Friends Are Friends Forever

Luke 16: 9 I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings. 10"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. 11So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? 12And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else's property, who will give you property of your own?

Jesus had just told a story about a manager getting canned Donald Trump style for mismanaging the owners cash. The manager, like many desk job people(i.e. ME) realized he was entirely too old, too fat, and too out of shape to work a real job so he had to skate to the puck. Figure out what he would do. His solution was to call all of the folks who owed his boss money, and cut their bills in half as his last act of "management". His plan, a very shrewd one, was to make friends so that his future would be secured.

Here's what sort of surprises me, Jesus commended him. And then Jesus goes on to say that the "children of light" should take some cues from this guy and plan for our future as well. He says that we should use money to make friends.

Now I think I can speak for all of us when I say.. "what?" At first glance that doesn't seem to make any sense. But notice what Jesus says in totality.. "so that when it's gone, you'll be welcomed into eternal dwellings. "

Jesus is talking about making friends with your money, but not friends for the here and now. He's not saying to use your money to buy influence, or to get people to like you because you're the person who buys lunch. He is saying that we should plan for our future. OUR REAL FUTURE... Heaven. Friends for eternity. When you or I take the money that we've been entrusted with, and give it to serve the poor and the vulnerable. Those with great debts to the Lord so to speak, we are making friends. How so?

Imagine your first day in heaven. Imagine meeting folks whose lives were saved, whose suffering was alleviated, whose hearts were changed by the power of God as a result of money that you gave to a person, a church or an organization to fund them in their mission. Or money that you gave directly to someone in need. These folks, many of whom you may never meet this side of eternity, they are your friends.

And what Jesus is saying is that these friends, will be there to welcome you and I to our eternal dwellings. I personally can't wait to meet them. What a great day that will be.

So instead of my energies being focused on planning on my retirement, my bigger house, my shopping sprees, I can actually planning for the real future. Retirement is just a stopping off point on the way to eternity. Me spending money that I don't have to buy things I don't need to impress people I don't really like is ridiculous.

I can't take my money with me, but I sure can take other people. And those people, well they're my real friends. Friends that will be there to welcome me, and welcome you into our eternal dwelling.

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