Stewardship
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Introduction:
God has given me that which I have not earned. I’m not talking about my salvation here, though I did not earn, nor do I deserve that, I’m talking about everything I have in my life. My house, my car, my wife, my children, my money,
my health, everything, even my witness. Let me tell you about one instance in my life, where God gave me far more than I have earned. You see, not long after my accident, I was short of the money needed to pay the rent due and out of nowhere that money just appeared in my bank account. No deposit, no trace of where it came from, it was just there. After conversing with the bank about the error I found in my account they assured me that my account was correct. The money that appeared in my account was the exact amount I needed to pay rent and get groceries to make it through to the next paycheck. It was a humbling experience and a stark reminder that everything belongs to God, He just appointed me as the steward of His possessions.
Why must they listen to this sermon?
What is so important?
Opening Question:
Opening Question:
First movement: Stewardship of Money
First Movement:
A. Exposition
9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.
The New King James Version says “unrighteous mammon”. Mammon is an Aramaic word meaning “what one trusts” as in wealth. “unrighteous mammon” would then mean worldly or material wealth. Jesus is telling his disciples that they are to use their worldly wealth to bring others into a relationship with Christ. We as believers are not supposed to use our worldly wealth for our own desires or hoard it to sit and collect dust, we are supposed to use it for the work God has planned for us.
Robert LeTourneau the famous Christian businessman that gave 90% of his income to God frequently said: “It’s not how much money I give to God, but how much of God’s money I keep for myself.”
Please understand that this doesn’t mean we can’t be believers and no have worldly wealth. In verses 10-13 we see how Jesus defines that to His disciples.
10 “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. 11 If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own? 13 No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.
10 “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. 11 If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own? 13 No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
10 “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. 11 If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own? 13 No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.
10 “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. 11 If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own? 13 No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
Jesus says we can have very little or we can have much, but it is whether we are faithful with the very little or the much that makes the difference. Unfaithfulness here is a demonstration of unrighteousness. If we are unfaithful, unrighteous, with what God has entrusted to us as stewards in our worldly manners how can he give us our own things to manage in heaven? The obvious answer is that God will not.
What does that faithfulness look like? It doesn’t mean we spend all of our money on God’s work and leave nothing to live on. It means we live our lives for the Kingdom of God and the money He has entrusted to us is a tool to be used in our furthering of the kingdom.
B. Illustration:
Illustrations for Biblical Preaching Giving, Proportional
A well-known philanthropist was asked, “How is it that you give away so much, and yet have so much left.”
“I suppose it’s like this,” he replied. “I shovel out, and God shovels in, and he has a bigger shovel than I do!”
C. Application:
When we talk about using our money for God’s work it doesn’t mean we give everything we have right here and right now, it means we take advantage of the opportunities God provides for us to use His money He entrusted to us. I recall a time when I was next in line at the grocery store several years ago. The man checking out in front of me was digging deep into his pockets in total dismay that he couldn’t afford all the items he was trying to purchase. The items weren’t things like chips, candy, or junk food. They were necessity items like bread, milk, eggs, and meat. He agonizingly decided which items to remove from the bill so he could afford the remaining items. The cashier set the removed items behind her at the register to be restocked later. It was now my turn to check out and I only had a couple items so I told her to add the items the man left behind and bag them separately. When I walked out of the store I caught up with the man and gave him the items he so agonizingly left behind. As I gave them to him and started to walk away I simply said God bless and my prayers are with you. Did this bring him to Christ? I don’t know, but it sure did make his face brighten with a big grin and let him see the light of Christ.
We tend to think of stewardship as being stewards of money, but money isn’t the only thing we are told God gives us to steward over.
Second Movement: Stewardship of Time
A. Exposition:
Everyday we wake up God has given us that much more time we are to be stewards of. How can we possibly think that God would be concerned about how we spend our money and not concerned with how we spend our time? Time is far more valuable than money. We can trade our time for more money, but we can’t use money to buy more time.
In his book the Time Trap Alec MacKenzie wrote “Most of us sense something else about time: it is a resource. Moreover, it is a unique resource. It cannot be accumulated like money or stockpiled like raw materials. We are forced to spend it, whether we choose to or not, and at a fixed rate of 60 seconds every minute. It cannot be turned on and off like a machine or replaced like a man. It is irretrievable.”
tells us about being stewards of time.
15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.
In other words make sure that you live carefully. Careful living is the foundation of being wise because a wise person is a person that understands how God is guiding them and how God views things. We live wisely (carefully) when we use every opportunity God provides for us to show His glory. Every day, hour, and minute provide opportunities that we should take hold of and use for God’s kingdom and glory.
gives us an example of what we can do with those opportunities.
10 So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.
Christians have a responsibility to use their time to do good for everyone, that includes people we don’t agree with, but there is a special responsibility we have to take the time to do good for fellow believers.
12 So teach us to number our days
that we may get a heart of wisdom.
Ps90:12
Since we only live a short time we are supposed to know how precious each day is to us and with that knowledge use every passing moment wisely for God’s kingdom. To be good stewards of God’s time we should put His work above our own. We tend to get busy and say I don’t have time for this or that, because my job keeps me too busy, I need to get everything ready for our camping trip this weekend, we need to make sure everything is in order for our vacation next week, my kids are going crazy and I have to go take care of them, you name it the list is endless. Where do we stop and say OK God I have time to talk to this person, or I have time to stop by that place for those people?
You see God’s tasks are the things that should come first. If God wants me to go talk to someone or stop by some place for any reason, that is what I should use my time for first. I have found, over the last several years especially, that if I am dedicating my time to what God wants from me first the time for my worldly needs is always there, but if I dedicate my time to my worldly things first the time for God’s will is never there.
B. Illustration:
Charles Francis Adams, son of President John Quincy Adams and grandson of President John Adams, kept a diary. One day he entered: “Went fishing with my son today—a day wasted.”
1000 Illustrations for Preaching & Teaching The Precious Moment
Charles Mercer said his father used to be a collector of sundial inscriptions, and for many years my favorite was: “It is later than you think.” But more recently I’ve changed my mind. Today I prefer one that goes: “It’s a long time till sundown.”
His son, Brook Adams, also kept a diary, which is still in existence. On that same day, Brook Adams made this entry: “Went fishing with my father—the most wonderful day of my life!” The father thought he was wasting time while fishing with his son, but his son saw it as an investment of time.
1000 Illustrations for Preaching & Teaching The Precious Moment
Charles Mercer said his father used to be a collector of sundial inscriptions, and for many years my favorite was: “It is later than you think.” But more recently I’ve changed my mind. Today I prefer one that goes: “It’s a long time till sundown.”
The only way to tell the difference between wasting and investing is to know one’s ultimate purpose in life and to judge accordingly.
C. Application:
A couple weeks ago right after my mom’s open heart surgery I was in a rush to get back home because my dad was in need of some help and it was already early evening. I saw a vehicle that looked to be broken down just before getting to Lolo and just up the road a man walking with a gas can toward Lolo. My thoughts immediately went to all the things I needed to get done that evening from helping dad with his needs to the things I needed to do around the house. Somewhat begrudgingly and anxious about my time I stopped to help the man out. I gave him a ride to the gas station then back to his pickup. The man looked to be in his late 60’s, but through conversation he volunteered that he was 84 years old. I helped him put the gas in his pickup and stayed to make sure he got it started. After he started the pickup I said “There you go my friend God bless.” I was going to follow him into Lolo, but he insisted I go on ahead. I stopped at the gas station to fill up my pickup and waited for a while to make sure he made it. After fueling up I went to the bathroom and returned to my vehicle. There was still no sign of him and I thought I don’t have time for this, but I knew I needed to go back and make sure he was OK. As I was pulling out of the parking lot to go back and check on him he pulled into the gas station and with a giant smile and big wave he said thanks again. After the 45 minutes I spent helping this man I still found the time to get everything done I needed to do for dad and at home. God makes the time for us when we are good stewards of it and use it for His glory.
Third Movement: Stewardship of the Gospel
36 I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak,
10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: 11 whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
A. Exposition
So we’ve talked about the stewardship of the money and time that God gives us, but there is another stewardship that is just as important as those. It is the stewardship of the Gospel. We are commanded to spread the good news which is the Gospel.
In:
In Jesus says:
36 I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak,
1000 Illustrations for Preaching & Teaching The Precious Moment
Charles Mercer said his father used to be a collector of sundial inscriptions, and for many years my favorite was: “It is later than you think.” But more recently I’ve changed my mind. Today I prefer one that goes: “It’s a long time till sundown.”
The Greek word argos here is translated different ways the NIV says “empty”, the NKJV says “idle”, the NET says “worthless”, which all fit the context well. The Greek word Argos means unserviceable or Lazy, shunning the labor which one ought to perform. In verse 34 Jesus says “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” Whether you translate it careless, empty, worthless, unserviceable, or lazy it all comes down to one point, our character. If we are good stewards of the Gospel we are of impeccable character, above reproach, and always looking for the opportunity to share the good news.
When we use the gifts God gave us to be good stewards of the Gospel we should walk with humility.
10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: 11 whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
God has given everyone of us at least one gift that we should share with others and that gift is given to different people in different ways. These gifts are an aspect of God’s grace and remove the excuse that we have nothing to offer the church. We should not boast about our God given gifts, because if we do we become contrary to God’s grace and His character. We become presumptuous in thinking that we somehow deserve or merit God’s gracious gift.
Peter offers two ways of serving that represent a couple types of gifts, those whose gift is speaking and those who’s gift is serving in other ways. Those who speak and teach the word of God should present them as God’s solemn word and not their own opinion. What they say should reflect the significance of God’s word. Those who serve through help or assistance need to do so with the emphasis that it is God who made their service possible.
Serving in humility by giving all praise and glory to God is one of the strongest witnesses we have to spread the Gospel. If we are good stewards of the Gospel we will reflect the Gospel in all things we do.
B. Illustration:
Illustrations for Biblical Preaching Stewardship
First Corinthians 4:1 tells us to be “stewards of the mysteries of God” (RSV). If you have ever been on a ship, you know what a ship’s steward is. Or if you have ever been on an airplane, you know what a steward or a stewardess is. That person does not own the airplane or anything on the plane. The company owns everything, but he or she is entrusted with its care. That steward has been given the responsibility of taking the goods that belong to a higher authority and dispensing it to the people for their benefit. That is a steward—on an airplane or ship—and in the spiritual realm as well.
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