26th Feb 2020 - "Stewardship" - Big Night In #7

Training for Godliness

7. Stewardship

Jan-Feb 2020

 

What do you have that you did not receive?

“‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
    and naked I shall depart.[c]
The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away;
    may the name of the Lord be praised.’ Job 1:21

“All creatures look to you
    to give them their food at the proper time.
28 When you give it to them,
    they gather it up;
when you open your hand,
    they are satisfied with good things.
29 When you hide your face,
    they are terrified;
when you take away their breath,
    they die and return to the dust.
30 When you send your Spirit,
    they are created,
    and you renew the face of the ground.” Psalm 104:27-30

 

A. Stewardship of Time

• God is not bound by time (2 Peter 3:8-9)
• So why did God create time?

“This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalms 118:24

• Our time is short – but it counts! (cp. Psalm 144:3-4; 1 Corinthians 5:10)

i Be wary of the spiritual-secular divide

• Work is good, valuable & pleasing to the Lord

“5 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. 6 Obey them not only to win their favour when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. 7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, 8 because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free.” Ephesians 6:5-8

“Do first the things you are paid to do, then the things you have promised to do, then the things you would like to do.” H. Clay Trumbull

 

ii A rhythm of life

The Fourth Commandment:

8 ‘Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labour and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. 

• God’s people work
• A pattern from Creation
• NOT primarily a negative command
  • Call to do something with the Sabbath

iii. Redeeming the time

“15 Be very careful, then, how you live – not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity [redeeming the time], because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.” Ephesians 5:15-17

• If the Lord wills…

“Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit"-- yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that." As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.” James 4:13-16

‘Thy mercies have brought me to the dawn of another day,

Vain will be its gift unless I grow in grace,

increase in knowledge,

ripen for spiritual harvest’ (Valley of Vision)

 

 

B. In Your Group

1. Share together some of the struggles you have had in using your time well.
2. In our busy lives, how should we organize our time so that we are using it wisely and serving the Lord? What have you found helpful?
3. Read Ephesians 6:5-8 again. What do you think it means practically to work “for the glory of God” (cp. 1 Cor 10:31; Col 3:17)? What are the biggest challenges to doing this?
4. Pray for each other
   
   

 

C. Stewardship of Wealth

“‘Two things I ask of you, Lord;
    do not refuse me before I die:
8 keep falsehood and lies far from me;
    give me neither poverty nor riches,
    but give me only my daily bread.
9 Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you
    and say, “Who is the Lord?”
Or I may become poor and steal,
    and so dishonour the name of my God. (Proverbs 30:7-9)

• Wealth & poverty carry great spiritual dangers
  • beware the deadening power of riches.

• Wealth is good, when…
  1. Amassed by hard work

“Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense. (Proverbs 12:11 cp. Proverbs 13:11)

           b. Obtained honestly

“Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit, but righteousness delivers from death.” (Proverbs 10:2 cp. Proverbs 21:6)

           c. Used to honour the Lord

“Honour the Lord with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine.” (Proverbs 3:9-10)

• Our wealth is not just material

“Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.” 1 Peter 4:10

• Use your short life and meagre resources to make a big investment:

“Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness.” (Matthew 25:21)