Wait a minute…Is Jesus commending a guy who is deliberately ripping off His boss? And, will we be able to see people in hell when we are in heaven?
Not exactly…but He is calling attention to something that Christians need to learn, and that is how to be shrewd. The manager was dishonest, and his further actions prove just how corrupt he was. The fact that the owner admired his shrewdness doesn’t excuse his illegal activity. Jesus uses the account to illustrate the need to “plan ahead” for our future in heaven. Since your money isn’t going to be worth anything there, you want to “store up” whatever you will be able to use to your advantage in heaven. That means you should invest in good deeds. If you use your resources to help the poor, the homeless, the infirmed or the widows, you store up treasures in heaven. Use whatever God gives you to your advantage! Be shrewd in the way you spend your money. If you spend it on yourself, it isn’t specifically a sin, but you don’t gain anything from it. Spend it on things that will pay a return eternally. This isn’t the only place in the Bible where Jesus encourages us to use our resources to gain eternal blessings.
On another note, Jesus mentions that He is watching how we use our worldly wealth. He is basing His decision about what we are responsible for in heaven on what we do here. I heard a story one time about a man who was given an inheritance of around 1 million dollars, and was told to invest in wisely. Only after he had made his investments and demonstrated how he could handle the money, was he surprised to find out that he actually inherited billions. His second inheritance was contingent upon his wise use of the first. Had he blown it on friends and parties and bad investments, he would stand to inherit nothing more.
I wonder if this is the same concept that Jesus is trying to teach us? We have been given much by worldly standards…but by heaven’s standards it’s just a pocket full of change. The real riches await us. But we won’t have a chance to work with them if we aren’t using what we have now wisely. One of the things we need to learn is not to allow our money to control us. The desire for riches is a powerful temptation, especially for someone who grew up without them. It would be easy to allow that desire to “have things” to take over our priorities. Maybe it would cause us to work instead of going to church. Maybe we would work instead of being with our family. We may become too busy making money to have time to invest our talents in God’s work. This sort of thing happens all the time. It’s a deceptive sin that creeps up on us gradually.
Now to verse 19 to discuss the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. This isn’t the same Lazarus Jesus raised from the dead…it’s just a common name. This passage helps us understand that there is a place before heaven where we await judgment. It’s referred to as “Abraham’s bosom” or “paradise” in Scripture. It is a wonderful place where all Christians live in peace, and enjoy fellowship with Jesus. There are no problems or trials in paradise. It is a wonderful place. And, if you are in paradise, you will eventually stand before the judgment seat of God and be found a “good and faithful servant” who then enters into heaven. The other half of this holding place is called “hell” or “ghenna” or “Hades”. It is the exact opposite of paradise. Everyone there is in torment and will eventually be found lacking and cast into the lake of eternal fire.
If you read Revelation 14:14 you will see that death and hell are thrown into the lake of fire. Since hell can’t be thrown into hell, the lake of fire must be a separate place. Anyone whose name isn’t found in the Book of Life begins eternity in hell and then goes to the lake of fire after Judgment day. The Bible expresses that this is a permanent fate, so we need to take it very seriously.
The only way to avoid hell and the lake of fire is to have a personal relationship with Jesus. You become obedient to Him, and do whatever He asks of you. You can do it your way if you want, but that is only going to send you right into hell. Be smart about this and repent of your sinfulness now, and avoid the consequences.
Hoping and praying that you have that relationship with Jesus,
PR