Readings: Amos
8:4-7 Luke 16:1-13
We pray: may the
words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in our sight
O God, our rock and our sustainer. Amen.
I put it to you
with much interest and a slightly raised eyebrow that our gospel story today is
a tale of abundant goodness? Hard to see
it really – an thieving steward compounding his stealing and us being asked to
be complicit in the act? This parable
possibly one of the most troubling to our picture of Jesus, one that exercises
our interpretive skills to the limit.
Praising dishonesty and subterfuge seems an unlikely scenario for a Christ
led life and we wonder what on earth to do with it.
Known as the
parable of the unjust steward, the story seems simple enough. Caught in the act of skimming the books, the
steward is immediately dismissed. Sent
off to get the books of accounts, his keys of office really, so that he can
hand them over, he wonders what he can possibly do. He is going to be out of work and he is not
best suited to manual labour, certainly doesn’t have what it takes to be a
beggar so he comes up with, as Blackadder’s Baldric would say, ‘a cunning plan.’ He will skim a bit more off his master’s
income and in the process provide some goodwill for his own uncertain
future. He will forgive some of their
debt, a debt that is not his to forgive, and earn some points with the debtors
when he himself is in need. And he is audacious enough to think that his master
might just be impressed despite himself.
Very clever, yes we will give him that, and he is praised by his master –
but then we are told to do as the unjust servant – and that is kind of hard to
fathom.
And to add to the ‘I
think I will preach on something else today’ temptation, there is the issue of
trying to link in the wisdom phrases that follow the parable – all about wealth
and dishonesty and serving two masters. There is almost a sense that the author of
this gospel has needed to put these somewhere and popped them in here. While we can find links with the story, they
are not obviously a direct explanation of the parable; I liked the phrase that
‘they have their own integrity’[1]
– so we are not going to get sidetracked trying to fit them neatly in. The words of Jesus do not do neatly! We should
know that by now.
So instead, back
to the parable and the big question for today: is the steward a villain – or a
hero? Robert Farrar Capon in his book Kingdom, Grace, Judgement[2]
suggests hero!
First of all he
looks at context – following on immediately from the story of the prodigal son,
this parable is surrounded by stories of grace on the road to Jerusalem. Jesus
has again and again made it clear that merciful grace has ousted the thinking
that God is keeping a ledger of credit and debit - so this story stands out
like a sore thumb if we choose to view the steward purely as a villain who has behaved
badly.
However, if we say
hero, we are continuing the focus of the surrounding scripture, that of grace,
and providing another story such as that of the prodigal son, that of
forgiveness-by-resurrection-from-the-dead.
Capon suggests the death in this parable is the firing of the steward –
all that he has known, his status, homing, relationships, life itself has been
cut off at the roots at this moment of reckoning with his master. Yet the steward does not argue, plead, call
for character witnesses – he is silent – a most unusual response for this
scenario in the day, says Kenneth Bailey. He accepts the justice of the ruling
from a master who he knows is both right and generous – generous to not have
him and his family sold off into slavery.
Hence the cunning
plan. The steward presents the master with a conundrum when the books are laid
in front of him. If he calls out the
steward he will lose the goodwill and celebrations of those whose debt is
forgiven. If he doesn’t he will be seen
as a soft touch by those of his kind. His generous nature enjoys the creativity
of the dishonest steward and he recognises that the actions of the steward have
led to not just new life for the steward but also for the debtors. Grace has again been seen to win out over the
ledger of credit and debt, through one whose life had effectively ended yet
chooses to live again, who chooses to employ disrespectful tactics to do so. We ponder the parallels with Jesus journey to
the cross and beyond and wonder what this might mean for us. Of his acts disrespectful
to the established order, of extravagant unexpected generosity in the face of
death so that new life might be ours. Something to think about?
But today, I want
to focus on a particular thread. In my
struggle with this reading, as I sought to make sense of all the associated
readings and commentaries and not slide off into over analysis and orderly
explanation, a thought kept popping into the mix connected to discussion at
parish council and presbytery. We are
currently as a church exploring the nature of the theology of money and
property – there is a consultation paper available from the General Assembly to
which we will respond.
And I found myself
asking if we are viewing our property and finance as a church through the book
keeping ledger lens or that of grace.
Here in the south we have a situation where our financial assets are
tied up in property, courtesy of the early settlers who sought to provide for
future generations – for which we are grateful.
At the Presbytery meeting yesterday we were challenged to understand
that the founding church members of this province who provided such a
substantial purse for us were in fact leaving the assets first and foremost for
God, not to us. And that they did it so
that generations after might know and love God here in this place as they did. And
their answer was to invest in property and especially church buildings. However,
our answer to how we might know and love God has changed, and we know our resources
need to be more flexible, more about people and less about building. Yet we seem to be unable to extricate
ourselves from the ledger of property ownership, one that honours our
forebearers vision of being God’s enduring presence here in the south but actually
makes us weep for what is needed today. Our church and our world is crying out
for a different kind of sustenance –maybe for a ‘cunning plan’ that will bring
celebration and new life to those in need. And we have to ask - does the church need to
die to release grace?
Equally as a
church community, where do parishes and churches need to get creative and ‘ingratiate’
themselves with the needy and the debtors trusting in the generous mercy of a
God who values the celebration of new life over the respectability of having
money in the bank? What is the death that
we are called to so that grace can be released?
I am on a
continuing journey with this parable of the ‘Unjust Steward’ – rich as it is it
may take some time. And as we continue as a church to make decisions about how
to be the mercy driven and grace filled people of God in Opoho I hope it will
be part of that journey too.
But this I will
say as I finish - I say this is a parable of abundant goodness! A story that challenges us to creative,
sometimes seemingly disrespectful use of our wealth in pursuit of abundant
goodness.
Hear these words
from Tom Gordon titled ‘Goodness[3]’.
It’s not your
social standing that’s the meaning you still seek.
It’s what you
choose to stand up for that makes your life unique.
It’s not what
you’ll be known for now that makes more eyebrows rise –
but what you show
of goodness all your days.
It’s not how
you’re rewarded by the trappings of success,
but what rewards
you offer those whose lives you’re called to bless.
It’s not enough
that people sing your name in hymns of praise –
it’s what you show
of goodness all your days.
It’s not the
riches of the world that make your treasure store,
but what enriches
those who know your love, and need still more.
It’s not how you
present yourself that will your friends amaze –
it’s what you show
of goodness all your days.
So stand up for
the righteous that peace and justice brings,
and value the
rewards that give you greater wealth than kings;
and measure out
true worth that sets the fires of love ablaze – and
and seek to show
your goodness; make the most of
goodness; go and share your goodness all your days.
Margaret Garland
[1] Kenneth E. Bailey Jesus
Through Middle Eastern Eyes: Cultural Studies in the Gospels Downers Grove,
Il. InterVarsity Press, 2008 p. 334
[2] Robert Farrar Capon Kingdom, Grace, Judgement: Paradox, Outrage,
and Vindication in the Parables of Jesus Grand Rapids, Michigan; Wm B.
Erdmans, 2002
[3] Tome Gordon A Blessing to
Follow: Contemporary Parables for Living Glasgow: Wild Goose, 2009 p.224
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