Sunday, March 1, 1998 This Week’s Lesson:
In this week's lesson, which came from Psalms 24:1, Deuteronomy 10:14, Haggai 2:8, Leviticus 25:23, Genesis 3:23-24, Deuteronomy 8:18, James 1:17, Proverbs 28:19, II Thessalonians 3:10, and Proverbs 6:6-8, we began a five-part study on the importance of right biblical giving. This first lesson focused on the facts that God owns everything and that we are in a partnership with Him. Often, we think that we own this or that, but according to Scriptures, this is never the case. God owns it all. Psalms 24:1 and Deuteronomy 10:14 tell us that He is always the owner and that we, in turn, are always only the stewards. Because of these truths, those things which we think we own are merely things which He has given us to take care of for Him.
According to Haggai 2:8 and Leviticus 25:23, God owns all the money and all the land. Because He owns all the money, we can set ourselves free from our worry over finances. We can bring our needs to Him with confidence and know that He will always answer those needs according to His goodness and love towards us. Because He owns all the land, we can be set free from the worry over acquiring more and more. Many people in our culture are caught up with trying to amass as much as they can. However, when we assume the higher, more noble attitude and nature of a steward, then we realize that our goals should not be directed toward this kind of worldly "more and more" pursuit. Instead of trying to gain as much as we can for the sake of having more, our aim should be to use what we have in ways which will bring greater honor and glory to Christ and point others to Him.
In the second part of our lesson, we learned that we are in a partnership with God, even if we do not already know so. Because of that partnership, we are called, first, to acknowledge His ownership of everything and, second, according to Deuteronomy 8:18 and James 1:17, to anticipate His strength as we pursue our earthly responsibilities for Him. Truly, we are totally dependent upon Him for everything, but just as truly, we never have to walk alone. Another aspect of our partnership with Him concerns time. Sometimes, we let ourselves become too entangled with insignificant things, and that can mean that we do not have the time to do the things we should. Sometimes, we do the things we should, but we do them in great haste because we have not managed our time well. This lesson taught that our time, as well as our money, belongs to God and that we should strive to be good stewards in terms of both time and money management.
Our partnership with God teaches that we are to have a responsible attitude towards our work for Him, a truth which is expressed in Proverbs 28:19 and II Thessalonians 3:10. As Christians, we should practice diligence in all things, just like the ant in Proverbs 6:6-8. Everything to which we have been entrusted, including our time, belongs to God. Therefore, as good stewards, let us each ask the Holy Spirit how we can best use our resources to better serve Jesus and others.
Tom of Spotswood"He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." (I John 5:12)
"And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart." (Jeremiah 29:13)
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