oods. And he called him, and said unto him, What is
this that I hear of thee? render the account of thy stewardship;
for thou canst be no longer steward. And the steward said within
himself, What shall I do, seeing that my lord taketh away the
stewardship from me? I have not strength to dig; to beg I am
ashamed. I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the
stewardship, they may receive me into their houses. And calling to
him each one of his lord's debtors, he said to the first, How much
owest thou unto my lord? And he said, A hundred measures of oil.
And he said unto him, Take thy bond, and sit down quickly and
write fifty. Then said he to another, And how much owest thou? And
he said, A hundred measures of wheat. He saith unto him, Take thy
bond, and write fourscore. And his lord commended the unrighteous
steward because he had done wisely: for the sons of this world are
for their own generation wiser than the sons of the light. And I
say unto you, Make to yourselves friends by means of the mammon of
unrighteousness; that, when it shall fail, they may receive you
into the eternal tabernacles.--Luke 16:1-9.

This is one of the wittiest stories in the Bible and must be read with
some sense of humor. The tenant farmers of a great estate paid their rent
in shares of the produce. This elastic system offered the steward a chance
to make something on the side. He was found out and discharged, but while
he was closing up his accounts he still had a short spell of authority.
Things looked dark. He did not care to blister his white hands with a
hoe-handle, nor his social pride by begging. So he grafted one last graft,
but on so large a scale that the tenants would be under lasting
obligations to him. The scamp was a crook, but at least he was
long-headed. Jesus wished the children of light were as clever in taking a
long look ahead as the children of this world. In that case men would get
ready for the new age, in which mammon loses its buying power, by making
friends with it now, and their friends would take them in as guests after
the great reversal.

How do you like the humorous independence of Jesus?

Seventh Day: Stranded on His Wealth

And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Teacher, what shall I
do to inherit eternal life? And Jesus said unto him, Why callest
thou me good? none is good, save one, even God. Thou know