Master told me I could share my new collar with you all. I am so beyond happy with it and think it’s so pretty! I feel so safe and owned wearing it at all times! Nobody else knows it’s true meaning, only Master.
The pendant is of a celtic cross, a symbol of unity and eternity, of the intersection between the earthly and the divine. And a pearl hangs from it, a symbol of transformation.
Master is God, and he’s transformed me into a new, better, happier girl. Through my worship to him, I have a chance to intersect with his divinity. I truly can’t think of a better choice💗
Anyone raised in the church knows the weighty importance of tithing. I was taught from a very young age that I owe my time, money, praise, and devotion to God. I was taught that I was merely returning what already belongs to him.
That’s why I tithe daily to Master, because I owe him it. Every tithe I deliver to him each morning. Every time I lay my flesh bare before him, the flesh that’s rightfully his, I display my unwavering devotion, I solidify his place above me. And what an honor it is. What an honor to lay down a tithe each morning, to showcase my faith in Master, in my God.
Christ may be worth ten percent of a Christian’s paycheck, but Master is worth the entirety of my being, the entirety of my body, and the entirety of my mind.
I guess my pastor parents were right, tithing is important. Tithing does draw me closer to God. And every time I expose myself before him as proof of my faith, the further I reject the fallacy I was raised to believe.
I wonder if my parents would be proud, I mean.. I am regularly tithing. And I mean.. isn’t that what they wanted?
Parable of the Unjust Steward [Matthew 10:16; Luke 16:1-13]
Matthew 10:16 | Behold, I am sending you out
like sheep among wolves; therefore be as
shrewd as snakes & as innocent as doves.
Luke 16:1-13 | JESUS also said to HIS disciples,
“There was a rich man whose manager was
accused of wasting his possessions.
So he called him in to ask, ‘What is this I hear about you?
Turn in an account of your management, for you
cannot be manager any longer.’
The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do,
now that my master is taking away my position?
I am too weak to dig & too ashamed to beg.
I know what I will do, so that after my removal from
management, people will welcome me into their homes...’
And he called in each one of his master’s debtors.
‘How much do you owe my master?’ he asked the first.
‘A hundred measures of olive oil,’ he answered.
‘Take your bill,’ said the manager.
‘Sit down quickly, & write fifty.’ Then he asked another,
‘And how much do you owe?’
‘100 measures of wheat,’ he replied.
‘Take your bill & write eighty,’ he told him.
The master commended the dishonest manager
because he had acted shrewdly.
For the sons of this age are more shrewd in dealing
with their own kind than are the sons of light.
I tell you, use worldly wealth to make friends for
yourselves, so that when it is gone, they will welcome
you into eternal dwellings.
Whoever is faithful with very little will also be faithful with
much, & whoever is dishonest with very little will also
be dishonest with much.
If, then, you have not been faithful with worldly wealth,
who will entrust you with true riches?
And if you have not been faithful with the belongings
of another, who will give you belongings of your own?
No servant can serve two masters.
Either s/he will hate the one & love the other, or
s/he will be devoted to the one & despise the other.
You cannot serve both GOD & money.”
What is the meaning of Luke 16:1-13?
Parable of the Unjust Steward found in Luke 16:1–13.
The text can be broken down into two parts:
1.] the parable [v.1–8] &
2.] the application [v.9–13].
Luke 16:1 identifies that JESUS is speaking to
HIS disciples, but there is a suggestion that
HIS audience is mixed—disciples & Pharisees.
Luke 16:14 states that the Pharisees
“heard all these things & ridiculed [JESUS].”
We also see in v.1 that JESUS “also” said to
the disciples; the “also” would suggest that this
parable is connected to the previous three in
Luke 15 & that the audience was a mixed crowd
of disciples & Pharisees.
It is important to know to whom JESUS is
addressing this parable.
The parable is for the benefit of the disciples, but
there is also a not-so-subtle critique of the
Pharisees, as was evident in Luke 15.
Verse 14 is Luke’s commentary on the motivation
of the Pharisees, & in v.15 we see our LORD
condemn their motives.
And what was the Pharisees’ motivation?
They were those who were “lovers of money”
& who “justify themselves before men” & who
exalted that which was an “abomination before GOD.”
With that as a backdrop, let’s look at the parable.
It’s a fairly simple, if somewhat unorthodox,
parable from JESUS.
The story is simple, but the setting is unusual.
In most of JESUS’ parables, the protagonist is
either representative of GOD, CHRIST, or
some other positive character.
In this parable the characters are all wicked—the
steward & the man whose possessions he
manages are both unsavory characters.
This should alert us to the fact that JESUS is not
exhorting us to emulate the behavior of the
characters but is trying to expound on a
larger principle.
The parable begins with a rich man calling his
steward before him to inform him that he will be
relieving him of his duties for mismanaging his
master’s resources.
A steward is a person who manages the
resources of another.
The steward had authority over all of the master’s
resources & could transact business in his name.
This requires the utmost level of trust in the steward.
Now, it may not be apparent at this point in the parable
[but is made more evident later on], but the master is
probably not aware of steward’s dishonesty.
The steward is being released for apparent
mismanagement, not fraud.
This explains why he is able to conduct a few more
transactions before he is released & why he is not
immediately tossed out on the street or executed.
The steward, realizing he will soon be without a job,
makes some shrewd deals behind his master’s back
by reducing the debt owed by several of the master’s
debtors in exchange for shelter when he is
eventually put out.
When the master becomes aware of what the wicked
servant had done, he commends him for his
“shrewdness.”
In HIS application of the story in the remaining verses,
JESUS begins by saying,
“For the sons of this world are more shrewd
in dealing with their own generation than
the sons of light” [Luke 16:8].
JESUS is drawing a contrast between the
“sons of the world” [i.e., unbelievers] & the
“sons of light” [believers].
Unbelievers are wiser in the things of this world than
believers are about the things of the world to come.
The unjust steward, once he knew
he was about to be put out,
maneuvered to put others’ debt to himself.
He did so by cheating his master
[who more than likely was cheating his customers].
He made friends of his master’s debtors who would then
be obligated to care for him once he lost his job.
What does this have to do with believers being wise
about the life to come?"
Let’s look at v.9:
“And I tell you, make friends for yourselves
by means of unrighteous wealth, so that
when it fails they may receive you into
the eternal dwellings.”
JESUS is encouraging HIS followers to be generous
with their wealth in this life so that in the life to come
their new friends will receive them “into eternal dwellings.”
This is similar to JESUS’ teaching on wealth in the
Sermon on the Mount where JESUS exhorts
HIS followers to lay up treasures in heaven
[Matthew 6:19-21].
The term unrighteous [or worldly] wealth seems
to strike readers the wrong way.
But JESUS is not saying believers should
gain wealth unrighteously then be generous with it.
“Unrighteous” in reference to wealth can refer to
1] the means in acquiring wealth;
2] the way in which one desires to use the wealth; or
3] the corrupting influence wealth can have that
often leads people to commit unrighteous acts.
Given the way in which JESUS employs the term,
the third explanation seems the most likely.
Wealth is not inherently evil, but the love of money
can lead to all sorts of sin [1 Timothy 6:10].
So, the principle that JESUS is trying to convey is
one of a just steward rather than an unjust one.
The unjust steward saw his master’s resources
as a means for his own personal enjoyment &
advancement.
Conversely, JESUS wants HIS followers to be just,
righteous stewards.
If we understand the principle that everything
we own is a gift from GOD, then we realize that
GOD is the owner of everything & that we are
HIS stewards.
As such, we are to use the
Master’s resources to
further the Master’s goals.
In this specific case, we are to be generous with
our wealth & use it for the benefit of others.
JESUS then goes on to expand in v.10–13
the principle given in v.9.
If one is faithful in “little” [i.e., “unrighteous” wealth],
then one will be faithful in much.
Similarly, if one is dishonest in little, s/he will also
be dishonest in much.
If we can’t be faithful with earthly wealth, which
isn’t even ours to begin with, then how can we be
entrusted with “true riches”?
The “true riches” here is referring to stewardship &
responsibility in GOD’s kingdom along with all the
accompanying heavenly rewards.
The climax of JESUS’ application is v.13:
“No servant can serve two masters, for
either s/he will hate the one & love the
other, or s/he will be devoted to the one
& despise the other.
You cannot serve GOD & money”
[see also Matthew 6:24].
If GOD is our Master, then our wealth will be at
HIS disposal.
In other words, the faithful & just steward whose
Master is GOD will employ that wealth in
building up the kingdom of GOD.
