Luke 12:41 Commentary - Dr Peter Masters

Navigator

Luke 12:41

Comments

Hearing the parable of the watchful servants, Peter thought it was a parable for the disciples, for ministers, and he said, ‘Lord is this just for us, the disciples, or is it for everyone?’ In fact it is for everyone, though it also has a distinctive message for ministers. All parables are for everyone, even though, here and there, some of them have a further particular application. ‘Who then is that faithful and wise steward?’ The Lord is speaking very pointedly to individuals. The previous parable was about servants in the plural; this next is singular, to emphasise that we are, each one of us, accountable before God. Who is the individual who will be mightily blessed by God, when the Lord comes for him, either at the end of his life’s journey, or for at the end of the world? Who is that individual person who will fit the definition of a child of God, of a Christian man or woman? It is a personal challenge to all of us. The parable is put an unusual way round. A lot of the parables start with ruin and they end with redemption, and mostly the message of the gospel is unfolded in that order in the Bible: how bad we are, how needy we are, how helpless we are, how cut off from God, and then the gospel is described in all its wonderful terms. But this time we start the other way round. We start with a picture of the person who is blessed, the person who will go to heaven, and we find certain words used to describe that person. Then we deal with the person who is lost afterwards. ‘Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his Lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season?’ There is a terrific promotion going on here. Generally speaking, the parable speak of servants, or rather, slaves. The Bible does not endorse slavery; far from it, but this is the picture of the parable. It is about slaves. But something wonderful has happened. Although this person is described as one of the slaves, we find that he is a steward. Now a steward, in that culture was a slave who had been promoted to rather dizzy heights. He was a slave, but he had been promoted to look after the master's estate. He was more than the foreman; he was the manager of the whole estate, responsible for making sure everything went like clockwork. The produce came from the land, from the vineyards. He was the one who oversaw its sale, its distribution, the receipt of the revenues, and the portion to the owner. He made sure that all the employees were paid, either with money or given some share of the produce. He had to be extremely trustworthy. He had to be a man who was ever conscious of the fact that he did not own the estate. That is his first promotion: he is a steward. He has got extraordinary privileges, special access to the master. He has been given trust and honour. But then almost within a sentence, he has got another promotion. The Greek word translated ‘ruler’ is a much more elevated word than the word ‘steward’. He has had another promotion; he has become a person of unusual significance; he has left his slave status far behind now. And very soon there's going to be an even greater promotion, as we shall see. This parable begins with a series of promotions, and then it defines what is meant by the person who receives this promotion.

Application

This applies to all of us, because here and elsewhere by the Lord as stewards. What are we stewarding? To begin with we are stewards of our bodies. We have bodies quite different from the bodies of animals, very wonderful bodies. They are made by God, and they are given to us, leased to us or lent to us, if you like, and we are stewards of them. We have minds, and the power of reason, and we can think, and we can enjoy things at an intellectual level, and we are stewards of these things also. We have consciences because we are moral creatures made by God to conform to his law, made with the knowledge of right and wrong, which the animals do not have. This conscience is given to us not to ignore, not to suppress, not to reprogram or distort, but so that we shall live in conformity with God's will. We have gifts and powers. You have many gifts and powers which nobody else or few other people have. You are made in a distinctive way, and you are a steward of these blessings. You probably have good health; you are a steward of that too. You may enjoy family life. God gives you air to breathe and food to eat. You are a steward of your time on earth. How much time has gone by already in your life? Fifteen, twenty, thirty years? Is it yours to do as I like with? No, God gave you a portion of time, and you are a steward of your life. You have spiritual potential. You have a soul. You are made in order to pray and be in relation with God. What are you doing with these things? They are not yours to do as you like with, or to throw away, or to ignore. We are going to be held to account for how we steward these things. Have you thought about that? These are tremendous privileges.

How do we define a Christian? Here, it is somebody who is faithful. Faithful means loyal to the master, believing in him and obedient to him. Nobody starts in this position when it comes to God. Nobody starts life loving God, obeying him, loyal to him, and yet we are made by him. We are as it were his slaves. We belong to him and yet we do not appreciate him; we do not love him; we are in no way faithful to him. A Christian person is somebody in whose life there has been a dramatic change. Of course it is the Lord who brings about this change. We don't think about these things by ourselves, but the Lord by his Spirit causes us to remember that we are created beings. ‘There is a Creator out there; there is a God who made me. I belong by rights to him; I am not my own.’ A Christian person is a person who has been troubled by his detachment from God. On hearing the wonderful gospel of grace – that there is a way of forgiveness, that there is a way of finding the Lord and knowing him, that Jesus Christ died on Calvary to take away sins – this person goes to the Lord and says, ‘Lord I am a sinner. Forgive me. Save me. I trust only in Jesus Christ, who is God equal with the Father, who came to earth to take the punishment of sins for people like me.’

We read all this into the parable, because it starts with this simple definition: ‘Who then is that faithful and wise steward?’ That is the picture of a Christian, a slave. Yes, but a slave who by the mercy of God has entered into a special relationship with the Master of the estate, the Lord himself. That slave is now a steward with liberties and responsibilities. At conversion God gave you freely a new life and a new nature and a close relationship with himself. He has not only been made a steward; he has been made a ruler. Once you become a Christian, you have begun a process of elevation, not by your deserving but because God leads you on. He sanctifies you; he makes you more holy as the months and the years go by. He makes you wiser, extends your understanding, makes you a deeper person and a greater character. ‘To give them their portion of meat in due season.’ The Christian, from the time of his conversion, becomes a blessing to others, and he is indeed a steward for God of all the things that he possesses.

Questions

Outline

Purpose

Introduction

Luke 12:41 Commentary and Bible Study