Word for the day by Christian Education Forum
Stewardship - a Call to be Faithful.
Rev. Joji Mathew
Director, Asha Bhavan, Kollam
42
The Lord answered, who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master
puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper
time? 43 It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when
he returns.
Gospel
According to St. Luke is a treasure of Biblical literature. The placement
of every events connected with the life of Jesus elucidates this reality.
The above mentioned parable is placed as a combination of eschatological
lessons and a topic of watchfulness among stewards. We can connect it to the
parallel passage in Matthew 25.14-30 i.e., the parable of Talents. The
fundamental principle behind the Parables of talents is the assertion that
'everything belongs to the Master- The Almighty God -the Creator of all' and He
likes to share His resources through the elected people (stewards) for
fulfilling His purpose.
The
meaning of being good and faithful is not merely to be passive or strict
obedience to some rules and regulations but active responsibility that take
initiative and risk. It is interesting that, in this parable, the Master gives
no instruction to handle the resources. A steward must decide how to use his
time during the master's absence. The freedom of choice doesn't mean to forget
Master's mind behind the appointment -that is the actual purpose of each
person's life.
A
steward is presented as the mediator between the Master and rest of the labors.
Reception of talents and recourses by a steward doesn't mean he is
blessed. Blessing is measured as the result of its utilization. Here we should
ask the question "why are we blessed with wealth/talents/
resources?” It is not because of the partiality of the Master towards us. But,
because of the trust of the Master to our responsibility. According to
Gen. 12:3, Abraham-the most blessed man of the Old testament- was blessed to be
a blessing to all the families of earth. Israel was called to be a blessing to
all the nations. Jesus wants His disciples to be the same. That means Church is
called to fulfill its masters will, to bless the nations. Unfortunately many of
us assume that, we are blessed only for ourselves and failed to share the
resources to whom God expected us to allocate.
God will seek much
from those whom much has been given. Here we can see the principal of
proportional responsibility and it is a warning towards the seriousness of our
moral commitments. Even the self-made-man should be more responsible towards
the society because he got all the opportunities to make himself.
PRAYER
Oh God, help us to
be a blessing to the world around us. Strengthen us to use our talents and
possibilities, according to the purpose of our life given by You. In Jesus name
we pray. Amen.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
From everyone who has
been given much, much will be demanded, and from the one who has been entrusted
with much, much more will be asked.Luke 12: 48b.