Dishonest Accountant
We have before us a parable so unusual that most teachers would prefer to skip a page and go on rather than try to interpret it.
It’s a parable about a crooked accountant, who is confronted by his master and told to give an account of his management.
But while he still has a few days left to work, he works out an ingenious plan to build up a reserve of personal favours so that when his job is lost, he would be able to find another, and have many friends to support him. He makes many friends by cancelling part of the debts owed to his master.
His boss sees what he is doing, and praises his manager's ingenuity and shrewdness.
The master does not praise his dishonesty, but the way in which he handles his problem, with vision and clarity of thought.
He does not*
Take the easy way out:
He does not hide, bury his head in the sand like an ostrich,
Take to the bottle or jump off a cliff,
Nor does he simply eat, drink and be merry to drown his troubles.
He is not laid back, lethargic or idle !
He faces up to the problem in front of him;
He jumps right in head first, keeping his eyes open in order to resolve the situation, he thinks it all out and he comes up with a solution.
He is discerning, wise, astute and clever. This is why his master praises him, NOT because he is dishonest.
We too will one day be called by God, to give account of our lives.
What if Jesus returned to earth tomorrow?
Would we alter our lives in any way, would we change anything about the way we live our lives, spend our money, forgive our neighbours?
When we face uncertain times, do we tend to take the easy way out, and hide away, or do we face problems head on?
Do we just get depressed and think negatively, or are we alert, aware and at the ready.
We have a God who redeems situations when we look to him, call on his name and trust in Him to do glorious things.
We have a God who when his people were faced with a Red Sea, opened it up for them, and led them to safety.
If we bury our heads in the sand, we may not be able to discern His solutions to the problem.
We are told to be as wise as serpents, and as innocent as doves.
In a children's book, entitled Fantastic Mr Fox, the Fox is faced with a similar situation. The hill where he lives had been surrounded by three farmers, and their co workers, who are determined to dig him and his family out of their home. Mr Fox is clever , he doesn't lose his cool, and he comes up with a solution, which is the perfect solution. It even meets his family's needs for food, as well as the needs of every animal which lives on the hill.
He decides to dig, and he reaches the cellars of the 3 farmer's storehouses.
Those who trust will not be put to shame.
We are asked to trust God in every situation, as Christians, to not lose hope or be dismayed, but to be bold and be strong for God is with us.
Let us give an honest account of ourselves, and our shortcomings, and then place ourselves in the hands of a mighty God, who knows all our needs before we even ask him.