
God invites humanity to make wise good use of Creation so that there will be abundance for all. Instead, the manager neglects to do good. Humanity wastes and ruins natural resources and ignores the natural consequence: scarcity for many with pain and suffering for all.
Suppose the rich owner cares more that his abundance is shared than to extract a profit from sale of his properties' abundance?
Imagine the owner has such abundance that every character in the parable would have more than enough if only the manager did his job.
I think our shock at the owner's praise is rooted in our presumption that the owner shares OUR values. We recoil at the rich owner's praise because we believe in scarcity.
Could it be that the rich owner does not share our faith in scarcity but sees clearly how all of humanity could live in harmony and abundance if we were good stewards? If we did our God-given job?
Jesus refers to a verse someplace that says not to muzzle the ox who grinds the grain. That's one way to see the bad manager.
This parable isn't about how fairly to divide a teeny little finite pie. It's about how to bake pies so wisely that every creature has just what it needs. If we can get that right, then there is plenty of room to eat the leftovers without complaining.
Kirk