Introduction
In the Gospel of Luke, chapter 16, we find teachings about service positions that God has entrusted to humans. Unfortunately, many misuse their authority and employ it inappropriately. Instead of glorifying God Almighty, they are using their positions to benefit themselves. In Luke 16:1-15, the Lord Jesus tells us the parable of the unrepentant manager, which illustrates the misuse of God-given gifts, the tendency to justify ourselves before others, and how pride and the love of money can obstruct faith and repentance towards God. Servants of God who misuse the gifts of God for the purpose of benefiting themselves would rather deal with the dark side and give themselves up to the dark side than ask for mercy and forgiveness from the Lord. As servants of God, we cannot serve both God and money. The parable centers around a rich man whose manager was accused of squandering his possessions. To escape trouble, the cunning manager chose to align himself with the “dark side” (as seen in Luke 16:4). We encourage all readers to explore the entire parable along with our accompanying comments. In this blog article, we will examine Luke 16:8-15 to gain a deeper understanding of the Lord Jesus’ teachings in this parable, which may be challenging for some to comprehend.
Comments Luke 16:8-15
Luke 16:8 And the master commended the unrighteous manager because he acted prudently; for the sons of this age are more prudent than the sons of the light in respect to their generation.
“And the master commended the unrighteous manager because he acted prudently.” We can also notice in this verse how the Lord deals with the unrighteous. The word “commended” in this verse does not imply that the Lord endorses the bad deeds; instead, the Lord aims to highlight to all the unrighteous actions this manager has committed.
“For the sons of this age are more prudent than the sons of the light in respect to their generation.” The unrighteous manager is an example of how humans act towards each other when they lack faith. They don’t care if you are on their side or not as long as they can gain some benefit from you. They will use you and step on you, unlike the sons of light; as this verse tells us, the sons of light will be opposite to the unrighteous managers of the world.
9 And I say to you, Make to yourselves friends by means of the wealth of unrighteousness; that, when you may fail, they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.
“Make to yourselves friends by means of the wealth of unrighteousness.” If you use the treasures of this world that you get from unrighteous ways, and you befriend the same type of people that have the same unrighteous ways as the treasures you have used, then you can say about yourself that you belong to the unrighteous people. You use your unrighteous dealings with another unrighteous person, shrewd against shrewd, both will go along together well. If you are black, then white can see your color, and you can damage the white; keep yourself with the black, and you will not damage the white (the color in this place is the person’s faith). It is the same way for the white: if you know that they are black, do not involve yourself with them, as the Lord has told, do not yoke yourself with the unbelievers (2 Corinthians 6:14-15).
“That, when you may fail, they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.” If you join with the unrighteous people, you become one of them, and you will both fall at the end. When they both fall, they will both join together for the hell of eternity. All readers should pay attention to the fate of the unrighteous people.
10 The one faithful with very little is also faithful with much; and the one unrighteous with very little is also unrighteous with much.
For both of these sayings in this verse, there is one meaning: if you can be trusted with small things, small little things that the Lord has given you, and you know and give praise to the Lord who gives it to you and from the depths of your soul you have treasured those little things, in that way, the Lord Himself will give you more because you have appreciated the little things He has given you.
11 If therefore you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches?
“If therefore you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth.” This verse talks about the wealth of this earth: if you gained all your wealth from the things the Lord has given you by way of mistreatment and misuse and through untrustworthy dealings and doubled them in unrighteous ways, those are the treasures that are called unrighteous wealth. But you will never be faithful to that wealth you have because that wealth is not from the Lord, and it was obtained in the wrong way of making wealth: by misusing what the Lord has given you. You are a servant of the Lord, but you gained earthly wealth in unrighteous ways, then you say to yourself and others that you gained this wealth from the Lord, and you are faithful to it, thinking that it is from the Lord’s blessing, but it is a false faith; the Lord is not involved here. In your unrighteous ways, you believe that the Lord has blessed all things, even the unrighteous ways, but that is untrue; the Lord does not bless unrighteous dealings.
“Who will entrust to you the true riches.” If during life on this earth, you already have everything humans need, the Lord has already blessed you with a good life, but you have not appreciated what the Lord has given you on this earth, then in the new earth to come, what true treasure will the Lord give to you because He has already blessed you in this earth and you have not appreciated His mercy? In the new earth to come, you will not receive the true treasure that remains forever.
12 And if you have not been faithful in that which is another's, who will give to you that which is yours?
“And if you have not been faithful in that which is another's.” This place talks about the fact that the Lord has given you a gift, but you never used that gift to glorify God; instead, you used that gift to glorify yourself, and that is why the verse says, “not been faithful in that which is another’s” (“another” here refers to the Lord).
“Who will give to you that which is yours.” If you cannot be trusted for what the Lord has given you at the beginning of your life on this earth, how can you expect the Lord to give you the true treasures of Heaven? You have been working for the Lord on this earth to collect the treasures in Heaven, which are your own treasures, but if you do not use the gift the Lord has given you first, that treasure, which should be yours, will disappear according to your own actions.
13 No servant is able to serve two masters; for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or he will be devoted to one, and despise the other. You are not able to serve God and money.
“You are not able to serve God and money.” When people have more money, they believe that with their own money, they can acquire wealth in Heaven as well, and they believe money is a god for themselves because that money has given them the confidence of riches.
14 And the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things; and they scoffed Him.
This verse tells us about those who are lovers of money. People who love money more than they love the Lord will never respect the Lord. Even when the Lord teaches in front of them as a Teacher, they refuse to accept it; as the verse says, “they scoffed at Him.”
15 And He said to them, You are those that justify yourselves before men; but God knows your hearts; for that which is exalted among men is an abomination before God.
Notice the way the Lord has answered them. Linking both types of people together, lovers of money and the Pharisees, this second group of people acts righteously; these people represent themselves as God’s messengers on earth because they think that only they can know God’s will. The beloved Son of God has told them here: you may look right, but God sees deep into your heart; you want to be exalted by men, but for God Himself, you are just the abomination of the abominations; that is who they were. Pharisees themselves acted as messengers of God and claimed to know God’s will, but these people who justify themselves before men are not righteous in front of God.
“Which is exalted among men is an abomination before God.” This saying is specifically for this group of people because they exploit the name of the Lord for profit.
Conclusions
Meditating on the teachings of this parable, especially verse 9, one might wonder why the Lord does not call for repentance, but instead says to make friends with your own kind. Here, it is essential to understand that the Lord has made it clear that if you belong to the dark and are unwilling to change, ultimately, you will have nothing left; even the Lord Himself will reject you, and you will be cast among those in the dark.
Many of us strive to follow the narrow path of faith, but often find it challenging, especially when we feel challenged and rejected by our fellow Christians. We may also feel confused about what is right and wrong in our faith, particularly when we observe churches that, despite not adhering to the Word of God, seem to thrive and prosper. Many faith movements appear prosperous, attracting numerous followers and achieving financial success. We tend to measure success based on earthly metrics, such as culture, wealth, and growth, rather than on genuine spiritual blessings. However, we must always return to the fundamentals of faith and the Word of God to gauge our success, using spiritual metrics instead of earthly ones. The Lord does not bless unrighteous dealings, and we must be mindful of our actions. Our primary focus should be on honoring the Lord God Almighty and being the light He desires us to be. We can achieve this by remaining steadfast in our faith and following the Word of God daily. In doing so, the Lord will bless us in both spiritual and earthly matters as He sees fit. We must always prioritize our love for God over money, ensuring that all our worldly dealings align with His will and are pleasing to Him. Therefore, it is essential to pray for guidance in our everyday business and seek advice from the Lord.
In conclusion, we must not compromise our faith to serve the dark side in any situation. We should always be vigilant in how we serve the Lord God Almighty, ensuring that our actions are conducted righteously. If our actions do not align with the Word of God, and the Lord prompts us to repent for our mistakes, we must sincerely repent from the depths of our hearts in the name of the Lord Jesus.
Meditation Tasks
- Please read 2 Corinthians 6:14-15 and analyze its implications for our spiritual lives. Additionally, take a moment to review our blog article titled “Thus, You Will Recognize Them by Their Fruits.”
- Reflect on our spiritual growth and consider whether contemporary culture—such as music and new ideologies—has been influencing our faith instead of the Word of God. We also encourage all readers to check out our blog article titled “Teachings on How to Be a Disciple of the Lord Jesus.”