“…There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods. And he called him, and said unto him, How is it that I hear this of thee? give an account of thy stewardship; for thou mayest be no longer steward. Then the steward said within himself, What shall I do? for my lord taketh away from me the stewardship: I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed. I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses. So he called every one of his lord’s debtors unto him, and said unto the first, How much owest thou unto my lord? And he said, An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty. Then said he to another, And how much owest thou? And he said, An hundred measures of wheat. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and write fourscore. And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.” Luke 16:1-8
My Summary & Reflection
A rich man had an agent that worked on his behalf who, he discovered, had been wasting his goods. The rich man told the agent to give an accounting of his goods because he will be fired. The steward wondered what he was going to do. He resolved that he would work with those indebted to his employer, so that he will gain favor with them. He then went to each of his employer’s debtors and reduced their bills to the employer by fifty percent. The rich man then commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely.
Jesus follows up this parable by saying, “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man’s, who shall 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 else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” Luke 16:10-13
The agent went to the rich man’s debtors and reduced their bills by fifty percent. Why did he do this? Was it because the bills had been over inflated with his own commission? Or was it because to get something for his client was better than getting nothing at all? It’s not clear to me the reason for the agent’s actions and the rich man’s commendation of his action.
The follow up however, is clear. Jesus appears to be saying that a person shows his character through the small jobs, the seemingly trivial moments. If a person lacks commitment or is unrighteous, then that will be revealed even in the smallest moments. The same character that person displays during minor jobs is the same character that will be displayed on something grander. Therefore, only those who have proven themselves worthy through small tasks will be tasked with something greater.
It could be that the reason that we have not yet been tasked with the greatness we aspire to is that we have not shown the commitment to the small tasks that we’ve been assigned. It is only after that commitment is shown, that we can hope to be ready for something greater.
Your Reflection
- How can you prove yourself worthy of greater responsibilities to serve God?
- How well do you shepherd the resources (time, talent, finances, etc.) to which you have been entrusted?