I love reading this verse.  It is challenging to our culture in 2024 in so many ways:

Luke 16 1 Jesus told his disciples: “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 2 So he called him in and asked him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.’

3 “The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg— 4 I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’

5 “So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’

6 ” ‘Eight hundred gallons of olive oil,’ he replied.
“The manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred.’

7 “Then he asked the second, ‘And how much do you owe?’
” ‘A thousand bushels of wheat,’ he replied.
“He told him, ‘Take your bill and make it eight hundred.’

8 “The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. 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. 11 So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? 12 And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?

13 “No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”

14 The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. 15 He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of men, but God knows your hearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable in God’s sight.

Many people view heaven and wonder:  “What is the cost of admission?”

What is the cost of admission?

We are short on our accounts and when the payment is due we will not have enough to pay it.

And then there is Jesus.  He shows up and cancels the debt for us and our entrance goes from impossible to certain.

This is a message to the believer and the unbeliever.

It is easy for a follower to say that “I have been doing this for years and because of that, I am going to the front of the line.”

It is easy for a newcomer to say, “I am not worthy.”  Or “I will go to the back of the line because I am not good enough.”

But this is not what Jesus says:

He says:  Welcome.  Enjoy your promotion.  Welcome to the family.

When we are in we are in.  And we are in because Jesus decided to pay the price of admission.

This message is not a good one to the individual who can buy everything or influence everything or overpower everything.  There will be no money great enough, no influence great enough, and certainly nothing powerful enough to push our God around.

I mean:  He owns the cattle on a thousand hills.

He equips shepherd boys with rocks to take down giants.

He shuts the mouths of lions.

And He will certainly stand in front of an army and be undaunted.

The concept of the Lion of the Tribe of Judah ruling over us excites me as much as it humbles me.

And He did, unequivocally, pay the price for our admission … and yours.

So when you sit in worship today … THANK HIM for that.

In The Name of the Father and the 

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

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Coach J