A Matter Of Heart

A Matter of Heart

2 Corinthians 9:8 & Malachi 3:10

June 6, 2004

Introduction

Several weeks ago Abigail and I went to McDonalds and after we got our food, I decided that I was going to help myself to one of her French Fries but unfortunately Abigail had other ideas. As I reached out to grab one she pulled the whole bag away and she “These are my fries.”

Are those really your fries? I asked. Abigail’s immediate response was yes. I asked her if she had bought the fries and she had to say no. So then I asked who bought the fries and she had to say that I bought them. My reasoning was flawless here and I told her that the fires really belonged to me and that they were really mine. She wasn’t buying that at all and still did not want to share those fries with me.

Finally after some major talking I got to share the Fries. My logic was correct, I had bought the fries and technically they were mine but she did not want to give them up. What in the world does this have to do with anything biblical? I believe it is a really good picture of how we adults look at stewardship. God comes to us to share what He has blessed us with and we pull away saying; hands off that’s mine.

Is all of that stuff that you have really yours? Does it really belong to you or is there something else at work in this life?

I think that for the most part, the church as a whole does not understand the concept of stewardship because the church has failed to teach the principles of biblical giving for decades.

What is a steward? A steward is a person who manages the property of someone else.

Stewardship is God’s resources deployed through His people to mobilize His people to evangelize. – Stan Toler

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 2 Corinthians 9:8

One of the most important things we need to realize as Christians is that God is the ultimate source of everything. All that stuff that you “own” really comes not from your provision but from God’s Do you really think that if the God of all the universe did not want you to have that car that you drove to church today you would still have it?

Everything that you have belongs to God; yes I said everything. The money in your purse or wallet and in the bank accounts, it came from God and therefore, belongs to God. The house that you live in, it belongs to God. The car that you drive it too belongs to God. The family that you have, they belong to God. The spiritual gifts that you have been blessed with, they belong to God. The life you live that belongs to God as well.

Everything comes from God and therefore He is the owner. If He owns it all, we are just the managers of what he has. Our biggest problem in all of this is the fact that we get the roles reversed and we think we are the owners of all our stuff. So, we start acting like the owners and start calling the shots.

The best example for this is our church trustees. The role of a trustee is to manage and care for the physical operations of the church. Do the trustees own any of the property of the church? Of course not. Do the trustees have a responsibility for the care of the church? Absolutely!

The same is true of you and what God has given to you. You don’t own it but you are responsible for it.

Since, it all belongs to God, what does He want back for His work and for His Kingdom?

Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. Malachi 3:10

The portion of God’s share

Bring the whole tithe

The word tithe is actually Old English and it literally means one tenth. In other words, God is saying: I own it all. I want you to give back to me and my work 10% of what I bless you with. So, when you give your tithe it is not going to the church it is really going back to God and His Kingdom.

It doesn’t matter if you make $12K or $120K, the principle is still the same and God still expects 10%. The issue here is not really about money but rather the issue is what is in your heart. Where your heart is your treasure will be there as well. If your heart is not with God, neither is your money.