None of it is mine
Psalm 24:1
The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it…
Do you believe that this morning? I mean really believe it? And sure we could discuss the theological implications of what this verse means, we could talk about King David and look at the Hebrew parsing of the Psalms, but sometimes we need to get past the terms to get to the true meaning; because the scriptures are a way of living.
King David says, “All of my possessions and all of my life…” belong to God.
Stewardship is more than just caring for God’s resources – it’s a way of living. The options and the priorities of what that means are already laid out.
How do we live? How do we spend our time? How do we use our talents? How do we use our wealth? Before we can answer those questions, we first need to ask ourselves if we truly believe those words.
Out here in Southern California we enjoy enormous wealth. Most of us have more than we will ever use. But the scriptures tell us that none of it is ours. The Lord says in Haggai 2:8, “The silver is mine and the gold is mine.”
Stewardship is realizing that everything belongs to God.
So we give back, we give back to God what is already his. We give back when we feed the hungry, when we clothe the poor, when we take care of the orphan and the widow. We give back when we love God’s children and when we protect his creation.
Stewardship is a way of living.
Jesus says in Luke 12:48
"From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.”
Is Jesus Lord of all this morning? How do we live?
