Luke 12:32-48
God’s Kingdom isn’t what we’d expect. Jesus said that he “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45), and we’re to follow His example: “…in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped…” (Philippians 2:3-6). In this passage we’ll look at the temptation to grasp money, possessions, power, and praise we think we deserve, and what motivates someone to hold them loosely — or to even let go of them altogether.
Read Luke 12:32-40.
- In verse 32, Jesus says, “fear not.” What fear do you think He’s talking about here, and how is that fear alleviated by what He says next?
- How does the servant’s vigil through the night relate to what Jesus said about our hearts and what we treasure?
Read Luke 12:13-34.
- Why do you think Peter asked who the previous parable was intended for?
- How might the servant’s handling of his master’s resources in this parable relate back to Jesus’ instruction in verse 33?
- Based on how the unfaithful servant acts, what does he treasure most?
Taking it Home:
- Is there something God has entrusted to you to steward and serve others with, but that you’ve instead kept for yourself?
- What would it look like for you to treat everything you possess as something that you simply manage on behalf of God for the sake of His people?
Other Scriptures to Engage with this week:
Luke 16:1-14; Amos 8; Ezekiel 16:44-63; Ezekiel 22; Jeremiah 22:11-17; Psalm 72.