feature section | stewardship , generosity and joy
Eternity-Minded Stewardship and Giving by randy alcorn c h r i s t i a n u n i o n : : t h e m a g a z i n e
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Concerning money and possessions , the Bible is sometimes extreme , sometimes shocking . When we come to Scripture , it ’ s for comfort , not for assaults against our worldview , right ? Let God talk about love and grace , thank you . Let us talk about money and possessions — then do with them whatever we please .
Were we honest , that ’ s what many of us would say .
Some believers ask each other tough questions : “ Have you been spending time in the Word ? Sharing your faith ? Guarding your sexual purity ?” Yet how often do we ask , “ Are you winning the battle against materialism ?” Or , “ Have you been peeking at those tempting magazines and websites ? You know , the ones that entice you to greed ?”
People are more open even about their sexual struggles than about battling materialism , which may be the final frontier . Some churches do talk about getting out of debt . I applaud that . But you can be debt free and still be stingy and greedy . We don ’ t need to become smarter materialists ; we need to repent of materialism and become smart stewards .
Jesus sees our hearts and knows us well . He doesn ’ t call all disciples to give away everything . He does call us to take radical action that breaks our bondage to money and possessions , freeing us to live under His lordship . He calls all of us to dethrone all secondary treasures in order to elevate Him as our primary treasure . If we value anything or anyone more than we value Jesus , we are not His disciples .
What we do with our money doesn ’ t simply indicate where our heart is . According to Jesus , it determines where our heart goes . If our heart is where our treasure is ( Matthew 6:19-21 ), then when we move our treasure somewhere else , our heart follows . This is a remarkable truth . If I
want my heart somewhere , I need to put my money there .
When people asked John the Baptist what they should do to bear the fruit of repentance , he told them to share their clothes and food with the poor . Then he instructed tax collectors not to collect and pocket extra money .
Finally , he told soldiers not to extort money and accuse falsely , and to be content with their wages ( Luke 3:7-14 ).
No one had asked John about money and possessions . Yet his answers showed that John couldn ’ t talk about spiritual change without addressing how people handle material things .
If John the Baptist were to visit us today , what conclusions would he draw about our attitudes and actions toward money and possessions ? Would the evidence convince him we are true followers of Jesus ? Or would he see us as baptized versions of the world ’ s self-preoccupied materialists ?
Microsoft executive Tricia Mayer wrote to me , “ Stewardship is the Christian life . It is about what we do with every resource given to us , every day we walk the earth , and every relationship we have . The difficult task of stewardship is mustering the discipline and will to manage the problem child called money .”
A steward is entrusted with wealth or property that does not belong to him . It ’ s his responsibility to manage that wealth in the best interests of , and according to the stated wishes of , the owner . God has given us life , time , talents , money , possessions , family , and His grace . In each case , He evaluates what we do with what He ’ s entrusted to us .
The steward is granted by the owner sufficient resources and the authority to carry out his designated responsibilities . When it comes to financial stewardship ,
A responsible steward consults the Owner , seeking His direction . This requires insight and wisdom far beyond our own .
God hasn ’ t handed us a standardized checklist to mark off . Rather , He has provided us His Word with principles for effective financial stewardship — principles we have to wrestle with . A responsible steward consults the Owner , seeking His direction . This requires insight and wisdom far beyond our own . Scripture says , “ If any of you lacks wisdom , he should ask God , who gives generously to all without finding fault ” ( James 1:5 ).