Making Relationships a Priority
Written by Ed Allen
Saturday, 16 October 1999 19:00
Priorities That Result From Relationship With Go
We're talking about Priorities That Result From Relationship With God. Last week we said that the organizing priority for us must be God Himself. Today we will look at what priority should govern the use of our resources. How should we spend our time energy and money? God gives us resources to use for lasting purposes.
LUKE 16:1-13
Then Jesus said to the disciples, "There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was squandering his property. 2 So he summoned him and said to him, 'What is this that I hear about you? Give me an accounting of your management, because you cannot be my manager any longer.' 3 Then the manager said to himself, 'What will I do, now that my master is taking the position away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. 4 I have decided what to do so that, when I am dismissed as manager, people may welcome me into their homes.' 5 So, summoning his master's debtors one by one, he asked the first, 'How much do you owe my master?' 6 He answered, 'A hundred jugs of olive oil.' He said to him, 'Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it fifty.' 7 Then he asked another, 'And how much do you owe?' He replied, 'A hundred containers of wheat.' He said to him, 'Take your bill and make it eighty.' 8 And his master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light. 9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes. 10 "Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. 11 If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own? 13 No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth."
The only resources we have are God's resources.
- In Jesus' story, it is the rich man's resources, which the dishonest manager uses.
- Psalm 24:1
- Psalm 50:9-15
- Deuteronomy 8:2,4,10-18
- In his book about giving, Wayne Watts tells the story of a man who had assets in oil fields. One day he hit a gusher, and suddenly he was worth twice as much. A couple of days later a friend asked, "What's it like to wake up one morning and have twice as much as you had the day before?" This Christian man responded, "My assets haven't changed. I didn't own the first money, so I own the same amount now, as before, which is zero. I feel added responsibility to God to manage this new asset well."
That is exactly the kind of attitude the Bible advocates. The only resources we have are God's resources.
A wise investment of God's resources is an investment in relationships.
- We will misunderstand this story unless we see that the manager is not commended for his dishonesty; he is commended for his shrewdness. This word is usually translated "wisdom".
- He used the master's resources to build connections for himself.
- Jesus is not saying we should buy friends.
- He is saying, as this dishonest manager was wise enough to use the resources at his disposal to build connections, so should you use the resources at your disposal to build connections. Use the resources God has given you ? your time, your energy, and your money ? to build community.
- Last week we said that the organizing principle of our lives should be God himself. Given that, then how do we use the resources at our disposal? According to Jesus, if we want to use the resources we've been given wisely then we will use them to promote relationships.
- We all discover this, but for some of us it is too late. Some come to the end of their lives and regret that they have not invested in relationships with others. You never talk to someone at the end of their lives and hear them say, "Man, I wish I had worked longer hours." Or "I sure wish I had had a longer commute." Or "I should have spent more time on the yard."
- Greatest commandment suggests this same thing. "Love God!" And "love your neighbor as yourself."
- Last night of Jesus' life, he prays for our relationships with one another (see John 17). He prays that we will be one with one another.
The Benefits of Using God's resources wisely
Jesus could have said, "Hey you must be this way because it's the right thing to do." But he doesn't say that. He assures us there's something in it for us. There is a payoff for using God's resources wisely.
- When you use God's resources wisely you will be welcomed into heaven.
- "I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings." (v. 9)
- Draws on the image of friends welcoming us into heaven. Make sure it is a crowd of people in whom you have invested.
- Turn other people's debts into gratitude.
- "Whoever can be trusted with very little, can also be trusted with much." (v. 10)
- God builds trustworthiness into us by testing and trying and prodding us. He builds our character over time so that He might invest more heavily in us.
- The real payoff comes when God invests spiritual goods in us. For some of us, we are not ready for God to show us more of Himself. We have not handled the resources He has already invested in us wisely. "So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealthy, who will trust you with true riches?" (v. 11)
- "No servant can serve two masters. 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 money."
- Someone said this admonition reminded them of an old Jack Benny shtick. In one of his TV shows Benny is accosted by a thug on the street at gunpoint. "Your money or your life," the mugger says. Jack Benny freezes. "Come on. Come on. Your money or your life." Jack Benny says, "I'm thinking, I'm thinking."
- Similarly, God says to us, "Your money or me." And we say, "I'm thinking, I'm thinking."
- Your love for God will deepen if you give away His money. The more we give away the more our hearts are warmed to Him. The same is true for His time and His energy.
- We live in a world that revolves around money. Money is never neutral. It is either the master or it is the servant. It's never neutral.
- Our use of God's resources is a kind of self-test. Ask yourself is the money I have serving God or am I serving the money I have?
This week:
1. Find a way to invest in a relationship that is important to you but one which you have had no time for.
2. Ask God to show you a debt you can turn into gratitude.
Sooner or later, we all discover the truth of what Jesus is teaching. We all discover that the only wise investment of the resources we have ? resources, which God has given us ? is an investment in relationships. Let's hope we learn it sooner rather than later.
In Deadwood, South Dakota, there's a museum that remembers the S. D. gold rush about a 100 years ago. In it there is an inscription scratched out by a beleaguered prospector that says, "I lost my gun. I lost my horse. I am out of food. The Indians are after me, but I've got all the gold I can carry."
Some people come to the end of their lives and say I've lost my family. I've alienated my friends. I don't know God. But I've got all the gold I can carry. Don't be one of those people.