Speaker 1: In the 1740s, a British slave trader by the name of John Newton left the coast of Africa.
Speaker 1: He left the coast of Africa with his ship packed full of men, women and children, human beings that were chained in darkness, treated as cargo, their lives bought and sold.
Speaker 1: Newton was on his way to the Americas to sell them into slavery.
Speaker 1: We have all heard the stories of the terrible slave trade, the cruelty, the inhumanity of it all, and we rightly oppose it wherever it exists still today.
Speaker 1: But something happened to Newton on that voyage.
Speaker 1: A storm came, but not just in the sea, but in his soul.
Speaker 1: But not just in the sea, but in his soul.
Speaker 1: Somewhere in the midst of all of it, he was touched by God's grace Pure, unearned, unmerited, undeserved grace.
Speaker 1: He did not seek it out, he did not even ask for it, but the living God broke through his blindness and showed him the horrors of what he was doing.
Speaker 1: He suddenly saw the path his life was on.
Speaker 1: He knew with piercing clarity that he was leading his soul into destruction, that he was leading his soul into destruction.
Speaker 1: Perdition was not an abstract idea, it was a trajectory.
Speaker 1: He was on his way to losing his soul for all eternity.
Speaker 1: And in that very moment, in that very instant, something extraordinary shifted in him.
Speaker 1: He turned his life around.
Speaker 1: He even turned his ship around.
Speaker 1: He made his way back to Africa and released the prisoners.
Speaker 1: That was the beginning of his conversion and, as I'll share later, the rest of his story would end up giving the whole world one of the most powerful hymns we've ever known.
Speaker 1: Of all the parables of Jesus, today's might be one of the strangest.
Speaker 1: We just heard about a dishonest steward, a corrupt manager, who's about to be fired for wasting his master's goods.
Speaker 1: What does he do?
Speaker 1: He panics.
Speaker 1: He knows he's about to lose his job and with it his security, his reputation and his future.
Speaker 1: And in that very moment of desperation, what does he do?
Speaker 1: He acts Not in the most moral way.
Speaker 1: He cheats his master by slashing other people's debts, but he acts quickly and decisively.
Speaker 1: And the strange part of it all is that Jesus says that the master praised him for it.
Speaker 1: What are we supposed to make of this?
Speaker 1: Is Jesus condoning dishonesty?
Speaker 1: Of course not.
Speaker 1: The point is not that he was dishonest.
Speaker 1: The point of the parable is that he saw clearly where his life was heading and he acted immediately to change course.
Speaker 1: Jesus is telling his disciples and he's telling all of us that this is what conversion looks like To see where your life is heading.
Speaker 1: Not to wait, not to hesitate, not to delay, but to act right now.
Speaker 1: Let's be honest all of us here in church today could look around and say I'm doing pretty well.
Speaker 1: I showed up to mass today, I haven't killed anyone, I pay my taxes, I show up, I pray, I listen to the word of God.
Speaker 1: But if we listen to the saints, if we study the saints and holy men and women of God, those who lived before us, they never stopped searching and seeking for a deeper conversion.
Speaker 1: They never stopped looking for a way to have a deeper relationship with the Lord.
Speaker 1: What about us with the Lord?
Speaker 1: What about us?
Speaker 1: Are there corners of our lives not yet surrendered to Christ?
Speaker 1: Are there inconsistencies in the way we live?
Speaker 1: Parts of us that sing his praise on Sunday yes, jesus, I love you, I want you, I need you.
Speaker 1: But then on Monday we compromise all of that.
Speaker 1: By the way that we behave, the way that we act, the way we respond, do I see where the road could lead me?
Speaker 1: Am I in danger of losing my soul?
Speaker 1: Jesus said in today's gospel the children of the world are more prudent in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light.
Speaker 1: Think about that.
Speaker 1: Even unbelievers, people who care nothing for God, can sometimes be more diligent about their earthly future than we are about worrying about our eternal future.
Speaker 1: People in the world will plan and sacrifice for many years to be able to retire comfortably, but do we plan with urgency for eternity?
Speaker 1: Is that even in our mind, or do we assume that salvation just happens?
Speaker 1: Well, this parable today should be a wake-up call for all of us.
Speaker 1: Jesus is telling us act, be careful, be careful, turn around, change course while you can.
Speaker 1: The word conversion comes from the Latin convertere, which means to literally turn around, and that's exactly what John Newton did.
Speaker 1: He turned his ship around, yes, but more importantly, he turned his life around.
Speaker 1: He went back to England, became an Anglican priest and eventually one of the strongest voices against the slave trade, and along the way, he began to write hymns.
Speaker 1: He wrote hymns for people, hundreds of them.
Speaker 1: The most famous one is one we all know.
Speaker 1: The most famous one is one we all know Amazing grace.
Speaker 1: How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.
Speaker 1: I was once lost, but now I am found.
Speaker 1: I was blind and now I see.
Speaker 1: Do you see his life in those words?
Speaker 1: That was Newton's testimony.
Speaker 1: Grace had broken into his life, shown him his sin, shown him the way he was acting against God, and then gave him the strength to change course.
Speaker 1: That's what today's gospel is all about.
Speaker 1: The dishonest steward saw his life falling apart and acted with urgency.
Speaker 1: John Newton saw his life heading towards destruction and he acted with urgency.
Speaker 1: And Jesus is asking for you to do the same, to reflect on your own life, because here's the truth, own life, because here's the truth.
Speaker 1: We don't drift into heaven, we don't stumble into holiness by accident.
Speaker 1: Salvation requires conversion, and conversion means turning around again and again every day of our lives, having an intentional discipleship.
Speaker 1: Maybe for some of us that means finally letting go of sin we've excused for too long.
Speaker 1: Maybe it means reconciling with someone that we've written off.
Speaker 1: Or maybe it means going to confession after many, many years of not going.
Speaker 1: Maybe it means taking prayer seriously, committing to a relationship with the Lord.
Speaker 1: Whatever it is the Lord is saying to you why are you delaying?
Speaker 1: Why do you act as if you have all the time in the world?
Speaker 1: Act now.
Speaker 1: John Newton never forgot the horror of who he was, who he had been, and the wonder of who God made him to be.
Speaker 1: That's why, late in his life, when he was nearly blind, he said although my memory is fading, I remember two things very clearly I am a great sinner and Christ is my Savior.
Speaker 1: I am a great sinner and Christ is my savior.
Speaker 1: That's the heart of the gospel.
Speaker 1: That's the amazing grace that saves us.
Speaker 1: So, my brothers and sisters, as we gather on this Sunday, let us pray for that same grace that we may see clearly where our lives are headed, that we may turn around while there's still time, and that we may one day sing with Newton and with all the saints in heaven.
Speaker 1: I was once lost, but now I'm found.
Speaker 1: I was blind, but now I see.
Speaker 1: Amen.