Text: “And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.” – Luke 16:8.
Comment: The steward in the Parable of the Unjust Steward had charge of the rich man’s goods, but instead of being faithful (see 1 Corinthians 4:2), he was corrupt and wasted the goods of his master. Knowing the fate that awaited him, on the day of reckoning when his master would call on him to give account, he decided to meet his master’s debtors to doctor the accounts, obviously, so that they would help him by the time he loses his position. His “foresight” then informed the praise of his master as stated in the passage.
It needs be emphasized that the passage does not commend the dishonest or fraudulent acts of the servant. Rather, the Scriptures severally charges servants not to steal but to be faithful to their masters. (Titus 2:9,10; Ephesians 4:28) Our Lord Jesus Christ in the parable states that while those who do not believe in God work hard to prepare for their well being in future, a number of those who have received the grace to be called to serve Him acceptably waste the short time they have on earth to plan for their future in God’s Kingdom. They sow to the flesh than to the spirit. We should, as St. Paul says, make “good use of the time, because the days are evil”. – Ephesians 5:16 Bible in Basic English.