Making the Best of a Bad Situation
Posted on Sep 16, 2025 by Shari Van Baale
In this Sunday’s Gospel reading, Jesus tells the parable of the shrewd manager. When the employer hears that the manager was “squandering his property,” he calls him and says, “What is this that I hear about you? Give me an accounting of your management because you cannot be my manager any longer.” (Luke 16:2)
The dishonest manager is concerned that his boss is going to fire him. So he calls his master’s debtors and reduces how much each owes. His master then praises his work and commends him for acting shrewdly.
According to workingpreacher.com, the dishonest manger is shred because “he models behavior the disciples can emulate. Instead of simply being a victim of circumstance, he transforms a bad situation into one that benefits him and others. By reducing other people’s debts, he creates a new set of relationships based not on the vertical relationship between lenders and debtors (rooted in monetary exchange) but on something more like the reciprocal and egalitarian relationships of friends.”
Perhaps this is why Jesus says, “make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone they may welcome you into the eternal homes.” (Luke 16:9)
The “shrewd manager” is making the best of a bad situation. He reduces the amount that the debtors owe in the hopes of them befriending him.
According to GotQuestions.org, “Jesus is encouraging His followers to be generous with their wealth in this life so that in the life to come their new friends will receive them into ‘eternal dwellings.’ This is similar to Jesus’ teaching on wealth in the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus exhorts His followers to lay up treasures in heaven.”
Yes, you cannot take money and material possessions to heaven, but those who you tell about Jesus and who accept him as their savior will definitely be there with you!
Shari Van Baale
Salem Communications Coordinator