The Shrewd Manager

Luke 16:1-12

I have to confess that this is one of those passages that I don't fully understand. It seems that a manager was accused of mishandling his boss's wealth. The boss put the manager on notice that he was about to be fired. The manager had no skills or marketable ability. So he went to all of the people who owed the boss money. He basically gave big discounts to some of the debtors, hoping that they would appreciate the generosity and return the favor, hiring him once he was fired. One of the commentaries that I looked at for this passage suggests that the manager was charging extra interest and skimming off the top. So he credited the interest back to the debtors, asking them to pay only the principal. Under this interpretation, he was dishonest in charging more than was due and had helped himself to the extra, and this latest act was a return to honesty. That interpretation has the advantage of making sense of the story in a way that brings admiration to the honest character that the manager becomes. But in a way, I think that takes away part of the point that Jesus is trying to make. Look at verses 8 and 9. First, the boss commends the "dishonest manager." It doesn't say the reformed, dishonest manager. There's no indication that he's being commended for honesty. Second, Jesus says that "the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light." As I read this, I don't hear Jesus praising the honesty of the manager. It seems to me that Jesus is pointing out the manager's cleverness in making friends, in using his resources to his advantage.

But even that interpretation could be questioned because then Jesus goes on to praise trustworthiness, which perhaps does support the interpretation of the dishonest manager becoming honest.

I don't pretend to have all of the answers here. But even in the midst of a passage that is difficult to interpret, I think there is an important workplace lesson. Look at verse 9: "I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings." We all have different resources in our organization, and some of those resources are based on who you know. Again, I don't have the key to unlock everything here, but I think part of the application is to use what you have to honor God. If you're friends with the facilities manager at your work, how can you use that to serve God? If you know the person in charge of corporate giving, how can you use your position to advance God's Kingdom. So part of the thing here is learning to make use of the connections that you have for God's glory. But part of the lesson is also making those connections in the first place. Get to know the people in your organization. Use your position to build relationships with people. The Bible talks in other places about being duplicitous and some of the other negative aspects of office politics. But here, Jesus may be talking about positive office politics. Build relationships. Get to know people. Those relationships may be something that you can use to honor God down the road.