Bible MBASample

Even a Dishonest Manager Understands 

And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings. Luke 16:9 ESV 

Even a dishonest manager understands the appropriate use of money. This is the crux of the often-misunderstood parable that the Lord told in the passage in Luke. Realizing that the security of his job was about to be lost, the dishonest manager decided to use his master's money to procure favors that he would call in once he was out of work. 

This parable has layers of meaning, but the critical lesson for the Christian business leader is that this life and your business will not last forever, and you need to use the opportunity of the monies over which you act as steward to secure your future in eternity. 

This is why Paul the Apostle asked Timothy to warn those who are rich in this life not to set their hopes on riches that do not provide certainty. “ Charge them . . . That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life." (1 Timothy 6:17-19 KJV) 

In essence, your place in eternity hangs on the balance of how you manage the wealth that your business creates. As you will note in the story of the rich young ruler, his access to eternal life hung on his willingness to obey the Lord in the stewarding of the resources that had come into his possession (Mark 10:17-22). 

There is no longer a question of whether God will bless the works of the believer who diligently does his business using the principles that God teaches. That is a foregone conclusion. What is critical is what that Christian businessperson then does with the blessing. The question that you must answer today and always is, “am I being a faithful steward of the riches that have come into my possession? Am I securing for myself an everlasting habitation? Am I laying hold of eternal life?”