The tale of the shrewd

Jesus liked to tell stories, and they all had meaning. But sometimes it is hard to understand His train of thought. From the story of the prodigal son, He jumped to talk about a dishonest manager (Luke 16). How do these connect?

How would you respond to a dishonest employee? This manager got sacked! Well, once you have the order to clear out your office, then what? The manager realized that he was too young to retire. He was not strong enough to dig ditches and too proud to beg. So…he gathered all of his master’s debtors together. Hey, here’s a discount. Take it down to fifty percent. The master commended his smarts – this dishonest manager knew how to make money work for him, and get into a position where he would have friends.

Jesus says we should do the same. How do we use money of today to influence people for eternity? If you’re faithful now, you’ll be faithful later. But if you cannot handle money here and now in this earth, how will you treat the heavenly valuables to come? You can only serve one: God or money.

The Pharisees heard all this. They were lovers of money. This sounds a lot like the beginning of chapter 15 as they questioned Jesus over His decision to spend time with “tax collectors and sinners.” Was Jesus making friends on earth with a focus on having eternal friendships? But how does this story fit with the sheep and coins and prodigal son?

Know what is valuable.

In the story of the prodigal son, what was the older brother concerned about? Money. He was angry at his dad. That twerp spent all his inheritance already, and now you’re welcoming him back. He’s a disgrace! What about my party? My friends? (My reputation? My inheritance?)

“⁸ The master commended the dishonest manager for his shrewdness. For the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light.”

Who would be a good example of “shrewd”? In the movie Zootopia, Nick the fox seemed like a patient dad when Officer Judy Hopps first met him…after some suspicious activity, she discovered that he was out to make a profit by shady means. But his street smarts came in handy when she needed to find an elusive missing animal.

Shrewd. Looking ahead to be one step in front of the situation. How far ahead do you look?

God, driver’s training taught us to look far ahead of the car. I feel like my eyes are locked ten feet in front of my proverbial steering wheel. Thank You for this lesson in being shrewd, looking ahead to the future, and evaluating what has lasting value. Please help me to learn this lesson in my life (where does that need to happen?). To You be the glory, Amen.

 

A verse to live on

If I ever taught a class of third grade boys, I would probably reference the aliens in the Bible. That’s us. Not in the standard green Martian sense, but the idea of feeling like we do not belong. There are moments of pure wonder and delight, then they pass into sweet memory and we have an itching question: why? Why not all the time?

Hebrews 11 is a chapter of people who lived lives of faith. They lived with binoculars on…looking ahead to the “better” that God was bringing.

“These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. ¹⁴ For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. ¹⁵ If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. ¹⁶ But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.”

There is more ahead…the best is yet to come. Thank You, God, for the glory of each new sunrise!

 

So many stars

Have you ever tried to count the stars? Disregard the scientific numbers…there are lots and lots of stars! A few nights ago I was standing alone in the middle of a dark field looking up at the sky. And I was reminded that the God who knew I was out in the middle of a field was big enough to do something about my circumstances. Not only that, but He created the stars, and has named each one.

“To whom then will you compare me,
    that I should be like him? says the Holy One.
²⁶ Lift up your eyes on high and see:
    who created these?
He who brings out their host by number,
    calling them all by name,
by the greatness of his might,
    and because he is strong in power
    not one is missing.

²⁷ Why do you say, O Jacob,
    and speak, O Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord,
    and my right is disregarded by my God”?
²⁸ Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
    the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
    his understanding is unsearchable.
²⁹ He gives power to the faint,
    and to him who has no might he increases strength.
³⁰ Even youths shall faint and be weary,
    and young men shall fall exhausted;
³¹ but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
    they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
    they shall walk and not faint.”

(Isaiah 40).

And just like He is able to rule the sky, God is able to care for each of the billions of people who have lived on earth. It is not my job to save, cure, or manage the lives of any of them, but to love them as God leads. And it is a beautiful thing to watch the runaway come home, the lost be found, the hopeless saved!

God, thank You that You created the stars and keep track of them all. Please help me to seek to bless the people around me, but not take responsibility for them. God, I need lessons in the best love – Yours. Thank You for being our strength in hard times. Amen.

Who was the prodigal son?

Have you ever tried to “step into someone else’s shoes” to look at things from their perspective? It only works to a certain point. Then you just look at them like they are crazy. Jesus told a third story in Luke 15 in response to the Pharisees grumbling about how He associated with “tax collectors and sinners.” After the lost sheep, and the lost coin, there was a lost son. But it gets much more complicated here! There are three people in this story. And each of them have been examined through the years. And I’ve read this story many times. But why not again? Could God possibly teach me something through another reading? Smirk – of course!

Which boy was the prodigal son?

At first it seems obvious. Younger son: dad, I want my money right now, don’t want anything to do with you, I’m moving out of the state to that big city and enjoying life like everyone else.

Dad gives him what he wants. Watches him leave.

Older brother stays on farm and works.

Younger brother spends and parties and finds it empty (Ecclesiastes, anyone?). So he finally “comes to his senses” and says, “Duh, my dad’s servants are not starving and feeding unclean animals. So I’m going to go ask forgiveness!”

The dad runs to meet him – he had been watching for this wayward son. And he throws a party.

The older son was still out in the field, working, putting in a good day. He comes home to a party for his little brother who ran off and is now being welcomed home. What good is it to work anymore?

Does anyone else see my bias? Yeah, I identify with the older brother. I do all the good things, feel sorry for dad when that punk kid insults him, and think he needs to learn a lesson when he gets home.

What is my problem? In the end, the older brother’s heart was less obedient and willing to listen than the younger’s. So should we all make it a point to run as far away from God as possible to understand that we truly need Him? I think that would be foolish. But hearts of pride – that leaves us outside the party standing in the dark.

So many of Jesus’ parables end with someone outside in the dark where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth – torment and pain. If we hang on to our anger and desire for justice, we will be shut out of the party, away from God. In the long-term view of life, that’s hell!

As Jesus was speaking to another repentant tax collector He said, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19). Where is my compassion for those who are lost and are coming home? I do get excited to see the repenting! But not like God who is anxiously waiting for them and forgives wholeheartedly. I’m sure the younger son had to go to work on the farm again. He did not get to sit around. But he was forgiven by his father. Can I claim any greater wrong done against me? “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” Ephesians 4:32.

God, thank You for another lesson from the prodigal son – please help me to learn humility as I see myself so forgiven by You, and also compassion on those who need forgiveness. It is a gift. I want to recognize the treasure and share it. Please help me to see who I can have compassion on this week. Amen.

I WILL find it!

How many times have you seriously lost something? Not just misplaced it in your bag for a day, but actually reached into the box/bag a few weeks after you put it there, and not found it. But nothing stopped the epic search you conducted to find it again.

Luke 15 opens with many people drawing near to hear from Jesus – corrupt tax collectors and sinners in general. Of course, these are the people who need what Jesus has to say, but why is He so friendly to them? The Pharisees and scribes whispered behind their hands to each other. What is Jesus’ problem?

So Jesus told stories about losing and finding things:

A man lost one of his hundred sheep. But rather than counting 99% as a good enough percentage, he sought out that last sheep. He gathered his friends to rejoice with him. And those sinners who are listening? God in heaven rejoices more when one of them repents than over ninety-nine people who are so good that they have no need to repent before God (hint: this is sarcastic!).

In the same way, a woman lost a coin. She had nine others, but you need all ten! So she got her broom and started sweeping the house, trying to get into every bump and divet in the floor, and all the odd crannies near the corners. And she found it! She let all her friends know and they celebrated with her! That’s just how the angels celebrate with God.

These two stories show how God puts value on things that we might dismiss. I find myself so focused on numbers and percentage margins and all those things on the outside of a person or idea. How do you stop caring about those and care about the people? You take your eyes off what benefit or harm it will do to you, and seek God’s view of profit. It may take a long search. But it is worth it!

God, thank You that You never give up seeking us out. And my heart is so proud, so selfish in my focus on what will benefit me. God, please help me to effectively serve You, even if it does not make sense according to numbers. I look forward to celebrating with You! Amen.

 

Woah there!

Stop…and with that one word, about three pop culture songs slide into my head in succession. But it is amazing how infrequently I use the word “stop” in my life – for my snacks, my social media scrolling, my desire to jump into fun activities. And sometimes in life, someone will be brave enough to call you out on an area that you are struggling with. Other people call out entire sections of society for their actions. Jesus did that with the Pharisees.

“Do what they say, not what they do,” was His instruction to the people. Now those are fighting words! But Jesus went further and pointed out several different areas of “woes” or places where the Pharisees needed to shape up or they would be crying over it later. This came right in the middle of their best attempts to make Jesus mess up. And Jesus finally had enough.

Whoa there, stop that, hold up. Woe to you, Pharisees (Matthew 23):

• You’re hypocrites – doing everything for show, and not really seeking God, then keeping others from seeking Him as well!
• You travel all over trying to find someone to convert (look at your feet here!) and then you teach him the wrong thing so he doesn’t actually seek God!
• You try to justify sounding great and not following through by slicing hairs and making elaborate excuses.
• You are so focused on the minutia of “getting the Law right” that you ignore the big commands that you are missing!
• You are so concerned about ceremonial cleanness, and yet your hearts are not clean!
• You look nice on the outside, but you’re dead inside like a whitewashed tomb. Hypocricy. Lawless, you teachers of the laws of God!
• You act like you would not have acted like your fathers, but you are following in their footsteps by rejecting God and His prophets and messengers! You’ll kill prophets (and the Christ) just like your parents did, and then more besides.

Jesus was not afraid to call them out. But it was not because He was just mad at their blindness and pride. You can see His heart in the next verses – it was breaking:

³⁷ “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! ³⁸ See, your house is left to you desolate. ³⁹ For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’”

The temple was destroyed. The system of sacrifices broken. And Jesus has not yet returned to earth.

Stop before it is too late! All that you are pursuing will collapse if it is only built on tipsy reputations, monetary systems, and things of this world that will not last. It is convicting: whoa, stop, look at life. What would Jesus call you out on?

God, please help me learn to stop. Please help me learn to listen and see where I need to change. And the strength will not come from me. So please help me to change. Amen.

 

Delinquent guests

What happens if you do not show up at a party? David’s host was so mad he tried tried to kill someone with a spear. Vashti was kicked out of the palace as queen. But the worst time was in Jesus’ parable in Matthew 22 (Luke 14) when all the guests refused to attend the wedding feast of a King’s son.

Luke focuses on the excuses. Matthew focuses on how the guests dishonored the King by slighting His invitation to the feast. Not only that, but they also killed the king’s messengers. So who would come to the feast? The king ordered, Get everybody off the street, poor, lame, whatever, bring them in! Some people will come celebrate with us!

The King? God. The Son? Jesus. The messengers and servants – Angles are likely. Also, God sent His prophets to Israel over and over. After they refused to recognize Jesus, God sent His servants to Gentile/non-Jewish people.

What was the difference? The king said that those first invited were not worthy, but how would the wide range of people in the second group be any better. The difference is the heart attitude and willingness to come to the king’s feast.

But one man is called out for being under-dressed. Is this unfair? Well, if he was on the street, he would not have his wedding garments. The host would have provided them. So this guest just refused to put on the clothes offered to him, and was kicked out. You cannot come to the feast on your own merit.

Both Gospels follow with a story of giving God what we owe Him, and all of ourselves no matter what. Revelation 19 describes the marriage supper of the Lamb (Jesus):

“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
the Almighty reigns.
7 Let us rejoice and exult
and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
and his Bride has made herself ready;
8 it was granted her to clothe herself
with fine linen, bright and pure”

Have you accepted God’s invitation to the feast?

God, thank You for inviting so many to join You – You do not hold an exclusive party, but invite everyone in. Thank You for inviting me. Please help me to not try to come in my own strength, but Yours. God, to You be the glory! Amen.

The worst excuse ever

“My dog ate my homework” never worked for me because we always owned cats. But I made up some pretty lousy excuses in my day. On a scale of one to “really?” they were pretty bad. But I think that the excuses in the next parable define lame.

Luke 14, Jesus is at a banquet given by a Pharisee (His enemy). He told a parable to the guests. He gave instruction to the host. And one of the other guests did not understand that this is about how the Pharisees and current leaders have lost a true worship of God.

“Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!” he says.

Yes, Jesus was talking about the resurrection of the just but…are you sure that you’re included?

Jesus begins another parable. A rich man prepared a banquet, and sent a servant to call all the invited guests to come.

“Have to go look at this land I bought, so you’ll excuse me, right”…so you didn’t look at it before? Rolling eyes…

“I just bought five yolk of oxen and I should go look at them now”…wait, what kind of animal-owner are you? Recoil…

And the last one is…well…”I just got married. Duh, I can’t come!” This is not a war, dude.

Jesus’ focus is on the kingdom of heaven. God is giving a banquet, a party, a celebration. Why does no one want to enjoy what He has prepared? It is snubbing His honor, focused on the little things in life that could wait! Why are you neglecting His offer?

How do I neglect Your plans, God, in favor of my own? Thank You for loving me, inviting me to join You on this adventure, and helping me to pursue You more each day. To You be the glory! Amen.

 

 

 

Love poured out

Don’t only plan parties for your friends.

You can read about it Luke 14.

Meals are not gift-exchanges where you are obligated to give something “equal or better-than” the last person.

It is blessing someone.

Who needs to be blessed?

The poor. Sick. Lame. Hospitals. Prisons. Street corners. Down the street with five kids in the house. Your neighbor. Your co-worker. A friend on hard times. That college student eating ramen because they are broke. The home-bound man who lost his wife six months ago after sixty years.

They’ll thank you for it. But that’s not the point. The point is that God’s heart is warmed by that kind of love – because its His love poured out through you!

Jesus poured out love for us on the cross – and He does not expect us to pay Him back. Christianity is not a rewards program that accumulates points with the generous deeds we complete. It is a growth of gratefulness, a blooming of love.

So the people you invite to your banquets may not be able to pay you back, but that does not mean you are not going to be friends. We might even recognize that we are not so different.

God, thank You for humbling us with Your love over and over. It’s not something I can claim to deserve. It’s not something I can learn and search on the internet if I need to refresh my memory. It is an activity of daily seeking to bless others. And in the process, You give us blessing. It’s humbling. Please help me to see who I can bless. To Your glory! Amen.

Mystery passage profile

Mystery passage: Luke 14

“12 He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. 13 But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”

Status: Head-scratchin’-uncertain

Diagnosis: Search for some commentary notes!

Questions (Use back of form if needed):

• Why does Jesus tell this story to the Pharisee? He is still at his house eating dinner. It comes right after His parable about being humble. It is followed by a parable about delinquent guests to a King’s banquet.
• How literally should we take this passage? Should we invite only strangers to the next “banquet” we host?
• What does Jesus mean by “banquet”? A party? Normally for me, parties are some of the best times I enjoy friends and family. And I know from God’s instructions about feasts in the Old Testament that He wanted people to celebrate regularly with family. So what does Jesus mean?
• The core of the story is focused on seeking God’s long-term benefits vs. short-term. So how does that look today?
• Who are the poor/blind/lame/crippled people in my world? How can I reach out to them?

This passage reminds me of Jesus’ instruction in Matthew 25 about serving the least of Jesus’ brethren as though you were serving Him. It remains a powerful and convicting passage for me.

God, please help me to get insight into this passage, and what You are directing us toward by including it in the gospels. And please help me to see the people around me who need Your love. To You be the glory, Amen!