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Reaching Out

The Miracle of Dunkirk

On May 26, 1940, Operation Dynamo began – the evacuation of thousands of Allied soldiers from the beaches of Dunkirk, France to rescue them from the massive German forces surrounding them. When Prime Minister Churchill called for small vessels to assist the Royal Navy, 850 “Little Ships” responded, including fishing boats, lifeboats, pleasure cruisers, ferries, tugs, and barges.
The British estimated that only 45,000 troops could be evacuated, but in 9 days they evacuated over 338,000 soldiers. This rescue was heralded by Winston Churchill as “a miracle of deliverance”.
There is a parallel to our nation today, as we are besieged by an encroaching secular culture that seeks to steal our faith, kill our bodies, and destroy our souls.

* Our nation legalized gay marriage and celebrates homosexuality in government, mainstream and social media, our military, major corporations, Hollywood, and educational institutions.
* June is designated Gay Pride Month, a double abomination to the Lord – homosexuality and pride.
* 98 U.S. embassies recognize and celebrate Gay Pride Month.
* 62% of American adults favor same-sex marriage.
* A recent survey revealed an astonishing 16% of Gen Z Americans identify as LGBT, compared with 2% of boomers.
* We have killed over 65 million unborn babies, promote abortion to other countries, and embrace transsexuality and transhumanism, all abominations to our Lord.
* Over half of church attenders look at internet pornography.
* Church attendance has dropped from 70% of our population in 1960 to 20% now. 28% of those who were regular church attendees (pre-COVID) have not attended in person or watched an online service even once since the outbreak.
* 37% of millennials have no religious faith at all.
And yet the need is great. 70% of all Americans are angry every day, 31% report they’re “really angry” every day, and half of our population is angrier than they have ever been.

Just as Prime Minister Winston Churchill called all the private owners of “Little Ships” to rescue the soldiers trapped at Dunkirk, we are called by our Lord to reach out with the love and truth of Christ to rescue lost souls – friends, family, acquaintances – from a culture that opposes God and sends people on the broad path to the Lake of Fire. That is why we are here. Be bold. Be strong. Be courageous and walk with the Lord.

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Eighth Sunday After Pentecost 7-31-2022

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Sermon for 07.31.22 “Denarius and the evil eye”

Sermon for 07.31.22

8th Sunday after Pentecost

Text: Matthew 20:1–16

Theme: Denarius and the evil eye

1. In the Name of the Father…Amen.

1. The text for this morning is from the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 20,
verses 1-16:

Matthew 20:1–16 (ESV)

1“For the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out
early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard.

2After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them
into his vineyard.

3And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the
marketplace,

4and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is
right I will give you.’

5So they went. Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour,
he did the same.

6And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing. And
he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’

7They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You
go into the vineyard too.’

8And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman,
‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to
the first.’

9And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them
received a denarius.

10Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more,
but each of them also received a denarius.

11And on receiving it they grumbled at the master of the house,

12saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal
to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’

13But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did
you not agree with me for a denarius?

14Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker
as I give to you.

15Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do
you begrudge my generosity?’

16So the last will be first, and the first last.”
– This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

1. Another text for our consideration is from Matthew 19:27–30

27Then Peter said in reply [to Jesus}, “See, we have left everything and
followed you. What then will we have?”

28Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the
Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will
also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

29And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or
mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold
and will inherit eternal life.

30But many who are first will be last, and the last first.
– This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

1. Grace, mercy, and peace from God our heavenly Father and from our
Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

1. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us pray:

826 Hark, the Voice of Jesus Crying

1

Hark, the voice of Jesus crying,

“Who will go and work today?

Fields are white and harvests waiting—

Who will bear the sheaves away?”

Loud and long the Master calleth;

Rich reward He offers thee.

Who will answer, gladly saying,

“Here am I, send me, send me”?

Introduction

1. What does all this mean?

1. “For the kingdom”?
1. What triggered this parable?
2. Well, that whole episode of the rich young man, who couldn’t
get into the kingdom because he wasn’t free enough to turn
his back on his
money and his importance.
3. He had Jesus right in front of him with open arms, and that
didn’t free him up to leave it all and run with Jesus!

1. What is with this parable that we hear about today?
1. That certain householder went out early in the morning to hire
laborers for his vineyard.
2. “After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent
them into his vineyard.”
1. Boy, for a holy man who only cares about us going to heaven, Jesus
sure talked a lot about money!
1. “And going out about the third hour he [the landowner] saw others
standing idle in the marketplace, and to them he said, ‘You
go into the
vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they
went. Going
out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same.”
(verses 2–5)

1. Okay. Now the householder is starting to sound a little impractical.
Where’s he going with this?
1. “And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others
standing.
2. And he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’
3. They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ ”
4. Ever get picked last for a sandlot baseball game?
5. They were still hanging out where day-rate workers hung out
because no one saw any use for them.
6. “He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ ” (verses 6–7)

1. (Oops) The Lord of the vineyard wanted to see that what the 6-a.m.
guys got was the same as the latecomers and vice versa.

1. One hour to quitting time.

1. By the time the guy punches in and gets his apron and tools it’s
going to be time to knock off!

1. The householder was either stupid or was intentionally out to make a
point, and we know he’s not stupid.

1. So here it comes:
1. “When evening came, the owner [lord] of the vineyard said to
his foreman [steward], ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages,
beginning with the last, up to the first’ ” (verse 8).
2. Notice how the lingo changes all of a sudden?
3. What happened to the “master of a house” [householder]?
4. Now he’s “the ‘owner’ [lord] of the vineyard.”

1. By changing the title of the employer, Jesus is telling them and us
what the parable is about.
1. He’s not pushing communism.
2. This isn’t a parable about how we’re supposed to run our
vineyards.
3. It’s a parable answering Peter’s question:
1. “What do we get?”
2. “Pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the
first.”
3. The lord of the vineyard wanted the 6-a.m. guys to see what
the latecomers got paid.
1. “And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of
them received a denarius” (verse 9).
1. A denarius!

2. (Ugh) Look at what he gave those guys! They just got here!

1. “Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive
more” (verse 10a).
1. Look at what he gave those guys!
2. They just got here!
3. This guy is generous!
4. If that “loafer” got a denarius, can you imagine what we’re
gonna get?
5. I am about to do something I normally don’t do:
1. Leave the pulpit during the sermon.
2. Make my way out into the congregation.
3. Ask a few people a question or two to make a point, to put
ourselves into this parable.
4. Give each person a “denarius” (dime)
5. Return to the pulpit.
1. “But each of them also received a denarius” (verse 10b).

1. A denarius? A denarius!
1. They filed a grievance.
2. They were insulted!
3. I’m no Wall Street whiz, but at 6 a.m. they were thrilled to
work for a denarius, and now at 6 p.m. the denarius had devaluated
significantly.

1. And once you hear their complaint, you know the Lord Jesus is talking
about religion.
1. He’s talking about being a Christian, that is, being one of his
disciples.
2. Because it sounds so familiar!
1. “These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to
us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching
heat” (verse 12).

1. In an effort to avoid the point, the Talmud retells the story with
the owner commending the laborer for doing more work in two
hours than the
others did in a full day.
1. But that’s not part of the parable.
2. The householder called the unwanted near the end of the day.
3. That’s the point.
4. They somehow got this idea that he came seeking them because he
needed them!

1. We may also assume the householder profited from the workers working
in his vineyard.
1. But that’s not part of the parable either.
2. That sounds familiar too.
1. A father started to have his son work with him in his
machine shop when he was thirteen years old.
2. The father didn’t do that for himself.
3. Things were harder for him with his son there, not easier.
It took longer to show his son how to do it than just to
do it himself, not
counting when he had to do it over after I made junk.
4. None of that was for him.
5. It was for his son, so he wouldn’t stand idle all day, like
those day-rate workers in the parable.
6. Perhaps you have seen this sign:
1. Shop rates: $30/hour
2. $50/hour if you want to watch
3. $75/hour if you want to help
4. This sign is cute and yet very true!

1. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, you sit here today as 6-a.m.
disciples of Jesus not because he needs your help.
1. This is all for you, so that you can know him here, you bear
the heat of the day, not idle, but with the Lord of the
vineyard, hearing
his words, which are spirit and life, speak to you, so you
can live the
life of the world to come with him, here and now, and go into the
marketplace with him to rescue those who are idle.

1. The lord of the vineyard didn’t raise up the 5-p.m. guys to be equal
to the 6-a.m. guys. He raised up the 6-a.m. guys to be equal to
the 5-p.m.
guys!
1. “The last will be first, and the first last” (verse 16).

3. (Aha) The denarius was a gift!

1. The denarius was a gift!

1. But they were insulted.
1. So he answered one of them and said, “Friend, I am doing you no
wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius?” (verse 13).

1. He calls him friend, but it’s so sad here.
1. Because the Greek word used here for “friend” is not the
regular word translated “friend.”
2. The word is hetairos.
1. It means more than friend, it also means comrade.

1. This word occurs only two other sad times in the New Testament.
1. “And he [a king giving a wedding banquet] said to him [a
guest], ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding
garment?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants,
‘Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness.
In that place
there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth’ ” (Matthew 22:12–13).
2. The other occurence: “And he [Judas] came up to Jesus at once
and said, ‘Greetings, Rabbi!’ And he kissed him. Jesus said to him, ‘
Friend, do what you came to do’ ” (Matthew 26:49–50).
3. “Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for
a denarius?”

1. You were fine with that until you saw me being good to someone else.

1. So he told the 6-a.m. guys:
1. “Take yours and leave. I wish to give to the 5-p.m. guys as I
give you.”
1. I don’t ever want to hear my Lord say, “Take what belongs to you
and go,” like being thrown out of the wedding.
2. Or talking to us like we are Judas.
3. Sad and scary!

1. Then he said, “Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs
to me?” (verse 15).
1. And, we can translate, “Or is your eye evil because I am good?”
2. Remember the prodigal son’s older brother?
3. He had that same evil eye.
4. He didn’t believe in grace.
5. A party? For him? You’re kidding me, right?

1. This isn’t the first time Jesus talked about an evil eye.
1. “The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy
[sincere], your whole body will be full of light, but if your
eye is bad
[evil], your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the
light in you
is darkness, how great is the darkness!” (Matthew 6:22–23).

1. And here’s the worst part of having an evil eye.
1. All the blessing of God goes right by your eye and you don’t
even see it.
2. The lord of the vineyard says, “Friend, all that time it was you
and me:
1. you and me in church
2. you and me in the Word,
3. I in you, you in me,
4. you and me loving others.
5. Was it all nothing to you?”

4. (Wow) St. Luke’s story of the thief on the cross illustrates this
parable.

1. Being with Jesus Is the Denarius!

1. St. Luke’s story of the thief on the cross illustrates this parable.
1. “Today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43).

1. If anyone ever punched in right before quitting time, it was this
guy.
1. He lived out his own disaster, right up to that moment, and he
winds up with the big denarius!
2. And theologians like to call this a unique bestowal of
salvation.
3. But they all miss the point.
4. The salvation of the dying thief is not unique at all.
5. It’s just shows so clearly how it really is for everybody—that
everybody who goes to heaven steals heaven on her or his deathbed.
6. We’re all the ones who show up at 5 p.m.!
7. The denarius was a gift!
8. Jesus died on his cross for the privilege of giving it.
9. Jesus bore the heat of the day, the day that the Lord had made
and earned that denarius, that gift.

1. And those of us who have been so blessed that we’ve gotten to spend
more time in the Lord’s Vineyard, not alone, not careening
toward hell all
our lives, not lost and without hope and without God in the world
(Ephesians 2:12) but Christians all our lives, like you kids,
disciples all
our lives, not only workers in his vineyard but also branches in
him who is
the vine, kids,

1. Being with Jesus Is the Denarius!

1. Coming into his vineyard at 6 a.m.
1. This isn’t an insult.
2. It isn’t a burden.
3. It’s a bonus!
4. It’s a blessing!

5. (Yeah) And there’s a day coming when Jesus will remake all things.

1. And we won’t bear the heat of the day forever.

1. There’s a day coming when Jesus will remake all things.

1. When he began answering Peter’s question before the parable,

1. “Amen I tell you, that in the regeneration,” there’s this beautiful
word: regeneration.

1. It literally means “Genesis again,” beginning again, the new
creation.

1. When the Son of Man sits on his throne in glory, the twelve will also
sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. “And
everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or
mother or wife or children or lands, for [Jesus’] name’s sake,
will receive
a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life. But many who are
first will be
last, and the last first” (Matthew 19:29–30).

Conclusion
1. We will live to see the Son of Man sitting on the throne of his glory.

1. And we won’t care about first or last, because we’ll be so glad to be
remade as we were meant to be in him.

1. And we’ll be so glad for every hour, every minute we spent in this
vineyard with him while the day was still hot, this vineyard right here,
right now, burdens and all, while so many still stand idle in the
marketplace, waiting for us, on behalf of the Lord of the
Vineyard, to call
them to joy.

1. Amen.

1. Let us pray:

826 Hark, the Voice of Jesus Crying

4

Let none hear you idly saying,

“There is nothing I can do,”

While the multitudes are dying

And the Master calls for you.

Take the task He gives you gladly,

Let His work your pleasure be;

Answer quickly when He calleth,

“Here am I, send me, send me!”

Text: Public domain

1. The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, guard your
hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

1. In the Name of the Father…Amen.

Categories
Reaching Out

We Can’t Take It With Us

On day two of your vacation to a South Pacific island, you learn that a massive firestorm is headed your way. So you book passage on a return flight, the last plane out before destruction hits. When the officials check your brief case, they find the gold-plated pocket knife you purchased from a coin shop, a rare specimen and important part of your identity as a collector of rare knives.
When the officials inform you that you cannot carry the knife on the plane, you protest, stating that it is perfectly harmless and a rare collector’s item. The argument becomes lengthy, you miss your plane, and you realize you are not going to escape the coming fiery devastation.
In like manner, there is no sin in heaven, and if we think we will be allowed to pass through the pearly gates with our hearts embracing our favorite sin – unforgiveness, jealousy, lust, greed, or pride, we are mistaken. We will not be able to enter into the Kingdom of God, our trip to heaven will be cancelled, and we will face destruction in the Lake of Fire. In his letter to the church at Corinth, the apostle Paul stated: “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God?” (I Cor. 6:9) then gave several examples.
Although we think it is perfectly harmless, that private sin we cherish and indulge becomes so entangled in our souls that it becomes part of our identity; of WHO WE ARE. But our identity should be in Christ. God is not only a God of love, but He is also a holy and jealous God, and our cherished sins are idols of the heart; we are worshipping other gods.
For the Laodicean Christians, it was their wealth and comfort. Jesus’ response was clear: “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Revelation 3:15-16
For each of us, there will come a day when we need to catch the last flight out to heaven. And if our soul is enmeshed in sin, we may not make it, for there is no sin in heaven. How do we get ready for our trip to heaven? Repent, Repent, Repent. Get rid of worldliness and sin, because we can’t take them with us. And help our friends, family, and acquaintances do the same, for some day they too will want to catch the last flight to heaven.
To God be the glory
Board of Evangelism
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Seventh Sunday after Pentecost 7-24-22

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Reaching Out

I Really Miss Her

I see her only once a week but only from one to two hours. Sometimes during that time she might say something to me but usually it is something she says repeatedly every week, something memorized. She never stops to hear what I have to say. Mostly she just sits there listening to someone else and then she leaves without saying goodbye.
For the most part, she doesn’t even know I’m there. The rest of the week I don’t think she ever thinks of me or our relationship except maybe that day once a week. Many times I don’t get to see her even then. You see, she leads a very busy life and there always seems to be things more important to her than visiting with me. I miss her terribly. What hurts most is she is my bride to be.
When we first met, our hearts were filled with love and we spent every free moment with each other. We would talk for hours on end, never noticing the time as it slipped away. But something happened in our journey together. Nothing earth shattering, just a slow drifting away. She says she still loves me but her actions say differently. Her visits have become farther and farther apart.
Sometimes, she doesn’t come visit me except for a few days a year, usually Christmas and Easter. Occasionally she will call me, but that usually happens when she is in desperate straits. I will help every time without fail and she will show her gratefulness for a time but, again, the same pattern returns. I miss her so!
If you see her, tell her how much I miss her, and that my love for her will never end. Thank you. How will you recognize her? It’s easy, she looks just like…………..YOU!
Eternally, Jesus
THIS IS A LOVE LETTER FROM JESUS TO THE BODY OF CHRIST, HIS BRIDE. HE INVITES US TO WALK WITH HIM EVERY DAY, TO FALL IN LOVE WITH HIM, AND TO ENJOY HIS PRESENCE – FROM NOW INTO ETERNITY. IF WE DON’T, WE WILL HAVE NOTHING SPECIAL AND SUPERNATURAL TO SHARE WITH OTHERS.
To God be the glory
Adapted from Jerry Sundberg
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6th Sunday after Pent 2022 07 17

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Sermon for 07.17.22 “The Shrewd Steward”

Sermon for 07.17.22 6th Sunday after Pentecost

Text: Luke 16:1–14

Theme: The Shrewd Steward

1. In the Name of the Father…Amen.

1. Luke 16:1-14 serves as our sermon text for this morning. which reads
as follows:

1He 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.

2And 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.’

3And 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.

4I have decided what to do, so that when I am removed from management,
people may receive me into their houses.’

5So, summoning his master’s debtors one by one, he said to the first,
‘How much do you owe my master?’

6He said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill,
and sit down quickly and write fifty.’

7Then 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.’

8The 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.

9And 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.

10“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.

11If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will
entrust to you the true riches?

12And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will
give you that which is your own?

13No 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.”

14The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and
they ridiculed him.

This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

1. Grace, mercy, and peace from God our heavenly Father and from our
Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

1. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us pray:

Introduction

[image: image.png] A. As I mentioned , chapter 16 of the Gospel of Luke
serves as our text for this morning and let’s get right to the difficult
verse, verse 9:
– “And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous
wealth [wicked mammon], so that when it fails [runs out], they
may receive
[welcome] you into the eternal dwellings.” This is the Word of the Lord.

4. Three things about Jesus’ teaching are going to help us understand
this parable.
1. Today’s Gospel forces us to face at least three things about Jesus’
teaching that are going help us with verse 9.
1. First, pastors preach mainly to one group, and we’re all on the
same team—same beliefs, same goals.
1. Yeah, there are young, old, happy, or stressed out, and we
have to try to give medicine that somehow helps everybody,
and for little
guys, that’s plenty.
2. But when we’re talking about Jesus’ hearers, welcome to the
big leagues. Most of the time, he was addressing two or
more groups, goals,
beliefs, disciples, crowds, enemies—and he’s the Master.
3. He even had two kinds of enemies that didn’t even like each
other try to gang up on him and trap him in his own words, and,
to this day, even people who don’t know the story say at
tax time, “Render
unto Caesar.”
4. We just got through looking at the parables that Jesus spoke
to both the sinners and the religious leaders, and when he
was done, the
shoes always fit: the sinners believed in him, which is
what he wanted, and
those with religious pride wanted to kill him, which is
what he wanted.
Something for everybody. That’s the first thing to remember.

1. The second thing is that Jesus used a lot of bad people as positive
examples.
1. When he was teaching us to be persistent in prayer, remember
the man who wouldn’t give bread to his friend in the middle
of the night,
but finally would give it just to get rid of him (Luke11:5–13)?
2. If persistence works with a bad person, won’t it work with God,
who is good?
3. Jesus taught the same thing using a judge who did not fear God
and did not respect man (Luke 18:1–7).

1. Thirdly, there’s the “treasure hidden in a field” (Matthew 13:44).
1. Here’s a guy who knows the land is worth more than what the
owner thinks and makes it his life’s work to get it!
2. That’s bad.
3. That is a sin against the Ninth Commandment.
4. And in the parable, God is the buyer!
5. But, again, he uses the savviness of sinners to illustrate even
God’s desperate act of love.

1. Which brings me to a third thing about Jesus.
1. Sometimes, because of the doctrine of Jesus’ sinlessness, we
can imagine that if he had come instead into our day and
time, he would
have been this awkward, inward guy who didn’t know about the
stock market,
or how extortion works, or whether people worked under the
table or had
surpluses on their EBT cards.
2. He’s just off in his own little world and doesn’t sin because
he just never thought about it much.

1. This is all fiction.
1. Two thousand years ago, in Galilee, Jesus was savvy.
2. He knew the stunts people pulled in business and why they work
and who gets hurt.
3. He had tools, contracts, and customers.
4. He knew about “go along to get along” and “get rich quick” and
“do unto others and run.”
5. He was smarter than everyone else, and more clever.
6. Wise as a serpent, harmless as a dove.

1. The reason he didn’t sin is not because he didn’t have the skill or
opportunity.
1. He didn’t because he wouldn’t.
2. He loved his Father too much to sin against him, and he loved
you too much to let you down.

3. The steward shrewdly sweetens his golden parachute by putting the
boss in a pickle and implicating his clients.
1. So, as was said at the beginning, Jesus spoke to multiple audiences.
1. Well, here Jesus spoke to his disciples, but when he’s done, we
find out in verse 14 that there were eavesdroppers:
1. “The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things,
and they ridiculed him.”

1. So do you think that Jesus was savvy enough to know who was listening
and savvy enough to include something for everybody?

1. Well, in this parable, Jesus talks about money, as he did a lot,
because he knows what is near and dear to our hearts.
1. He uses a man who’s a scoundrel through and through as an
example, and, remember, Jesus made up this story, he invented
the scoundrel
and all his stunts, because he knows real life in our world
through and
through.

1. The manager, or steward, was in a crisis.
1. He was reported to his boss as squandering his possessions, and
he knew he was not in a position to deny it.
2. The shell game was over.
3. All he had was a pink slip and the logbook to turn in.
4. Did he decide to admit what he was and get his hands dirty with
good honest work or at least come clean and ask the boss for mercy?
5. Heck no.
6. His heart was not divided.
7. He appealed to his god, mammon.
8. If you enjoy plots that twist and turn, this guy is poetry in
motion.

1. First, he approaches those who owe his rich boss money.
1. He makes friends for himself by discounting their debts.
2. He does it one at a time, so each thinks he’s special.
3. Take your bill and knock off half, buddy!
4. Now they love him, so maybe he’ll have a place to live and work
once he’s fired.
5. They love his rich boss too, because they think this all too
generous gesture was the boss’s idea!
6. It was a brilliant plan. What could go wrong?

1. Now the boss is in a pickle.
1. How will it look if he goes through with firing the steward,
right after he lowered their bills?
2. Does he then tell his customers the truth about their bills?
3. They’d all hate him.

1. The steward who got fired knew just how to sweeten his golden
parachute.
1. Just in case his new friends weren’t grateful enough to welcome
him into their homes, he had dirt on them!
2. He’d involved them in a criminal conspiracy, to set them up for
extortion later.
3. Remember, he had them take their bills and lower them.

1. The prophet Amos called it making the bushel smaller and the shekel
bigger, and cheating with dishonest scales (cf Amos 8:5).
1. We call it conspiracy to defraud.
2. And the employer praised the dishonest steward for his
cleverness (cf verse 8a): “Do you believe this guy? He’s been
bleeding me
dry, and the day he’s exposed and fired he picks my pocket on
the way out!
Bravo!”
3. Takes one to know one.
4. To their own kind, the sons of this world seem more clever than
sons of light (cf verse 8b).

2. There’s something in that for everyone . . .
1. What a pathetic ending!
1. The conniver,
2. the blackmailed,
3. and the pragmatists, all handcuffed together on the island of
avarice.
4. Who would even dream up a story like this? Jesus would and did.
5. Why? He knows how the children of this world think.
6. And there’s something for everybody.

1. So what’s in the story for the eavesdropping Pharisees, who loved
money?
1. Of course, when Jesus talked about money, the Pharisees smirked
at him, as in, “If you’re so smart, how come you’re broke?”
2. After all, how much did Jesus own—that unemployed vagrant
preacher who created the universe out of nothing and kept it
existing by
his all-powerful word?

1. These words were directed at them, those Pharisees, and all who
worship the god mammon: then use wicked mammon to make yourself friends.
1. What kind of friends?
2. Friends in low places.
3. Then be children of this world; let them call you clever, so
that when the money runs out, your friends will take you with
them into
eternal housing.
4. Ultimately, Jesus is talking about hell.

1. And what’s in the story for the disciples, the children of light?
1. He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in
much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is
unrighteous also
in much. If you couldn’t be trusted with wicked mammon, who’s going to
trust you with real wealth? If you couldn’t be trusted with
somebody else’s
property, who’s going to give you something for your own?
(verses 10–12) .

1. All this money and stuff we thought we owned was somebody else’s
property all along.
1. Christ is the sole owner.
2. All human beings are managers of some part of his property.
3. No one’s got any choice about that.
4. We can be honest managers or dishonest, trustworthy or
untrustworthy, but if we’re human beings, all things we have
he’s richly
given us to manage for the moment.
5. And his orders are pretty simple:
1. Don’t waste it.
2. Enjoy it,
3. but don’t squander it on yourself.
6. For the moment, money’s powerful, so enjoy doing good with it.
7. For the moment, money’s necessary, so give it to those who need
it.
8. Make money! Just don’t keep it all.
9. Don’t obey it;
10. manage it—for the moment that it’s in your hands.

1. Great. That just leaves the six-thousand-pound elephant in the room:
1. Who are any of us to play the role of a child of light?

1. . . . including for us to play the role of children of light: Jesus
was about to enter Jerusalem, to die on the cross.
1. Let’s not lose the big picture.
1. Where was Jesus on his journey when he told this parable?
2. He was about to enter Jerusalem, to die on the cross like a
derelict in the dark in order to make you a child of light!
3. That’s what makes you a different steward, that you should be
rescuing people on God’s behalf with his goods!
4. Baptized into his name most holy!

1. But it’s way bigger and better than being made stewards of the stuff
he owns.
1. He owns you.
2. He owns me.
3. Paul says:
1. “You are not your own; for you were bought with a price” (1
Corinthians 6:19b–20a).
4. Jesus is the owner now.
1. He redeemed us, purchased and won us.
5. You are a steward of . . . you!
6. We’ve been entrusted with real wealth!
1. Forgiveness, life, and salvation! So…

Conclusion

1. Be Shrewd like That Sleaze in the Parable.

1. What about those of us who agree that we should live as children of
light, but our performance even since we were supposed to be children of
light has been more like children of this world?
2. What about the books we’ve already cooked?
3. Be shrewd about believing him when he says,
1. “though your sins are like scarlet,” write down “white as snow”
(Isaiah 1:18).
4. It’s still dark out there!
5. What if I mess up again?
6. I have no faith in me.
7. Good! Be shrewd about trusting Jesus to get you home!
8. Even now, O child of light, Jesus is savvy enough to notice when
we pull stunts on ourselves.
9. You know, the psalm says darkness and light are all the same to
him (Psalm 139:12).
10. It means he can see in the dark just as well as He can see in the
light!
11. I can’t see in the dark doesn’t mean he doesn’t see all the games
I play.
12. That’s why he says,
1. “At one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the
Lord. Walk as children of light” (Ephesians 5:8).
13. So the stewards now are shrewd to realize the Owner can see in
the dark, and they come out into the light.
14. “You know all things, Lord. You know I’ve sinned.”
15. The Owner says, “What have you wasted or squandered on yourself?
Quick, write down ‘Nothing.’ ”
16. He says, “How have you sinned with my property, that body I
redeemed? Quick, write down ‘Not at all.’ ”
17. And all of this must be okay, because he’s the Owner.
18. Jesus’ sacrifice settles all accounts; his death balances all
books.
19. The blood of the Owner cleanses us from all unrighteousness.
20. His love writes “Well Done” on everyone who believes him.
21. It puts everlasting life into our hands, for us to take hold of.
22. Even pastors are stewards of these mysteries.
23. The “one God, . . . one mediator between God and men, the man
Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5) was crucified like a scandalized
steward, and, as if it were his life that was at stake, asked,
“How much do
you owe?” We said, “All of it, Lord.”
24. And Jesus said, “Take your bill, and make it zero, child of
light.”
25. Be shrewd. Do it. Amen.
26. Let us pray:
27. The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, guard your
hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
28. In the Name of the Father…Amen.