Shrewdness

One of the most confusing parables is the one of the dishonest manager.

Then Jesus said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was squandering his property. So he summoned him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Give me an accounting of your management, because you cannot be my manager any longer.’ Then the manager said to himself, ‘What will I do, now that my master is taking the position away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. I have decided what to do so that, when I am dismissed as manager, people may welcome me into their homes.’ So, summoning his master’s debtors one by one, he asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ He answered, ‘A hundred jugs of olive oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it fifty.’ Then he asked another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He replied, ‘A hundred containers of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill and make it eighty.’ And his master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light. And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes. - Luke 16:1-9

What does the dishonest manager do that redeems him in his master's eyes?

It seems that in reducing the debt of all who owe the master money, the manager is using his position to benefit himself at his master's expense, but there is another way to look at this.  He could be reducing the debt to by the amount that would have been his commission, thereby giving away his portion, and not his master's.

That was one interpretation I read, and it changes the way I understand what is going on here.  

If he was giving away what would go to him, he was definitely shrewd, and his master would see that he was clever in his dealings, clever enough, perhaps, to want to keep him on.

But what is the message for us?

Jesus tells us to be aware of the world we live in, where dishonesty has an equal place at the table, or maybe, at times, a higher place, than honesty.  Those we deal with may not be focused on eternal riches, but on earthly riches.

So, we need to be shrewd, while remaining honest, in our dealings.  Know who we are dealing with, but keep our minds and focus on God.

God will welcome us home, because we are loved and by His grace, we are saved.  But we will enjoy the friendship of angels if we stay true to the path, while navigating this dishonest world.

More to come...