Story of Jesus, December 16th

Luke Chapter 16

Jesus told his disciples this story: “There was a rich man who had a manager handling his affairs, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions. So he called him in and asked him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your managements, because you cannot be my manager any longer.’

The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg. I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’

So he invited each person who owed money to his employer to come and discuss the situation. He asked the first one, ‘How much do you owe him?’ The man replied, ‘I owe him 800 gallons of olive oil.’ So the manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred.’

Then he asked the second, ‘And how much do you owe?’ ‘A thousand bushels of wheat,’ he replied. He told him, ‘Take your bill and make it eight hundred bushels.’

The rich man had to admire the dishonest manager for being so shrewd. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. Here’s the lesson: Use your worldly resources to benefit others and make friends. Then, when your possessions are gone, they will welcome you to an eternal home.

Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So if you have not been trustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven? And if you have not been faithful with other people’s things, why should you be trusted with things of your own?

No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”

The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all of this and were sneering at Jesus. He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of men. You like to appear righteous in public, but God knows your hearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable in God’s sight.

Until John the Baptist, the law of Moses and the messages of the prophets were your guides. But now the Good News of the Kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is eager to get in. But that doesn’t mean that the law has lost its force. It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for one dot of God’s law to become void.

For example, a man who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery. And the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.”

Jesus continued speaking, “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, who was covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.

The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to sit by Abraham’s side at the heavenly banquet.

The rich man also died and was buried, and he went to the place of the dead. In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’

But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. And besides, there is a great chasm separating us. No one can cross over to you from here, and no one can cross over to us from there.

Then the man said, ‘Then I beg you Father Abraham, at least send him to my father’s house. For I have five brothers, and I want him to warn them so they don’t end up in this place of torment.’

Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets, let them listen to them.’

‘No, Father Abraham!’ he said. ‘But if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent of their sins and turn to God.’

But Abraham said, ‘If they won’t listen to Moses and the prophets, they won’t be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.'”