Philosophy of Stewardship
Biblical stewardship is nothing more and
nothing less than seeing how the gospel
of Jesus Christ affects every area of your life, including how you use
your resources. The goal of stewardship is not to get us to give
something to the church. The goal of stewardship is to think correctly
about ourselves, and our God. Giving or living differently is just a
by-product or expression of stewardship.
| Giving and God
We are Stewards
| Giving and Sin
We are Fallen People
| Giving and Grace
We are Redeemed People
|
| Theological Truth |
God is the creator/owner of
everything and we are only given temporary management
privileges over our time, talents and possessions (we do
not own them) |
As fallen people, money, time and talents have an
enslaving power over us that is very great and dangerous. |
Our money, time and talent can become currencies
of grace and can be channels for enormous changes in other peoples' lives. |
| Motivational Impulse |
We are obliged to use God's time,
money and talents for His purposes. That is, we are obliged to
give these things. |
We must liberate our hearts with
our money, time and talents by giving them away. Our resources
show us where our idols are. |
As redeemed people, we want to give out of a
heartfelt response to such a great love that has been shown to us. |
| Practical Guideline |
God has established a minimal level of giving
called the tithe. |
God insists that we go beyond the
minimum and give our excess. |
God encourages us to move beyond
giving the tithe and giving the excess, to now give the
sacrifice. |
Stewardship chart source:
Redeemer Presbyterian
Church, New York, NY. |
