STEWARD

Jesus once spoke of a rich man's steward, who was dismissed because he wasted his master's goods (Luke 16:1,2).  In this parable, the rich man typifies the Creator, and the steward represents us.  Each of our homes is like a bank, in which all the deposits, jewelry, gold, stocks, etc. in the safety deposit boxes belong to the clients.  By the same token, we, the things in our homes, our spouses, and our children are all entrusted to us by God.

I.       We Are Not Our Own

Paul said that Christ sacrificed His life at a great price in order to redeem US; we belong to the Lord and have no right to govern ourselves (1 Cor 6:19,20).  The salvation of the Lord was freely bestowed upon us when we believed in His Word, repented, and accepted the correct water baptism.  Consequently, our sins have been forgiven and we have become the children of God, heirs to the promised heavenly kingdom.  We have also received the Holy Spirit, which serves as the guarantee of our salvation (Acts 2:38; Gal 3:27-29; 4:5-7; Eph 1: 13,14).

Furthermore, God has preserved our lives so that we may live happily with our families.  Therefore, we should be grateful for Christ's great love and grace, and be resolved to live for the Lord, Whether we are studying, working, or starting a new family, we do it for the Lord (Jas 4:13-15; 2 Cor 5:14, 15; Rom 14:7,8).

If the Lord needs our full-time service, we should realize that this is a great blessing, and imitate Elisha, who answered the call of God by immediately laying down everything and offering himself to Him (I Kings 19:19-21).  Those who cannot serve the Lord full-time should still possess the same desire and be active members of the body of Christ, serving each other according to what gifts they have received from Him.  Through this, the whole body may be built up (Rom 12:1-8; 1 Cor 12:13-27; Eph 4:11-16),

A brother in our church survived a car accident through God's protection.  He knew that his life had been preserved by God; since then, he has made it a point to respond immediately whenever the church requires his sacrifices, at the expense of his own business.  He has occasionally even sacrificed his own vacation plan in order to attend to the church's work. His children never complain about his dedication to the church, because they know that their father belongs to the Lord, and that he always makes God's work a priority. 

II.    Wealth is From God (I Chron 29:14)

Moses admonished the Israelites, "And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth... " (Deut 8:18). The Bible does not discount the importance of hard work and perseverance for success, but without God's blessing, all our efforts end up in vain (Rom 9:16; Ps 127:1).

The story of the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar is a good example of this. God bestowed glory, wealth, and prosperity upon him; yet, he thought that it was the result of his own wisdom and effort, and did not ascribe the glory to God.  As a result of this, God punished him and he went insane.  He was removed from the throne and lived like a beast, eating grass like a cow for seven years.  It was only after he acknowledged that royalty and wealth were from God that his throne was restored (Dan 4:29-39).

It was through God's blessing that Isaac was able to harvest a hundred fold during a famine, and that Solomon became the wealthiest person of his time (Gen 26:12-14; I Kgs 3:11,12; 10:23).  The ancient saints deeply understood that God was the source of all blessings.  They offered tithes of their entire incomes to God to show their gratitude (Gen 14:18-20; Mal 3:8-12). To repay the grace of God, King David decided to build a temple for Him.  He donated his gold, silver, and treasures to God (I Chron 29: 1-5), Furthermore, he glorified God by praising Him: "For all things come from You, and of Your own have we given You" (I Chron 29:14).

There was an elder in the church who loved the Lord deeply.  Once during a conversation with the youth, He was asked whether he offered tithes or not.  He replied, "No. Instead I offer half my income, because all my children have become independence, and I no longer have to support them.  In addition, the Lord has blessed me with good health, and I should work for Him.  As for the money in my bank account, I can withdraw it at any time and return it to the Lord whenever the church has a need for it.  All things are from the Lord, and He has entrusted them to me.”

III. Children Are a Heritage From the Lord (Ps 127:3)

At the age of 100, Abraham begot a son, Isaac.  Hannah, a barren woman, ultimately bore Samuel.  These miracles were the results of God's grace and power (Gen 18:10-15; I Sam 1:10-20).  Since children are a gift from God, we should rear them according to the teachings and admonitions of the Lord.  Worldly success should not be our sole objective for our children; rather, their spiritual growth should be regarded as our highest priority.  Our hope should be that our children become useful vessels for the Lord.

Cultivation of our children should begin at home. While they are still young and impressionable, we should mold them according to a certain set of rules and virtues

·         Pray to God after getting up in the morning and before going to sleep at night.

·         Say grace before every meal,

·         Be obedient to your parents.

·         Respect your elders.

·         Love your neighbors.

·         Enjoy attending church services.

·         Read the Bible daily.

·         Study diligently and spend money wisely.

·         Offer money to God willingly and zealously.

·         Fear God.

·         Depart from evil and do good (Eph 6:1-3; Lev 19:32; Deut 6:4-9) etc.

The best way to instruct our children is to practice our own teachings and provide good examples for them in prayer, in reading the Bible, in attending church service, in offering tithes, in serving the Lord, and in loving mankind.  Furthermore, we should pray for our children unceasingly, because though we have sown and watered, only God can provide the growth.

The important thing is to help them to pray for the baptism of the Holy Spirit, so that the Spirit may become their Counselor-to instruct them and preserve them (I Cor 3:6; John 14:16,17; 1 John 2:27; 1 Chron 29:19; John 13: 15).

The Last Day is drawing near, The sins of man are increasing.  All manners of heresy are emerging.  Many churches are becoming more worldly.  However, God has sent the Latter Rain-the Holy Spirit-to the world, and He is actively restoring His True Church in many countries.  God's great mission of salvation urgently needs more full-time workers.  May the Holy Spirit mightily move the hearts of the youth in the TrueChurch, so that they may realize this glorious mission.  May they follow the example of Moses in forsaking the fame, fortune, and pleasures of this world and dedicating themselves to serving their offering God and their beloved fellow man (Amos 9:11; Heb 11: 24-27).  We should also pray that the Lord bless all parents so that they may follow the example of Jochebed, who cultivated her children so that they became useful servants for God and dedicated their lives to Him (Num 26:59).

May all the brothers and sisters in the Lord understand the truth of being cultivated as stewards, Our lives have been saved by Jesus, so we in turn should live for Christ according to His will.  Our wealth is bestowed upon us by the Lord; we should not squander it upon ourselves, using it instead to aid the sacred work of salvation.  Our children are a gift of God, so we should cultivate them for and dedicate them to the Lord.  May we all become faithful and trustworthy stewards of the Lord in this life, so that on the day of our Lord's second coming, we will receive praise and rewards from Him (Matt 25:19-23; 1 Cor 4:1,2).