Christopher Girata: Shrewd Faith




Day1 Weekly Radio Broadcast - Day1 Feeds show

Summary:   Let's all be very clear: this parable is weird. Although the parable begins with a pretty good hook and seems to go in a predictable direction, the story skews off pretty quickly, leaving us all a little confused. At first, this parable is off-putting, apparently contradictory, and in the end, does not seem like the kind of parable that would be a favorite for most of us. Let's start at the beginning: Jesus says that there is a rich man who had a manager who squandered his wealth. It's a good hook, so I'm in. The rich man summons the manager and tells him that he will soon fire him for being so bad at his job, but the manager doesn't just mope away like a victim. Instead, he begins to devise a plan that will allow him to get a good job once he's actually fired. The plot thickens! At this point in the story, I'm thinking that this manager is trying to be a little too clever, a little too shrewd, and he's simply going to dig himself into a deeper hole. I know this manager; I have been this manager. I totally sympathize with his position. I have definitely been in situations where I haven't done something well, and when I realize I haven't done something well, instead of simply admitting to it, I try to work myself out of the jam. And instead of saving myself, most often I end up putting myself in a worse position than before. I hate to be wrong and I hate to make mistakes, and so, I understand where this poor manager is coming from and what he's attempting to do to save himself.