For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more

"Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell what you have and give alms; provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches nor moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

"Let your waist be girded and your lamps burning; and you yourselves will be like men who wait for their master, when he will return from the wedding, that when he comes and knocks they may open to him immediately. Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve them. And if he should come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.

"But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect."

Then Peter said to Him, "Lord, do You speak this parable only to us, or to all people?" And the Lord said, "Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his master will make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all that he has. But if that servant says in his heart, 'My master is delaying his coming,' and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and be drunk, the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. And that servant who knew his master's will, and did not prepare himself or do according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more."

- Luke 12:32-48

In yesterday's reading, Jesus warned against greed. When asked by someone to help make a brother divide an inheritance, Jesus refused to arbitrate in this way (as was a common practice for a rabbi). Instead, Jesus emphasized the spiritual values, internal wealth, that must come first - and warned against greed, or banking all of our hopes on material concerns alone. He also issued warnings for His followers against anxiety and unnecessary worry and focus in this respect as well. See But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you.

"Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." A note in my study bible reads, "Little flock: the band of disciples who have left everything behind in total commitment to Christ and the Kingdom." This is a reassurance, after Jesus has just told His followers that they must "seek first" this kingdom before all else - material things - we strive for in life, and then all else shall be added.

"Sell what you have and give alms; provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches nor moth destroys." A note says, "Material riches suffer corruption; spiritual riches abide eternally." Jesus is giving us a very clear picture of the power of this heavenly realm that is also within us. The things we do and choose give us values, internal worth - these are treasures that don't fail, that can't be stolen from us and do lot lose their beauty. "Giving alms" is the perfect antidote to the focus on greed and selfishness; it is a lesson not just about giving but about the falsehood of clinging to a worship of the material, a false notion that this is what gives us our true worth and where we find all security.

"For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." A note says, "This verse expresses a basic principle of human behavior: a strong warning to guard the heart, the door of inner spirituality." We are warned about what we love, what we value most. Again, elsewhere Jesus taught that we cannot serve God and mammon. We make choices about what we love the most, and what we put first. This makes all the difference in how we live our lives and what treasures we store up for ourselves. We must be aware of how we choose, what's first in our hearts.

"Let your waist be girded and your lamps burning; and you yourselves will be like men who wait for their master, when he will return from the wedding, that when he comes and knocks they may open to him immediately." A note reads, "A girded waist (as in a suit of military armor; see Eph. 6:14) renders one ready for action. Lamps burning suggests alertness in doing God's will." We are to be on alert about ourselves and our choices - to understand what life offers to us and how we choose and conduct ourselves, especially with regard to all the advice Jesus has just given about the love of greed and the service of selfishness. There is an echo here (in the talk of return from the wedding) of the parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins.

"Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching.Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve them. And if he should come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into." This is Luke's version of yet another parable from Matthew (see Heaven and earth will pass away). It's a parable that teaches us that we don't just choose once, or twice, in our lives - but all the time. We are to be prepared for a lifetime of vigilance, alertness, to ourselves and our positions and choices in life. It is a theme of all of the history of Christian spirituality that is reflected in the language of spiritual theology: we are to be "awake," "viligant," watchful" and on our "guard." In other words, we have a consciousness to develop and to maintain, which takes constant effort and awareness on our part. We are not to "sleep."

"Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect." My study bible notes, "The point of Christ's admonitions is that we should constantly be prepared for His Second Coming, the date being unannounced." This truly gives us a deeper incentive and understanding of the command to be alert always, to be watchful. Its significance cannot be underemphasized. Think about what actions we might take if we truly took to heart the full impact of these words.

Then Peter said to Him, "Lord, do You speak this parable only to us, or to all people?" I find it quite a beautiful thing that Luke gives us this important question. Is spiritual awareness, consciousness like this, really for everybody or just for those who would be the small, devoted circle of disciples or apostles? A note says, "The nature of these admonitions suggests Jesus is speaking about matters of concern to all people."

And the Lord said, "Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his master will make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all that he has. But if that servant says in his heart, 'My master is delaying his coming,' and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and be drunk, the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. And that servant who knew his master's will, and did not prepare himself or do according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more." Jesus responds to Peter's question in a wonderful way, that gives us a picture of how the spiritual reality of the kingdom works. It's a parable directed at those who would be disciples, the spiritual leaders of a flock (such as Peter, who asks the question). They, of course, are to remain vigilant as warned. But there is more to vigilance than the guard of the heart; those who would lead the flock must not be lackadaisical in how they treat that flock, how they keep it and guard it. Should they exploit the littler ones, the ones under their care and treat them badly, they stand to lose everything. But it's not just a warning to those who would be stewards, or leaders. It's also a warning to the followers: "But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few." Those who have been spiritually initiated into this truth bear a greater responsibility; nevertheless, those who would follow but are further behind on the ladder of spiritual understanding still face consequences of their choices to do what is harmful or malicious to others in terms of exploiting their power. The response is in proportion to "what they already have" -- the spiritual knowledge that is the true wealth He is speaking of in the first place. The message is for both the disciples, and all people.

Jesus says, "For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more." As we have, so much is required of us. Jesus is speaking about spiritual authority and understanding; those who go along this road of salvation that lasts a lifetime and in which we hopefully can grow. He begins this reading with the words, "Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." These great values of spiritual reality which are stored eternally for us and will not disappear, will remain with us. But they bear great responsibility. In fact, the more wealth of this kind that we have, the more the responsibility lies with us to conduct ourselves in certain ways, to guard against incentives of greed and selfishness, exploitation of others, and the greater the consequences will be should we fail to do so. Is this for all people? Indeed it is. But of those who have, much will be required. Ignorance is not an excuse for bad behavior, and so Jesus tells the story. But knowledge bears its own burden of power and meaning that we share in. Which will you choose? How do you choose to fall on any side of this question? It's all up to us, and what effort we make at life, at this spiritual understanding and discipline in which we grow and learn. There's no one exempt from the message or the struggle. It's our effort, in the end, that makes the difference.