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True: Genuine; pure; real; not counterfeit, adulterated or false; conformable to fact.
Greek: alethinos [al-ay-thee-nos’]: true [27]. denotes "true" in the sense of "real, ideal, genuine;" it is used (a) of God, John 7:28 Vine's Expository Dictionary of Old Testament and New Testament Words.
In this discourse over the dishonest manager [vs. 8] we find an unusual comment by the owner of the property. He awarded the dishonest manager for giving away his wealth to win friends and influence people. I will never forget one of the first Republican debates when Donald Trump was attempting to get across to the audience how he has been shrewd in dealing with the politicians and how it has benefited the growing of his business. I was amazed how the moderators were put out with this idea and when Donald looked to the right and to the left and said, “I have given money to every politician on this stage”. The moderators wanted to know why and his quick answer was; I wanted to get something from them. In unison, all the other participants went silent and hung their heads. What a moving moment in the political process. So many were put out by that idea, yet I wonder if he was just portraying to the audience that there is a way of wisdom to get what you want. Isn’t this the idea in the dishonest manager who had acted shrewdly. Remember, he was commended for the idea by the man whose property the steward had given away. And God said, Luke 16:9 (NIV) 9 “I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.”
True riches have a bearing on the type of investment that you are making. Donald Trump’s true riches here, was what he was after and that was some financial gain. The same way the dishonest manager got what he was after and that was to be taken care of for the remainder of his life. I believe however, that the true riches here refer to the things that are not of this world [like worldly wealth] but are more eternal in nature.
Let me explain. If you had been faithful with the money matters of life, especially in your giving and sharing of your blessings, you will begin to learn and understanding the giving nature of God. Then and only then will you know what the Lord means when He says; Mark 16:18 (NKJV)18 “they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover." This is a way of believing God for amazing things. I am not saying you should play with snakes or drink poison, but if by accident, those things happen, they will not detour the course of your life. What God is saying is that you can walk in faith and there will no deadly thing happen to you and when you lay hands on the sick, they will recover. These are Kingdom matters or true riches and only those who have been good managers over the affairs of money can be trusted with the greater matters that concern all of us. Laying on of hands, speaking to a mountain, calling those things that be not as though they were, and other true riches are the things that bless our fellow man and God, and I know by my understanding of His faithfulness. He will bring to pass what he has instructed us to do.
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