Peter said, “Lord, are you telling this parable for us or for all?” And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom his master will set over his household, to give them their portion of food at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and get drunk, the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and put him with the unfaithful. And that servant who knew his master's will but did not get ready or act according to his will, will receive a severe beating. But the one who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, will receive a light beating. Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more. (Luke 12:41-48)
Jesus was a Master at asking and answering questions. And, if we want to be like him in this, we best be ready to get in as much trouble as he did!
Today, my attention was drawn to the parable Jesus told in response to Peter’s question about the previous parable. While it may look like Jesus wasn’t answering Peter, the fact was that he was giving an answer that would expose hearts (in a right brain way) instead of merely settle minds (in a left brain way).
One of the things involved in this is what Jesus already said about his parables. He explained to his disciples that he spoke in parables to differentiate between those who were in his kingdom and those who were not. To the disciples, “it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given” (Matthew 13:11).
What I realized not long ago was that Jesus would not give the secrets of his kingdom to those outside the kingdom because “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned” (I Corinthians 2:14).
However, Paul clarified about believers,
“Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual” (I Corinthians 2:12-13).
As we read the way Jesus asked questions, it was always to expose which hearts were hearing him and which were not. When he answered questions, it was always the right answer, even if it did not directly address the specifics of the questioner.
Today, this all became clear as I realized that by the time we finish meditating on Jesus’ answer to Peter, we will know if what he is teaching is for us or not. The way we will know is whether his words move us into the “obedience of faith” or leave us clueless and disinterested.
And one of the best encouragements when we feel like we aren’t sure we “get it” is that we find ourselves asking God more questions because we must know what Jesus means by the “secrets” of his kingdom. And as long as we keep asking, seeking, and knocking, we will keep receiving, finding, and opening doors.
© 2025 Monte Vigh ~ Box 517, Merritt, BC, V1K 1B8
Email: in2freedom@gmail.com
Unless otherwise noted, Scriptures are from the English Standard Version (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.)
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