The Joshua Victor Theory

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. The parable of the dishonest manager is one that puzzles many, because the guy who gets fired is praised by his master after making one final dishonest move. If it throws us off that Jesus’ story praises a dishonest   man, a careful reading shows that it’s not actually his dishonesty but his shrewdness or skillfulness that is praised. The manager maneuvered the situation so as to both enhance the master’s generous reputation and “pad his landing” after he got fired, so he would be welcome in people’s homes. But even if the interpretation of this parable raises some difficult questions, ask this one: “What lesson are we to get out of it?” Jesus is pretty clear about the objectives and goals that He’s teaching, which we will unpack. But the overarching point is that we would serve One True Master, our Lord God, and that we demonstrate this service by faithfully stewarding what He has given to us. Managers o...

Sermon Outline: ·          One of Jesus’ most puzzling parables. Dishonest manager fired, makes some last minute shady deals, then is commended? Use unrighteous wealth to make friends? ·          Uncover the meaning: what was the dishonest manager’s ploy, and why did it work? What was it that the master commended? What does Jesus want us to learn from this parable? ·          Characters: rich man & his dishonest manager, community where he hopes to get a job after being fired, and the people who owed the master. ·          Fired for dishonesty and causing loss to the master’s possessions. Told to hand in the financial records. His dilemma: how do I get a job after being fired for dishonesty? Can’t dig, won’t beg. His clever plan: still had the books, people don’t know he’s fired yet; generously reduce all their debts...

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. Today’s Gospel reading may strike us as very unusual, because Jesus commends the dishonest manager. We’re familiar with the Bible warning us not to “learn the way of the nations” (Jer. 10:2), or that we should not be “conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of [our] mind” (Rom. 12:2). We’re used to Jesus teaching us not to follow the sinful example of the world and it’s desires. So why does Jesus commend this man who mismanaged his master’s possessions, and what application to our Christian life is Jesus getting at? Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. Before we can get to the application of the parable, we first need to understand what happened, why the master praised the manager, and what exactly he was praising the manger for. Because there is a big difference between the master commending the dishonest manager for acting cleverl...