Trinity 9 The Sunday of the Shrewd Manager July 29, 2018
Trinity 9 The Sunday of the Shrewd Manager
Luke 16:1-13
July 29, 2018
“True Wisdom is Hidden in Mercy”
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The problem with everyone else in the world is that they’re not like me. That’s the whole problem. You’ve wondered what’s wrong with all these crazy people in the world, right? Well, there’s your answer. If everyone was more like you, then the world would be so much better. Is that right?
No, of course, it’s not right. But we often think it. And act like it. We can’t imagine why more people aren’t like us. However, in our better moments, we realize that’s a lie. If everyone was like me, the world would be much worse, not better. The world is blessed to have all kinds of different people.
Now the same thing we should be able to see this morning about God Himself. God is different from you. He’s not like you. He doesn’t do things the way you and I do them. He doesn’t think like we think. He doesn’t see things the way we see them. That’s why many people in this world don’t like God. That’s why many people won’t believe in Him and want nothing to do with Him. Because He’s not like them. And they think the world would be a whole lot better if God were more like them. But He’s not.
And it’s a good thing He’s not. Because if God were like you or me, then the world would be much worse and in big trouble. Now I bring this up, that God is not like you and me, to tell you something about the parables of Jesus. When Jesus tells a parable, it is almost always specifically designed to show us that God is not like us. That His ways are not like our ways. Jesus had to teach in parables precisely because it’s so hard for us to understand God’s ways. And to accept that He’s not like us. If you really look at parables closely, you’ll find that there’s always something very surprising about it. Something that’s different from the way we would normally do or think or see.
So, for instance, the parable that Jesus tells right before the parable that we’re dealing with today, the shrewd manager, is the parable of the Prodigal Son (or the parable of the lost sons). The younger son takes his inheritance and blows it all. And then comes crawling back home. The normal way we handle that is that you have to earn Dad’s respect and trust back again. We don’t throw a big party and act like everything’s fine even though he treated his dad as if he were dead. But that’s the way God is. Not the way we are. The way God is. He is so full of mercy and love for all sinners that He welcomes us back with forgiveness every time we repent and turn to Him. We don’t have to earn His love. God isn’t like us. You don’t have to earn anything from Him. You simply receive it all in Jesus.
So right after that parable where we learn that God isn’t like you or me, then Jesus doubles up with another parable that teaches a very similar thing. And that’s our parable today, the shrewd manager. We would never do things the way this parable does. Never. Because God isn’t like us. Only God would do things like this parable.
In the parable a manager is found to be wasting his boss’s possessions. Stealing from the boss and losing his money. He’s a bad employee. So what do you do? Fire him. Immediately. And maybe even press charges. Get some of your money back. Well, the boss in the parable does fire him but he allows the manager time to get the books to him. Well, in that time the manager goes around and settles up with other farmers for less than what they actually owe. So now the boss loses even more money. Now what do you do him? You kick that guy to the curb as hard as you can.
Let’s put this into a real case today. Say the city manager of El Paso or Gridley is found to be stealing a bunch of money from the city. So he or she is fired. But before they leave office they’re allowed to cut a bunch of deals for friends so that the city loses even more money. What do we do? We kick ‘em to the curb as hard as we can, that’s what we do.
And so you see, we’re not like God. And God is not like us. Because this parable tells about something totally different—mercy. Not punishment. Not revenge. Not “giving him his due”. Not “sticking it to him”. None of that. That’s what we would do. We would make sure to get even. No, not God. God commends this awful manager. He forgives him.
The Pharisees, the bad guys that were hanging around Jesus when he told this parable, thought that God should really give low-life sinners what they deserved. They thought God should take the best to heaven (which was, of course, themselves) and then he should kick all the bad people to the curb.
And generally, that’s what we think too. What about a rapist? What should we do with them? If you were God, what would you do with a rapist? Give him his due, right? Well, I know one thing. We wouldn’t throw him a party if he repents! We wouldn’t ever commend such a guy who has ever committed such a crime as that! Right? Show no mercy!
What about a guy like Dylan Roof that went into a church in Charleston and killed 9 people? If you were God, what do you do with him? What about a terrorist? Someone who kills Christians in the Middle East simply because they’re Christians. Or kills other Muslims because they’re not the right kind of Muslims. What should we do with them?
Well, I’ll tell you one thing. You don’t send your own Son to go and die for them, do you? Certainly not. You don’t give a chance to sinners like that to turn and receive mercy, do you? Certainly not. Because you and I aren’t like God.
This is the very surprising twist in the parable of the shrewd manager. The manager wastes money, then tries to save his own skin, and instead of an angry boss who’s ready to kill him—he gets a smiling boss who is commending him. Commending him for seeing where real shrewdness and wisdom actually lies. It lies in showing mercy.
God doesn’t give sinners what they’re due. If He did, we’d all be fired and kicked to the curb. He doesn’t give you what you really deserve. That’s what you and I would do. But God isn’t like us. He is a God of mercy. We owe a massive debt to Him. But He settles the bill. By giving His Son Jesus. To give His life as payment on the cross. And then, when we turn to Him for forgiveness, He actually commends us. He commends us! And we should say, “For what, God?! For what?” And He says, “I commend you through faith in Jesus Christ. And I love you even though you’re a sinner.”
Let me put it to you this way. God doesn’t seem to care about his own honor! He lets thieves, rapists, murderers, terrorists, gossips, abortionists, homosexuals, men who abuse their wives, men who abuse children, women who abuse children, alcoholics, drug addicts, and the list goes on—He lets all of them turn to Jesus Christ in faith, then He forgives them and commends them! He commends them! Where’s His honor?! How could He let such people into His kingdom?
Yes, how could He let such people in? How could He let people like you and me? Where’s His honor? To let a poor, miserable wretch like us into His grace and mercy? And not only forgive us our sin—but commend us and say, “My beloved child! I love you! And with you I’m well pleased.” How can God do that?!
Well, God isn’t like us. Praise the Lord! God isn’t like us! He is a God of mercy. And that’s where real wisdom lies. One more way let me put it to you. Sometimes you and I, because we think we’re good Christians, we don’t want to be seen being too nice to certain low-life sinners that everyone in the area knows. You don’t want anybody getting the wrong idea about you. And neither do I. We don’t want to be seen as if we’re actually friends with such people. Or that we, in any way, approve of what they’ve done. Someone like me, a pastor, or you, a member of Trinity Lutheran, can’t be seen with so-and-so because people might get the wrong idea.
But God isn’t like us. He hangs around with us sinners. And He even commends us. He commends us through faith in Jesus Christ. And He’s not worried about His honor. That is all in His Son Jesus Christ.
So we ought learn this lesson well. Wisdom and shrewdness is hidden in showing mercy. Not getting even. Not sticking it to people. Not making sure so-and-so gets what’s coming to him. No. God has shown you and I incredible mercy. He has not only forgiven our massive debt of sin—but He has actually commended and praised us and loved us in Jesus Christ.
So we also are truly wise when we show mercy. When we forgive. When we love. Even when there’s a chance it might hurt our reputation. Even when there’s a chance someone might see us being nice to another sinner. That is the way of God. The way of Jesus our Savior. And it’s the way of those who follow Jesus. To show mercy and love.
As it turns out, the problem with everyone else in the world isn’t that they’re not like you or me. The problem with everyone else is that they are just like you and me. And God’s solution is that He sent His Son to become just like all of us, that He might do something that only God would do–forgive our sins by Christ’s death on the cross and commend us as His beloved children. In Jesus’ name. Amen.