can someone explain this?

Atown

Atown

Christian Gamers Alliance Amazon Store Manager
Staff member
ive been having trouble understanding this section of scripture

Luke 16 (New International Version)
New International Version (NIV)

Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
[NIV at IBS] [International Bible Society] [NIV at Zondervan] [Zondervan]

Luke 16
The Parable of the Shrewd Manager
1Jesus told his disciples: "There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 2So he called him in and asked him, 'What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.'

3"The manager said to himself, 'What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I'm not strong enough to dig, and I'm ashamed to beg— 4I know what I'll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.'

5"So he called in each one of his master's debtors. He asked the first, 'How much do you owe my master?'

6" 'Eight hundred gallons[a] of olive oil,' he replied.
"The manager told him, 'Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred.'

7"Then he asked the second, 'And how much do you owe?'
" 'A thousand bushels of wheat,' he replied.
"He told him, 'Take your bill and make it eight hundred.'

8"The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. 9I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
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mostly
For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. 9I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
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how do i interpret that or use it in daily life? its bizzar to me becuase, worldy practices arent suppose to be good? yet as christians we may not be as "street smart" ?
 
That is an extremely difficult passage, one I struggled with for a while as well. I think it all boils down to this:

That worldly man knew enough to know the writing was on the wall, that his job was coming to an end, due to his own making (his misdealings and dishonesty). He needed to use all of his resources to make sure he was taken care of when his job ended. His boss commended him for his shrewdness, not his morals.

Similarly, we should be wise enough to know that someday, our lives will come to an end, due to our own making (our sin). We need to use all of our resources to make sure that we are well taken care of when our lives end. Our boss (Jesus) will commend us for our shrewd decision, even if it is initially simply for fire insurance.

I don't think that Jesus commented on the morality of the man, simply that he made a well thought out decision.
 
my thing is, why is Jesus telling us to befriend people for earthly gains such as wealth and then tell us we get extra in heaven for doing so?
 
Atown said:
my thing is, why is Jesus telling us to befriend people for earthly gains such as wealth and then tell us we get extra in heaven for doing so?
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I don't think Jesus is saying that at all. I think he's saying that we need to use what we have on earth to build Kingdom wealth. It's a common sense passage-- if we believe in everlasting life, why waste the resources we have here on things that pass away when we could be building up our treasures in Heaven?
 
what about
For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light.
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arent we suppose to gain wisdom and guidance from God so we wouldt need help for these things? and also does this passage give a notion of naivity common among christians?
 
From my study Bible...

(16:8) Why commend someone who was dishonest?
This passage is one of the most difficult in the Gospels to interpret. It's important to notice that the manager was not commended for his dishonesty; he was commended for his shrewdness. Jesus was not urging us to cheat. He was encouraging his disciples to be savvy about the use of money and other worldly matters.

Some think Jesus' statement was originally a question -- "Would the master commend the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly?" -- with "No" as the implied answer. His following comments, then, would be simply an observation about life -- that though his disciples should live ethically, they could, nonetheless, learn to be more shrewd about using material things to make an impact for eternity.

(16:9) Why use money to buy friendships?
This is not the same as bribing people to win recognition or favors on earth. Jesus was encouraging his disciples to use their money generously whenever and wherever they could to help others. Good deeds cannot buy eternal rewards, but those who do good because Christ has changed them will be rewarded in heaven.

(16:10-11) What do financial abilities have to do with spiritual responsibilities?
It's a matter of increasing responsibilities. Mailroom to CEO promotions don't happen in one giant step. It's the same with spiritual promotions. Since spiritual wealth is far more valuable than worldly wealth, we will not be trusted to manage heavenly riches if we have proved ourselves untrustworthy with money on earth. Those who are selfish and materialistic , failing to honor God with their money and possessions, demonstrate that they do not value true spiritual wealth. The primary focus is to use money responsibly and with integrity.
 
/cheer Atown

I just wanted to pipe in and say that it's very encouraging to see forum members asking questions on difficult verses. :)
 
Tek7 said:
/cheer Atown

I just wanted to pipe in and say that it's very encouraging to see forum members asking questions on difficult verses. :)
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hehe every now n then i get on a good topic, but im still stuck on this one. is it saying as christians we're naive becuase we're to trust people and love them, therefor we rely on worldly wisdom of our friends? im not trying to be dense if this has already been explained, im just not seeing it.
 
In my own readings I believe that Jesus is saying this:

It is wise (from a worldy point of view) to use your money to win friends and influence people, because it will make you have a more confortable life. BUT remember that you are to be building up treasures in heaven and God will not be impressed when you are done. Remember to take this parable with the teaching that follows:

10 “If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities. 11 And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven? 12 And if you are not faithful with other people’s things, why should you be trusted with things of your own?

13 “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”

People may take you in to their homes forever because you are shrewd with your wealth, but if you are untrustworthy with worldly wealth, why would God trust you with the wealth of his kingdom?
 
how do i interpret that or use it in daily life? its bizzar to me becuase, worldy practices arent suppose to be good? yet as christians we may not be as "street smart" ?
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Yep, believe it or not, you are pretty much dead on right here. Worldly practices are not necessarily bad, many worldly business practices are good, just tainted with sin. God wants good stewards for his kingdom and sometimes, learning stewardship means to look at worldly practices and learning from them. If you want to become a great business person, then probably one should look at those who are at the top of the business world and see what they have done.

Read the above with reference with the parable of the Talents and you will see that the land owner rewarded his servants who took the money and earned more.

God will take those who take what they have been given and grow it and reward them generously. And how you learn to be a shrewd business person to take what you have been given and grow, you may have to look at the worldly business culture to figure it out.
 
Gods_Peon said:
Yep, believe it or not, you are pretty much dead on right here. Worldly practices are not necessarily bad, many worldly business practices are good, just tainted with sin. God wants good stewards for his kingdom and sometimes, learning stewardship means to look at worldly practices and learning from them. If you want to become a great business person, then probably one should look at those who are at the top of the business world and see what they have done.

Read the above with reference with the parable of the Talents and you will see that the land owner rewarded his servants who took the money and earned more.

God will take those who take what they have been given and grow it and reward them generously. And how you learn to be a shrewd business person to take what you have been given and grow, you may have to look at the worldly business culture to figure it out.
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that about does it, thankyou
 
I was thinking abit more on this and as a business person, I can tell you that sometimes Christians are my worst clients. I've had to deal with "christians" who felt that because we were both of the same faith that I should give them some kind of discount. And alot of Christians would, feeling that they are doing this in the name of our Lord.

But this is not what our Lord wants us to do. If in my practice I do work for you that in turn helps you prosper in Gods kingdom (and I don't mean a Kingdom that is yet to come, we pray the Lords prayer saying "Thy Kingdom Come" meaning it is here now. We can reap the benefits of the Kingdom today. Or we not blessed today or does that have to wait. Actually, I think this whole thing can be devoted to another discussion) I should also prosper from my work in Gods Kingdom. By asking me for a discount, you are saying that you deserve to be more prosperous then I. And as a shrewd business person, I tell said clients my fee is X dollars, which I feel is fair for the services provided and no discount will be given. If they think I will starve becasue they go somewhere else, they are foolish. And God will always place a new prospective client at my door who will not balk at price or ask for discounts.
 
hehe yup, the discount thing happens more often than it should and sometimes its just bad dealings.
 
I am fairly new to studying my bible. I have always had faith but not really the knowledge to back it up. Anyways I found this thread very informative and wanted to thank you all.
 
You could also spiritualize it, for, as well as the material, there is also a spiritual demension to everything Christ Jesus ever said.. IMO

If it were spiritualised, I would take it to interpret as 'I gave you the Holy Spirit, aught you not to bank on this! And in so doing (yielding) bring forth fruit for God?'

The Lord did give us a deposit (it is actaully a biblical statement that it is a deposit) of the Holy Spirit! He intends for us to yield to His Holy Spirit so that He can produce Righteous Fruit in and through us! Not only does this 'fruit' increase the Kingdom of God, but it also Glorifies the Son in the Father :)

I liked all the other posts btw :)
Just thought I'd give a different perspective..
 
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