SHREWD AND ADEPT STEWARDS

Transcription

1 Luke 16:1-13 September 18, 2016 SHREWD AND ADEPT STEWARDS The story of the shrewd manager is, without a doubt, my least favorite of all Jesus parables. Every time it comes around in the lectionary readings, I groan. It s a bear of a parable to preach on and not just for me. I ve talked with other pastors who feel the same way I do. One of my colleagues even half-jokingly threatened to call in sick on the Sunday this passage from Luke was scheduled to be read. I just don t know what to say about it, he said, and shook his head despairingly. Every sermon I ve preached on this parable has felt like a failure to me. To which I say, Amen, brother. I m with you on that. I think my difficulty with this parable stems from the word shrewd. For me, the words shrewd and Christian don t really belong together. It s like an oxymoron. They don t seem to fit. The word shrewd, to me, describes someone who s shady, unsavory, kind of sleazy, can t be trusted. And as a Christian, that s not how I want to be thought of as. It almost seems insulting. Now, I have no doubt that Jesus chose that word intentionally, for a specific reason that reason being to compare the adequacy (or should I say inadequacy) of the children of light people like you and me who claim God as our boss and Lord with the adequacy of the people of this world. Jesus made it clear that the people of this world are shrewder and tend to accomplish their work of attaining prosperity for themselves better and more adeptly than the children of light carry on their work of prosperity for the sake of God and God s Kingdom. Point taken, Jesus. It does seem to be true that many worldly and materialistic people are consumed with eagerness and resolve as they pursue their worldly goals of money, pleasure and power. They will work long hours, put in overtime for the firm, and put their family, their friends, and even God on hold so they can focus with laser-like precision on getting what they want out of this life.

2 In comparison, the children of light often seem woefully inadequate and not nearly as committed to their mission and the work God has tasked them with. Children of light like you and me are hired to be the stewards, the managers, of everything God has made; and our chief duty is to help usher in God s Kingdom here on earth. But oftentimes the children of light put in as little labor and effort toward that undertaking as possible. What they tend to give is their leftover time, energy and money only as much as they feel they can spare without infringing on their other, worldly pursuits. So yes, Jesus, I get it. There probably is a significant need for a story like the parable of the shrewd manager. We children of light most likely do need a little reminder perhaps even a big reminder that the important work God has set before us deserves a lot more dedication than we re often willing to give it. But I still have trouble with that word shrewd. That s why, for my own benefit, I looked up some synonyms for that word. And some of those words are much more palatable for my taste. So, for example, instead of calling myself a shrewd Christian, I think I d prefer the synonymous term astute Christian. Or smart Christian. I also like the description, discerning Christian. And insightful Christian. Or wise, clever or perceptive Christian. Maybe it s just semantics and I m splitting hairs, and jettisoning the term shrewd Christian waters down Jesus parable and causes it to lose its power, its oomph. But then again, I think any of those other words I just mentioned aptly and accurately describe the manager in Jesus parable. And I would rather be known as a wise or insightful or clever Christian than a shrewd one. And I think that s because, being shrewd is a mental activity. A shrewd Christian, to me, is a Christian whose plots and schemes are thought up here. And those plots and schemes tend to be self-serving. Take the manager in Jesus parable. His shrewdness was motivated strictly out of personal self-interest. Self-preservation, to be exact. But the actions of a wise Christian, an insightful Christian, an astute or perceptive Christian, to me, are more likely to be motivated by concern for others. They re felt and inspired and motivated from the heart. And the heart is the most appropriate place for a Christian s behavior to originate from. So, to go back to the original term he used in his parable, Jesus called the children of light to be shrewd and adept stewards of the 2

3 resources and blessings God gave them. Our Lord challenged those who follow him and labor for God and the establishment of God s Kingdom to be as proficient at their work as the children of light are at their worldly work. That sounds somewhat intimidating. Maybe we wonder and worry, and ask ourselves at times if we are, or ever can be, a shrewd enough, wise enough, clever and perceptive enough Christian in Jesus eyes? What if I were to tell you that being shrewd children of light, who do their work for God effectively and adequately, could be as simple as sharing a smile and a cheerful greeting with other people? A man named Richard Stanford shared an encounter he had with such a shrewd and wise child of light. Here s Stanford s story, in his own words. The crisp February morning chilled the crowd that waited to catch the MARTA, Atlanta s public rail system. When the train arrived, I moved with the others toward vacant seats. Mechanical sounds punctuated the trip: the humming of electric motors and the loud bell before the door slid shut. As we settled into our parallel journeys, I looked around. I work at home, and consequently don t often take public transit at rush hour. This morning I was on my way into the city for a seminar. The size and diversity of the crowd on the train surprised me. In our single car, there were African-Americans, European-Americans, and Asians a generous representation of world society. But there was no interaction. Business men and women had their briefcases open, poring over papers filled with charts and columns. Casually dressed students studied books. One young man had on headphones and swayed in a slow dance to his private music. I m a fiction man, myself. I travel with a novel handy. But today I didn t open it. I was too busy studying those around me. Something felt strange. I didn t realize what it was until I d disembarked at Five Points, the connecting point for the east and west trains. In this cavernous space, I joined perhaps a thousand commuters waiting for their trains. Here I realized what was so eerie: the total silence. One thousand people, packed cheek to jowl, looking straight ahead, pretending the others didn t exist. And I, a 50-year-old white man wearing a blue suit and glasses, was one of them. The only sound two stories under Atlanta s streets was the hum of the escalators. 3

4 And then came a woman s voice. Good morning! The greeting echoed through the station. A thousand heads snapped up in unison, scanning the space. The voice come from a woman riding the descending escalator on the far side of the platform. How y all this morning? The man looked at the small woman who had him ion her grip. He broke into a smile. Fine, thank you. Her clothes were a little ragged, but her purposeful smile overcame her stature and appearance as she moved through the crowd, shouting greetings, shaking hands and laughing freely. Finally she looked across the tracks at the crowd on my side of the platform. How y all folks over there this morning? Just fine! I shouted back. Others answered with me. We surprised each other so much that we broke out laughing. That s good, she said. She paused and looked around. Now everyone was listening. God sent me here to cheer you up this morning. And that s the God of the Jew, the Christian, the Muslim and any other religions y all brought or didn t bring along. From where I stood, I could see a twinkle in her eye. Amazingly, the train station came alive with good-natured conversation. As we chatted with each other, few noticed that slight woman slowly disappear up the escalator. When the northbound train arrived, I squeezed into a car already stuffed with riders. I didn t get much past the door and grabbed a chrome pole that already had hands of every racial color gripping it. My face looked straight into that of an African-American woman who was about my age. She wore a light yellow business suit. I sensed that she didn t like the press of people around us. Before I could stop myself, I said, Good morning. What? She seemed surprised. Good morning. How are you doing? A few people watched us. A smile overtook her. Fine, she chuckled. You know, nobody s asked me that this morning. Nobody really ever says hello. I grinned and told her about the unexpected visitor back at Five Points, wondering aloud if she might have been an angel. Isn t that what angels do? They re messengers. That woman demonstrated the goodness of greeting each other and sharing our humanity, instead of guarding it. Others around the pole joined the discussion, and smiles spread through the cars. 4

5 The woman across from me, now grinning, said, If it weren t so crowded in here, I d give you a good hug. You ve made my morning. When the train stopped at my stop, I moved toward the door. I hope you have a good day! I called back to my fellow traveler. I will, and thank you. Since then, I ve often wondered who that woman was. She didn t have wings; she ascended and descended an escalator and she spoke in a southern drawl. But because of her, silent people who were temporarily buried two stories below Atlanta began to talk and laugh.a chilly February day felt warmer, and a shy guy like me suddenly hasn t been able to keep himself from greeting and talking with strangers on subway trains, elevators and airplanes. My friends, that diminutive woman with the southern drawl was a child of light. She heard God calling her to make a difference in the life of people in that subway station, and she responded in an effort to cheer them up, brighten their day, and remind them of what it means to be the social creatures human beings are supposed to be. She succeeded in her task. Call her a shrewd and adept steward of the gifts God gave her. Or, call her an astute steward. Or a smart steward who was able to perceive the loneliness in a thousand people, and was wise and insightful enough to be able to open their hearts and touch them with God s love so that they, in turn, could share God s love with others. And when she did that, for a little while at least, God s Kingdom was able to break through in an Atlanta subway station two stories underground. I can almost hear the Lord asking, Is that so difficult? Could you and me, couldn t anyone be such a good steward of mine? You see, my friends, being a shrewd and adept steward doesn t have to be complicated or challenging. We don t need to read a bunch of books or take classes on how to be shrewd Christians and effective followers of Jesus. Perhaps, on any given day, all it really takes is having eyes of faith so we can see the ordinary people we encounter every day as children of light, smile at them, interact with them even for a few seconds, and acknowledge them. Pretty shrewd, wouldn t you say? Amen. 5