Stewardship is “God giving responsibility with accountability”
Four Principles of Stewardship
1. God owns everything, you own nothing
2. God entrusts you with everything you have
3. You can either increase or diminish what God has given; He wants you to increase it
4. God can call you into account at any time, and it may be today
3 Key points to prepare for accountability
I. Understand God Will Examine Our Stewardship
2 Corinthians 5:9 - Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him.
2 Corinthians 5:10 - For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
A. Be careful not to squander what God has given to you (vv. 1-2)
Luke 16:1-2 - Now He was also saying to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and this manager was reported to him as squandering his possessions. And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an accounting of your management, for you can no longer be manager.’”
B. Recognize the consequences for squandering God’s resources (v. 3)
Luke 16:3a - The manager said to himself, “What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me?”
1 Corinthians 3:14-15 - If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.
II. Adjust Your Current Course in View of Future Accountability
A. Evaluate your position (vv. 4-7)
Luke 16:3 - The manager said to himself, “What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig; I am ashamed to beg.”
B. Take action in view of the future (vv. 4-7)
Luke 16:4-7 - I know what I shall do, so that when I am removed from the management people will welcome me into their homes. And he summoned each one of his master’s debtors, and he began saying to the first, “How much do you owe my master?” And he said, “A hundred measures of oil.” And he said to him, “Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.” Then he said to another, “And how much do you owe?” And he said, “A hundred measures of wheat.” He said to him, “Take your bill, and write eighty.”
C. Pursue what is truly valuable (vv. 8-9)
Luke 16:8-9 - 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 kind than the sons of light. And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by means of the wealth of unrighteousness, so that when it fails, they will receive you into the eternal dwellings.
Shrewd - Phronimōs - prudently, wisely
“In any event, the master would lose no money if the amount forfeited was simply the interest the manager would have gained. Furthermore, such a forgiveness of debts would hardly have hurt but would probably have helped the master’s own reputation. Therefore, the master admires the manager’s shrewdness. The manager knew his job and reputation were gone because of his previous mishandling of funds. He needed friends; and, by foregoing the customary interest, he won friends among the creditors. Jesus then uses this story to show that the ‘people of the light’ could also accomplish much by wisely giving up some of their ‘worldly wealth.’” (Walter L. Liefeld, “Luke,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, ed.)
III. Seek Increased Responsibility Through Faithfulness
A. Focus on being faithful in areas you will be accountable (v. 10-12)
Luke 16:10-12 - He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much. Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous wealth, who will entrust the true riches to you? And if you have not been faithful in the use of that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own?
Luke 19:17 - And he said to him, “Well done, good slave, because you have been faithful in a very little thing, you are to be in authority over ten cities.”
B. Be faithful to one master (v. 13)
Luke 16:13 - No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.
Matthew 6:21 - …for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.