This is part of the Stewardship Foundations Series.
Why would God make us stewards? Think about it.
God doesn’t need us to handle things in the world. He’s more than capable of doing that Himself. In fact, if all God cared about was taking care of business and getting things done, then He’d be better off doing it Himself instead of trusting sinful, fallen, foolish human beings.
Since God’s ultimate purpose is to reveal His glory, then His working through us must bring greater glory than if He just did everything without us. So how does stewardship bring Him glory?
Power and Grace
First, I believe that God’s mercy and power and grace are on display when He works through fallen humans.
As an act of grace, God worked through Moses the murderer, David the adulterer, Peter the denier of Christ, and Paul who once slaughtered Christians. Their lives are testaments to God’s sanctifying and enabling power.
But get this: not only did God work through these men – but He actually gave them responsibility. What radical grace.
Relationship and Privelege
Second, stewardship affects our relationship with God.
When tasked with things that matter, we realize our dependence on God. We grow more like Christ as we wrestle through issues of stewardship. God displays his present reality to us more and more.
Not only does God graciously entrust us with responsibility, and not only does God work through us in His mercy and power – but the entire process allows us an opportunity to see a glimpse of this glory on display.
To add even more to the grace God displays in stewardship, think about the cultural idea of being a steward.
The Bible refers to stewards as servants and, in some translations, slaves. But make no mistake – being a steward was a position of prestige. Stewards were respected and trusted by their masters. They were given great authority and power.
Think of the first stewards: Adam and Eve. In Genesis 1:28, God gives them dominion over the earth and everything on it. Talk about a position of influence.
And how does God accomplish the sacred mission of spreading the gospel around the world? By entrusting it to Christians. (Matthew 28:19-20, 1 Thessalonians 2:4)
Now this stewardship will at times be tough. Paul describes it as toil. Don’t be shocked when rough moments come your way.
But don’t forget what an honor it is to be entrusted to manage God’s property.
Check Your Foundations:
I don’t normally do this, but it seemed appropriate on this series of posts. Here are some questions for reflection:
– Do you think of stewardship as a gift or a burden?
– Do you live recognizing stewardship as a privilege?
– Do you live appreciating this aspect of your relationship with God?
– Does your responsibility as a steward make you more aware of God’s grace?
– What does stewardship say about God’s love for us?
– Does it inspire you that God gives us influence and responsibility?
– How does this perspective on stewardship affect your perceptions of time stewardship? Do planning, setting goals, and working efficiently become more important or less important?
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