The Right Investment

One day while out taking a walk several years ago, I made an unbelievable discovery.  Scattered on the ground under the bushes in front of our house, I found some money.  A lot of money, in fact.  There were ones, fives, tens, twenties, and even some $100 bills.  When I counted it all up, I had about $2,000!

I know your question:  “Did you keep it, or did you try to find the owner?”  Well, there’s a certain way of doing things in this world.  You have to take care of yourself.  Besides, you know the saying: “Finders keepers, losers weepers.”  So what would you have done with the money?

Don’t be too quick to answer.  At least not until you consider the parable of the shrewd manager.  Here Jesus seems to be saying that not only is there a certain way of doing business in the world, but that we ought to participate in it.  He seems to be saying that we should live by the ethics of the world.  And if that is the case, the last thing you should do is return the money.

The scene described in today’s Gospel was common.  Many absentee landlords hired managers to oversee their affairs.  The catch in this parable is that this manager is about to be fired because he’s wasting his master’s money.  The word translated “wasting” is the same Greek word used of the prodigal son in Luke 15 – “scattering” or “squandering.”  The manager obviously has no concern for his master’s well being.  Now he’s about to be fired.  What will he do?  He’s too proud to beg and too weak to work.  He hits upon a survival scheme.  He calls in several of his master’s debtors.

“How much do you owe my master?”

“Eight hundred gallons of olive oil.”

“Cross that out and write four hundred.

“And you, how much do you owe?”

“A thousand bushels of wheat.”

“Erase that and write eight hundred.”

What happens next is very surprising.  The master finds out what the manager has done and commends him!  You would expect him to be angry, but he congratulates the manager.

The manager’s action is not particularly surprising.  In a “dog-eat-dog world” you have to take care of yourself.  But why does the master commend him?  There’s an expression: “It takes one to know one.”  A cutthroat rascal often admires this in other people.  This parable is populated by some rather shady characters!

And what about Jesus?  He not only commends what the manager did; he actually recommends his followers do the same.  That is distressing.  Why is Jesus recommending this sort of behavior?

To gain understanding, it will help to know that some parables make their point by similarity, such as: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed . . .”  Others use contrast to make their point.  The man at the wedding banquet is one example.  When he is thrown out for not wearing a wedding garment, listeners get the point – don’t be like this guy!

Today’s Gospel makes its point by means of contrast.  Jesus essentially says, “Here is the world’s way of doing things.  The manager was keen, astute, and shrewd in his dealings in order to take care of himself.

“Now,” says Jesus, “learn a very important lesson from an unprincipled person.  If the people of this world, in order to take care of a future that will not last, are willing to expend every energy, and exhaust every possibility in securing their future, what should be said of the children of the Kingdom who need to secure their eternal future?  You need to invest more in eternity than in today.”

But how do we do that?

First, we can invest more in people than in things.  The manager used people for his own ends.  In contrast we are to use our possessions and resources to bring eternal benefit to others.  Jesus says, “I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.”

Jesus means that our worldly goods should be used in ways that go beyond purely material significance.  For the manager, the most important thing was to look after his needs in this world.  Jesus advises a different approach.  While we have worldly goods, we should use them is such a way that when they have ended their use in this world, they continue working to our advantage.

Our physical possessions belong to God.  We are managers over His goods.  The question is: Are we investing what God has given us in things or in people?

Second, we can invest more in the soul than in the body.  This is in contrast to the manager who was more concerned with security than his soul’s integrity.

We live in an era in which great emphasis is placed on physical health.  Eating the right foods, getting enough rest, drinking enough water, and exercising regularly all receive much attention.  We must equally emphasize the care of the soul.

How different things would be if we paid as much attention to the things that concern the welfare of our souls as we do the welfare of our temporal lives.  If we invested as much time, energy, and care in the well being of our spiritual lives as we do in the advancement of our careers, we would be spiritual giants!

A rich man once dreamed he had arrived in heaven.  Anxious to see his mansion, he asked an angel to take him there.  As they walked the golden streets, they passed mansions beyond description.  At each one, the man asked, “Is this it?”  “No,” answered the angel each time.

They walked on to the suburbs, where the houses were a bit more modest.  The man was convinced they had missed his new home, but the angel assured him they had not.  As they left the suburbs and reached the rural countryside, the homes became smaller and smaller.  Then, suddenly, the angel stopped in front of a tiny hut and said, “Well, this is it.  It’s all yours!”

The man was flabbergasted.  “Surely this must be a mistake!”

The angel re-checked the housing list.  “Nope.  This is yours, all right.”

“But how?  Why didn’t I get a mansion?”

“Well,” said the angel, “this was all we could afford to build with what you sent ahead.”

We must invest more in eternity than we do in today by investing more in people than in things.

Christ says that there are some things that last, and some that don’t.  Some things are of true value, but others are only of passing value.  If we are to learn from the unprincipled, we must shrewdly learn to invest our energy, wisdom, and astuteness in securing the eternal future.  We must learn to invest more in eternity than we do in today.

I still haven’t answered your question: What did you do with the money you found in front of your house?  Did you keep it?

Well, to be honest with you, yes, yes I did . . . I kept it.  For a while.  And then I did exactly what you would have done.  I tossed it in the circular file, the garbage can.  After all, I could never secure my future with old, worn out Monopoly money.  Nor can you.