Tuesday, July 25, 2006
1 Corinthians 4:2 Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful.
FAITHFUL STEWARDS
God owns all things, including you and "your" money. In the arena of personal finance, what does God require of you and your use of His money? This passage gives us some insight into what God requires of you as a steward of His money. (A steward is "one who manages another's property or possessions.") He requires you to be faithful.
It's hard to think of money as something that is not our own, since it has such an emotional impact on us. It's strange but true, that this created thing affects us so much. It's exciting to think that you could spin a big wheel, solve a word puzzle and get $10,000 for your efforts! You wouldn't feel the same if the prize were 10,000 blades of grass. Money affects you emotionally.
Money also affects you spiritually. God's Word tells us that "the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows" (1 Tim 6:10). Loving this created thing called money leads to all sorts of sadness, even to the point of losing faith in God who created it! How sad indeed!
A faithful manager of God's money gives back to Him. "So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver" (2 Cor 9:7). Is it hard to give your money back to God? It sure is if we love it, and consider it our own. It is easy for us to be emotionally attached to money. We must remember that it's not ours; it belongs to God who gave it to us to manage. A cheerful heart sees money as something which passes through his hands, having never owned it.
In Christ Jesus, we are cheerful givers back of what God has entrusted to us. May He keep us from loving this created thing, keeping our hearts focused on His great love for us!
