What a Dishonest Manager Can Teach Us About a Meaningful Life: 4 Surprising Truths from an Ancient Parable
Introduction: Unlocking Ancient Wisdom for Modern Problems
Ancient parables can often feel like riddles from a world we no longer inhabit. Their lessons can seem obscure, their characters unrelatable, and their logic, at times, completely backward. This is especially true when a story comes along that is so strange, it forces us to stop and listen.
The parable of the dishonest manager is one of those—a real "doozy," as Rev. Katie Gould puts it. Placed right after the well-loved stories of the Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin, and the Prodigal Son, it’s part of a series trying to tell us something fundamental about God. But in this story, a manager who is about to be fired for squandering his employer's wealth is praised for a final act of dishonesty. Why? Rev. Gould suggests the answer lies in two foundational truths that unlock not just the parable, but a more meaningful way of life: first, that nothing we have is truly ours, and second, that everything we do in this moment has eternal implications. Let’s explore what that means.
1. You Don't Actually Own Anything—You're Just the Manager
The sermon invites us into a fundamental shift in perspective, a radical re-evaluation of ownership. The core concept that changes everything is this: nothing we have is truly ours. Our money, our home, our talents, our time, and even our very lives are not personal possessions. We are simply stewards—managers entrusted with gifts that ultimately belong to God.
This isn't just a theological nicety; it’s a complete re-framing of our purpose. When we see ourselves as managers rather than owners, our primary responsibility shifts from accumulation and self-interest to faithful and wise administration. The question becomes not "What can I get?" but "What is the best way to handle what I've been given?"
Everything we have doesn't belong to us. We are managing things that belong to God. So everything we have is a gift from God. Everything.
2. Your Best Investment Is in People, Not Profits
This brings us to the central puzzle: why was the manager commended for cutting his employer’s bills? A conventional business mindset would see this as a final act of theft. But the sermon offers a different interpretation. The manager, in his final moments of authority, wasn't trying to maximize financial returns. He was using his power and position to invest in people. By reducing their debts, he was building relationships that would sustain him in the future.
This challenges us to reconsider what a "good investment" truly is. We are called to use our resources—our wealth, skills, position, and time—not solely for personal gain but to lift others up and strengthen the bonds of community. And this call is radical; it extends to everyone. As Rev. Gould reminds us, this includes people "I don't maybe particularly like as much as others. Maybe I wouldn't invite them over for dinner." Our stewardship is measured not by the size of our portfolio but by our willingness to invest in all people.
But the point is that the manager was using his power, his privilege, his position that he was in in order to invest in people. And this is the point that God wants us to hear is that all of the things that we manage, whether it is material wealth or possessions or um our gifts, our talents, our time, any of that, that they are to be stewarded in the service of building relationships, in the service of loving people...
3. You Can't Separate Your Spiritual Life from Your Daily Grind
One of our greatest modern temptations is to compartmentalize—to have a "Sunday self" and a "rest-of-the-week self." We can be reverent during worship, only to dive headfirst into the anxieties of hustle culture on Monday. Citing the prophet Amos, the sermon issues a stark warning against this kind of divided life.
Amos cautioned a people who couldn't wait for worship to be over so they could get back to their real lives. Rev. Gould offers the modern equivalent: "I cannot wait for worship service to be over. I have a football game to watch... I have money to be made." Amos’s warning feels like it was written for today’s LinkedIn feed. You cannot separate your day-to-day life from your spiritual relationship with God, because the foundation of that relationship—the fact that everything you have is a gift—is always true. Our responsibilities as stewards are never suspended.
And Amos is warning them about separating their day-to-day lives from their spiritual relationship with God. Separating their day-to-day lives from the God that they worship. And The thing is Amos says you can't do that. You can't separate the two from one another because nothing that you have when you leave here and go to your day-to-day life belongs to you.
4. Everything You Do, No Matter How Small, Has Eternal Stakes
The second core truth emerging from the parable is that our present actions carry eternal weight. There are no insignificant moments, because our conduct in the here and now matters profoundly. The gospel text is explicit: “Whoever is faithful in very little is faithful also in much.” It then asks the crucial question: “If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth, who will entrust you to the true riches?” How we handle the temporary resources we manage today determines our capacity for what is lasting and true.
This principle makes every choice significant. Integrity isn't just for big decisions; it’s forged in the thousand small, unwatched moments of our daily lives. Rev. Gould shares a simple yet profound example from a prayer her young daughter used to say, a prayer that serves as a model for this very work:
God, please help the bad people who are not good yet.
This simple petition challenges us to see even our enemies not as fixed and irredeemable, but as people who are "not good yet." It's a template for the difficult spiritual work of praying for those we "wouldn't consider our friends." As Rev. Gould notes, how often do we go home and "consciously pray for our enemies?" This child’s prayer shows us how: by participating in the hope that anyone, through grace, can be transformed.
Conclusion: Matching Your Inside to Your Outside
Ultimately, the parable of the dishonest manager is a call to live an integrated life, where our actions in the world reflect our inner beliefs. It’s hard work, and we are not called to moral perfection. As Rev. Gould emphasizes, it’s the “motive of the heart” that truly matters. We will stumble, but thanks be to God, we can try over and over again.
Our effort to be good stewards isn’t a frantic scramble to earn favor. Instead, it is the “good and right and grateful response to a God who does not give up on his people, who searches until they are all found.” Our faithful management of the gifts we’ve been given is simply our part in reflecting that relentless, searching love back into the world. It’s our chance to bring a little more peace to a world in desperate need of it.
If everything you have is a gift meant to be invested in others, what one thing will you manage differently this week?
