The Great Gospel of John
Volume 10
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
Der Herr in der Stadt am Nebo
- Chapter 216 -
The unfaithful steward.
Simon Judah said: "O Lord and Master, absolutely no more as far as this is concerned, but there are still two other things that are not completely clear to me, but I hope that by Your love and mercy, also these two little things will in a certain way be resolved by itself."
2
I said: "Name at least those two little things."
3
Simon Judah said: "O Lord and Master, this is actually not worthed, but since You want it. It is concerning Your praise about the unfaithful steward and the rejection of the guest at the dinner because he had no festive clothing. For in this, there are two things that cannot be understood. Firstly, how and where were the guests provided with the required festive clothing after they were picked up at the fences and alleys by the servants of the host and were pushed inside to partake of the guest meal? And secondly why that one poor devil, who was also urged to the guest meal by the servants of the host, had to be thrown out because he had no festive clothing? Look, o Lord and Master, that man who was thrown out and Your praise about the unfaithful steward are for me still two uneven lines which I was not yet able to put straight."
4
I said: "Did I not say to you at that time: 'Be like the unfaithful steward and gather friends by the unrighteous mammon. Then later, if you were still to be without home, they will accept you into their heavenly homes?'
5
But so that you, Simon Judah, would well understand this, you should listen to Me, but with your two ears at the same time, so that the one ear would not let out what the other ear has picked up and will then stay behind in your heart. Look, every earthly rich person who possesses much more goods and money than he needs for his earthly livelihood, is compared to Me more or less an unrighteous steward because I am the only true owner of the goods, and the goods that he calls his own are all together unrighteous mammon.
6
If he then will at least generously remember the poor when the nature of his sicknesses, which are My messengers, will very clearly say to him: 'The Lord of these goods has many things against you regarding your unrighteous way of doing, and from now on you will be no more steward', then he will make friends by giving generously to the many poor, and when he soon after that will leave, naked and deserted, and will go to them in My Kingdom, they will take care of him and generously reward him for his good work.
7
Look, when I created the Earth I did not put border stones, I did not measure the Earth with a rope and I thus did also not say: 'Look, this part belongs to him, the other to another', but I made the whole Earth as a common possession for all human beings. Only in the course of time the miserliness, greed and lust for power of men began to measure the Earth and with force they determined: 'This big piece of land belongs to me, and whoever wants to serve me and work for me, will in a certain way receive a little piece of land by renting it, but despite that, I remain lord over the whole big piece of land.'
8
And look, that was the first so-called patriarchic statute among the people, and no matter how unrighteous it was in itself, it was nevertheless the best and most righteous one, for when the patriarch was as usual a good and God-fearing man, then his citizens or small renters were also doing well at his side, for he took care of the general welfare of the big piece of land.
9
Although he possessed for himself and his house many thousands of times more than he needed, and he was thus also an unrighteous steward, but he used his unrighteous mammon for only good purposes that were pleasing to Me, and by that he made many big friends among his citizens according to My will and satisfaction, and I also had to show him My pleasure and praise.