<p>There is a difference between a manager and a servant. A servant does menial tasks, while a manager is entrusted with part of the master’s authority and is responsible for managing the master’s assets. In today’s passage, the manager is caught mismanaging and acting unjustly with the master’s property, and as a result, he is about to be dismissed.</p><p> </p><p>The manager, being "not strong enough to dig" and "ashamed to beg," comes up with a plan to reduce the debts of those who owe his master. In the eyes of the world, a master would become even angrier upon discovering this, but in this parable, the master represents God, not a worldly master. The master, that is, God, sees the manager’s actions as wise and praises him.</p><p> </p><p>Jesus says that the "sons of this age"—meaning people of the world—are shrewd. He even states that they are more shrewd than the "sons of light," referring to Israel. In other words, people of the world are more shrewd than those who follow God.</p><p> </p><p>This shrewdness involves making friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails, those friends will welcome you into eternal dwellings. The "eternal dwellings" refer to heaven.</p><p> </p><p>Jesus emphasizes this wisdom to us, which is the wisdom of forgiving others’ debts, or relieving their burdens. The greatest wisdom in this world is winning people, and even if you use unrighteous wealth to do so, it is considered wise and earns God’s praise.</p><p> </p><p><i>Excerpt from the sermon by Pastor Lee, Oct 21, 2024.</i></p><p><i>Luke 16:1-9</i></p>
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