God & Money: A New Paradigm

Unpacking the Parable: Luke 16.1-9

• A steward is caught squandering what has been entrusted to him (1-2)
• Knowing he will soon be fired, what can he do now? (3-4)
• He will use his current, temporary resources to secure his future (5-7)
• His master, seeing what he has done, praises the steward for acting shrewdly (8)
• His actions were unjust but effective (8)

Interpreting the Parable

• We, like the steward, face a radical change in our circumstances in the near future
• We too would be wise to use our current, temporary resources to secure a warm welcome into God’s eternal Kingdom (9)

Applying the Parable: The Taxation Paradigm v. the Stewardship Paradigm 

• A good steward manages all of his resources wisely
• A wise steward manages with an eye to the future (Eternity!)

Take Home Idea: All we have actually belongs to God, so like stewards, we should manage all of it wisely in view of our eternal destination.