God's Glory Church

We all manage something in life. Someone wisely manages their time and finances, someone manages enterprises and entire countries, and someone cannot bring themselves to do even what they themselves need… God created man to manage His creation, but very often we can see the abuse of this trust of God. People who are called upon to create and bless others by managing earthly goods, instead try to usurp power over the destinies of other people, entire countries and peoples. Such unjust governance leads to violence and wars, which is what we all see in our country today. One man decided that he could control the destinies of others, and thousands of innocent people suffer and die as a result.
You ask me: “How can I influence all this, because I am not the president of Ukraine, not a millionaire, not some big boss or influential politician, I am an ordinary person and my influence extends maximum to my family and work colleagues.” The answer is in today’s parable. In it, Jesus reveals to us one of the important aspects of influencing not only his own destiny, but also the destiny of our generation and the history of our country.
“He also said to his disciples: a certain man was rich and had a steward, against whom it was reported to him that he was wasting his property; and calling him, he said to him: What is this I hear about you? give an account of your management, for you can no longer manage. Then the steward said to himself: What should I do? my lord takes away the stewardship of the house from me; I can’t dig, I’m ashamed to ask; I know what to do so that they will accept me into their homes when I am removed from managing the house. And calling his master’s debtors, each one separately, he said to the first: How much do you owe my master? He said: one hundred measures of oil. And he said to him: take your receipt and sit down quickly, write: fifty. Then he said to another: how much do you owe? He answered: one hundred measures of wheat. And he said to him: take your receipt and write: eighty. And the lord praised the unfaithful steward for acting wisely; for the sons of this age are more perceptive in their generation than the sons of light. And I say to you: make friends for yourself with unrighteous wealth, so that when you become poor, they will receive you into eternal abodes.” (Luke 16:1-9)
This parable is about a pack of swindlers who can be found everywhere. The ruler is a rogue and a spendthrift; he managed his master’s estate. The owners of many estates lived outside Palestine. The owner of the estate could be one of them, so he entrusted the management of his affairs to one of his employees. This same steward simply plundered his master’s estate.

Debtors are also scammers. Their debts consisted of unpaid rent. It was often paid not in money, but in kind, which represented an agreed share of the harvest. The manager, already knowing that he would be removed from office, falsified entries in the debt books in order to significantly reduce the debts of the debtors. He expected two benefits from this. Firstly, the debtors were now obliged to him; secondly, and much more importantly, he made them accomplices in his crimes; and, therefore, could blackmail them if necessary.
And the owner himself acted quite strangely; instead of condemning the unfaithful manager, he even approved of his manager’s cunning and, in fact, praised him for it.

The first thing Jesus points out in this story is that the sons of this age are wiser than the sons of light in their generation. This means that if every Christian would show the same diligence and ingenuity in his pursuit of righteousness as unbelievers show in their pursuit of their welfare and comfort, he would be a much better person. A person spends tens of times more time, money and effort on his pleasures and hobbies, on his dacha and sports, than on church. Our Christianity will only become true and effective when we devote as much time and effort to it as we devote to our daily affairs.
The second thing Christ says is that wealth should be used to make true friends, which is the true and lasting value of life. This can be done in two areas:

1) In the sphere of eternal life. The rabbis had a saying: “The rich help the poor in this world, and the poor will help the rich in the Hereafter.” The Jews believed that charity and mercy towards the poor would count for eternity. Real wealth, therefore, lies not in what a person has retained, but in what he has given away.
2) In the sphere of everyday life. A person can spend his wealth selfishly, striving for an easy, carefree life; but he can make the lives of his friends and those in need easier. How many people around us are grateful to some wealthy person who gave money for medicine, surgery or training! How many people are grateful to their friends who helped them in difficult times! Wealth in itself is not a sin, but it imposes great responsibility on a person. A man who has used his fortune to help his fellow men is on the right path in trying to fulfill his responsibilities.
The third thing the Lord says is that by how a person carries out a small assignment, it is clear whether he can be entrusted with a more significant one. No one gets promoted without demonstrating his integrity and ability in a more humble position. Jesus extends this principle to eternal life. Essentially, He says: “On earth you are entrusted with things that are not really yours. They are only temporarily entrusted to you. You only dispose and manage them. By their very nature, they cannot belong to you forever. When you die, you leave them here. In heaven, on the contrary, you will receive what will truly always belong to you. What you get in heaven depends on how you use the things entrusted to you on earth. And what will be given to you personally depends on how you used the things that were entrusted to you for temporary management.”