Old Llantrisant Hill
Introduction
- Quote from CT Studd
- He felt a burden upon his heart to reach others for Jesus Christ
- "What is fame and riches when a man comes face-to-face with eternity?"
- He and six others gave up their life to serve the Lord
- He invested his inheritance in the gospel
- He was investing for eternity
- Today we are considering the parable of the shrewd steward
- To be commended for his shrewdness - not his dishonesty
- As Christians we need to be investing in that which will last forever
- v8-9 - non-Christians are good at investing in their future
- How much are we as Christians investing in our heavenly future?
- The message in Luke 16 is primarily for Christians
- v1 - speaking to His disciples
- cf 15:1-2 - Jesus was speaking to the scribes and the pharisees in 3 parables
- He says that one day we will need to give an account of our lives
- Although we are saved for all eternity we must still give account of our lives and work
- v13 - we can either be mastered by money or masters of it
- You need an open hand with your giving
- v14 - the Pharisees were also listening and didn't like the message as they were loves of money
- The Bible speaks about money
- We are to give money freely
- We should teach what the Bible says about money
Overview (v1-8)
- The rich man entrusted his 'manager' to run his affairs
- v1 - he had wasted his master's good
- There is a lot of waste in today's society
- There are different reasons for waste
- v2 - he was to be sacked
- He realised that he had time to sort things
- He is an 'office worker', he cannot do manual labour, he will not beg
- He found another way:
- He writes off 50% of the oil owed - 1.5 years of wages
- He writes off 20% of the wheat owed – 8-10 years of wages
- v4 -He knew that these people were know endebted to him
- The steward had been dishonest and was wasting the good and wealth of his master
- He is commended for his astuteness
Application (v8b-13)
- How do we apply this?
- He secured his own future by being smart
- v8b - We must learn a lesson about investing in the future
- Are we living in the light of eternity?
- Are we sitting back, living for the things of this world, being comfortable and not investing in eternity?
- We are not to follow the pattern of this world but we are to be sacrificial and serve God with all our hearts
- v9 - initially confusing but Jesus says that we must make the best use of money in this fallen world
- Invest your time and talents in the Lord and the work
- Quote from John Wesley
- Luke 6:30 - give to those really in need and don't expect anything back
- Luke 6:24 - woe to those live solely for riches
- Luke 6:38 - as you give, you will be blessed
- God's work has never lacked resources
- Luke 12:20 - don't lay up treasures on the earth but in heaven
- Luke 12:31 - seek the kingdom of God
- v10 - be faithful in what little you have and you will be faithful when you have more
- How can God entrust you with more if you are not faithful with little
- v12 - all that we have is not ours
- Example of Bargain Hunt
- All that we have is Gods
- We are to be joyful in what God has entrusted to us
- v13 - we cannot serve God and money
- Money has a great power over people's lives - examples
- Money begins to control people's lives and thoughts
Have open hands
- We need to understand the amazing love of God for us - explanation
- Then we will have an open hand
- We need to understand what Jesus gave up (for us) - explanation
- Then we will give our life and all to Him
- Quote from CT Studd
Closing Remarks