Luke 16:1-13 - Wise Stewardship

The Pharisee’s concept concerning wealth and money was greatly skewed. To them, wealth was a sure sign of God's favour. They thought that those whom God loves, He makes rich. As a result they would go after wealth to show that God had accepted and approved of them. Unfortunately, this is also a prevailing thought in our day. One's riches is often seen as an indication of God's blessing. So some would pursue wealth relentlessly with unscrupulous means. Aware that there was this prevailing misconception, Jesus set out to correct the wrong idea about wealth and possessions, through a parable recorded in Luke 16:1-13. The purpose of this story is to help us cultivate a right attitude concerning wealth. And also on how we can be wise stewards of our possessions.

The parable is about a steward who handled his master's estate irresponsibly. When the master had news of this, he called the steward in for accounting. That steward then engaged in a serious reflection, and came up with a plan for his own future. He knew that he couldn't do hard labour but to beg is unthinkable. So he devised a scheme that would win him friends when his service with the master came to an end. He called the master's debtors and had their bills reduced. So now those debtors became his friends and were indebted and beholden to him. So whenever he made his rounds, he was always welcomed by them.

At this point, the disciples would have expected Jesus to tell them how the master uncovered the scheme, and dealt a serious blow to that irresponsible steward. But to their bewilderment, the shrewd steward was praised. Of course Jesus didn't commend his shrewdness but his foresight and astute-ness. Jesus said the sons of this earth are smarter than the sons of light in this sense: they had foresight. They saw what was coming in their future and acted to secure it for their comfort. But we, the children of light, standing at the brink of eternity, lack the foresight and the will to do something about it, especially on our relationship with others.

There are a few things we can see from this parable. Firstly, we are called to be generous, we should use worldly wealth wisely with the future in mind and not just for the present. Secondly, we are to be faithful in the stewardship regardless of how small the task may seem to be. Thirdly, in verse 13, Jesus said that we are either slaves to money or slaves to God, we cannot be slaves to both at the same time. We are stewards and not owners of our possessions. God is the real owner. The way we handle them will clearly show whether we have a right perspective. Let's cultivate a right attitude as we seek to advance the cause of God.  Let's be found wise, faithful and diligent.  

Luke 15:11-32 - The generous father and his two prodigal sons

The story in Luke 15:11-32 is the last parable in a series of three, concerning lost and found. The first is about a lost sheep that was found, and the second is about a lost coin that was found. Now this third one is about a lost son that was found. In this parable, the youngest son, who came to the father to request for his inheritance, is always the focus. He is seen to be the one that is being referred to as the prodigal son. However, the word prodigal has different shades of meaning. It means extravagant, careless and it also means generous.

When the word prodigal is used on the father, we see one who is generous and magnanimous and gives freely. When used on the younger son, we see a self-indulgent man who squandered his life on riotous living. He is one who loves the father’s goods but not the father. But the elder brother was also a prodigal in that he was self-righteous and self-absorbed. He couldn’t see anything but himself. So in a sense, we see three prodigals in this parable: the generous father, the self-indulgent younger son and the self-righteous elder brother.  

The magnanimous and forgiving father is like God. His compassion never ceases. In the story, we learn that despite being snubbed by both sons, He loves over and over again. He accepted the self-indulgent son when he returned with contrition. Not a word was spoken, not even an “I-told-you-so” lecture, but just a generous forgiveness and restoration. This repentant son was given new status (robe), a new authority (signet ring), and a new purpose (shoes). All that the father needed to see was his son’s repentance.

With the elder brother who was self-righteous, He also reached out to him. Gently and tenderly, He explained Himself. He invited the elder brother to see from His perspective. All that He had was also at the elder’s son disposal, he could have the freedom and liberty to use it rightly. But our elder brother, Jesus, took the grace of God and sought for us, His younger wayward brothers and sisters, and brought us home to the Father.

Which of the two brothers are we like? The self-indulgent or the self-righteous one!? Let’s remember that we have a generous and forgiving Father in God. He is always looking out for us. He only has the very best intention for us. When we return to Him with a contrite heart, He will not despise us. He has a generous plan for each one of us. He only wants us to realize His heart, and to move in tandem with His plan and purpose for our lives. Can we not see His tender and loving heart?

Luke 15:8-10 – Keeping your relationship complete

The story of the lost coin is the second parable in the series of three parables, recorded in Luke 15. In a similar vein as the first on the lost sheep, this story recounts how a woman lost one of her ten silver coins. The ten silver coins represented her cherished dowry. They were strung together like a belt. It was something that a woman would wear around her forehead on her wedding day. Each coin was worth a day's wage.

This woman in the story lost one of the coins. So she lit a lamp and combed through the floor from corner to corner. She left no dust unturned and searched everywhere for her lost coin. She would not spare any effort till that coin was found. We all can identify with this woman's helplessness and frantic search for something that had been misplaced. Isn't it? We can also identify with her "eureka" moment when she found it.

“I found it!” This was her triumphant exclamation. Such a joy is hard to contain. Immediately, she invited all her friends to rejoice with her in a celebration. Jesus said, similar joy would be found among the angels of God in heaven over one sinner who repents.

To have lost one of those coins would be reckoned as being unfaithful. Like that woman, we should also exercise the same diligence in our faithfulness toward God. Do make room in our lives for the Holy Spirit to search through our hearts.  We need to make amend in areas where we have been unfaithful in our relationship with Him. Be sure to let the searchlight of the Holy Spirit light up in your life!

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me and know my anxious thoughts;
And see if there be any hurtful way in me,
And lead me in the everlasting way. 

Luke 15:1-7 - Every soul counts

Many of those who followed Jesus were sinners and tax-collectors, the highly despised people. And more and more were following Him and His popularity kept climbing. This really irked the Pharisees and the teachers of the law. In Jesus' willingness to accept these sinners and tax-collectors, they found an excuse to malign Him. So in verse 2, we read that they were murmuring and grumbling against Him, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.” This is the backdrop of the several parables that Jesus taught after that. In verses 3-7, we see the first parable on the lost sheep and the searching shepherd.

The lost sheep suggests that this was something that even the Pharisees themselves would do. When a Pharisee who has a sheep that wandered from his fold and got lost, he would also leave the rest, the ninety-nine in the care of a faithful servant and go looking for that lost sheep. Regardless of how long and tiring that search might be, the shepherd would look for the lost sheep till it was found. Once found, the sheep would be carried on his shoulder. He would not chide nor punish that sheep. In fact, he would even gently carry the sheep over his shoulder and came home rejoicing. When he had returned home he would even organize a party and invite his friends for a rejoicing meal. Joy is the response when a lost sheep is found.

Quite obviously, the lost sheep refers to a sinner. However, Jesus’ idea ran contrary to the Pharisees' belief. To them, God hates sinners and would only rejoice in their death. They refused to believe that God would restore a sinner. They believed that God would only condemn a sinner.

The truth is: God loves sinners although He hates sins. That love would constrain Him to search for sinners. And when they are found and respond to His love, He would greatly rejoice. In fact the whole of heaven would rejoice. But this was not in keeping with the Pharisees' belief.  From this parable we learned that God loves everyone. No one is beyond the help of God, and there is none too sinful or terrible that He would not love. The only criterion is for us to admit our sin and repent from it.

Taking care of the physical needs is necessary but it should not replace the importance of caring for the soul. Let us complete the mission of the Lord to seek and save the lost.

When one loses money, he has lost something,

When one loses a friend, he has lost even more.

But when one loses his soul, he has lost everything.

Luke 14:25-35 – As Jesus’ disciples, we must count the cost

As followers of the Lord Jesus, we all like His words that bring comfort. Two examples are "Peace I give to you..." and "I will give you rest...." What about hearing some uncomfortable words of Jesus? Luke 14:25-35 give us a few of them. Here, His impending crucifixion and death was looming near. It's always fun to follow Him when He is widely accepted and popular. But at this time, the time for Him to be rejected and ultimately crucified, was drawing nearer. If the people had known this fact would they still be as excited to follow Him?

In this passage, Jesus gave His disciples a reality check, which we must also do from time to time. Jesus made two startling remarks in verses 25-27 - (1) A disciple, it seems, is required to hate one's own family members and even one's own life; (2) A disciple is expected to carry his own cross and follow Him. What does Jesus expect of us, His disciples, in these two statements? We need to know that the word “hate” is not to be taken literally. It is said as a comparison. In essence, Jesus is asking us to give Him our top priority in life and relationship. In comparison to all our earthly relationship, He wants us to put Him at the top of the list. Are we prepared to do that? Secondly, He is asking us to be sacrificial in demonstrating our love for Him. As He has loved us enough to die for us, would we love Him enough to give up self-comfort to follow Him? Discipleship is demanding. We need to give Him top priority and be sacrificial in living for Him.    

In verses 28-33, the Lord shared two parables. The essence of these two parables is the same. That is: His disciples must follow Him to the very end. He said that no builder would want to start building and then not complete the task he sets out to do. In the same way, a king would only start a war with victory in mind. If he could not triumph, he would rather abort it midway. So in the same way, if we are to become a truly effective disciple, we must persist and stay through to the very end. To do so requires that we count the cost and calculate the risks. Once we start the journey, we must be resilient and follow though. Like salt, if a disciple has lost its flavor, he would lose his function. He no longer can add meaning to himself or the lives of others. He would only be good to be placed under the feet and be trampled upon.

The Lord then challenges us to pursue Him in verse 35. We must seek to know what He is saying and then to follow after Him. What a radical call! Setting priority, making sacrifices, counting the cost, and calculating the risk, are all essential processes if we want to be an effective disciple. When was the last time we paused to evaluate our progress with the Lord? Why don't we schedule some time to do so again? Paying the price to attain the demands of discipleship will definitely make us more effective. There is no easy path, we must organize our life and engage in activities that will help us to do what we cannot now do by direct effort.

Luke 14:16-24 – Invitation to the Kingdom

In Luke 14:16-24, Jesus continued with another parable to correct the Pharisees' wrong concepts concerning the Kingdom. He was responding to the man in verse 15, who said to Him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the Kingdom of God." The Pharisees believed that all Jews would be included in the future Kingdom because of their link to Abraham. In the custom of those days, an invitation to a banquet was usually given well in advance. Guests would then indicate their responses. On the eventual day of the banquet when everything had been finalized and prepared, a servant would again be sent to notify the guests to come to the banquet.

The Kingdom in this parable is represented by a banquet. God is the host. And Jesus the Messiah, is God's final messenger sent to announce the final invitation to the Kingdom. This parable implies that through His prophets, God had already sent out His invitation to the Jewish nation to enter His Kingdom. They had indicated their response to be at the dinner. But when the message from their Messiah had arrived and it was time to come to the banquet, they rejected the invitation. They would not come to the banquet. The host than directed that the invitation to go out to others, the outcast, the socially unaccepted and all others to come. These would be found at the banquet ultimately. The Lord Jesus made it clear that the inclusion to the Kingdom would be by response to the host's invitation. It was not decided by one's physical linage to Abraham.

To the Pharisees, their rejection of the invitation was an opportunity lost. By opting out of the invitation to God's eternal fellowship, they have rejected God's grace. Their absence in the kingdom would be their own making. They had chosen not to attend the banquet although they were the first to receive the invitation. Jesus made it quite clear that no man could enter the kingdom without accepting the invitation to come. And He also made it quite clear that anyone who remains outside, does so by his own obstinate choice of turning down the invitation. While a man may not be able to save himself, he could also choose not to be saved. The Jew's rejection had prepared the way for the invitation to be extended to others. Many of those who would finally be at the banquet were those least expected.

Sadly, we read of the many in the parable who had so many concerns that the Kingdom was not in the list of their priority. They preferred their investments (land), their careers (oxen), and earthly relationship (wife). These had crowded out their love for God.  Just as these had caused them to lose their focus, are they also the things that cause us to lose ours too? God's personal questions to each of us remains, "Do you want to attend my feast?" "Are the mundane things of life more important than Jesus?" These are questions that each one of us will be confronted with, individually and personally. What would be our response?

Luke 14:12-15 - True Hospitality

In the last parable, Jesus taught us what not to do when we attend a dinner. Now in Luke 14:12-15, He wants us to know what to do if we really want to show hospitality. Showing hospitality was a common practice in the time of the New Testament. Hotels were uncommon. Travelers depended much on generous and hospitable people to host them. In verse 12, we see Jesus talking to His host but His message was meant for a wider audience, the Pharisees. They had the motive of inviting people to advance their own cause. Being truly hospitable was farthest from their minds. They only wanted to show hospitality to those who could return their favor. Therefore they would only invite people with the means to do that.  People who truly have needs and who couldn't return the favor would never be invited by them.

So Jesus challenged them to invite the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind, people who couldn't reciprocate their hospitality. These were considered the outcast and the despised. Few, much less the Pharisees, would care for their existence. To Jesus, care ought to be given to these needy people. Care should be given without being concerned about reciprocity. Jesus assured them that, if they considered people with needs and show hospitality with sincerity toward them, God Himself would repay their kindness.  And His repayment would far exceed what the richest man could ever repay them.

In verse 15, we read that 'When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.”' The Pharisees believed in the resurrection and the life after. They taught about sitting at the table in the banquet feast in heaven. All Pharisees assumed that they would be found among that distinguished list of guests. What they failed to see was the banquet feast in heaven is the banquet feast of the Lamb. The man to be honored at that feast would be Jesus, whom they were attacking. That Pharisee, who yelled out these words, probably assumed that he would be present at the feast and Jesus would be absent. What pigheaded audacity!

It's common even today to want to fellowship only with people who are influential. Why? They have the capacity to help us climb the social ladder. Even in church, this is a common phenomenon. The question to ask should be "What can I do to meet the needs of others?' not "What can I do to get something in return?" We should learn to view everyone with the eyes of Jesus. For us, who have heard the call of Jesus, to follow Him in serving and meeting the needs of others is no longer an option. It's good to know that the rich have needs and to want to help them meet those needs, but let's not neglect the needs of the poor, the true needy people.