seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Luke 16:1 Jesus told his disciples: “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 2 So he called him in and asked him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.’
3 “The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg— 4 I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’
5 “So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’
6 “‘Nine hundred gallons[a] of olive oil,’ he replied.
“The manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred and fifty.’
7 “Then he asked the second, ‘And how much do you owe?’
“‘A thousand bushels[b] of wheat,’ he replied.
“He told him, ‘Take your bill and make it eight hundred.’
8 “The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. 9 I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. 11 So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? 12 And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?
13 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”
14 The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. 15 He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts. What people value highly is detestable in God’s sight.
16 “The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing their way into it. 17 It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Law.
18 “Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery, and the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
19 “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’
25 “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’
27 “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’
29 “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’
30 “‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
31 “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”
a. Luke 16:6 Or about 3,000 liters
b. Luke 16:7 Or about 30 tons
Today I have read two commentaries. Those two commentaries are the blueletterbible.org site and the easy English site. There are a few verses in this chapter that give me pause. I really didn't understand them. Thanks to studying two commentaries.... I have a clearer view.
Someone told the master that his manager was wasting the rich man’s possessions. The master took the job from the manager before he looked at the evidence. The manager may not have been guilty but he could not defend himself. But he had time to act while he prepared the accounts.
There was no hope of another job like this one. He was not strong enough for hard labour. He would not ask people for money. He had to find another way to live. He decided to get friends who would provide for him.
The manager spoke to each person who owed money to the master. He told them to bring the records of their debts. Then he told them to reduce the amounts. He was able to do this because he still had the authority as the manager.
A bath was about 5 gallons (22 litres) of liquid goods. A cor was about 220 litres of dry goods.
In those days people returned kindness because of any kindness that they had received. In this act, the manager obliged these persons to do something for him. When he left his job, they would receive him into their homes.
When this man's boss came in to look over the reports.... the boss called him "shrewd"..... This morning the character called Sheldon on the TV show "Big Bang" comes to mind. Sheldon is a real odd sort.... he understands the universe and all it's rules but he doesn't understand human emotion. Sarcasm completely escapes this character. Now... I think.... when the owner looks over the books and calls the manager "shrewd".... it has nothing to do with good management.... it's a flippin' insult..... The manager knows..... IMHO... preachers have been missing the point for years.... being shrewd with the bosses money is a bad thing.... being honest is what we should be doing. If the guy had been honest in the first place... there would be no need to worry about where he would be living... because his position would have been secure. Sarcasm.... don't preachers see sarcasm?
I did hear a great sermon about the rich man and Lazarus. That preacher did a great job. My mouth was so dry during that sermon.... I felt how good it would have been to feel the cool water on the dry tongue. On top of that.... He got it right... the preacher didn't mince the sermon to save the feelings.
When that rich man wanted Lazarus to go talk to his brothers and warn them.... Jesus said....
‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”
Jesus rose from the dead.... and so far.... the humans are not convinced.Now... there is one verse that really confused me.... what John is Jesus talking about in verse 16? It's John the Baptist.....
The law and the prophets were until John: Now, since that time (the time ending with John the Baptist's ministry) the good news of a new covenant is presented, with an order that is different than the law, yet it fulfills the law.
The kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it: In Jesus' day, there were hundreds of revolutionaries willing to use great violence to bring in the kingdom of God. While we do not imitate their violence, we do imitate their dedication, their willingness to sacrifice, and their passion to see the Messiah reign. We are at war!
But the new order that we must press into is not an order of rebellion; it is a new order of submission and obedience to God; His new order fulfills the law.
There were a lot of protests going on at the time. People didn't like the way Rome was ruling. The church was corrupt. People rebelling... marching....they wanted change. The real life in those days was hard on the poor. There was no middle class.
Are these dark messages? Well... IMHO.... it's all in how I look at it. Maybe they are dark because Jesus is trying to make the point clear and humans who need to hear these messages are in a dark place.... so the message has to be dark to get in. The dead rich man wanted a dead poor man to get up and get him a drink of water..... nope... a man in the dark place wanted a man in the light place to give him a tiny bit of relief from all that darkness.
I feel sorry for the rich.... they are addicted to money.......and it's everywhere.... it must be as bad as being addicted to food.... we require food to live so those of us who are addicted to food have to deal with it daily. The rich are addicted to money.... and although we don't require money to live... we do have to deal with it every day. Dealing with addiction is a very dark thing.
Yep... I think these are very dark messages.... dealing with the addictions of the rich.
