Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were scoffing at Him. And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.” ~Luke 16:14-15
This is the conclusion of a parable that has always baffled me. The unrighteous steward. Jesus is again talking to his disciples, but the Pharisees and tax collectors were listening in. It’s the story of a rich man who hired a servant to manage his finances. This servant knew he was about to be fired, so he deceitfully instructed his clients to change the amount on their invoices. In doing so, he hoped to make friends and find a new job once he got fired.
The rich man, also called “master” in the parable, commended him for this.
That has always confused me. I read several commentaries on this in preparation for this week’s Bible study. One of them pointed out that in most parables, the “master” is symbolic for God but in this case, it’s not.
There’s a key statement at the end of the parable that confirms this: “the sons of this age are more shrewd in relation to their own kind than the sons of light (16:8).” In other words, those who don’t know Christ and work in the business world understand the corruption of money better than the Christians.
The verse right after that can be equally confusing, but it builds on what’s already been said. We’re told to make friends with those corrupt business people. Why? So that when the system fails, we can point them to the eternal kingdom.
So back to the verse at the beginning of this post. As much as we can be confused by what’s being said, the Pharisees weren’t. They had just been given the familiar line of “you can’t serve both God and money.” They knew this parable was directed at them and they were mad.
How is Jesus’s response meant for us today? “For that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.” What do we esteem today? Money is the subject in the parable, but what else? Positions of power, offices with walls and windows, education and degrees, leadership.
Some of the wisest people I know never finished high school. And some of the most foolish people in the world have loads of doctorate degrees. I have a friend who never went to college but studies her Bible more than those I work with at the seminary. And it shows.
God flips this world upside down. He uses that which doesn’t make sense to us. The Pharisees were told that they “are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men.” We do that too. That’s where the wisdom at the end of the parable portion of this week’s passage comes in: we need to use the “wisdom” of the world in order to make friends with them. In other words, my credentials really don’t mean anything in God’s kingdom. My diplomas won’t get me extra points in heaven. But we do need to use those things to survive in the world.
I put together a resume before I got my current job. That’s the way the world works. This verse says that God knows our hearts. Are you pursing that promotion because God wants you in that new position, or because you want the glory? Do you need the higher paycheck (which is completely legit!), is God putting you in a higher position in order to bless those around you, or are you seeking it just to pad your retirement account?
God’s not saying to not pursue those credentials. But He is saying we need to check our hearts. The Pharisees became defensive because they were feeling convicted. Their issue, the one Jesus directly addressed, was money. I’m taking the application broader because so many of the things we pursue ultimately relate to money, or if not money, the motivation is to be “highly esteemed among men.” Are we living life and pursuing accolades in an effort to gain glory among our peers, or because we’re pursing God and His leading on our lives?