Stewardship Corner

What is a steward?  Most people will say a steward is a manager.

That is correct, but it is only half right.  A steward is indeed a manager, but he is a manager of what does not belong to him.  Someone else is the owner, and the steward manages the owner’s property on the owner’s behalf.

We are God’s stewards.  Our stewardship is that God has made us managers of what belongs to Him:

            “For we brought nothing into this world, and we cannot take anything out of the world” (1 Tim. 6:7)

Everything that we have and everything that we are comes from God’s fatherly divine goodness and mercy.  God is the owner.

This is not only because He created all things; He is also the redeemer.  He has redeemed – that is, purchased – and won all things.  Therefore, it all belongs to Him.

We are simply managers of everything in this world.  Like Joseph in Egypt, we are put in charge of managing what belongs to God.  What a privilege.

Think about that for a minute. The all-knowing, all-powerful, all-wise God has asked us to manage his possessions on His behalf here on earth.

And by doing this, He invites us to take part in the allocation of His good gifts.  He wants us to give our input and advise Him in where His gifts are to be used.  What a privilege indeed.

But what a responsibility!

            “Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required” (Luke 12:48b).

We are not the owners.  And while He puts us as managers, we are still to do with His property what He wants done with it.  That means we need to know what He desires and wills for His property

How do we know this?  How can we know the will and mind of God?

We find the will of God in the Bible.  There God tells us what His will is for all of His gifts.  He tells us how we are to spend our time and use our talents and treasures.  He instructs us in the use of our minds, bodies, and souls.

There is nothing we have that doesn’t belong to Him.

            “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price.  So glorify God in your body” (1 Cor. 6:19–20).

God informs us of the big picture, the overarching policy, of how we as His stewards – managers and custodians – are to manage His property.

And that is stewardship. It is simply doing what God wants us to do with what He has given us.

As St. Paul said,

            “Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness” (Rom. 6:13).

So let’s dive into God’s Word, and listen to what He desires from His stewards.

Have you ever noticed the subtle ceremony of receiving the offerings during the Divine Service?  The offerings are collected in plates or baskets, and they are brought forward and given to the pastor or an assistant.  The pastor turns toward the altar, and, as he slightly bows his head, the offerings are raised slightly to the Lord and placed on the altar or an adjacent table.

Why do we have this ceremony?  And what does it teach us?  For that is what ceremony does – it teaches, as the Augsburg Confession tells us what we need to know about Christ (AC XXIV, 1–3).

Originally, this ceremony included more than simply bringing forward what was collected in the offering plates.  The elements for the Holy Communion – the bread and the wine – were brought forward with the offerings.  The offerings and elements were lifted toward the Lord and placed upon the altar. The altar, now made a table, would be set for the Lord’s Supper.

Gifts brought to the altar come from the sweat of His people’s brow.  They are the bread and wine, the fruits of His people’s labor in this fallen world.  After six days of labor and toil, the people are to bring a generous proportion for the Lord’s work.  Gifts set upon the altar are offered to the Lord for Him to take up and press into service for His gracious work.

For what is offered to the Lord from the sweat of His people’s brow – the bread of anxious toil – comes back to us as the bread of life.  The bread comes down from heaven that whoever eats this bread and drinks this cup will receive life through the forgiveness of their sins.

This is not unlike what the Lord did for His people in the Old Testament:

“You shall tithe all the yield of your seed that comes from the field year by year.  And before the Lord your God, in the place that he will choose, to make his name dwell there, you shall eat the tithe of your grain, of your wine, and of your oil, and the firstborn of your herd and flock, that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always.  And if the way is too long for you, so that you are not able to carry the tithe, when the Lord your God blesses you, because the place is too far from you, which the Lord your God chooses, to set his name there, then you shall turn it into money and bind up the money in your hand and go to the place that the Lord your God chooses and spend the money for whatever you desire – oxen or sheep or wine or strong drink, whatever your appetite craves. And you shall eat there before the Lord your God and rejoice, you and your household.” (Deut. 14:22-26)

What a blessing!  God provides for us in all things.  He provides bread from the sweat of our brows.  He receives this from us in the first-fruits offerings we give to Him in thanksgiving and praise, and He turns these into spiritual bread.  He gives this heavenly bread – the bread of eternal life – back to us so we might have joy.

So, the next time you are in the Divine Service, watch this ceremony in wonder.  The offerings we have given to Him, the Lord gives back to us in His supper so that we may rejoice in the salvation He won for us upon the cross.

Some disciples of John the Baptist were questioning him about the baptism and preaching of Jesus.  Many disciples were going to Jesus instead of John the Baptist.

John the Baptist answers: “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven” (John 3:27).

John the Baptist says this to show that Jesus, His teaching, and His baptism are from heaven.  God provides everything we have in body and soul.

We are taught this in the meaning of the Apostles’ Creed in the Small Catechism.

In the First Article of the Creed, we learn that God has made us and everything in the universe.

            “He has given me my body and soul, eyes, ears, and all my members, my reason and all my senses, and still takes care of them.  He also gives me clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and home, wife and children, land, animals, and all I have.  He richly and daily provides me with all that I need to support this body and life.  He defends me against all danger and guards and protects me from all evil.  All this He does only out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me.  For all this it is my duty to thank and praise, serve and obey Him.”

In the Second Article of the Creed, we learn that God sent His Son, Jesus, to humble Himself by taking the form of a servant.

            In so doing, He “has redeemed me, a lost and condemned person, purchased and won me from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil; not with gold or silver, but with His holy, precious blood and with His innocent suffering and death, that I may be His own and live under Him in His kingdom and serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness, just as He is risen from the dead, lives and reigns to all eternity.”

In the Third Article of the Creed, we learn that the fruits of what Jesus Christ, the Son of God, did are given to us through the work of the Holy Spirit in the Church.

            “That I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith. In the same way He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. In this Christian Church He daily and richly forgives all my sins and the sins of all believers.  On the Last Day He will raise me and all the dead, and give eternal life to me and all believers in Christ.”

Indeed, “a person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven.”

But how easy is this for us to forget?  How easy is it for us to think that what we have in life is because we have earned it?

How easy is it for us to forget that all our skills – the abilities of our hands and minds, the ethic to work diligently, and the desire to improve – is given to us from heaven, just as John the Baptist said?

How easy is it for us to forget that it is Christ alone, and the work of the Holy Spirit, that reveals His salvation to us, delivers it to us, and that none of this is our doing?

Sure, we have responsibility for coming to church, for delving into God’s Holy Word, and for praying without ceasing.

But even these responsibilities are given to us from heaven.  These duties are not earned; they are given in response to what He has accomplished for us.

Everything we have, and everything we are – in both body and soul – are gifts from God in heaven.

Let us then respond in thanksgiving and give back to Him as He asks – with a first-fruits, generous proportion offering of what He has given to us.

Stewardship is not just about giving money to the church. It includes this, to be sure, but it is not limited to it. Stewardship involves our whole life – everything we have and everything we are.

Let us not, though, fall into the trap of thinking that because we give of ourselves in one area we can neglect giving in another.  Stewardship is not stealing from Peter to pay Paul.  It is not a game we play whereby we justify ourselves in not giving a tenth of our income because we have given in some other way.   This is why our Lord warns:

            “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.” (Matthew 23:23)

We are given to do both – tithe of ourselves and what we have.  And so it is that St. Paul makes his appeal to us:

            “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.  Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:1-2)

We are to present our bodies as a living sacrifice to God. We are not to have the mind of the world, where we exchange equal weight of this for an equal weight of that, and then think that we have done what God has required.

Our whole life is given over for service in and for the Church of God.  This is to be done in thanksgiving for what God in Christ has accomplished for us. This is our spiritual worship, the reasonable response to what He has done for us – not one for the other, but all in all.

But what does this look like?  St. Paul never lays down a general principle without also giving us some practical application of what shape that principle is to take concretely.  He gives the general principle that our bodies are to be living sacrifices to God, and, after admonishing those who have been given particular gifts of grace to serve the church, St. Paul then speaks generally of what is expected of all. He says:

            “Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.” (Romans 12:9-13)

This is what it looks like to present your bodies as living sacrifices.  This is how we live out the grace of God here in time.

Let us then heed the apostle’s teaching.  Let us present our bodies – everything that we have and everything that we are – as living sacrifices to God, our reasonable response to what God in Christ Jesus accomplished for us by His death and resurrection.

Through this we have forgiveness of sins, a new life in Christ, and eternal salvation.  And through this worship, the grace of God is made manifest in His saints – for the church and the world.

“Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the field.  Blessed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground and the fruit of your cattle, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock.  Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl.  Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out” (Deut 28:3-6).

This is God’s promise to the Israelites as they stood beyond the Jordan outside of the Promised Land.  He promises blessing to His people.  He will make them prosper, whether they are in the city or the field.  He will make their fruit of their work to prosper, whether from the ground or their wombs, their flocks or their herds.  He will make them to prosper in all things, whether upon their coming in or their going out.

But there’s a catch.  He would do this for Israel only “if you obey the voice of the Lord your God” (Deut 28:2b).  If they did that, He would cause that “all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you” (Deut 28:2a).

If they didn’t obey the voice of the Lord, if they didn’t keep the commandments of the Lord and walk in His ways (Deut 28:9), they would be met with curse and woe.  The blessings would be replaced with curses.  Everything that the Lord promised to prosper and bless would be cursed and fail.

Thanks be to God that our Lord Jesus Christ has come into our flesh, fulfilled the law for us – in our place and for our benefit; died for us – in our place and for our benefit; and is risen from the dead for us – in our place and for our benefit.

By this we have justification before God.  We are forgiven, clean, holy, and righteous. The blessing of God is promised to us in Christ Jesus.  It depends upon His work and not ours.

All this is ours in Holy Baptism.  For in Holy Baptism, God claims us as His own, makes us His children, His heirs, His holy people.  And so it is that the work of our hands and its fruit is holy because we are holy in Christ.  It is pressed into His service, and thereby it becomes a blessing to us and to our neighbor.

For this great gift, our reception of the blessings of God because of Christ Jesus our Lord, it is our duty to thank and praise, serve and obey Him.  This is not in order to receive blessings but because in Christ we already have.

It is with this in mind that we sit down on the first day of the week and set aside as He has prospered us to give to His church for His work of blessing in our midst (1 Cor 16:2).

Everything we have and everything we are is a gift of God’s providential care. We

understand that we’re not islands unto ourselves. We could not exist without those who have

gone before us and those who walk alongside us. God has given us forefathers in family,

country, and faith. We are recipients of what God worked through them. We know God

provides for our well-being through these means.

He gives us farmers and ranchers so we can eat. But more than that, God created and

gave us all the things those farmers and ranchers cultivate. He gave us the corn, the beans, the

wheat, the cows for milking, the steers for grilling. He gave each of those things for our

nourishment and sustenance. Without God creating and instilling in those things their taste,

their nutritional value, etc., we would not exist.

God gives us doctors, surgeons, nurses, and hospitals. He gives us medicine and medical

instruments, and, of course, He gave us everything to make those medicines and medical

instruments. He instilled in those things the properties to be utilized for those purposes.

Without God creating and instilling healing properties into those things — and without God

creating the ability within man to learn this and implement it to serve our medical needs — we

would not enjoy the health we do now.

But there’s more. He gives us gainful employment through our employers and provides

for the necessities of life through the labor of our hands:

“Then Moses said to the people of Israel, ‘See, the Lord

has called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur of

the tribe of Judah; and he has filled him with the Spirit

of God, with skill, with intelligence, with knowledge, and

with all craftsmanship, to devise artistic designs, to work

in gold and silver and bronze, in cutting stones for setting,

and in carving woûd for work in every skilled craft. And

he has inspired him to teach, both him and Oholiab the

son ofAhisamach of the tribe of Dan.’ “(Exodus 35:30—34)

And one step back from that, He has created and given us hands, and attached to hands

are arms with strength. He created us with minds to make those arms and hands move and

accomplish the work set before us. And with that mind, He has given us reason and senses.

That mind, because of the reason God has instilled in it, ¡s able to work through difficult

problems before we press those arms and hands into labor. It allows us to grapple with concepts

and run through scenarios instead of having to experience every situation personally. It allows

us to learn from the mistakes, as well as from the accomplishments, of ourselves and others.

This can be done for our entire body, all our skills and talents, everything that makes us … us.

So, everything we have and everything we are is a gift from Him. This is what we

confess in the First Article of the Creed when we say that we “believe in God, the Father

Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.”

But that is just the First Article of the Creed. We confess two more articles that deal

with God’s provision for our spiritual well-being. He sent his Son to die and be raised on the

third day for our justification. He delivers that justification through the means of grace

(baptism, preaching and the Word of God, and the Lord’s Supper). And to give you those

means of grace, He gives pastors and teachers, etc. Literally everything we have and everything

we are ¡n this life — and the next — is an inexpressible gift from God.

And it is for this, all of this, that we give thanks. And that is what stewardship is all

about — giving thanks for God’s provision for us. To give thanks is more than having an

attitude of gratitude, more than just a feeling in our hearts.

It is an action. It begins in the heart, but it doesn’t stay there. It works its way out through

the mouth in praise for God’s gifts and in love and charity through the hands to our neighbors

in family, country, and church.

“For all this it is my duty to thank and praise, serve and obey him” (The

Small Catechism, 16).

So give thanks to God for His inexpressible gifts — for everything we have and

everything we are. Do this not only in word but also in deed.