A Dishonest Manager Luke 16 Jesus said to his disciples:
 A rich man once had a manager to take care of his business. But he was told that his manager was wasting money. 2So the rich man called him in and said, "What is this I hear about you? Tell me what you have done! You are no longer going to work for me."
3The manager said to himself, "What shall I do now that my master is going to fire me? I can't dig ditches, and I'm ashamed to beg. 4I know what I'll do, so that people will welcome me into their homes after I've lost my job."
5Then one by one he called in the people who were in debt to his master. He asked the first one, "How much do you owe my master?"
6"A hundred barrels of olive oil," the man answered.
So the manager said, "Take your bill and sit down and quickly write 'fifty'."
7The manager asked someone else who was in debt to his master, "How much do you owe?"
"A thousand bushels of wheat," the man replied.
The manager said, "Take your bill and write 'eight hundred'."
8The master praised his dishonest manager for looking out for himself so well. That's how it is! The people of this world look out for themselves better than the people who belong to the light.
9My disciples, I tell you to use wicked wealth to make friends for yourselves. Then when it is gone, you will be welcomed into an eternal home. 10Anyone who can be trusted in little matters can also be trusted in important matters. But anyone who is dishonest in little matters will be dishonest in important matters. 11If you cannot be trusted with this wicked wealth, who will trust you with true wealth? 12And if you cannot be trusted with what belongs to someone else, who will give you something that will be your own? 13You cannot be the slave of two masters. You will like one more than the other or be more loyal to one than to the other. You cannot serve God and money.
Some Sayings of Jesus
(Matthew 11.12, 13; 5.31, 32; Mark 10.11, 12)!br 14The Pharisees really loved money. So when they heard what Jesus said, they made fun of him. 15But Jesus told them:
You are always making yourselves look good, but God sees what is in your heart. The things that most people think are important are worthless as far as God is concerned.
16Until the time of John the Baptist, people had to obey the Law of Moses and the Books of the Prophets. But since God's kingdom has been preached, everyone is trying hard to get in. 17Heaven and earth will disappear before the smallest letter of the Law does.
18It is a terrible sin for a man to divorce his wife and marry another woman. It is also a terrible sin for a man to marry a divorced woman.
Lazarus and the Rich Man
19There was once a rich man who wore expensive clothes and every day ate the best food. 20But a poor beggar named Lazarus was brought to the gate of the rich man's house. 21He was happy just to eat the scraps that fell from the rich man's table. His body was covered with sores, and dogs kept coming up to lick them. 22The poor man died, and angels took him to the place of honor next to Abraham.
The rich man also died and was buried. 23He went to hell and was suffering terribly. When he looked up and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side, 24he said to Abraham, "Have pity on me! Send Lazarus to dip his finger in water and touch my tongue. I'm suffering terribly in this fire."
25Abraham answered, "My friend, remember that while you lived, you had everything good, and Lazarus had everything bad. Now he is happy, and you are in pain. 26And besides, there is a deep ditch between us, and no one from either side can cross over."
27But the rich man said, "Abraham, then please send Lazarus to my father's home. 28Let him warn my five brothers, so they won't come to this horrible place."
29Abraham answered, "Your brothers can read what Moses and the prophets wrote. They should pay attention to that."
30Then the rich man said, "No, that's not enough! If only someone from the dead would go to them, they would listen and turn to God."
31So Abraham said, "If they won't pay attention to Moses and the prophets, they won't listen even to someone who comes back from the dead."
Genesis 27 46Rebekah later told Isaac, "Those Hittite wives of Esau are making my life miserable! If Jacob marries a Hittite woman, I'd be better off dead."
Isaac's Instructions to Jacob Genesis 28 Isaac called in Jacob, then gave him a blessing, and said:
Don't marry any of those Canaanite women. 2Go at once to your mother's father Bethuel in northern Syria and choose a wife from one of the daughters of Laban, your mother's brother. 3I pray that God All-Powerful will bless you with many descendants and let you become a great nation. 4May he bless you with the land he gave Abraham, so that you will take over this land where we now live as foreigners.
5Isaac then sent Jacob to stay with Rebekah's brother Laban, the son of Bethuel the Aramean.
Esau Marries the Daughter of Ishmael 6Esau found out that his father Isaac had blessed Jacob and had warned him not to marry any of the Canaanite women. He also learned that Jacob had been sent to find a wife in northern Syria 7and that he had obeyed his father and mother. 8Esau already had several wives, but he realized at last how much his father hated the Canaanite women. 9So he married Ishmael's daughter Mahalath, who was the sister of Nebaioth and the granddaughter of Abraham.
Jacob's Dream at Bethel 10Jacob left the town of Beersheba and started out for Haran. 11At sunset he stopped for the night and went to sleep, resting his head on a large rock. 12In a dream he saw a ladder that reached from earth to heaven, and God's angels were going up and down on it.
13The LORD was standing beside the ladder and said:
I am the LORD God who was worshiped by Abraham and Isaac. I will give to you and your family the land on which you are now sleeping. 14Your descendants will spread over the earth in all directions and will become as numerous as the specks of dust. Your family will be a blessing to all people. 15Wherever you go, I will watch over you, then later I will bring you back to this land. I won't leave you--I will do all I have promised.
16Jacob woke up suddenly and thought, "The LORD is in this place, and I didn't even know it." 17Then Jacob became frightened and said, "This is a fearsome place! It must be the house of God and the ladder to heaven."
18When Jacob got up early the next morning, he took the rock that he had used for a pillow and stood it up for a place of worship. Then he poured olive oil on the rock to dedicate it to God, 19and he named the place Bethel. Before that it had been named Luz.
20Jacob solemnly promised God, "If you go with me and watch over me as I travel, and if you give me food and clothes 21and bring me safely home again, you will be my God. 22This rock will be your house, and I will give back to you a tenth of everything you give me."
Psalm 21
[A psalm by David for the music leader.]
Thanking the LORD for Victory
 1Our LORD, your mighty power
makes the king glad,
 and he celebrates victories
that you have given him.
2You did what he wanted most
and never told him "No."
3You truly blessed the king,
and you placed on him
a crown of finest gold.
4He asked to live a long time,
and you promised him life
that never ends.
5The king is highly honored.
 You have let him win victories
that have made him famous.
6You have given him blessings
that will last forever,
and you have made him glad
by being so near to him.
7LORD Most High,
the king trusts you,
and your kindness
keeps him from defeat.
8With your mighty arm, LORD,
you will strike down
all
of your hateful enemies.
9They will be destroyed by fire
once you are here,
and because of your anger,
flames will swallow them.
10You will wipe their families
from the earth,
and they will disappear.
11All their plans to harm you
will come to nothing.
12You will make them run away
by shooting your arrows
at their faces.
13Show your strength, LORD,
so that we may sing
and praise your power.
|
