To discover what the Bible says about stewardship, it is necessary to understand that In the beginning God created the

heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1). As the Creator, God has absolute rights of ownership over all things, and to miss this is to misalign the whole doctrine of stewardship. Nothing else in the Bible, including the doctrine of stewardship, will make any sense or have any true relevance if we miss the fact that God is the Creator and has full rights of ownership. It is through our ability to fully grasp this and imbed it in our hearts that the doctrine of stewardship is understood. The biblical doctrine of stewardship defines a mans relationship to God. It identifies God as owner and man as manager. God makes man His co-worker in administering all aspects of our life. The apostle Paul explains it best by saying, For we are Gods fellow workers; you are Gods field, Gods building (1 Corinthians 3:9). Starting with this concept, we are then able to accurately view and correctly value not only our possessions, but, more importantly, human life itself. In essence, stewardship defines our purpose in this world as assigned to us by God Himself. It is our divinely given opportunity to join with God in His worldwide and eternal redemptive movement. Stewardship is not God taking something from us; it is His method of bestowing His richest gifts upon His people. In the New Testament, two Greek words embody the meaning of our English word stewardship. The first word is epitropos which means "manager, foreman, or steward." From the standpoint of government, it means governor or procurator. At times it was used in the New Testament to mean guardian, as in Galatians 4:1-2. The second word is oikonomos. It also means "steward, manager, or administrator" and occurs more frequently in the New Testament. Depending on the context, it is often translated dispensation, stewardship, management, arrangement, administration, order, plan, or training. It refers mostly to the law or management of a household or of household affairs. More often than not, when we think of good stewardship, we think of how we manage our finances and our faithfulness in paying Gods tithes and offerings. But as were beginning to see, its much more than that. In fact, its more than just the management of our time, our possessions, our environment, or our health. Stewardship is our obedient witness to Gods sovereignty. Its what motivates the follower of Christ to move into action, doing deeds that manifest his belief in Him. Pauls stewardship involved proclaiming that which was entrusted to himthe gospel truth. Stewardship defines our practical obedience in the administration of everything under our control, everything entrusted to us. It is the consecration of ones self and possessions to God's service. Stewardship acknowledges in practice that we do not have the right of

control over ourselves or our propertyGod has that control. It means as stewards of God we are managers of that which belongs to God, and we are under His constant authority as we administer His affairs. Faithful stewardship means that we fully acknowledge we are not our own but belong to Christ, the Lord, who gave Himself for us.

An understanding of Gods ownership of all things enables us to put our management of those things into proper perspective. God doesnt just own the universe. He owns me. I am twice hisfirst by creation, second by redemption. Not only does God own everything, but He determines how much of his wealth he will entrust to us. In the area of finances, the silver and gold which are symbolic of financial wealth belongs to God yet He bestows them on us. How does this knowledge influence the management of these resources? We exercise good stewardship by saving (Proverbs 6:6-8), investing (Matthew 25:14-30), providing for family (Proverbs 13:22) and staying out of debt (Proverbs 22:7; Romans 13:8). But the Bible gives special attention to one use in particular and that is giving. To give (especially to the poor) is equivalent to lending to the Lord (Proverbs 19:17). To give (especially to the poor) is equivalent to investing your money in heaven itself (Luke 12:33). Giving is the fitting response to Gods gift of his Son to us (2 Corinthians 8:7-9). Giving (especially to our enemies) is a way of imitating the redeeming love of God (Luke 6:35). Biblical stewardship does not require that a Christian despise money or to discontinue earning it. Money is a necessity for basic living. The Bible does warn, however, that the love of money creates evil (1 Timothy 6:10). It is important not to allow money to become the center of one's life. When money is not the object of one's love and devotion, one is free to focus on higher things. Good stewardship encourages a Christian to find true value in life. If money does not offer much to life, what does? The Bible states, "Whoever trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf" (Proverbs 11:28). The righteous, not the rich, thrive. But how do the righteous thrive without riches? They thrive because they understand and possess what holds a higher value. The righteous have character. Proverbs 22:1 states, "A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold." A pure reputation should be one's goal in life rather than the accumulation of wealth. Character lasts. Money cannot. Believing in God offers the righteous a lifetime of wealth (Romans 11:33). Knowing God and understanding his love are the true eternal riches. The author of Hebrews writes, "Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, 'Never will I

leave you; never will I forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5). Money does not love and it does not linger. It is God who stands by and blesses his children in immeasurable amounts-this promise, not money, truly satisfies. There are two basic principles of giving as far as money and the resources God gives us are concerned. The first essential in biblical giving is the giving of self to the Lord. Personal consecration must come before purse consecration, self-consecration before wealth consecration. This was the reason for the joyful and sacrificial giving of the Macedonian Christians: They first gave themselves to the Lord (2 Corinthians 8:5). When self is given, it is then logical that one honors God with his possessions. Money is stored-up life, both mental and physical powers converted into dollars. A second essential in biblical giving is giving motivated by love (1 Corinthians 13:3; 2 Corinthians 8:8). Only our giving that flows from the wellspring of love is godlike (John 3:16). When a Christian meets these two prerequisites, it is not difficult for him to follow the general principles of biblical giving. And the first is putting God first (Exodus 23:19; Proverbs 3:9). Recognition of this rule elevates ones giving to a high level. This does not preclude providing for family and personal needs (1 Timothy 5:8). God has promised to meet our needs if we put the interests of the kingdom of God first (Matthew 6:32-33). In the end, each of us will give an account to the Lord for how we handled his resources in the time we had on earth. Not only are we stewards of the financial resources God owns, but also the environment and the earth as a whole. Psalm 24 says the earth is the Lords. God created the environment and placed us in his creation to care for it and steward it. The earth still belongs to Godnot to the government, not to private property owners. The earth is Gods provision for us, a place of blessing. God still insisted on treating animals and the environment with care and respect, primarily because they reflect his provision and care for us. The demonstration of this is seen in Leviticus 25; 26:34-35, Deuteronomy 12:9; 20:19-20; 25:4 and Exodus 23:11-12. He even includes animals in his covenants and his mercy (Genesis 9:12-16; Jonah 4:11). Many of Jesus miracles reflect the ultimate victory over the present chaos in the environmentsome of it created by human failure to exercise environmental stewardship. Our responsibility to steward the environment has not dissipated, just as our responsibility to steward knowledge, wealth, skills, relationships and the gospel has not diminished. When we practice environmental stewardship, we anticipate Gods new world and show ourselves to be grateful recipients of the creation he has made for us. Above all, environmental stewardship shows that we are grateful to the One who provided the earth to sustain its creatures. Environmental stewardship reflects our Christian belief that Jesus

is reconciling all things to himself, and that the risen Lord is presently reigning over the world (Colossians 1:16-20). When we practice environmental stewardship, we show ourselves to be participants in his new creation (Isaiah 65:17-25). We may not be able to see the curse completely reversed until Jesus and his children reign in peace (Romans 8:18-21), but we can avoid causing ourselves grief by taking care of the resources God has given us. Christian environmental stewardship illustrates to the world that we care about the world God has given us, as well as all those who rely on that world for air, food, water and shelter.

As we explore this truth regarding the relationship between Gods ownership of this world and our stewardship under the Kingship of Christ, our Lord, I would conclude with these two emphasis: We ought to live with a deep sense of security as we face so many things that threaten our existence. We must learn to live with the realities we face in the context of the truth that this is our Fathers world! And he will not abandon it. In fact, out of the worlds labor pains and groaning, God will bring about or resurrect a new creation. Therefore, we shall not panic; rather, we shall live with a deep sense of trust that the King of the universe will continue to uphold and ultimately redeem this creation. For he has established it. And God does not forsake the works of his hands. We should live as faithful stewards, fully aware that what we have and own all belongs to the Lord and is given to us as stewards to manage. As such, we must develop practices and attitudes that reflect the Lordship of Christ and the will of our heavenly Father, to live in love toward him and toward our neighbors. Generosity, hospitality, and reaching out to others in need must be a hallmark of Christians. Greed (which is a form of idolatry) cannot be part of our lifestyle; reckless disregard for the earths scarce resources, the squandering of finances, including gambling, do not testify to responsible stewardship under God. Virtues such as contentment and sharing need to be part of daily Christian disciplines. And doing our share in supporting the work of the church is part of our management.