When You Fail (Part Two)

We continue in Luke 16. Jesus had more to say on the matter of our last study. Here, I refer to verses 10 through 15. Are there more comparisons to make? Refer back to the previous study for a definition of the word unjust.

In verse ten 10, Jesus compares the concept of 'unjust' with the concept of 'faithfulness'. In other words, faithfulness is the antithesis of all that is self-serving and gratuitous. It all actually boils down to two sets of behavior. There is behavior that can be justified and there is behavior that is unjustifiable. We must, therefore, know the meaning of the word 'justification'.

Justification: Merriam-Webster calls it an acceptable reason for doing something. An unjust steward can be considered a steward whose actions (diverting his master's goods toward self-serving ends) cannot validate his purpose as a steward. If what you desire is not part of the deal, you should not try to wring them from the deal by hook and crook. Either accept the deal or go elsewhere.

Jesus continues, in verse 11, by saying the steward is also one of the mammon of unrighteousness. He is one of them – no different. Anything the mammon needs to borrow from the rich man who lends, the steward needs also. We are all so impoverished that we must borrow from the same source. The difference in the case of the steward is that he has been entrusted to faithfully dole out those things we all require.

That being said, Jesus places all of us on the bottom rung of the cosmic ladder. We must work our way up. A universal law is applied: if we can be faithful in the small things, we can be faithful in the big things. We must first prove ourselves in the small things. The reverse is equally applicable. If we prove ourselves unjust in the small things, we would not suddenly become faithful in matters that really count. The fact is that faithful people practice faithfulness, thus becoming even more faithful. The unjust also practice their self-serving ways. They will only ever become better at the thing they practice.

The bottom rung. It is a place for the things that belong to others. We may not be presumptuous. If we are unable to prove ourselves in the things that belong to others, we will never come to a place where something actually belongs to us. If we work hard, show integrity, we may advance our careers to a point where we are finally the boss and not the lacky. But, before we can be a boss, we have to keep our noses to the grindstone.

That is the common, ordinary, run-of-the-mill, daily, dog-eat-dog business model. It's just good business, they say. You have to crack some eggs and all of that. It's the way things are. That's just how it's done. I'm not saying anything new here.

There is a higher level to consider, though. There is a comparison to be made between two of the statements made in this section of text. The first statement, found in verse 12, is that if you can't be faithful in the dog-eat-dog business model of all our day to day unrighteous mammon, in the bottom rung where things belong to everyone but you, then there will be no one to hand off to you those things, which in a future time, should have belonged to you. Your own unfaithfulness impedes the system that brings you to your own.

The second statement is found in verse 11. It is the higher level, based by way of comparison, on the lesser of the two models. If you can't be trusted with ordinary worldly riches, who will entrust to you the true riches that surpass all worldliness? If you cut me, I bleed. Nonetheless, I am a spiritual being. I strive toward an outcome on a higher level of spirituality.

As Jesus said these things, the Pharisees (ever on Jesus' heels) being described as covetous, derided him for his statements. They mocked, scoffed, ridiculed, and poked fun at his statements. All that he said sort of painted them in a bad light – as the failed steward being called in to account for his unjustified actions. They were covetous – but of what? Of the admiration and esteem in which the people held Jesus? Of the office of steward to the God of Israel? Of the personal advantage of said office – which the rogue Rabbi threatened? Even the religious subscribe to a dog-eat-dog model.

The bottom line of this study is the bottom rung of the ladder. Nothing is yours yet. You are simply the steward. You have a place on a higher rung, but you must first prove yourself down here. To move up, your stewardship must find justification. By this, I mean true justification, not self-justification. When the Pharisees derided Jesus, he answered them in this manner.

You, the stewards of your God, have no justification for your stewardship. You merely justify yourselves before men. They see the outside, But God sees your spirits. All the things you covet are of the mammon of unrighteous, and therefore an abomination to God. Everything you seek to have and everything you fight so desperately to hold onto, none of that belongs to you.

Are you of the mammon of unrighteousness? Of course, you are. We all are. It is the bottom rung. Are you a steward of the riches of God? In a way, all of us are. Do you take your stewardship seriously? You must either practice faithfulness or expect to fail. Do you covet all the material and worldly facets of the bottom rung? You are doing all the wrong things. It is not for you to speak for God. You are a servant only. Forget about the power, the fame, the station. Do not seek to place your will above others. Changing things around is not the business of a steward. Not even a prophet may speak for himself, but all of us, as faithful servants, must bend to the will of a spirit who is above all worldliness.

Will we fail? Many of us will, but that only tells us this one important fact: we should have seen from the beginning that we are on the bottom rung where everything belongs to everyone else. From the beginning, we should have cared for them more than for ourselves.