Title Before Unemployment / Luke 16:1-14
Contents These days, the overall economic situation in Korea is not good, so instead of creating new jobs, each company is competing to cut jobs. As a result, office workers face the risk of unwanted job loss. We find in the text a parable about a man who is about to lose his job. Let's take a look at some of the lessons Jesus gives us through this parable.
“It feels like I was suddenly thrown into an unfamiliar nudist village and forcibly stripped naked.” 80 years
Most of the unemployed people in their 50s and 60s who lost their jobs abruptly expressed their feelings in the early 1990s, 10 years after entering the teenage years, when the number exceeded 5 million. Of course, there are some people who have resigned voluntarily, but even they are people who decided to retire because of their qualifications that they are "0 priority for retirement in case of weight loss management or organization downsizing", so it may be a common feeling of office workers after their 50s.
Issue date: August 12, 1996
First, we must be loyal in the little things.
A rich man had a steward. A steward is a person who is responsible for the household chores and property of the owner. We do not know with certainty whether this steward was a servant or an employee. One day the owner discovers that this steward is wasting his possessions. The owner ordered him to retire and had him settle accounts. This is a perfectly reasonable course of action.
In order to survive in today's difficult economic environment, companies need to rationalize their management. In order to maximize profits, it is necessary to cut unnecessary expenses, drastically reduce unnecessary personnel, and retire those who are incompetent. In order to increase productivity, some companies convert hours into seconds and shout super management. It's to keep you from thinking about anything else during your working hours. In this situation, if someone wastes ownership of the company, that person cannot sit there for long. You can't keep holding on to that person paying high wages.
This steward lost his job because he wasted his master's property. However, this is a superficial reason, and there are several underlying reasons behind it. One of them is being disloyal in small things. In the precept of the parable, Jesus said, “He who is faithful in a very little thing is also faithful in much, and he who is unrighteous in a very little is unrighteous also in much” (verse 10). Of course, he, too, must have worked hard to earn the trust of his master at first. However, as the owner's trust deepened, he began to neglect small things at some point, and as a result, he inflicted considerable damage to the owner because he did not manage it properly.
Anyone who thinks small things are trivial will always be on the list whenever there is talk of a layoff. The Lord said that those who do not take care of the little things will not take care of the big things.
He also worked irresponsibly. I did not think that the owner's property was mine, and I had the thought that I could only receive what I received. People who only need to get a paycheck will eventually be kicked out of their jobs. I need to restore the belief that I will do well only when the company does well. A person with such a mindset will not please people by blindfolding, but will do his job silently, with or without the owner.
“Slaves, may you obey your masters in the flesh with fear and trembling, with sincerity in your heart, as to Christ, and not as one who pleases men with blindfolds, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart, serving you with a pure heart. As to the Lord and not to men, knowing that whatever good each one does, it will be received of the Lord, both slave and free” (Ephesians 6:5-8).
Second, we must prepare for the future.
The steward, who received the notice of dismissal from his master, had a lot of trouble. I thought about what I would do after I lost my job, but I couldn't find a job that was right for me. Judging by the saying, "I don't have the strength to dig in the ground," you can tell that I'm already old.
The owner said that he praised this steward. We have a hard time understanding this parable because it seems to justify unrighteous behavior. This does not mean that it is okay to embezzle company funds as long as the purpose is good. It doesn't mean that it's okay to raise money through public corruption as long as the purpose is good. What the master praised here was that he prepared wisely for the loss of his job, and he did not cause damage to the owner in an unlawful way. It should also be noted that this steward was referred to by the Lord as “the wrong steward” (v. 8).
The Lord teaches us to prepare for the future through this parable. As the stewards of the text did, we must foresee the time of unemployment and prepare in advance. That is the wisdom of life. Pharaoh regarded Joseph as a wise man, who proposed to prepare for the famine during the seven years of abundance in Egypt. But it was God who gave him such wisdom.
Some Christians believe that preparing for tomorrow and preparing for the future is unbelief. Naturally, they deny insurance and are reluctant to even save money in the bank. As the basis for their belief, they present the words of the Sermon on the Mount, “Do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious, and one day of suffering is sufficient for that day” (Matthew 6:34). However, these words were given in order not to lose the will to live because of excessive worry. And we are dealing with anxiety, not preparing for the future. If the Christian faith itself is a preparation for the future, would it be an overstatement?
This steward prepares for unemployment, but unemployment is not the only thing to be prepared for. We must prepare for times of trouble. You must prepare for the time of retirement and beyond. You must be prepared for when you become ill. And you have to prepare for the afterlife.
Third, we must not idolize money.
Jesus told this parable, “Make friends with the money of unrighteousness” (verse 9). This is the second obstacle in this parable. What the hell does this mean? Do you mean charitable by embezzling company funds? Or does it mean that you should save money through public corruption and have fun with your friends? Even if you think common sense, it doesn't mean that. Here, "wealth of unrighteousness" does not mean wealth obtained through illegitimate means. Because there is a lot of room for injustice to intervene in wealth, it should be seen as the Lord's calling.
The Lord did not tell us to make money as a friend. He told me to make friends with wealth. This verse means that when they are saved, they will receive their hospitality in the future when they are saved by spending money on saving souls, in light of the later saying, “When they pass away, they will receive you into their eternal dwelling place.”
Jesus also warned against veneration of riches as gods.
“No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and riches” (verse 13).
How many people succumb to money! It is a common belief that people can do anything with money. People who have such a mindset are as if they are holding money as an almighty god. But there are many things that money cannot do.
An unknown article about money was published in The Wall Street Journal, the leading economic newspaper in the United States.
"Money is a global passport that can go anywhere except heaven, and is an item used as a commodity to buy everything except happiness."
Christians are stewards of God. Everything we have belongs to God. There are times when we need to liquidate our stewardship. In preparation for that time, we should use all of our things wisely according to the will of God. Like the stewards of the text, help the poor when you have authority. Do your best when you are in a position to do good. Give diligently when you can afford to give. Actively support missionary work. The Lord will praise you.
Meng Shang-gun of the Qi Dynasty during the Warring States period of China is widely recognized by generations to come as a person who lived a wonderful life. There is a song called Mengsanggunga as an ancient song of the Yijo period. There, the phrase [Cheonchujeon Honorable King, Mengsanggun only Hariyama...] appears, saying that he is a man with all kinds of clothes.
It seems that this kind of Mengsanggun had a very difficult time dealing with the 3,000 foodies he had. Worried about the current economic difficulties, he concluded that as a solution to this problem, he should receive the money he deserves from the people of Seol, where his food comes from. And he entrusted this task to a servant named Punghwan.
Before leaving after receiving Meng Sang-gun's orders, Pung-hwan asked Meng Sang-gun if he had anything to buy when he returned from his mission. At this time, Meng Sang-gun said that he didn't care about anything that wasn't in the house.
When Pung Hwan arrives at his destination and examines the lives of those who owe his master, he discovers that it is not difficult at all. In response, Punghwan forgave all their debts in the name of Meng Sanggun.
Meng Sang-gun, angry when he saw Pung-hwan returned empty-handed, rebuked him with a displeased expression, but Pung-hwan said calmly.
[When I arrived at my destination and thought about what I would buy and return if I received money from the people, I realized that there is only one thing that is not in this house. So, as I sought that righteousness, in the end, all the debts of the poor were forgiven. In the end, I came here to buy justice with all the money, so I believe I have never done anything better for my master.]
Shortly after this happened, Meng Sang-gun was disliked by the king of Qi and was pushed out of his seat as the leader. When this happened, the 3,000 diners dispersed for their bosom, and he ended up in a miserable condition with no place to put even one of his own bodies in peace.
At this time, Punghwan led the master to the snowy region. Meng Sang-gun received an unexpected hospitality there, and he was able to show off his true face to the whole world by reviving a knight in the snowy region as a base.