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Christ’s Object Lessons
how much owest thou? And he said, An hundred measures of wheat.
And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and write fourscore.”
This unfaithful servant made others sharers with him in his dishon-
esty. He defrauded his master to advantage them, and by accepting
this advantage they placed themselves under obligation to receive him
as a friend into their homes.
“And the Lord commended the unjust steward, because he had
done wisely.” The worldly man praised the sharpness of the man who
had defrauded him. But the rich man’s commendation was not the
commendation of God.
Christ did not commend the unjust steward, but He made use
of a well-known occurrence to illustrate the lesson He desired to
teach. “Make to yourselves friends by means of the mammon of
unrighteousness,” He said, “that when it shall fail, they may receive
you into the eternal tabernacles.” R.V.
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The Saviour had been censured by the Pharisees for mingling with
publicans and sinners. But His interest in them was not lessened, nor
did His efforts for them cease. He saw that their employment brought
them into temptation. They were surrounded by enticements to evil.
The first wrong step was easy, and the descent was rapid to greater
dishonesty and increased crimes. Christ was seeking by every means
to win them to higher aims and nobler principles. This purpose He
had in mind in the story of the unfaithful steward. There had been
among the publicans just such a case as that represented in the parable,
and in Christ’s description they recognized their own practices. Their
attention was arrested, and from the picture of their own dishonest
practices many of them learned a lesson of spiritual truth.
The parable was, however, spoken directly to the disciples. To
them first the leaven of truth was imparted, and through them it was to
reach others. Much of Christ’s teaching the disciples did not at first
understand, and often His lessons seemed to be almost forgotten. But
under the influence of the Holy Spirit these truths were afterward
“If riches increase, set not your heart upon them.”
Psalm 62:10
. “Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is
not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly
away as an eagle toward heaven.”
Proverbs 23:5
, “They
that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the