Shrewd Investor
The Gospel of Luke • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 4 viewsNotes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Introduction (Me)
Introduction (Me)
A woman walks into a bank in New York City and asks for the loan officer. She says she's going to Europe on business for two weeks and needs to borrow $5,000. The bank officer tells her that the bank will need some kind of security for such a loan, so the woman hands over the keys to a Lamborghini diablo that's parked on the street in front of the bank.
Everything checks out, and the bank agrees to accept the car as collateral for the loan. An employee drives the Rolls Royce into the bank's underground garage and parks it there.
Two weeks later, the woman returns, repays the $5,000 and the interest, which comes to $15.41. The loan officer approaches her and says:
"We are very happy to have had your business, and this transaction has worked out very nicely, but we're a little puzzled. While you were away, we checked out your accounts and found that you were a multimillionaire. What puzzles us is why would you bother to borrow $5,000?"
"Well, where else in Manhattan can I park my car for two weeks for fifteen bucks?"
How would you describe the action of the woman in the story. Was she being dishonest or manipulative? Or was she being clever and wise? Was she being Shrewd.
Was she being Shrewd.
It interesting how
Tension (We)
Tension (We)
What do you think of when I say the word “Shrewd”?
For some reason I typically think something close to sneaky. It’s not that it’s necesarily morally wrong, but still there just seems to be something that isn’t exactly right about it.
Maybe it is just my “Midwestern Nice” gauge going off, but I guess I figure if she has the money to spend, why not just spend it. But maybe that reveals more about how much I have bought into a world view of spending then it does in how much I understand shrewdness.
According to the Webster Dictionary when something is Shrewd it is:
marked by clever discerning awareness and hardheaded keenness especially in practical matters
Merriam-Webster, I. (2003). Merriam-Webster’s collegiate dictionary. (Eleventh ed.). Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster, Inc.
One of the most practical matters that we deal with everyday is our fiances. Dave Ramsey, the well Christian Financial Adviser, often talks about how the average millionaire does things that are really very shrewd. That it is a myth to think that most millionaires live in ivory towers and wear $500 blue jeans. In fact most millionaires do very practical things that we could all be doing. Things like,
Things like,
1. They’re avid readers.
2. Delaying Gratification, or
But that attitude actually reveals how much we have bought into the world view of spending.
One of the reasons millionaires become millionaires is because of their constant desire to learn. The average Millionaire reads one non-fiction book per month. To them, leadership books and biographies are much more important than the latest hit reality show. When they have free time, they use it wisely—by reading.
2. They understand delayed gratification.
In other words, today’s sacrifices set them up for tomorrow’s success. They have no problem buying an older, used car, living in a modest neighborhood, and wearing inexpensive clothes. Keeping up with the Joneses isn’t a priority for them. They realize that instant gratification is fun—but delayed gratification is so much better.
3. They stay away from debt.
The idea of “debt as a tool” is foreign to the average millionaire. If they want something they can’t afford right now, they save and pay cash for it later. They don’t owe anything to the bank, so every dollar they earn stays with them to spend, to save, and to give. Debt is the biggest obstacle to building wealth. Run from it every chance you get.
4. They budget.
Ramsey likes to point to 5 simple habits of the typical Millionaire:
Your budget is your plan, and you don’t build a net worth of a million dollars without some sort of plan. The average millionaire has made a habit of budgeting every month. They know what’s coming in and what’s leaving their bank account.
5. They give.
1. They’re avid readers.
One of the reasons millionaires become millionaires is because of their constant desire to learn. The average Millionaire reads one non-fiction book per month. To them, leadership books and biographies are much more important than the latest hit reality show. When they have free time, they use it wisely—by reading.
President Harry Truman once said, “Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers.” In The Millionaire Next Door, Stanley says that the average millionaire reads one nonfiction book per month.
President Harry Truman once said, “Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers.” In The Millionaire Next Door, Stanley says that the average millionaire reads one nonfiction book per month.
The everyday millionaires who live down the street, the ones you don’t even realize are wealthy, are some of the most giving people you’ll ever meet. They realize that the most important thing you can do with wealth is help others. That’s actually why they continue building their wealth.
You get the idea. One of the reasons millionaires become millionaires is because of their constant desire to learn. To them, leadership books and biographies are much more important than the latest hit reality show. When they have free time, they use it wisely—by reading.
One of the reasons millionaires become millionaires is because of their constant desire to learn. To them, leadership books and biographies are much more important than the latest hit reality show. When they have free time, they use it wisely—by reading. The typical millionaire will read two or more books a month.
2. They understand delayed gratification.
In other words, today’s sacrifices set them up for tomorrow’s success. They have no problem buying an older, used car, living in a modest neighborhood, and wearing inexpensive clothes. Keeping up with the Joneses isn’t a priority for them. They realize that instant gratification is fun—but delayed gratification is so much better.
Those lifestyle decisions allow them to do things like save for retirement and college and build up a large down payment for their dream home. They realize that instant gratification is fun—but delayed gratification is so much better. Today’s sacrifices set them up for tomorrow’s success.
3. They stay away from debt.
The idea of “debt as a tool” is foreign to the average millionaire. If they want something they can’t afford, they save and pay cash for it later. They don’t owe anything to the bank, so every dollar they earn stays with them to spend, to save, and to give. Debt is the biggest obstacle to building wealth. Run from it every chance you get.
Car payments, student loans, same-as-cash financing plans—these just aren’t part of their financial plan, and that’s why they win with money. They don’t owe anything to the bank, so every dollar they earn stays with them to spend, to save, and to give.
Debt is the biggest obstacle to building wealth. Run from it every chance you get.
4. They budget.
Your budget is your plan, and you don’t build a net worth of a million dollars without some sort of plan. The average millionaire has made a habit of budgeting every month. They know what’s coming in and what’s leaving their bank account. Budgeting is the key to winning with money.
Just like you build a house by starting with the foundation, you build wealth by starting with the budgeting basics. And then you keep following them. When you’re making a lot of money, you don’t stop managing it, right?
The average millionaire has made a habit of budgeting every month. They know what’s coming in and what’s leaving their bank account. To this day, Dave Ramsey and his wife still make a monthly budget—a practice they started decades ago. If you only remember one thing, remember this: Budgeting is the key to winning with money.
5. They give.
Sure, some rich people can be selfish jerks—just like anyone else. But the everyday millionaires who live down the street, the ones you don’t even realize are wealthy, are some of the most giving people you’ll ever meet. They realize that the most important thing you can do with wealth is help others. That’s actually why they continue building their wealth.
Whether it’s tithing at church, donating to a meaningful charity, or just giving to friends and family on occasion, these people have a caring spirit. They realize that the most important thing you can do with wealth is help others. That’s actually why they continue building their wealth. They realize they can’t take it with them when they die. But instead of frivolously spending it all, they choose to leave a legacy for the people who mean the most to them.
Dave says that the idea that wealthy people always live in ivory towers and wear $500 jeans is a myth. Being successful with money is as simple as living a modest lifestyle that follows a few basic principles. The more of these habits you follow, the more successful you’ll be with money.
Ok, how many of us are a little uncomfortable right now with all this talk about “being successful with money”? We got the Midwestern Nice thing and our alarms are going off and we just want to be talking about finances at Church. We already had our budget meeting pastor, so what are you getting at? We are here to learn how to be good Christians, not how to become millionaires.
The more of these habits you follow, the more successful you’ll be with money.
Did you know that while the Bible offers over 500 verses on prayer and less than 500 verses on faith, it gives us more than 2,000 verses on money and possessions. So clearly it is not something that we are supposed to ignore. Or even worse than ignoring it would be doing what we talked about last week and just placing outside of the “spitirual” or “religous” lanes in our life as if God has interest or no claim on things like how we invest our money.
Jesus often talked about money. In our text today Luke puts together several of Jesus’ teachings on money, including a teaching that says that we should be “shrewd” with our money. Not exactly something that we would expect Jesus to be talking about, and we are going to find that it is much more applicable than just finding cheap parking for our lamborghini.
The truth is, all of us are having to make decisions about money every day, but have we ever thought about the fact that how we manage and spend our money actually matters to God?
God’s view on our money? That God on how we should be spending our money here and now what if how we use our finances right now in some way has bearing on what happens in our eternity?
Let’s learn from Jesus together this morning, open your Bibles with me to Luke Chapter 16, (p.875) and I’ll pray and we will dive into Jesus’ teaching together.
Let’s find out together, open your Bibles with me to Luke Chapter 16, (p.875) and I’ll pray and we will dive into Jesus’ teaching together.
Tension (We)
Tension (We)
Truth (God)
Truth (God)
While last week Jesus was primarily addressing the grumbling Pharisees and Scribes, his teaching today begins focused in on how his Disciples should be investing their finances.
He also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions. And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Turn in the account of your management, for you can no longer be manager.’ And the manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg.
Clearly this manager is in a predicament of his own creation. He had been “wasting” his masters possessions and he got caught. We see a connection with the Prodigal Son here, as the same Greek word, “διασκορπίζω” (diaskopizo) is used. Both the Prodigal Son and this wayward manager were “squandering or wasting” the property of someone else.
So instead of investing that money in something worth while, they were spending it on things that had no true value.
That describes the spending habits of most American Households these days. Most of our money is “invested” on things that not only don’t improve our financial situation, they don’t help us to be better people either. Dave Ramsey is famous for saying that:
We are out buying things we don’t need, with money we don’t have to impress people that we don’t even like” - Dave Ramsey
I have decided what to do, so that when I am removed from management, people may receive me into their houses.’ So, summoning his master’s debtors one by one, he said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’
This is what this guy was doing, until the master found out and he had a significant wake up call. Whenever you find yourself in a position when your next career options are either hard manual labor or begging on the streets you are going to look for a third option. And that is what this guy does.
But then he had a bit of a wake up call didn’t he. He took stock of his options and apparently did not like what he saw. Anytime you are forced into looking for a new career and your options are hard manual labor or begging on the streets you are motivated to find a third option. And that is what this guy does.
This was exactly what this guy was doing. It wasn’t his money, He was just wasting it so he didn’t need it and when one person that he should have cared about impressing found out He fired him. He was obviously not making his decisions thinking about the future, but this seemed to be a bit of a wake up call doesn’t it. He took stock of his options and apparently did not like what he saw. Anytime you are looking at a second career and your options are hard manual labor or begging on the streets you are motivated to find a third option. And that is what this guy does.
I have decided what to do, so that when I am removed from management, people may receive me into their houses.’
After being fired for being a wasteful manager, people are not going to be lining up to hire this guy, so he needed a way to gain the favor of other households so that they might consider hiring him.
Apparently, this caused the wasteful manager to finally wake up and take stock of his options. He was
when he was just fired for being a wasteful manager.
So, summoning his master’s debtors one by one, he said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’
So lets put that into today’s measurements.
I have decided what to do, so that when I am removed from management, people may receive me into their houses.’ So, summoning his master’s debtors one by one, he said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’
One hundred measures of oil is 900 gallons of oil, or roughly the amount of oil that 150 olive trees would produce in a year. This would translate into about 3 years of wages for the average laborer that day. - now he has knocked that bill in half.
One hundred measures of wheat is 30 tons of wheat. That represents the annual yield of a hundred acres of wheat, harvested by hand don’t forget. This bill amounted to about a decades worth of wages for a laborer. Probably why he only got a 20% discount, instead of the 50% discount that the oil guy got.
And in truth, these are just examples because this manager then went to every client and gave each of them a significant discount in the price of what they owed his former boss. Why did he do this? To set himself up in such a way that some of these debtors would consider “recieving him into their houses”. In essence he just paid these two debtors for his own salary for up to 13 years.
How would you describe the managers behavior here? Would you say that it was sneaky and manipulative or was it clever or shrewd? Let’s see how the Master responded when he found out what his manager had done.
Would you say that it was sneaky and manipulative? Or was it clever and shrewd? Let’s see how the Master responded when he found out what his manager had done.
English Standard Version Chapter 16
8 The master commended the dishonest manager for his shrewdness.
Does this surprise you? It surprises me. The guy just lost an incredible amount of money and he is “commending” the dishonest manager. Seems like he should have been “condemning” him not commending him. Earlier he was just a wasteful manager, not he is flat out “dishonest” - how is that better?
There have been numerous proposed explanations for why the master would have valued the Shrewdness of the manager so much, but it really doesn’t need explaining because the point of the entire Parable is to teach the Disciples how much God values “Shrewdness”
Jesus teaches us to Invest Shrewdly.
Jesus teaches us to Invest Shrewdly.
ot understand the need to to place a higher value on “Shrewdness” for Jesus’ disciples.
We can’t take everything that a parable says and try to apply it directly. Parables are typically aimed at communicating one central point, and any effort to apply every aspect of a parable will only lead us to confusion. This is especially true when a Parable is used to communicate some aspect of God’s character.
We can’t take everything that a parable says and try to apply it directly. Parables are typically aimed at communicating one central point, and any effort to apply every aspect of a parable will only lead us to confusion. This is especially true when a Parable is used to communicate some aspect of God’s character.
Remember that a Parable is a story that lays a new idea alongside a common experience in order to bring more clarity and understanding. How can anyone tell a story about common life here on earth and then equate it to something as uncommon as God. God is too “other than” to try and explain him from things we experience every day. Still the Bible does attempt to help us understand some of what God is like by comparing his attributes to things that we know and experience.
Notice that while t
Well the dishonesty is not what is commended here, just the shrewdness, and that is the key to understanding this parable. We can’t take everything that a parable says and try to apply it directly. Parables are typically aimed at one central point, and any effort to apply every aspect of the parable will lead us down the wrong path when it comes to understanding Jesus’ teaching. This is expecially true when Jesus is using a Parable with a character that in some way represents God. Remember that in these Parables, Jesus is laying a new idea alongside a common experience in order to bring more clarity and understanding. How can Jesus offer any “common experience” that even comes close to the fullness of who God is? At differernt times the Bible compares God to a Master, A Judge, even a Thief in the night, but that doesn’t mean that God has every trait in common with these human roles. There is just one thing that the Bible is getting at when it uses comparisons like this.
At different times the Bible compares God to a master, a judge, and even a thief, but that doesn’t mean that God has every trait in common with these human characters. There is just one aspect of God’s character that the comparison is trying to help us to understand. We have to be careful to not take it to far.
Thankfully, in this parable Jesus right away tells us what the main point is:
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
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. And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.
. (ESV)
Let me offer a couple of examples:
One of the things that I love about the ESV is that it is a very accurate word for word translation, but sometimes ideas can get lost in translation. So I’d like to offer you the verses from the New Living “thought by thought” translation.
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. 9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.
“The rich man had to admire the dishonest rascal for being so shrewd. And it is true that the children of this world are more shrewd in dealing with the world around them than are the children of the light. Here’s the lesson: Use your worldly resources to benefit others and make friends. Then, when your possessions are gone, they will welcome you to an eternal home.
or “you will be welcomed into eternal homes.”
, you will be welcomed into eternal homes.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Lk 16:8–9). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society..
8 “The rich man had to admire the dishonest rascal for being so shrewd. And it is true that the children of this world are more shrewd in dealing with the world around them than are the children of the light. 9 Here’s the lesson: Use your worldly resources to benefit others and make friends. Then, when your possessions are gone, you will be welcomed into eternal homes.
Here’s the lesson: Use your worldly resources to benefit others and make friends. Then, when your possessions are gone, they will welcome you to an eternal home.
In the Parable of the Great Feast, the Master responded as if he didn’t know that the first people that he gave the invitation were going to reject it. He seemed surprised and we very angry. It was only then that he had his servant invite the lowly to the feast. Does this mean that God doesn’t know who will and who won’t accept his invitation? Or does it mean that the invitation to the lowly was really a plan B, as if they were only a secondary consideration since the first group rejected him? Of course not. The point of that parable was to teach the religous leaders not to discriminate against Gentiles. That there are Jews who will miss out on heaven, and there are Gentiles that will be welcomed. Nationality is not a determining factor.
The Master was not foolish enough to appreciate losing so much money, but he was wise enough to appreciate the shrewdness of the man. Consider what a change has taken place. The manager who was once wasting his Masters money without any consideration of future consequences, is now moving quickly to make deals that will benefit him in the future. He is acting shrewdly.
This is what Jesus’ parable is meant to communicate. As “children of light” we need to be making shrewd investments today that will pay great rewards in the future.
And Luke isn’t done offering us Jesus’ advice on handling our finances. In between this parable and the parable of the Rich man and Lazarus, he places several of Jesus’ other teachings. In some ways this is a bit of a mini-seminar on finances,
Jesus teaches us to Invest Faithfully
Jesus teaches us to Invest Faithfully
“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. And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven? And if you are not faithful with other people’s things, why should you be trusted with things of your own?
“One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own? No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
“One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own?
this comparison, as he goes on to to teach even more about money. He is doing his own little finance seminar right here for the disciples, and the key word that keeps coming up is the word faithful.
Invest Faithfully
“One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much.
Jesus is always drawing people’s attention to the internal motivation of right behavior. While the religious leaders were just interested in looking good on the outside, but Jesus always brings it to the heart. True faithfulness is better seen in how we handle the “little things”, those things that don’t really gain us much attention or recognition on the outside. Someone who is faithful even in the “little things” will remain faithful, but someone who is willing to compromise in those “little things” isn’t far from compromise when it comes to something significant.
Well if we have been paying attention to Jesus, then we know that He is always after the internal motivation for right behavior. The religious leaders were just interested in looking good on the outside, but Jesus always brings it to the heart. True faithfulness is better seen in how we handle those things that don’t really gain us much attention or recognition.
No matter the size of the project or investment or account, what have they done with it, because I can kn It can and should be the testing ground for what I can trust them with in the future. Wow, if that isn’t financial advice that you can literally take to the bank. The character of man is not often affected by the amount of money that he has been entrusted with. If you have pro
And God’s investment with us is no different.
When you find someone who is willing to be faithful, even when it doesn’t seem to count on the outside, then you have found someone who will is faithful for the right reasons. That person is more likey to remain faithful, even when things get difficult on the outside.
You see when we prove to be faithful in little things that don’t really gain us much attention or recognition, then we are doing them from an internal desire to do the right thing. When you find someone who is willing to be faithful, even when it doesn’t seem to count on the outside, then you have found someone who will remain faithful even when the landscape gets rough.
And then the reverse is true too. If someone is willing to be dishonest in something seemingly insignificant - then you can bet that they will find no hinderances to being dishonest in the more important things.
If I was an employer I would have this verse running through my head whenever I was considering someone for a promotion. Pay attention to the “little things” if you want to gauge faithfulness.
Sound advice for any of us who have employees under us, as well as those of us who are employees of someone else. What are we doing when we thing the boss isn’t looking? Because if we remember the truth that Jesus is our Lord, your “boss” then we can know that He is always looking.
This is great advice for those of us who are employers, and those of us who are employees. What are we doing when we think the boss isn’t looking? Because if we are living in the truth that Jesus is our Lord, our “boss” then we know that “our boss” is always looking. Will he find us faithful?
If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own?
If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches?
Don’t be distracted by the phrase, “unrighteous wealth”. It doesn’t mean that you stole it or swindled someone out of it, it just means the wealth that only holds value in this “unrighteous” world. The “Cash & Coin” of this world holds no value in eternity, but we can shrewdly use those things now in such a way that it impacts someone’s eternity.
Remember back in verse 9, we are to use our money to bless people and make friendships that lead to meeting them again in eternal dwellings?
God is looking for people who are faithfully honoring him now with their finances, so that He can bless them with things that are much more valuable than the “Cash & Coin” that will die in this world. We will be blessed with the “true riches” of being used to increase the Kingdom of God. Those of us who understand this kind of “Investing” will be entrusted with even more opportunities.
But it is never the amount or increase of money that matters to God, but only how a person uses that money. Jesus knows that those two things can easily be confused so he also taught about the hold that money can have on a person:
Don’t be distracted by the phrase, “unrighteous wealth”. It doesn’t mean that you stole it or swindled someone out of it, it just means the wealth that only holds value in this world. Think Cash and Coin. If you have not faithfully honored God in how you manage your wealth in this world then why would God give you anything from his Kingdom to manage?
Don’t be distracted by the phrase, “unrighteous wealth”. It doesn’t mean that you stole it or swindled someone out of it, it just means the wealth that only holds value in this world. Think Cash and Coin. If you have not faithfully honored God in how you manage your wealth in this world then why would God give you anything from his Kingdom to manage?
1. Some Christians that waiting to be finacially secure before they think that God doing kingdom stuff
waiting to be finacially secure before doing kingdom stuff
Wanting Kingdom stuff to begin when we have not priortized our finances God’s way.
And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own?
Have we surrendered everything to God, even our earning threshold? it is never the amount or increase of money that matters to God, but only how a person uses that money. Jesus knows that those two things can easily be confused so he also taught about the hold that money can have on a person:
No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
Investing like Jesus is commanding here always come down to our heart. If God is truly our master, our Lord, then we trust him with everything, even the level of our income. If He wants to increase our income then we will invest all the more for His glory, if he chooses to decrease our income then we will be faithful in trusting him meet all of our needs, as He has promised us he will do. And what we fear most in this, is that God has a different definition of “need” than we do.
Have we surrendered everything to God, even our earning threshold? it is never the amount or increase of money that matters to God, but only how a person uses that money. Jesus knows that those two things can easily be confused so he also taught about the hold that money can have on a person:
We cannot serve both God and money, but we should be faithfully serving God with our money!
So apparently while the disciples were not the only people that heard Jesus’ teachings on money, the Pharisees also heard it and responded in line with the condition of their hearts.
for taking the first steps in this direction.
So apparently while the disciples were not the only people that heard Jesus’ teachings on money, the Pharisees also heard it and responded in line with the condition of their hearts.
There are two temptations that this teaching seems to eliminate for the Faithful Christian.
The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and they ridiculed him. And he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
“The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it. But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void.
The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and they ridiculed him. And he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
“The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it. But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void.
“Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.
As we read through this section, it might seem a bit disconnected, but they are all heading in the same direction that is probably best defined by verse 15.
2. I want to have a closer relationship with God, but my finances are a seperate issue.
And he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
The religious leaders of the day were more concerned with what other influential men thought of their behavior then they were about what God thought. Left on our own, sinful man will always look out only for himself. It is only through the Word of God that we can be redirected towards what we were created to be, lovers of God and the things that God loves.
The religious leaders of the day were more concerned with what other influential men thought of their behavior then they were about what God thought. Left on our own, the sinful man will always look out for himself. It is only The Law of God that redirects us toward something much better.
The prevailing view of the day was that “might makes right”. If you had the money, then you had the power and your life would be the envy of everyone else who didn’t have these things. Some of the religious leaders of the day were even teaching that if your wife didn’t please you in some way, you could trade her in for a new model. Then you would have everything that you should have in this world - and the worst part about it was that the religious teachers were teaching that if you found yourself at the top in this way, then not only will all men envy you, but it showed that God favored you as well.
This idea is not a strange on to us today is it? We might not say we believe it, but we often live as though “ He who dies with most toys wins” when in truth “He who dies with the most toys - is still dead, and then what?” Jesus then shares this next parable to point to unravel this way of looking at life.
“There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’ But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’ And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house— for I have five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’ But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’ ”
Wanting Kingdom stuff to begin when we have not priortized our finances God’s way.
Do yo use see how this parable flies directly in the face of the world view held by “lovers of money”?
Lazarus, the beggar at the rich mans gate was so destitute that he not only resorted to begging, but he was so physically limited that he couldn’t even keep the dogs from licking his soars. No one would help Lazarus. No one would even touch him. Surely this man had done something wrong. Surely he had been abandoned by God - and yet in Jesus’ story, “He was carried by the Angels” to the side of the great patriarch Abraham.
And in contrast to Lazarus, the rich man, who was everything that a “lover of money” is working so hard to be, found himself being tormented in Hades. He cries out to Abraham to send Lazarus to help him by touching him with just one finger…but there is no relief for the Rich man. He shrewdly invested his “Cash & Coin” for only his future on earth, but he did not consider the future after that.
Remember this is a Parable, so don’t try and extract all of your theology of heaven and hell from this, but look for the main point that Jesus is teaching us. That investing well goes further than just the “Cash & Coin” investments towards the good life here on earth, we have to consider what life will look like after that.
.
Jesus is teaching us to Invest Eternally.
Jesus is teaching us to Invest Eternally.
Application (You)
Application (You)
And notice that when the Rich man cried out on behalf of his brothers, who were still on earth, presumably on the same path that he was on, he asked Abraham to send Lazarus back to warn them. And what did Abraham say? They have “Moses and the Prophets”, in others words they have the teachings of the Bible, the Law and Prophets, if they have ears to hear they can hear the message from God’s Word.
Then in a final last ditch effort the former Rich man begs Abraham to send someone back from the dead, because then he knows that they will listen, they will listen if someone comes back from the dead…but the story ends with one of the saddest endings of any parable:
Then the story ends, with one of the saddest endings to any parable.
part of this whole storyand then they will listen.
He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’ ”
Some “Lovers of Money” are so lost, that they will not listen to God’s Word, and the teaching is that if you are not willing to listen to God’s Word, then you will not listen even if someone raises from the dead. That is horrible news, because we can hear the the foreshadowing can’t we. Every part of the Bible points to Jesus. If we refuse the message of the Bible, then we have refused the message of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. We have refused the Gospel. Anyone who refuses to believe in the Gospel, will leave this life with no hope of anything except for the fate of this Rich Man.
We can hear the foreshadowing here can’t we. Every part of the Bible points to Jesus, if we refuse the message of the Bible, then we have refused the Gospel. Anyone who refuses to believe in the Gospel, will leave this life with nothing.
even will not listen but even the resurrection of Jesus Christ means nothing to them.
1. When I get enough money, then I will invest it in God’s Kingdom
for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
2. I want to have a closer relationship with God, but my finances are a seperate issue.
But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
Don’t let the love of money stand between you and a right relationship with God. And understand, you don’t have to have a lot of money to love it. There are just as many greedy poor people as there are greedy rich. The difference is not the dollar amount, but how much you desire and depend on it. Does it hold the position of control in your life, or have you submitted you life to someone greater?
While true financial security is a myth, eternal security is real. Do you have a right relationship with God through Jesus? If you do, then you have a great reward in heaven. If you don’t, then maybe God is saying that you need to take that step today. If that is you, then don’t leave here today without taking that step. If you want some help, come talk to me, or one of the Overseers or someone else that you trust.
If you do have a right relationship with God through Jesus, then your eternity is secure, but how are have you been investing in your life?
In Jesus’ teaching on finance found in it says:
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
I confess, I don’t exactly know what form that treasure will take in heaven, but I guarantee you it is better then any return on your investment you can get here on earth. Are you investing well? Are you living under his Lordship even in your finances or are you always after that next “get rich quick” idea.
There is much said in Scripture about laying up your treasures in heaven, I confess you thanking God for that gift? Are you living under his Lordship even in your finances. Are you trusting him for what you need each day, or are you going to make it happen through your next “get rich quick” idea. There is so much in Scripture about handling finances that I could never tackle it all in one sermon, and it will probably look differently in each one of our lives.
Landing (We)
Landing (We)
There is so much in Scripture about handling finances that I could never tackle it all in one sermon, and it will probably look differently in each one of our lives. But my hope for today is that we have learned this one point from what Jesus was teaching his disciples:
You cannot serve both God and money, but you should be serving God with your money, Invest shrewdly, Invest faithfully and Invest eternally
But my hope for today is that we have learned this one point from what Jesus was teaching his disciples:You cannot serve both God and money, but you should be serving God with your money, Invest shrewdly, faithfully and eternally
1. When I get enough money, then I will invest it in God’s Kingdom
2. I want to have a closer relationship with God, but my finances are a seperate issue.