Our Rich Man

S. SEKOU ABODUNRIN

And he said also unto his disciples, There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods.
Lk 16:1


This parable presents some difficulty to the casual reader. One thing to keep in mind is the fact that this is a parable of Jesus. A parable itself is meant to give a more understandable presentation of a subject - The concept of stewardship. The Lord Jesus resorted to parables because he wanted to use every imaginable avenue to convey meaning to his hearers.

Notice that the very first word there shows that he is continuing a thought. The way the verse is structured shows that it was not a fresh thought he was presenting, but the continuation of thoughts in Luke 15.

I will advise that you read through the first fifteen verses before continuing past this point.

The primal accusation was that the steward had wasted the rich man’s goods. Waste refers to improper use. The steward was expected to understand the proper use of the rich man’s goods.

I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.
Lk 16:4

The steward makes a change at this point. He starts something he had not been doing before. He starts understanding that stewardship is in phases and that his present stewardship was coming to an end. He starts thinking of the future. The secret then is the wisdom displayed by this steward in understanding that present stewardship should be so used as to affect outcomes in eternity.

So he called every one of his lord's debtors unto him, and said unto the first, How much owest thou unto my lord? Lk 16:5

Notice that the steward calls every one of the rich man’s debtors. We are given insight into how he related to two of such debtors. We are given an idea of the pattern he followed with these two so as to know how he related to all of them.

This steward is called unjust because he operated by the systems of this world to consume things upon his lust. He was driven by self-preservation. The key is in understanding that the parable is not about the character of the steward, but the wisdom of stewardship. If you take your mind off the steward and look instead at the rich man and his debtors the picture changes.

To understand why the steward was commended we need to understand what transpired between him and the rich man’s debtors.

In reality the debtors paid nothing. The key thought is that their debts were cancelled. These debtors were bankrupt, they couldn’t pay anything to enter into this new agreement and they were not the one’s that initiated this debt-restructuring exercise. It was the steward’s move. In simple terms every debtor that came in contact with the steward left experiencing relief.

……And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty.
Lk 15:6

The bill was a legal document that was a constant reminder to the debtors that their debts were very much alive and kicking! This intensified their burden.

I want you to notice that the contents of each debtor’s bill changed. This means that every debtor came into a new agreement. This agreement involved cancelled debts.

The debtors transacted with the steward because they understood him to be an authorised official stewarding the resources of the rich man. They knew that they owed the steward nothing, but that through the activities of the steward their heavy debt burdens were cancelled. They would understand this debt cancellation to be the mind of the rich man in action for the steward simply represents the rich man to people. They would begin to see the rich man as benevolent and merciful.

This in effect affects how the debtors see and relate to the rich man. Can you imagine the press and publicity that the rich man gets as a result of this? His goodness is on every lip, some come to him to express appreciation – something they never did before. You understand that every businessman understands the power of good will and community acceptance and the potentials represented by a satisfied customer. In effect the influence of the rich man has been extended. The rich man has a voice where he didn’t have one before.

The rich man has a greater degree of influence in the debtors’ lives because of this wise steward.

The wisdom of the steward then is what he gets commended for. Proper stewardship is our understanding that we are to use the resources of the rich man to release men from the burden of the debtor by cancelling their debts. This is the power of attorney.

The influence of the rich man involves our recognising and using the ability of God – this is prosperity. Prosperity is your ability to use the very ability of God. When I fail to operate by divine ability I waste it.

There is a new agreement or new covenant in the blood of Jesus. Our stewardship involves extending to men the realities and wealth contained within this new agreement ratified in blood. Stewardship then is using the resources of God at our disposal to channel the power of attorney that we have in him such that the life and power of the transcendent Lord reaches into human lives.

You understand by now that the rich man is the Lord Jesus. He commends us for understanding that stewardship of the wealth of God is such that we do not consume it upon our own lusts, but instead use the wealth under our stewardship to affect eternal things. This is done by bringing men in contact with the fact that their debts are cancelled in Christ Jesus and that they are now in a new relationship with God.

We know the generosity and benevolence of our God and Father hence we are bold to act as his ambassadors extending the reach of the kingdom and glory of Jesus.

This extends the influence of our rich man – the Lord Jesus.

…………to be continued.