Poster | Thread | Sree Member
Joined: 2011/8/20 Posts: 1953
| Re: How do you make friends with unrighteous wealth? | | Regarding Unrighteous wealth - Jesus's standard on earth was so high that he considered wealth itself as unrighteous!
Luke 6 :24- 24But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort.
2 Cor 8-9For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.
So we are rich now because of Christ becoming poor. Clearly this verse based on context talks about physical richness. It means God will meat all our needs and we will not be lacking in any needy thing. But Luke 6:24 Jesus says it is a woe to be rich.
This is how I see, whenever I receive money even if it is to meet my needs, I still see the woe behind it. I give the glory to God and see how it this wealth can bring a woe to me if I put my trust upon it.
So it is clear that wealth or richness can easily be a woe to us and we have to be very clarefull when we make money no matter what quantity it is.
Now Luke 16:9 is after the parable. The essence of the parable is, just like the unrighteous manager made friends with people using the unrighteous wealth. He knew clearly that he is going to be fired. We too know that this world is passing away and hence instead of storing wealth for our self, we need to use this to gain friends for Eternity.
Luke 16-8 And his [f]master praised the unrighteous manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the sons of this age are more shrewd in relation to their own [g]kind than the sons of light.
The key is in what Jesus said about the son's of the world are more shrewd than the Children of light or Children of God. What it means is the worldly people who live for the world are shrewd in making worldly deal that will make them rich in world. It is impossible for us to have a good deal with a business man, they always take the lions share. But we who are called to be Children of light, are we shrewd the same way with eternal things? Are we quick to gain eternal wealth? There is wealth in eternity, there will be people who are poor in eternity and people who are rich in eternity. Not all will be equal. Those who invest the perishing wealth for eternal gain like spreading of Gospel will definitely be rich in eternity.
Luke 12:21- This is how it will be for anyone who stores up treasure for himself but is not rich toward God.”
The purpose of the whole parable is to teach disciples to be shrewd like wordly people (but) in the matter of eternity so that they can be found rich towards God. _________________ Sreeram
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| 2019/2/20 12:22 | Profile | SteveHale Member
Joined: 2007/2/15 Posts: 244 NSW Australia
| Re: | | Great post Sreeram! Best interpretation of this parable that I have heard, anywhere!
Blessings _________________ Steve
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| 2019/2/20 14:14 | Profile | TMK Member
Joined: 2012/2/8 Posts: 6650 NC, USA
| Re: | | Sree-
The problem with your interpretation is this verse:
9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings. Luke 16:9
Who are the friends? What is the wealth? Who are the “they?” What are the eternal dwellings?
Taken on its face the statement seems to mean that you should buy friends with money because when your money is gone they will welcome you into heaven. Of course this is nonsensical, which makes the parable so troubling to understand. _________________ Todd
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| 2019/2/20 15:11 | Profile | Sree Member
Joined: 2011/8/20 Posts: 1953
| Re: | | TMK, the key is the word Eternal dwellings. Jesus also said what you bind on earth will be bound in heaven. So it means use your wealth to spread the gospel and there by binding people on the earth. This way they will be bound in heaven as well.
In other words use your wealth for eternal goodness.
The key in the parable is very simple. The manager did nothing to keep his job which any sensible person would have done. But instead he took for granted that he is going to be fired and started planning about life outside work. Same way are we shrewd enough to plan for eternity knowing that this world is passing away.
These words are clearly for disciples. Generally anyone who gives any interpretation saying Jesus did not give it to disciples, stay away from it. Every verse is applicable to disciples. Even Matthew 23 if you focus clearly there are marks of Pharisee in us as well. _________________ Sreeram
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| 2019/2/20 15:39 | Profile | TMK Member
Joined: 2012/2/8 Posts: 6650 NC, USA
| Re: | | So the “friends” are converts. Got it. Makes better sense now. _________________ Todd
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| 2019/2/20 19:26 | Profile | Gloryandgrace Member
Joined: 2017/7/14 Posts: 1165 Snoqualmie, WA
| Re: | |
Sree: Thanks for jumping in here.
A couple of things.
The friends are not converts, you have to completely remove the literal meaning from the text to draw that conclusion. The subject is the deeds of the Pharisees and their love for money. Of course the students are the disciples and they are being taught how the Pharisees are so blinded by love of money they neither make friends with God or friends of the unrighteous mammon.
But your interpretation of the text completely inverses the actual meaning and transforms it into a positive teaching on discipleship. While it does sound good, it's not exegetically correct, nor can you successfully argue that Jesus intent was to train his disciples in planning for eternity.
While all those things are completely true in other contexts, there is no argument there, but this context is not positive, nor can you inverse it without making a big assumption.
_________________ Marvin
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| 2019/2/21 11:51 | Profile | twayneb Member
Joined: 2009/4/5 Posts: 2256 Joplin, Missouri
| Re: | | From Luke 16... 9 And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations. 10 He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. 11 If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? 12 And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own? 13 No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. 14 And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.
IMO
I think that these verse give the key to the whole parable. It is the punchline so to speak. Jesus is making a point to the Pharisees. Their love was money. So he tells a story about a man who did not use his master's money wisely. When he was called on it, he thought quickly and hatched a plan so that when he was fired, at lease he had made friends using his master's accounts that would see that he did not starve, but would owe him something big that would assure him survival after being fired.
The master commended the servant, not because he had done what was right, but because, in my opinion, he had finally realized the place money has in the whole grand scheme of things, to provide for his needs.
Jesus then gives the punch line. He that is faithful in what is least, will be made ruler over much. Money is least. But the true riches are the things of the kingdom. Then he tells the pharisees that they cannot serve both their own covetousness and God at the same time.
The servant is one who the pharisee would have disdained. "What, he is praised? What for? He wasted all of my..ahem, I mean his masters, money." They could easily have internalized this story and made this unfaithful servant their own servant. But Jesus says that this servant did something wiser than the Pharisees would have done. He finally realized that money has a purpose and is a tool to buy something much more valuable and everlasting than itself. This shows that money is the least, and the eternal things are the true riches. But the Pharisees were throwing away the true riches to lust after the things of this earth that their position could gain them.
Interestingly, the term mammon is not exclusively money, but the word is derived from covetousness itself, which is the desire for anything.
_________________ Travis
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| 2019/2/21 15:36 | Profile | Gloryandgrace Member
Joined: 2017/7/14 Posts: 1165 Snoqualmie, WA
| Re: | |
I think what we are doing here is a great way to unpack sticky and sometimes troublesome texts of scripture.
When I exegete some text, I need to let is say exactly what it says, I need to understand exactly what is being said.
When I interpret the text I need to rehearse the text in it's context and meaning so as to convey the writers intent. I refuse a deconstructionist manner of interpretation.
Now, when I seek to apply the text or even connect the text to other similar veins of thought, I still need to keep the context and intent the same, but I broaden the scope application and usage by allowing the nuances of the text to direct me to scripture connections elsewhere.
What I should not do is switch the 'derived understandings' that I gain from the text for the actual exegesis of the text itself.
Other texts such as "if your hand offends you cut it off", I must allow to stand as is, what is the context and what is the intent? Is the intent cutting off hands and feet and gouging out eyes? No, I suppose if that were true, there would be only one or two men in a whole congregation that would not be walking with a crutch reading braille.
It is good we see many good and wise things from this wonderful teaching of Jesus, but I don't want to inject what I derive from the text as the exegesis of the text itself.
_________________ Marvin
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| 2019/2/21 17:06 | Profile | Sree Member
Joined: 2011/8/20 Posts: 1953
| Re: | | GloryandGrace, I appreciate your perspective but I think the straightforward meaning is to take the positive aspect. Negative aspect or context cannot be achieved if you give weight age to the correct verse.
I assume the negative context comes because the manager started doing bad and then ended doing something worse. Never really repenting or doing anything that can be considered good.
But that does not make this story a negative example. If we go by same logic even the prodigal son's parable can be considered negative. He started bad and ended up coming home empty handed. But what changes it positive is the response of Dad. If you cut that part it is a negative story on never to be a prodigal like him!
Here too what changes the context positive is the response of his master who appreciated him for being shrewd.
Luke 16-8:- And his master praised the unrighteous manager because he had acted SHREWDLY; for the sons of this age are more SHREWD in relation to their own [g]kind than the SONS OF LIGHT.
One has to totally take this verse out to paint a negative picture! Jesus did not add that appreciation part just for fun or without any meaning!
Also Jesus wants this Shrewd nature in Son's of light. Which is very clear. No one can agrue against it. Now the question comes who are the Son's of light? I do not understand how that refers to Pharisees as stated by few here? Jesus called the disciples light of the world in sermon on the mount. Even the Epistle of John calls disciples as Children of light. So no way Jesus was referring to Pharisees here! Again one has to throw this word 'Sons of Light' outside the window to make it a negative lesson!
The appreciation of the manager is for being Shrewd, which is lacking in disciples in things to eternity. We are not smart in preserving and investing in things of eternity as the people of the world are smart in investing in the world!
Friends is not only converts. I never said that. Buying friends means to buy things worth eternity example using our money to spread the Gospel which is worth Eternity. In other words investing in Eternity. We cannot find exact equivalent for Friends.
_________________ Sreeram
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| 2019/2/21 18:48 | Profile | Gloryandgrace Member
Joined: 2017/7/14 Posts: 1165 Snoqualmie, WA
| Re: | | Hi Sree: I really like your explanation here and I appreciate getting a different look at it than my own.
This is a gem..."We are not smart in preserving and investing in things of eternity as the people of the world are smart in investing in the world!"
Thanks for working with me on this.
_________________ Marvin
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| 2019/2/22 11:38 | Profile |
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