In the Gospels the historical background at that time was that the Jewish people were under authority of the Roman empire and the religious authority during that time was the Sanhedrin. In the Gospels the main audience that the disciples and Jesus was speaking to were the Jews.
In Luke 4:18 Jesus is teaching the principal that the Gospel or good news is for everyone including the poor. In Matthew 5:47 I feel that Jesus is teaching his listeners that even though things don't happen as fast as we would like them to our job is to be patient and remain faithful. God will provide for his people.
Matthew 6:19-24 Jesus is teaching us to not store up treasures here on earth but instead our focus should be on storing up treasures in heaven and how it's impossible to serve two masters because we will be fully devoted to one and despise the other.
Matthew 6:25-34 Jesus does not say the word money but it does express the necessities we need in this life to survive like clothes, food, and drink as well as shelter. We all know in order to have any of these necessities we have to have money. But the principal here is to not worry ourselves with these matters because we serve a God who is going to meet all of our needs.
Matthew 10:33-37 in this teaching from Jesus he is first teaching us to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. If we see a neighbor hurt, hungry, or in need and we can provide it's our God giving duty to help.
Matthew 2:13-21 Jesus is teaching his disciples to not focus their lives on worldly possessions but instead with our worldly wealth. We ought to be rich toward God and be willing to help in anyway we can to build up his kingdom.
Matthew 27-34 Again Jesus is teaching us to number one to seek his kingdom if we do that everything else that is needed in this life will be given to us. Also he is teaching us that if we have been blessed with wealth we need to bless those who are in need.
Matthew 17:24-27 Jesus is teaching us that we should pay our taxes and if there is a temple tax we should pay it. He modeled this in front of us by paying taxes himself.
Matthew 20:1-6 this message that Jesus is conveying is somewhat unclear to me. I see that Jesus is telling the workers that he can do as he pleases with his money. To me Jesus treated all the workers fair because he paid them all the same. The principal I have observed is that we are to be generous in giving from what we have, and that in his eyes there is no difference from who is first or last.
Matthew 22:15-22 The principal here that Jesus is driving home to us is to pay our taxes in our case to Uncle Sam, the I.R.S. And to also give God what is his, which as we've been taught in the Old Testament is a tenth of everything that we make.
Matthew 26:14-16 Jesus is showing us how money can also be a root to something evil. We also see that money was what prompted Judas one of Jesus disciples to betray him and turn him over to the authorities. Judas turned Jesus in for thirty silver coins. I believe Jesus wanted us to see how the root of money impacted the whole course of Jesus arrest, crucifixion, and resurrection.
Now as I explore the book of Mark the first teaching from Jesus is in Mark 12:41-44 how you are to give genuinely from your heart and out of your love for the Lord, everything else in Marks gospel corresponds with Matthew.
Luke 5:28 I believe is a great example on doing what Jesus calls you to do. Jesus told Levi to follow him and Levi hearkened to the call of Jesus and left everything. In Luke 8:3 this principal is teaching that we should help those in need if we have the means to help others we should do just that.
Luke 9:13-17 this key principal here is saying to not look at what we do, we have just enough and to just trust that the Lord will provide.
Luke 14:25-27 Jesus is teaching his audience about the cast of being a disciple. He tells them plainly in order to follow him they must relinquish the possessions they have which he notes family and he also mentions they must deny themselves. If they can not do these things then they can not be his disciples.
Luke 16:8-11 and Luke 19:11-26 in these scriptures Jesus is teaching his audience to be trustworthy and obedient in doing what's right in what has been entrusted to them. I see this as a test if they are faithful with worldly wealth he will be able to trust them with spiritual wealth which he calls the true riches.
Now in Luke 18:18-25 Jesus shows us that some people who are wealthy have a hard time of letting go of their riches, even if it depends on their eternal future. What I learned from this is that I can't allow money to have dominion in my life, nothing should come before my relationship with God.
Luke 19:8 I feel in this particular teaching he is letting his audience know that even the wealthy can be saved. Zacchaeus knew he hadn't treated people fairly but he was willing to make things right when Jesus called him down from the tree, the first thing he wanted to do was to make things right with the people he had wronged.
Luke 19:45-46 In this teaching Jesus is driving home to his audience that his father's house will be used for the purpose it was put there for and that was to pray and to worship God. It was never intended to be a place that people would prosper and make money out of.
I feel that all of Christ teachings apply to me in this 21st century just as it was applicable over 2,000 years ago. Yes the times have changed but the principals in the Bible has not changed, it was intended to not only teach the people of that time but it was also intended for future generations. Every thing that Jesus taught concerning money, possessions, and stewardship applies to anyone of us who is a follower of Christ Jesus the one true God of Israel.