A Tale of Three Stewards: Principles of Stewardship
Chuck Sligh
February 15, 2015
TEXT: Please turn to Matthew 25
INTRODUCTION
Today we’re beginning a 3-week study of biblical stewardship, life prioritization and giving, followed by a missions emphasis in the run-up to our missions conference March 19-22. What exactly do we mean by “stewardship?” Webster’s Dictionary defines stewardship as “the proper care, supervision, and management of that which belongs to another.”
Illus. – In 2007 our kids came over for the Christmas holidays and we took a family trip to Interlaken, Switzerland and back. We borrowed a van from a local church so we could all travel together. After we had traveled all the way there, eaten snacks and meals and ice cream in it, drank Lord only knows how many coffees and soft drinks in it and trudged in and out of the snow—of which there was plenty—we returned it to the pastor.
All the while, I was very careful to take special care of it since it didn’t belong to me. When we returned, I vacuumed it out, ran it through a car wash and generally gave it a thorough cleaning. A couple of days after returning it, the pastor’s wife commented that she and her husband that they were amazed at how nice the van looked when they got it back. She said people routinely borrow their van and return it in a mess. I can’t imagine doing such a thing, because I knew that I was a steward of someone else’s van, and I wanted to be a GOOD steward.
Biblically, the idea of stewardship for God’s people weaves it’s way throughout the Bible. The teaching of the Bible is that we’re stewards of all that God has given us and we’re not only to OVERSEE it, but to INVEST it for eternal rewards.
There’s no better illustration of this than in the Parable of the Three Stewards in Matthew 25:14-28. In this passage there are four key principles of stewardship clearly laid out for us. Let’s look at them:
I. THE FIRST PRINCIPLE IS THIS: WHAT YOU HAVE IS NOT YOURS – Verse 14 – “For the kingdom of heaven is as a man traveling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods.”
This landowner or wealthy man was taking a long trip. Given the uncertainties of travel in those days, the time of return for even a well-planned trip was often open-ended. So before beginning such a trip it was common for wealthy people to delegate the supervision and increase of their wealth to trustworthy servants or employees. Once the master’s property and wealth were placed under their management, they were expected to bring a return on what had been handed over to them or otherwise well maintained or cared for.
Now remember this: There was no doubt in the minds of these servants that the property and money put in their possession still belonged to the master.
• They were the POSSESSORS, but not the PROPRIETORS.
• They were the MANAGERS, not the OWNERS.
• Their job was to MANAGE the wealth that belonged to their master for HIS interests, not for their own benefit.
The same is true of us: Never forget that everything we have has been entrusted to us and is not really ours in the first place.
• Psalm 24:1 says, “The earth is the LORD’S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.”
• In Psalm 50:10 we read, “For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.”
• Haggai 2:8 adds, “The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts.”
We think all the wealth in the world belongs to those who possess it, but really, it’s God’s—ALL of it.
Dick Towner states, “While materialism’s highest value is POSSESSION, Christianity stresses STEWARDSHIP of God’s possessions. The foundational principle is that we do not own our “stuff,” but rather God ENTRUSTS it to us to serve as his trustees.”
So this is the principle: God has the RIGHTS; I have the RESPONSIBILITY; He is the MASTER; I am the MANAGER; He is the SOVEREIGN; I am the SERVANT.
Now, have you allowed this basic principle to permeate your thinking? You see, you and I don’t really own ANYTHING. EVERYTHING belongs to the Lord. Our gifts and abilities are on loan from HIM. Our MONEY is an “advance” from the Almighty to use for His glory. Our houses, cars, clothes, and ALL our possessions don’t belong to us. We really don’t OWN anything. We’re just managers—of what GOD owns and has entrusted to our care.
II. THE SECOND PRINCIPLE IS THIS: GOD HAS ENTRUSTED YOU WHAT YOU CAN HANDLE – Verse 15 – “And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several [the Greek word here means “his own individual”…] ability; and straightway took his journey.”
A talent was a measure of weight, but was also used of a very large sum of money equal roughly to about $300,000, or about €260,000 in today’s economy. So the first guy was given about $1.5 million (i.e., €1.3 million at the current exchange rate); the second one was given about $600,000 (or about €525,000); and the last one was given about $300,000 (about €260,000.
What I want you to see is that they each received a different amount of money. What was the basis for how much the master gave each person?—“According to his [own individual] ability.” In other words, their RESPONSIBILITY was tied to their ABILITY.
You see, God knows what He can entrust you with, and your responsibility will be to be faithful with what He has entrusted you with, and no more. So don’t get all in a kink because you don’t have as much abilities or money as another.
God knows what He can trust you with.
III. HERE’S THE THIRD PRINCIPLE: YOU MUST INVEST WHAT GOD HAS ENTRUSTED YOU WITH.
Verse 16 – “Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents.”
Here is a picture of ACTION. This servant didn’t waste any time, but immediately went to work on his investment strategy and DOUBLED his master’s portfolio.
Verse 17 tells us that guy who got two talents did the same thing.
But look what the third servant did in verse 18: “But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money.”
The first two guys went to work and multiplied their investment, but the one-talent guy was a slacker who went off and buried his master’s money. The practice of hiding valuables in the ground was quite common back then. It was the safest…but least profitable…way of protecting possessions.
So Jesus’s story contrasts TWO GOOD stewards and ONE who was a POOR steward. Which kind of steward are you?—a GOOD steward of that which God has put in your care, or are you a POOR steward?
Illus. – Martha Berry was a lady with a vision to help children. She began a school for poor children. She had no books, no building and no money, but she had a dream.
She went to Henry Ford to ask for a donation. Mr. Ford reached into his pocket gave Martha Berry a dime.
That would have been an insult to most people. But Martha took that dime and bought a packet of seeds and planted a garden, raised a crop, sold it and bought more seeds. After three or four harvests she had enough money to purchase an old building for the children.
She returned to Mr. Ford and said, “Look what your dime has done.” Ford was so impressed that he donated a million dollars to Berry School.
The question that underlies the message that I am bringing this morning is: “What will you do with what God has given you?”
Listen—God has entrusted you with some valuable assts to invest WISELY in the things that will last for eternity.…
• Investment of your ABILITIES for the Lord’s work
• Investment of your TIME in the Lord’s work
• Investment of your FINANCES in God’s work—laying up treasures in heaven.
The question you must answer is which kind of steward will you be?
IV. THE FINAL PRINCIPLE IS THIS: YOU WILL SOMEDAY GIVE ACCOUNT FOR HOW YOU MANAGED WHAT GOD ENTRUSTED YOU WITH. – Verse 19 – “After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them.”
The IRS will not audit all of us, but we’ll ALL be audited by the Almighty. We’ll ALL have to give an account for how we have used what we’ve been given.
Folks, JESUS IS COMING AGAIN and there will be a day of reckoning. Speaking to believers, Paul says in Romans 14:12 – “So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.”
Someday you’ll have to give an account of how you managed God’s assets. Let’s be FAITHFUL in doing whatever He gives us to do. He’s invested something in you, and one day He’s coming back to claim it. Your job may be big or small in God’s Kingdom but WHATEVER it is, do it to your BEST ability and get a good return—and you’ll be ready for your audit.
Wouldn’t it be terrible to be ashamed and unprepared when Jesus comes back?
John tells us in 1 John 2:28 – “And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.” Serve in light of a future reckoning! Make decisions on the basis of the fact that you will give an account to God for the assets He has placed in your care and supervision. One thing financial advisors always say it that it’s never too late to invest. Start TODAY to take what God has given you and invest it in God’s Kingdom.
Now note how the master in our story dealt with the three stewards:
1) The two stewards who wisely invested their gifts received the master’s COMMENDATION. – Verses 20-23 – “And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more. 21 His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. 22 He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them. 23 His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”
When these two servants were evaluated, they received three things:
• First they received AFFIRMATION – The master said, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.” – In modern-day lingo he was saying, “Great job! Fantastic! I appreciate your good work and your faithfulness.”
• Second, they received PROMOTION. The master said, “…thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things…” In other words—“Since you’ve proven your faithfulness in these little things, I’m promoting you to GREATER opportunities.”
• Third, they were rewarded with CELEBRATION – He said, “…enter thou into the joy of thy lord.” – I think he’s talking here about a huge PROMOTION PARTY!
The unfaithful steward received the master’s WRATH. – Verses 24-28 – “Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: 25 And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine. 26 His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: 27 Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. 28 Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents.”
God was angry with this steward for his sin and laziness. And even though you may know that God has forgiven your sins, don’t be deceived into thinking that God is not evaluating what you’ve done with the assets God has entrusted to your care. Will your works be of no more worth than coins buried in the ground? The Bible uses various word pictures for the believer’s judgment, but they all teach that we will give an account for what we’ve done with what God has entrusted in our care.
CONCLUSION
Brethren, God expects you to be a faithful steward of that which He has entrusted you with. A shorthand definition of stewardship from a biblical point of view is “the use of God-given resources to accomplish of God-given goals.”
What are some of the resources God has given to you to accomplish God’s goals in your life?
1) First, your TALENTS AND ABILITIES
You have certain talents and abilities that God wants you to utilize to advance the kingdom of God.
• It might be the ability to sing or play an instrument.
Are you utilizing any musical abilities you might have for God’s glory? If not, why not see me after church about joining our worship team?
• It might be simply the ability to talk and make folks feel comfortable.
Are you using that ability to welcome visitors at church and make them feel at home? If not, why not see me afterwards about joining our Welcome Team?
• It might be an ability to teach.
If you have this ability, are you busy using it in our ministry here? If not—what are you waiting for?
We need weekly Sunday School teachers and volunteers to teach once a month in our Children’s Church. Maybe YOU are the one God wants to fill in the gap. Sign up today at the Welcome Center.
I don’t know what it is, but WHOEVER you are, no matter WHAT your background or experience, God has given you certain gifts and abilities that He wants you to invest in God’s kingdom and have a good return on His investment!
2) A second resource God has entrusted to you is your TIME – Ephesians 5:15-17 says, “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, 16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. 17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.”
How are you using the time God has entrusted to you? Is your time devoted to spiritual activities, or mostly selfish pursuits? Is your time devoted to that which will last for eternity, or that which will burn up and be destroyed some day? Is your time devoted to others or to self? Is your time given to that which will build up and strengthen you in your faith, or to empty activities that are bereft of spiritual benefit?
3) A third resource God has entrusted you with is your BODY – 1 Corinthians 6:20 – “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.”
Did you catch that last part?—“…which are God’s.” Your body does not belong to you; it belongs to God. It was given to you as a vehicle to carry out God’s will.
So glorify God in your body as well as in your spirit. It’s poor stewardship to take things into your body that damage and destroy it. You have no right to take what belongs to God and misuse it with things like that because it’s NOT YOUR BODY. It was given you to use for God’s glory and God expects you to take good care of it for His use for as long as possible.
Glorify God in your body, because it’s God’s body! He bought it with a price—the price of His blood on Calvary!
4) Finally, God has entrusted into your management your MONEY.
Some people say, “90% of my income belongs to me and 10% belongs to God.” Nope—that’s all wrong; it ALL belongs to God—100%.
You’re a steward of the 100% and the Master has left you instructions that He wants you to invest a MINIMUM of 10% of HIS 100% back into the Lord’s work, but the rest is ALSO to be wisely used for the greater good of God’s kingdom.
That means that you can’t just blow the rest of the 90% each month.
God wants you to stay out of debt if at all possible; to provide for the needs of your family; to help with the needs of others; to save wisely for future contingencies; and to use the rest for the furtherance of His kingdom. Most Christians don’t have this kingdom perspective, but God wants you to be a good steward of your money and financial assets as well.
May God help us to be good, faithful, conscientious stewards of all He has put in our care.
