Today’s Gospel includes a parable that is a real head scratcher. The manager or steward gets caught squandering his master’s property. He cheats his master and then gets praised for it.

In order to better understand it, we must remember its context. Jesus has been answering the Pharisees who criticized him for eating with sinners. He told the parable of the lost sheep and the lost coin, both of which were found with great rejoicing. Then he shared the parable of the Prodigal Son, who was also lost and found.

So that is one context. He’s still working on that same theme, turning now to his disciples, with this parable of the Dishonest Manager or Dishonest Steward.

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When the Pharisees grumble about Jesus eating with tax collectors and “sinners,” which implies people they regard as notorious, the gravity of the scene is a bit hard for us to grasp on both ends. The tax collectors were despised because they worked for the hated Romans and the extorted extra money from people who had no defense. The “sinners” were people shunned because of their living outside the Law of Moses.

That was a line “religious” people didn’t cross. But Jesus did. His explanation as to why bears some further discussion because the shepherd’s care for the lost sheep and the woman’s hunt for the lost coin may not hit home with us as it did to first century Palestinian Jews.

Friends of ours had a child suffering from Graves’ disease, a form of hyperthyroidism. His metabolism was too high. He couldn’t gain weight. He was fidgety and nervous much of the time. Everything is going too fast for him. Everything in his body was growing at an accelerated rate. His bones hurt with growing pains. Even his teeth were growing. His medication made him miserable.

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Jesus has a lot of people “traveling with” him. Why? We can only speculate, but our speculation is informed by so many descriptions of encounters Jesus had with people of all sorts that we have a good idea.

Many want to hear his preaching and teaching because he is opening up the Word of God to them in fresh ways that touch their hearts and bring them precious gifts like direction and hope. Those who toil in obscurity or live on the fringes of society who are used to being ignored, dismissed, or neglected. They are used to hearing and experiencing condemnation for their way of life or even their very existence. Jesus is explaining the scriptures such that they are hearing passages that speak directly to them of hope, of calling them back to God, of healing and forgiveness.

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