This week’s readings invite us to wrestle with one of Jesus’s most difficult parables and one of life’s most persistent questions: What do we do with what God has entrusted to us? Luke 16:1–13, paired with Amos 8:4–7 and 1 Timothy 2:1–7, reminds us that how we handle money, influence, and opportunity reveals who we truly serve.
Urgency and Loyalty (Luke 16:1–13)
At first glance, the dishonest manager seems like an odd hero. He wastes his master’s possessions, gets caught, and then scrambles to cut deals so others will owe him favors. Yet Jesus praises him. Not for dishonesty, but for acting with urgency and shrewdness. He knew his time was short, and he used what he had to prepare for the future.
Jesus presses the point home: if this is how people act with temporary, earthly things, how much more should His disciples act with urgency about eternal things? “One who is faithful in very little is also faithful in much.”
Then comes the sharp edge: “You cannot serve God and mammon.” Mammon is an Aramaic word that refers to wealth, possessions, or money personified as a master. Some translations simply render it as “money.” But many still keep the older word mammon, which makes Jesus’s meaning sharper: He is not just talking about coins and possessions, but about a rival god who demands worship. The question is not whether we will serve, but which master we will serve.
When I think about these passages, I recall a saying sometimes used not only to test my own actions but also to discern what others, inside and outside Christ’s church, really serve: “If you want to know a man’s morals, look at what he does after opening his wallet.” That saying can be expanded to any providentially provided resource God blesses His creation with time, talents, relationships, and opportunities. Ultimately, these reveal who or what we worship. When I turn this inward to test my honest “wants”, I attempt to let the law accuse me completely: to “have no other gods” means surrendering the false gods I create to give me comfort. And yet, the Gospel meets me here as well: Christ has already freed me from these idols by giving Himself fully for me.
Injustice and Exploitation (Amos 8:4–7)
Amos shows us what happens when mammon wins. He condemns merchants who can’t wait for the Sabbath to end so they can cheat the poor, skimp the measure, and “buy the needy for a pair of sandals.” Wealth becomes a tool of oppression, not stewardship.
This gives Luke’s parable a sharper edge. Faithlessness with money is not just a private flaw; it can trample others and draw God’s judgment. Amos reminds us that God sees how wealth is handled, especially when the poor are harmed. Stewardship is never just about us. It’s about justice, mercy, and love of neighbor, all of which flow from God’s covenant love.
Stewarding Influence (1 Timothy 2:1–7)
Paul widens the conversation. Faithfulness is not just about money but also about how we use influence and voice. He urges Christians to pray for all people, including rulers, so that society may flourish in peace. Just as the manager in Luke leveraged relationships for his future, we are called to leverage prayer, generosity, and witness for the sake of God’s kingdom.
Paul anchors this in Christ: “There is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all.” The ultimate act of faithfulness was not ours but His—Christ offering Himself in sacrifice for our salvation. From that gift, our faithfulness flows.
Whose Table, Whose Master?
Put together, these readings press a question: Am I serving mammon, or am I serving God? Amos warns that mammon corrupts into injustice. Luke shows that mammon demands loyalty and competes with God for our hearts. Paul points us to Christ, who alone is worthy of full devotion and who teaches us to steward every gift whether that is money, time, or influence, for His kingdom.
To be faithful with little is not to rely on our own strength but to receive everything as a gift of grace. Our stewardship, whether of wealth, prayer, or influence, is the fruit of belonging to Christ. In the end, the real issue is not the size of the gift but the loyalty of the heart, and only Christ can free our hearts to serve God instead of mammon.
A Note on mammon in translation
Most modern versions (NIV, NLT, NET, GNT, The Message) render mammon simply as “money” for readability. Others (KJV, NKJV, ESV, NRSV, NASB, CSB, RSV) preserve the older word mammon, which highlights that Jesus is not merely talking about wealth as a neutral tool, but as a false god competing for our worship.
Jeremy Miller
Church Elder