Over the next 10 weeks during our Sunday morning gathering beginning April 22, we are going to begin a new series on "Stewardship". Most of the time, when people hear that work the only (or at least the first) thing they think about is money. Well, the concept of stewardship includes money, but it goes far beyond that.
In my estimation, all of life is a stewardship. There are two passages of scriptures that I believe bear out this truth in general.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 says, "You are not your own, for you were bought with a price." These two verses unequivocally declare that we do not belong to ourselves; we belong to someone else. That someone else is Jesus, even down to the very bodies that house our souls.
Romans 12:1-2 says, "I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your reasonable spiritual worship." The presentation of our "bodies" is a presentation of our whole selves.
Both of these texts can really be summarized in the brief statement, "Jesus is Lord." At the end of that statement, there are no commas, no exception clauses. Faithful stewardship is reflection of that truth having gripped our hearts, not in a guilt sort of way, but in a response of gratitude and worship way.
In this series on "Stewardship" we are going to explore the biblical prescription for faithful stewardship in answering this question: How can we live in such a way that bears out the reality that "Jesus is Lord" in our day to day lives?
The reality of God's grace in the gospel is absolutely essential to recognizing "life" as a stewardship opportunity to reflect the beauty of the gospel and the treasure of Christ.
Lord willing, we are going to explore the following areas of life: time, suffering, manhood, womanhood, money, possessions, emotions, the mind, and the body.
Let's pray together for each other as we examine the scriptures.
In the Grip of His Grace,
Michael Hall, pastor/teacher
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