Shalom,
May our hearts be filled with gratitude because God still gives us the opportunity to gather, either online or on site. He has been faithful to us thus let’s learn to be so faithful to Him that one day we will receive the reward stored in Heaven for us.
Speaking of faithfulness, God's Word tells us to be faithful in whatever work God has entrusted to us. In reality, the Word of God that has been preached these days tend to follow the trend and focus more on material blessings, daily needs, physical healing, etc. They suppose that godliness is a means of gain (cf. 1 Timothy 6:5b) even though God wants us, through our corporate gathering, to get encouragement and strength from the Word and the Holy Spirit who guides us into all truth (John 16:13) – and to receive the true hope, that is the promise of forgiveness, the promise of redemption and the promise of eternal life. If the Word only focuses on material things, this is the same as limiting God's power to only physical blessings even though the Word that speaks of truth and eternal salvation includes physical blessings in it.
Do we believe in the message of the gospel regarding forgiveness, holiness and eternal life? Or, do we prefer prosperity theology? We are to open our hearts for spiritual check-up by God's Word which contains both physical and spiritual blessings. Our professing godliness is truly profitable for all things, having promise for the life that now is and of that which is to come (1 Timothy 4:7b-9).
Since today we are talking about being faithful, let’s dig deeper in Luke 16: 1-18. What kind of faithfulness does God require from us who have known the Holy Scriptures from childhood (2 Timothy 3:15-17)? He wants us to:
- Faithfully live in honesty (vv. 1-9).
And Jesus said to His disciples, “There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and an accusation was brought to him that this man was wasting his goods. So he called him and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward…”
Although this story is a parable, we can learn something from it. It is said that the steward wasted his master's goods. He did not appreciate the position given to him. And the consequence faced by anyone who is not faithful in a job or position, whether in the secular world or in the ministry, is getting fired.
Every work in ministry field is a God-given opportunity for us. If we are not faithful and honest in our work, we will not receive any reward, or rather, we will be fired by the Lord of lords.
Then, regarding finances, our income must come from honest work. In other words, what we do for living must not harm other people. We don't know for sure what the steward in the parable did; if it was a fraud, he would have been arrested to account for his actions. He racked his brain so that he would not lose his job. His reputation was tarnished, and he had no other work skill. He then provided "discount tactics" to his master’s debtors. The master should be furious because his business was harmed by this dishonest steward. On the other hand, the master commended the steward for his shrewdness. The master saw that the steward was able to overcome the crisis with a good strategy and make a friendship with the unrighteous Mammon.
Here is a message for those of us who are currently facing financial uncertainty due to long-term pandemic: let’s use our faith to keep a positive mind and be creative in making breakthrough in order to survive. Don't throw a pity party! Don’t be fatalist! Instead, we have to keep a clear mind to find the best solution.
- Faithfully serve one master (vv. 10-13).
The parable of the dishonest steward is associated with Mammon (v. 9). Mammon means something entrusted. As an example: we have money or valuables and then we entrust the bank to save it. Over time, Mammon (starting with a capital letter M), which began with an object that we keep, becomes fully personified as a subject that we believe in. Mammon is now the god of money that we trust although Mammon is not reliable. Can we tie a friendship with the unrighteous Mammon? We can never trust a dishonest person. In the same manner, we cannot entrust ourselves to the unrighteous Mammon, or money, or wealth.
Nevertheless, the Lord taught us how to build friendship using the unrighteous Mammon for the greater good. When we die, Mammon cannot help us. But while we are still alive, we can benefit from our friendship with Mammon: we can help others with our wealth, we can glorify the Lord with our wealth. So, Mammon or the money we get, we do not keep for ourselves but we use it to help others in need. One day when you fail, they may receive you into an everlasting home.
Please take note there are two wrong attitudes toward Mammon:
- We consider all the money and the wealth that we have is our own. Well, they are not. They are the Lord’s. We are given the power and the trust to manage it. And we must manage it Aren’t we supposed to live no longer for ourselves, but for Him who died for us and rose again (2 Corinthians 5:15)? Obviously, we are not our own but God’s for we were bought at a price (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). Hence, the wealth we possess and the money we gain are the Lord’s. Or, as written in Luke 16: 12, it is another man’s. As for us, our true treasures – our eternal reward – lay up in heaven where neither moth nor rust destroys (Matthew 6: 19).
- We use money for our sinful desire even though we earn it the right way. Or, we do not use the money to sin but we waste our money for things that we do not need. Even more than that, we spend our money to gratify our own desires but we are stingy concerning spiritual matters – for ministry field or helping others who are in need.
We must be faithful in managing the unrighteous Mammon. The mistreatment of our money can risk our true treasures laid up in heaven. Remember, the love of money is the root of all evil. But we must pursue righteousness, godliness and faith (1 Timothy 6:10-11). Do not be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God (v. 17)! Instead we seek friendship with Mammon for the purpose of doing good, and be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, storing up for ourselves a good foundation for eternal life (vv. 18-19).
Now, what happens in reality is we serve God and Mammon at the same time. We know that God loves us and we want to make Him our Master. But we also “love” Mammon because we need money. Even God's Word states that if anyone will not work, neither shall he eat (2 Thessalonians 3:10). What shall we do then? Do not position money equal or even higher than God! God must be the Lord of lords (including Mammon).
- Be faithful in marriage
After talking about the parable of the dishonest steward and Mammon, suddenly Jesus switched the discussion to divorce (v. 18). Divorce is considered normal nowadays. For the world, it is not a big deal. Many couples get married and divorced without any guilty feeling. The world may consider marriage a trivial matter, but the Lord wants us to be faithful in this small union. In other words, we must honor marriage among all, and we must not defile the bed (Hebrews 13:4). Surprisingly, after reminding us to be faithful in marriage, we then be warned not to covet and to be content with such things as we have for He Himself will never leave nor forsake us (v. 5).
Now we understand what the Lord means by being faithful with little. He wants us to be faithful in the ministry work we are entrusted to, we are to prioritize the Lord and not replace Him with Mammon, and be faithful in marriage. If we are faithful in these three things, the Lord is faithful and He will never leave us, and we will receive true treasures and live with Him in His eternal Kingdom. Amen.