Spiritual Shrewdness - Faithful Stewardship

Just when you think we were finished with the parable of the Prodigal Son, Jesus gives us the epilogue!

We are back following Jesus on our Red-Letter journey with The Parable of the Shrewd Manager. This parable is often discussed and debated. We'll get into that confusion. Perhaps part of the confusion is the reader often reads this parable in isolation. I think that is a huge mistake. We left the Parable of the Prodigal son with many unresolved questions. We can look at this parable's relationship to the older brother, the most immediate context and it is there we see a layer we refer to as Spiritual Stewardship. This is clearly a direct rebuke of the pharisees.

But Jesus doesn't let the younger brother get off the hook either! The younger brother squandered his earthly inheritance and Jesus addresses that too. We reread and reapplied this entire parable to the younger brother and came away with an entirely new understanding.

But Jesus wasn't done: He was also addressing the disciples. When we went through the parable verse by verse, the direct application to the disciples, and to us, adds another layer to this parable. So we don't just let this parable fall as a rebuke of the Pharisees or of the person personified by the younger brother. Most of us will find this parable convicting in many ways. Jesus is talking to us.

Notes for The Parable of the Shrewd Manager

Episode Link: 

https://www.rabbitholesandmeditations.com/spiritual-shrewdness-faithful-stewardship/