Luke 16:1-13 "Investing in Eternity" (Carlton 6:30pm)

I'll invite us to keep Luke 16 open and good evening, everybody. Great to be here. As we come to hear from God's word. Habat we pray and ask God to help us. And I'm going to pray an old prayer.

Our gracious Father, we do praise and thank you for time together to consider this part of your word. And we pray that old prayer that now your word would be our rule and guide, that your Holy Spirit would be our great teacher and your glory our supreme concern. And we ask this for Jesus sake. Amen. Well, we're continuing tonight in our series in Luke's Gospel.

And tonight we come to the largely unknown, an often misunderstood parable of the dishonest manager. And I do wonder what you were thinking as we just heard that read a couple months back when the preaching roster came out, I saw that I was down for this week and down for Luke 16. And so I turned that up and I read it. And I thought to myself as maybe we just thought, what on earth is going on here? Because it seems like Jesus tells a story about a dodgy man who did a dodgy thing and he got commended.

And I have to say for weeks I've been trying to work out why I've been given this passage. And maybe if Phil is trying to say something to me about I'm being dodgy or something like that. But can I tell you, having spent some time in Luke 16, that this is a brilliant parable. And it is a brilliant parable because here Jesus puts his finger on something that we all care very much about, and that is money. That's the subject of this parable.

Money. Money makes the world go round. We work to have it, we save to keep it. We love to spend it. Some waste it, others invest it, some save it.

But in the end, no one gets to keep it. And money for Christians has often been a taboo subject. Not because I think we find it hard in general to talk about money, but because we find it hard to talk about our money. And yet that's exactly what Jesus wants to talk to us about tonight in Luke 16. How do we use our money and what are we investing in?

And what I want to say to us tonight is that if we really get our heads around what Jesus is saying and we let it get into us, it won't just change your Christian life, it will revolutionize it and it will change how we invest. And when it comes to money and possessions, there's two things that Jesus wants from us. He wants us. Point one, to be wise verses one to nine be wise with what we invest in. And two to be faithful.

Verse 10 to 13 be faithful with what we've been given. So firstly, be wise. Let's look together at the parable. Come with me to verse one. Jesus says there was a rich man who received an accusation that his manager was squandering his possessions.

The manager has been taking clients out for lunch with the company card. He's been spending way too much. He's been buying gifts for friends, he's even upgraded his car. But it's not long until verse two his boss finds out. And his boss rightly says to him, you're fired.

And so the manager thinks to himself, well, verse three, what will I do? End of verse three I'm not strong enough to work, I can't go get a blue collar job, and I'm too ashamed to beg. What will I do? And then he thinks to himself, it's not what I know, it's who I know. And mindful of the future, he is about to lose his job.

He makes a plan in the present to make friends who will look out for him. And so whilst he can, he logs onto the work spreadsheet and he finds out who owes his boss. And so he makes some phone calls. He calls the first one, verse five. He asks them how much they owe.

They say 100. He says, make that 50. Let's be friends. He calls up the next one, verse seven, how much do they owe? They say 100.

He says, how about a 20% discount? Make that 80. Let's be friends. Now. What he has done is incredibly dodgy.

He is dishonest. He's probably criminal, but he is no fool. No, he uses money now to make friends who will look out for him. And then his master comes, verse eight. And what do we think he's going to say?

I'm calling the police. Well, have a look at verse 8. The master praised the unrighteous manager because he had acted shrewdly. He praised him and it's important to ask what actually was he praised for? And can I say, it's not for being dishonest.

Jesus makes it very clear elsewhere that there is no room for making money in a dodgy or dishonest way. Now what he's being praised for is for how he thought he thought about the future. He's about to lose his job and he acted wisely in the present. And Jesus says, verse 8, that was shrewd. And that's what he's praised for for his shrewdness now, we may not use that word shrewd much, but to be shrewd is to be crafty or sharp.

It is to be far sighted. It is to be smart or canny. It is to be wise. And it's as though when his master comes to him, he says to him, you cheeky, crafty boy, well done. How wise.

And he was wise. He thought about his future and he used money shrewdly in the present to make friends that would last. And it's this acting now in light of the future that Jesus commends to you and I. So verse 8, Jesus says, For the children of this age are more shrewd than the children of light. That's Christians in dealing with their own people.

And Jesus says this as if to say, if the secular business person knows how to use money now to make friends for the future, well, how much more should the Christian use their money now to make friends, not just for the future, but for eternity? And so Jesus says, verse 9, and this is the crunch. He says, I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of worldly wealth, so that when it fails, they may welcome you into eternal dwellings. Now what does that mean? Well, I think that what Jesus is saying is this.

He's saying, in light of eternity, use your wealth now to make friends for eternity. Because who are These people, verse 9, who will welcome you into their eternal dwellings, into their eternal homes? Well, it must be other Christians and Christians who are partly there because of how we invested. Why does Jesus call it worldly wealth? Well, I think he does, because all wealth really belongs to this world.

And verse nine, it will fail. We can't take it with us. It makes me think of the journalist who asked the family of a rich man who had recently died, how much did he leave? And his family said, he left everything. We can't take it with us.

But Jesus says that worldly wealth can be invested and invested in the only thing that will last, which is people.

I can think back to when I was a young Christian and I heard this and I've never forgotten it, but if I was to hand you a packet of red stickers and a packet of green stickers, and I was to ask you to go throughout your life and on all the things that are going to not last, you put a red sticker. And on all the things that were going to last, you put a green sticker, I wonder what we'd do. Well, we'd be walking around the house, there goes a red sticker on the car, on the TV on the phone, on the holiday, even on my bank account, because it's all going to go, all good things, but they won't last. And the only thing that would get a green sticker is people. And I could go around tonight, couldn't I?

Green sticker, green sticker, green sticker, green sticker. Because only people last. And because only people last. Well, Jesus wants us to invest now in the eternity of others. Now I want to ask us, and this might mean that we have to think quite hard here, so thinking caps on.

But I want to ask, why is this parable in Luke's gospel? I mean, of all the thousands and thousands of things that Jesus said and did, why does Luke include this? And he does it because of what comes before and please stay with me here. But we are in a section in Luke from chapter 13 to 17 that is all about the question, who are Jesus people? And Luke shows us who Jesus people are.

Chapter 13. Who are Jesus people? They go through the narrow door, they come to Jesus. Chapter 14 who are Jesus people? They're not the self righteous, not the Pharisee, no, they accept the invitation to come to Jesus banquet. Chapter 15. Who are Jesus people?

It's the lost who get found. And then chapter 16. Then who are Jesus people? Well, Jesus people are those who invest, and they invest in the eternity of others. And it's so fitting that this comes right after the parable of the Prodigal Son.

Because what brings God joy? It is when the lost son or daughter repents and turns back to him. And what does Jesus care deeply about? It's seeking and saving the lost. There is joy in heaven when one sinner repents and comes home.

And in Luke 16, it's as though Jesus says to us, if we care about what he cares about, the lost getting saved, well, we'll put our money where our mouth is and we'll invest our wealth, which is really all our possessions, our assets and even our time into helping others to hear and believe and be saved and grow. And if we do well, we will arrive in heaven and there will be friends. Verse 9. There will be people there who welcome you. And just picture that being in heaven and you meet someone who was a young university student in Japan, or a young woman from Paraguay, a man from Vietnam, a family from the south of France, or even someone from Sydney.

And when you ask them, how did God bring you to trust in Jesus? They will say, well, partly because of you, because of how you invested in my eternity, because you gave to a ministry or to a church or to Christian work that God used to tell me the Gospel. And then they will say, my friend, Verse 9 would you like to come to my place, to my eternal dwelling? What a joy. What a wise investment.

And of course, giving to a church or a missionary is not the only way that we can invest in the attention eternity of others. But it is a very, very key way. And so the question here for us is in the light of eternity and knowing that only people last, what are we investing in? We might invest now in gold or Bitcoin or the housing markets or whatever. They're not all bad things, but they won't last.

Only people will. And if we really want what Jesus wants, the lost son or daughter coming home, well, we won't only be wise in how we invest now in the light of the future, but we'll be radical, even costly. And secondly, we'll be faithful. Point to be faithful with what we have now. Verses 10 to 12 can sound a bit confusing, but what Jesus is saying is this.

How we deal with the small things God gives us is how we'll deal with those big things. So if we're unfaithful with not much, we'll be unfaithful with much. If we're faithful with not much, we'll be faithful with much. And if we've been unfaithful with worldly wealth, which fails well, verse 11 how will he trust us with what is genuine? With eternal riches?

And verse 12 if you have not been faithful with what belongs to someone else, who will give to you what is your own?

And isn't that very striking that Jesus says, with what belongs to someone else? I know this is a dangerous thing to do in the sermon, but I just wanted to show you my credit card.

I am with Commbank. My numbers are 5326. That's none of your business. And but I want to ask you what's actually wrong with my credit card?

Well, what is wrong with my credit card is it says my name and it can trick me into thinking that what is in there belongs to me. But it doesn't. My credit card should say the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ. Because it belongs to Him.

And in a very real way we are all like the manager of Luke 16. He didn't use what belonged to him, it belonged to his Master. And if my possessions and my assets and my time belong to him, well, how am I using what he's given to me? And who am I really serving? Because see, verse 13 Jesus says no servant can serve two masters, since either he will hate one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other.

You cannot serve both God and money. Serving God and money is like having one foot on the riverbank, one foot in the canoe. You can stand there for about two seconds and then one will have to give. You'll love one, you'll hate one. And I just confess to you, and maybe you find this as well, but when I hear Jesus say, you cannot serve both God and money, there is something in me that says, but I can.

I know that other people can't, but I can. And Jesus says, no, you cannot serve both God and money.

And can I say that if we are convinced that we can serve them both, can I say to you that you're probably serving money and it will let you down?

A newspaper once held a competition for the best definition of money, where people would write in what they thought. And the winning definition said this. It said that money is a passport to everywhere but heaven, to everything but happiness. It will let us down. We cannot serve both God and money.

And so Jesus says, be wise, be faithful, be faithful with what we've been given, and serve God and steward well the assets he has given to us well in the time that we have left. I want to think a bit about what this might mean for you and I. Firstly, can I say that if you're here for the very first time, can I just say we don't want your money. We're so glad that you're here. I promise we don't preach on this each week. What Jesus offers is completely free and we'd love for you to take hold of that.

But this may not be for you. I just wanted to say that. But for us here tonight who do follow Jesus, the question is, how am I investing in the eternity of others? And am I being faithful with what I've been given?

And so I think it's always worth asking ourselves the question, is my giving to the Gospel reflective of what I've been given? Maybe very much, maybe not much. And maybe for some of us, it's worth asking the very searching question. If my bank, Commbank nab, Westpac, whoever we bank with, if someone at the bank was to go into my personal account and see my spending, could they tell that I was a Christian?

It's a very searching question, isn't it?

But am I being faithful with what I've been given? And how am I going at investing in the eternity of others?

And I just want to spell out what that might mean for some of the different groups of us here tonight. So firstly, can I say something to our youth? I became a Christian when I was about 16 and one of the greatest regrets I have is that I didn't start giving to gospel work sooner.

I believed a lie that giving was for older Christians. And Jesus says no, invest in eternity. Because who are Jesus people? Jesus people are those who invest. And what a good investment.

And so can I say that if you haven't started giving yet to Christian work, well, don't make my blunder and start giving. Start giving something and it might just be 10 or $20 a month of your allowance or your part time job or whatever, but start investing in the eternity of others.

Just picture walking into heaven, you meet someone. How did God bring you to know Jesus? Oh, because when you were a teenager, you gave $3 of your Macca's wage and you invested in my eternity. How very faithful. How wise.

Now for some of us here tonight, we will be students at uni or tafe. Can I say what a time of life to really work out, what am I going to invest in? Because if we care about what Jesus cares about the lost, getting saved, well, we'll start giving to Christian work to help others to come to know him and grow in him. Some of us will have part time jobs, some won't, some will earn more, some less. But the question is, am I being faithful with what I've been given?

Is my giving reflective of what I've been given? Does it mean that I can't buy that nice thing, that nice jacket, that nice dress? Does it mean I can't go on the holiday? Does it mean I can't buy a car? No, it doesn't mean those things because we're not ascetics.

They are good things, but don't let them become your God. And don't forget the best investment, the eternity of others. And if you feel like you're here tonight and you can't give much, can I say what a great time to start? Because if we won't give in our poverty, we won't give in our wealth, I can tell you tonight of people I know who have literally given millions to the gospel. And what they have given has funded church plants, it's put people into Bible college, it's sent people overseas, it has done immense good for the gospel.

But I can also tell you of the poor university student, or of the single mum, or even the Sunday school boy who out of their not much gave much. I love a Bit later on in Luke's gospel, in Luke 21, when the widow comes to the temple with her two copper coins, and while all the people around her are piling in loads of money, she puts in her two coins. And Jesus said, she gave very much because out of her not much, her poverty, she gave much.

And lastly, can I say to the young workers that are here tonight or people that have been working for some time, what a time to consider how you will be wise and faithful in your giving. When you start full time work, you suddenly find that in your bank, bank account you have the most money you have ever had and you no longer just have to eat bread, okay, it's the most money you've ever seen.

And when that's all there, someone will say, now's the time to start thinking about property. And that might be a wise thing to think think about. But what about eternity?

Yeah, what about eternity and stewarding? Well, what we've been given to helping others to be there. And if you're just starting out in full time work, well, what a time to speak to others. It might be that you find one or two close Christian friends that you can sit down with and let them ask you, how are you going to be giving to eternity? And if you've never done this, can I just say it's worth doing a budget.

Just sit down and work out what's coming in, what's going out, what's going to the gospel.

I could give us some numbers tonight about what we could be giving weekly or per month. And I could just say start with 10%, which is not the worst idea, but really for each of us, what each of us will need to do is to sit down and before the Lord, work out, how am I investing in eternity? Am I being faithful? Am I being generous? And can I say that I hope that we never give to Christian work just because someone up the front says so.

I hope we give because we love Jesus and we want what he wants, the lost getting saved and we realise how much we've been given in him. Jesus who went from very rich to very poor, so we might go from very spiritually poor to immeasurably rich in him. We don't give to get into the kingdom. We give because we're in the kingdom. Well, as we close, can I ask us, how are you investing?

How are we being wise and being faithful with what God has given us in helping others to hear, be saved and continue into eternity?

This is a brilliant parable. And the person who takes it to heart and invests in eternity. Well, that is someone of whom friends and family and colleagues and even parents will say, how foolish, how silly, what a total waste.

But not Jesus.

Now Jesus, verse 8 says, how shrewd, how very clever, how wise.

How about we pray together?

Jesus said, you cannot serve both God and money. And yet our Father, we feel in ourselves so often that we can.

And we pray, Father, forgive us for the times when we invest too much in the here and now and not in the eternity of others. And we pray for your help, not just in having a deeper heart for those that are lost, but, Father, help us to be people who are sacrificial, who are radical, and who invest wisely and faithfully what you have entrusted to us. And we pray this for Jesus sake. Amen.