1. Why did the rich master summon his manager and intend to fire him? How did the manager assess his situation?
2. What did he do to prepare himself for his possible future unemployment? (4-7) In what respect was he shrewd?
3. What commendable point did the master find in this manager? What spiritual lesson does Jesus teach us from this shrewd manager's worldly wisdom? How can we use our worldly wealth to prepare ourselves for eternity? How can we be trustworthy in handling worldly wealth so as to be entrusted with true riches?
5. Why can't we serve two masters at one time? Why did the Pharisees sneer at Jesus? How did they justify themselves, and how did God look at them? How is God's value system different from man's?
6. How did people force their way into the kingdom of God during the time of John the Baptist's ministry? Inspite of the rejection of the influential Pharisees, how was God working to proclaim his kingdom?
II. The Rich Man and Lazarus (19-31)
7. Compare the life of the rich man with that of Lazarus. Describe their respective situations after they died.
8. What did the rich man ask of Father Abraham? Why couldn't Abraham grant his request? How had the rich man failed to be a shrewd manager?
9. Why is listening to God's words and obeying them be so important? How can Bible study help us make preparations for eternity?
