THE STORY OF A DISHONEST MAN (2 OF 4)
by Scott Maze
Scripture: Luke 16:1-13
This content is part of a series.
The Story of a Dishonest Man (2 of 4)
Series: The Parables of Jesus
Scott Maze
Luke 16:1-13
Jesus tells a most peculiar parable in His day, the Story of a Dishonest Man. It's is widely considered one of the most difficult parables - if not the most difficult - to understand. And it's not hard to see why. Jesus' story got me thinking about a pastor I read about who misled a church out in California. Joshua Sims was the pastor of Double Rock Baptist Church in Compton, California. Joshua was California born and raised and at the time of our story was 47 to 48 years old. He actually grew up in the very church he pastored for ten years. Yet, this pastor was arrested after an investigation into the church's finances. News articles reported that he owned hundreds of tailored, Italian suits in addition to 60 pair of alligator skin and sports shoes. All the while he drove a $100,000 plus Mercedes-Benz to his home that had an indoor, cedar-paneled pool. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to see where this is going. At the time of his arraignment, the former pastor pleaded no-contest to the charges of embezzling $800,000.
Or take Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff... who's sitting in jail serving a 150-year prison term at the age of 76. The disgraced finance expert's two sons are now dead. The oldest son, Mark, hanged himself on the second anniversary (2010) of his father's arrest. While the younger son, Andrew, died because of a cancer relapse (September 3, 2014) that he stated was due to the stress and shame of the scandal. Madoff first confessed to his two sons that everything was ''one big lie'' and lost $65 billion dollars of other people's money.
Terrible tragedies... both of these stories - one inside a church and the other just within feet of Wall Street.
Yet, when I read you today's biblical story, you're going to think Jesus pulled this story off the newswire and promptly told His followers, ''I want you to act like this guy.'' Jesus is ...
Series: The Parables of Jesus
Scott Maze
Luke 16:1-13
Jesus tells a most peculiar parable in His day, the Story of a Dishonest Man. It's is widely considered one of the most difficult parables - if not the most difficult - to understand. And it's not hard to see why. Jesus' story got me thinking about a pastor I read about who misled a church out in California. Joshua Sims was the pastor of Double Rock Baptist Church in Compton, California. Joshua was California born and raised and at the time of our story was 47 to 48 years old. He actually grew up in the very church he pastored for ten years. Yet, this pastor was arrested after an investigation into the church's finances. News articles reported that he owned hundreds of tailored, Italian suits in addition to 60 pair of alligator skin and sports shoes. All the while he drove a $100,000 plus Mercedes-Benz to his home that had an indoor, cedar-paneled pool. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to see where this is going. At the time of his arraignment, the former pastor pleaded no-contest to the charges of embezzling $800,000.
Or take Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff... who's sitting in jail serving a 150-year prison term at the age of 76. The disgraced finance expert's two sons are now dead. The oldest son, Mark, hanged himself on the second anniversary (2010) of his father's arrest. While the younger son, Andrew, died because of a cancer relapse (September 3, 2014) that he stated was due to the stress and shame of the scandal. Madoff first confessed to his two sons that everything was ''one big lie'' and lost $65 billion dollars of other people's money.
Terrible tragedies... both of these stories - one inside a church and the other just within feet of Wall Street.
Yet, when I read you today's biblical story, you're going to think Jesus pulled this story off the newswire and promptly told His followers, ''I want you to act like this guy.'' Jesus is ...
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