Mismanaging Money

Proper20C, Sullivan Park Care Center, September 22, 2013, by Sr Annette Fricke, OP  Also preached on September 25, 2014 at The Cathedral of St John the Evangelist, Spokane, WA

                Frederick Buechner wrote in his book, The Longing for Home, "We search for a good self to be and for good work to do. We search to become human in a world that tempts us always to be less than human or looks to us to be more. We search to love and be loved. And in a world where it is often hard to believe in much of anything, we search to believe in something holy and beautiful and life-transcending that will give meaning and purpose to the lives we live."

            We search for a good self to be and for good work to do. That is a point of view I think most of us would endorse. We seek to be reasonable, ethical citizens of the world who seek out work that is suitable to what we feel we can do with the gifts and talents that God has given us. As we age and circumstances change, what we previously worked at as an occupation or way of life may take on a different form.  We may, for example, pursue what may have been only a hobby in the past or only a curiosity.  Some see getting older as the freedom to pursue other interests or to teach and mentor the young, guiding them in their search for a meaningful vocation.

But our gospel text assigned to this day has us shaking our heads. We are accustomed to texts, which in our minds, are supposed to give us a picture of the kingdom of God.  Jesus’ stories are usually a bit more straightforward than this one.  We also do not have the luxury of finding a parallel in another gospel to elucidate its meaning.  There is none.  Luke is the only one with this story. But here it is.  This is a gospel text that baffles many.  Even those who write commentaries on the meaning of these texts label this one as a tough nut to crack. This one simply does not make sense.  It seems to be quite the opposite; quite mind boggling because, on the surface, what we see in this text is a very selfish man who does everything he can to take advantage of his boss financially. Most of us would not do what this man does because we would fear being fired because we see what he does as being immoral. In modern times, what he does is commonly known as embezzlement which is subject to paying back the employer and imprisonment. Such an employment situation can go on for years before it is finalized between the insurance companies and the embezzler. That part of the story does make sense to us and the man is fired.  What follows this does not make sense.  The man who “cooked the books” so to speak is asked to straighten them out. Why would a person even have opportunity to do anything with his job after he is fired? Or want to? Am I wrong or isn’t that usually what the person does who is hired in his place? The story clearly lacks logic and that is why, previous to now, I have never preached on this text.

            You might explain this text by saying that perhaps this man had a change of heart and that is what living in God’s kingdom is all about.  He made a mess of things by selfishly taking money for himself that belonged to his employer. Similarly, we are called to repent of our sins, which is a change of heart, and try to do better which is the forgiveness of debt to his master’s clients. Luke actually does inform us later that this story was told to the Pharisees who are lovers of money. The meaning that Luke attaches to this story is, as he addresses the Pharisees, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of others; but God knows your hearts; for what is prized by human beings is an abomination in the sight of God.”  Doesn’t this correspond to the second part of the Buechner’s text? “We search to become human in a world that tempts us always to be less than human or looks to us to be more.”

            In Luke, we hear this theme of self-justification over and over.  Think about the story of the Good Samaritan.  It begins with someone who would like to justify himself by doing the works of the law.  Jesus quickly points out that we do not possess salvation by playing that game in life. The temptation is always there. What are our priorities? Two Sundays ago, the gospel text read, “…none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.”  Whom or what do I serve?  Are our lives revolving around money or possessions or our own way of thinking?  Do we cling with such tenacity that we rarely think of nothing or nobody else? Are we seeking the mercy and justice of God in the world or are we allowing some or most other things to take our focus away from serving God?

            If you are looking only with literal eyes to interpret this gospel, you will only see it as being addressed to a rich man and therefore only applies to rich men.  If you see it thus, you will see that it does not apply to you and you can dismiss it’s teaching.  Either you are not a man or you are not rich—or both.  But the truth is that all of us have the resources of richness.  We all have the ability to be the compassion and justice of God to everyone around us, even if we are unable to travel far. Your world, small as it may be, confined to a small living space of just a few feet or a small neighborhood out of which you venture on rare occasions, is God’s.  God invites you to work for justice and peace in that neighborhood as though you were Jesus and doing as Jesus would.  It does not always mean being nice, but it does mean always seeking justice for the poor; both the poor in spirit as well as those unable to provide a living for themselves.  We always have something we can give to others. The point of this parable is that we are to make the most of our resources.  If we have the talent of gathering resources from others, that is also commendable.  God calls us to right the wrongs of the world, a world that is filled with many people clamoring to be recognized for self-achievement or how well they managed to make money.  We need to beware as to how we represent Christ and follow him, not the poor examples in our world.  We need to ask ourselves, “What are the needs?” and “How can I help?” in every moment of encounter with another person. You never know when one kind act or one kind word will change a life forever.  And the same goes for any life event, even when what we view as negative life events happen to us, if we are open to the possibilities, it may change us. The opportunity is always there for us to change our minds and do something we never did before. Even when someone we love very much dies, we can choose to see it only as a loss or as an opportunity or blessing to move forward.  God has blessed us with many gifts.  It is up to us to use them and up to us to receive the gracious gifts of others. As John Wesley has so eloquently put it, “Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.”  We are to make friends with the poor in our midst, for we never know when the tables will be turned and we may be in need of their help.  Do not deceive yourselves into thinking that you are self-sufficient. We search to love and be loved. And in a world where it is often hard to believe in much of anything, we search to believe in something holy and beautiful and life-transcending that will give meaning and purpose to the lives we live. That something holy and beautiful and life-transcending is what I call God. I invite you to take that leap of faith once more and fully put your trust in God who gives in order that you may receive God’s love for you and may distribute that love to all of God’s creatures.  God who loves you is faithful and sent his Son to sacrifice his life on the cross as the seal of a love that remains eternal.
* this sermon can be found on Youtube at:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFZQzSc7ZKo