Belief #21: Stewardship

July 28, 2022 | Silver Spring, Maryland, United States | Ted N.C. Wilson, President, General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists

Hello, friends! You have no doubt heard the saying, “It is more blessed to give than to receive,” said Jesus, as quoted in Acts 20:35. And yet, in today’s world, where so much is focused on what one can get, this inspired saying might seem rather trite to some. Nevertheless, the saying is true and calls our attention to something bigger than ourselves, encouraging us to look to God, who is the Giver of all good things.

Today we will be talking about stewardship.

What is stewardship? According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, it is: “the conducting, supervising, or managing of something, especially the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one’s care.”

And you know friends, when we think about it, we realize that all we have—our time, money, abilities, health, life itself—all come from God, and He asks us to be careful stewards of the many good gifts He has given to us.

This is how our Seventh-day Adventist Fundamental Belief #21 on Stewardship explains it:

“We are God’s stewards, entrusted by Him with time and opportunities, abilities and possessions, and the blessings of the earth and its resources. We are responsible to Him for their proper use. 

“We acknowledge God’s ownership by faithful service to Him and our fellow human beings, and by returning tithe and giving offerings for the proclamation of His gospel and the support and growth of His church. 

“Stewardship is a privilege given to us by God for nurture in love and the victory over selfishness and covetousness. Stewards rejoice in the blessings that come to others as a result of their faithfulness.”

You see, friends, when we give all that we are and have to God, to whom they all belong anyway, He accepts them, but then puts us back in charge of them, making us stewards, or caretakers, of everything He has given to us. Accepting our responsibility as God’s stewards breaks the tendency to live selfish lives and makes us aware of the enduring example in stewardship given to us by Jesus, who gave His all for us.  

Let’s now briefly look at four areas of life in which God has entrusted us to be good stewards for Him:

1. Ourselves. According to Luke 10:27, we are to love God “with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and ‘your neighbor as yourself.'” As Christians, we are privileged to develop our physical and mental powers to the best of our ability and opportunities, following the wonderful guidelines of health given to us in the Bible and in the Spirit of Prophecy. In so doing, we bring honor to God and can become a blessing to others.
2. Abilities. God has given each of us special abilities–some may be talented in music, others in speaking, writing, or teaching. Others are gifted in manual trades or in the sciences. Some may make friends easily and mingle well with others, while some are quieter, doing their work behind the scenes. In any case, every talent can be used to glorify either the one who possesses it or to the One who gave the gift. Good stewards use their gifts liberally in order to benefit others and bring glory to God.
3. Time. As faithful stewards, we glorify God by the wise use of time. In Colossians 3:23 we read, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord.” And in Ephesians 5:15, 16 we are admonished to not behave “as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.”

Because time is God’s gift, each moment is precious, and we are to use each of those moments wisely, bringing honor to God, helping others, and sharing the everlasting gospel with the world.

4. Material Possessions. It’s important to remember our material possessions and financial resources are gifts from God. To help us remember that He is the source of every blessing, God instituted a system of tithes and offerings. This system eventually provided the financial means for supporting the priesthood of the Israelite temple, and today it is a sound, biblical method for financing the worldwide outreach of the gospel. God has ordained that sharing the good news is to be dependent on the efforts and offerings of His people. He calls each of us to become unselfish co-laborers with Him by returning a faithful tithe–that is 10 percent of all our increase, and faithful offerings to Him.

         Friends, we can never outgive the Lord! And He has placed us in the role of stewards for our benefit. One reason God asks us to consecrate to Him our entire life—time, abilities, body, and material possessions—is to encourage our own spiritual growth and character development. As we are kept aware of God’s ownership of everything and the ceaseless love He bestows on us, our love and gratitude are nurtured. Faithful stewardship is a safeguard against covetousness and selfishness and leads to the development of economy and efficiency.

True stewards bless others, as they are involved in service to others and are willing to share what God has graciously given to them that might benefit someone else.

And it is through stewardship of our time, talent, and resources that we can also be a blessing to God’s Church. It results in a strong church body, involved in sharing the blessings Christ has bestowed, ready to respond to whatever needs there are in God’s cause. Through faithful stewardship the Church will have adequate funds to support the ministry, to expand God’s kingdom in its immediate vicinity, and to extend it to the remote places of the earth.

If you would like to learn more about Stewardship, I encourage you to visit the URL at the bottom of the screen [Insert: https://www.adventist.org/stewardship/]

Friends, Jesus gave us this wonderful promise in Luke 6:38: “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

Let’s follow Christ’s example in heavenly generosity today as we pray together just now. Father in Heaven thank you for the amazing gifts you have given to us. Our time, our abilities, our possessions, the opportunity of serving other people and caring for them. And what a privilege it is, Lord, to return to you 10% of our increase the tie which belongs to you and Lord, everything belongs to you, but you ask us to return this 10%. And then beyond that, the offerings, free will offerings as we communicate with you and you impress us. So, Lord, we place all of this in your hands. Help us to be good stewards of what you have provided to us. And one day, very soon, may we hear your words. Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your Lord. We long for the day when Jesus will come help us, Lord, to be good stewards as we look forward to that wonderful event in Jesus name, we ask it, amen.