Lesson 7

Growing in Grace – Lesson 7 – Print Out Here

STEWARDSHIP

I Peter 4:10 – “As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. “

Stewardship is one of the most important parts of your Christian life.

WHAT DOES STEWARDSHIP MEAN?

The Greek root from which we get our word stewardship means “the keeper of another’s property.” The steward or stewardess on an airliner is managing the passenger compartment of the plane while it is in flight. Some clubs call their manager a steward. The man in charge of the dining car on a train is called the steward.  A steward is the manager of another’s property.

Therefore, when we say that a Christian is a steward for God, we simply mean that a Christian is managing God’s property.

A CHRISTIAN BELONGS TO GOD.

1.  His property is God’s.  Everything I have and everything I am belong to God.

Psalm 24:1 – “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.”

Psalm  50:10-12 – “For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.  I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine.  If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fullness thereof.”

Haggai 2:8 – “The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts.”

2.  His body is God’s.

I Corinthians 6:19, 20 – “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which you have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.”

3.  His soul is God’s.

Note I Corinthians 6:19, 20 – “in your spirit, which are God’s.”

Romans 14:7, 8 – “For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.  For whether you live, we live unto the Lord/ and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.”

EVERY CHRISTIAN IS A STEWARD FOR GOD

In the verses listed below, please note the truth that every one of the believers is a steward for God.

I Peter 4:10 – “As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”

Matthew 25:15 – “And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and staightway took his journey.”

Romans 12:3-8 – “For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith … So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.  Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us … Let us prophesy … ministering … teaching.”

I Corinthians 12:11 – “But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.”

Every believer has something he can use for God. Matthew 25:14-30 teaches that each one of us must give account of how we have used that which God has given us.

Stewardship is not optional!

When you accepted Christ, you became a steward. You do not decide whether you are going to be a steward. You decide only what kind of steward you are going to be.  You will answer at the Judgement Seat of Christ concerning your stewardship.

WHAT IS GOD’S REQUIREMENT?

I Corinthians 4:2 – “Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.“

Faithfulness is all that God requires.  He wants His people to use faithfully what He has given.

EVERY CHRISTIAN IS A STEWARD OF:

1.   His life – Romans 12:3-8.

2.   His God-given talents – Matthew 25:14-30.

God has given talents (abilities) to use for the Lord.  God expects His people to use what He has given for His glory.

3.   His time – Ephesians 5:16.

4.   His money and possessions.

a.   The Bible teaches that the tithe is the minimum standard for the Christian to give.

Leviticus 27:30 – “And all the tithe of the land… is the Lord’s: it is holy unto the Lord.”

The Bible teaches that the tithe is God’s. Not to tithe is literally to steal that which belongs to the Lord.

Malachi 3:8 – “Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.”

Tithing is a command of God.

Malachi 3:10 – “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”

b. The New Testament Christian should accept tithing as his minimum standard, just as the Old Testament saint accepted tithing as his commandment.

(1)   The Lord Jesus approved of tithing.

Matthew 23:23 – “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith; these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other [tithing] undone.“

(2)   The New Testament Christian is under the promise of grace.  Some say that tithing is not a matter of grace but of law.  They forget that Abraham tithed to Melchisedec. Abraham was not living during the age of law, but rather was under the promise of grace.

Hebrews 7:6 – “But he whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Abraham, and blessed him that had the promises.”

The person mentioned in the verse above to whom Abraham paid tithes is Melchisedec, who was an Old Testament type of the Lord Jesus Christ.

(3)   Therefore, the New Testament Christian should accept tithing as a minimum standard, and then go for beyond the tithe in giving.  The New Testament teaches that believers should give generously.

II Corinthians 8:7 – “Therefore as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also.”

When Paul speaks of “this grace” in the verse above, he is speaking of the grace of giving.

II Corinthians 9:7 – “Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.”

Please Note:

Giving offerings begins after a person has tithed.  The tithe belongs to the Lord.  Hebrews 9:7 speaks of Levi paying tithes.  The tithe already is the Lord’s.  When we present it to Him, it really is not a gift.  We are simply returning to the Lord that which is already His.  When we go beyond the tithe, we begin to give.

WHAT IS THE TITHE?

The tithe is the first 10%, of one’s income.  It is not just 10%, but rather the first 10%.  One who pays all bills and then presents to the Lord the 10% that is left over would not actually be tithing.  To tithe is to recognize that the first 10% is God’s and present that to Him.  To tithe, therefore, is to present to God His 10% before we use any of our income.

Proverbs 3:9 – “Honor the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase.”

These firstfruits belong to God.

What is a practical application of this truth?

For the working individual who draws a salary check, to tithe would be to present to the Lord 10% of his gross income.  Suppose a man makes $300.00 per week, gross income, and he has $230.00 a week “take-home-pay.”  His tithe should be figured on his gross income before his withholding tax, credit union payment, etc. are deducted.  Therefore, his tithe would be $30.00 instead of $23.00.

For the person engaged in business, he would be required to tithe only the profit from the business.  He would not need to figure 10% of the gross income in order to be tithing.

WHERE SHOULD THE TITHE BE GIVEN?

The Bible teaches that the tithe should be given in and through the local church.

1.   In the Old Testament God had a place for the tithe to be presented.

Deuteronomy 12:5, 6 – “But unto the place which the Lord your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, even unto his habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come: And thither ye shall bring .. your tithes … and your vows, and your free will offerings, and the firstlings of your herds and of your flocks.”

The God who had a place in the Old Testament is the same God with whom we deal in the New Testament.  He has not changed; He is still a God of decency and order (I Corinthians 14:40).  Therefore, He must have a proper place for tithing in the New Testament.

2.   The local churches in the New Testament were to account for the tithe.

Second Corinthians 8 and 9 present the challenge for the Christians in Greece to give for the support of the poor saints in Jerusalem. The money that was collected was the responsibility of the churches, not the Apostle Paul.

II Corinthians 8:21-24 – “Providing for honest things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.  And we have sent with them our brother … Whether any do enquire of Titus, he is my partner and fellow helper concerning you: or our brethren be enquired of, they are the messengers of the churches, and the glory of Christ. Wherefore show ye to them, and before the churches, the proof of your love, and of our boasting on your behalf.”

The proper place for receiving tithes and offerings in this New Testament church age is the Bible-preaching, local New Testament church.

TITHES AND OFFERINGS ARE GOD’S ORDAINED WAY TO SUPPORT HIS WORK.

Malachi 3:10 – “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”

As the tithes are presented, there is meat in God’s house and blessing flows into the lives of the Christians.  Today many churches endeavor to support God’s work with bazaars, suppers, raffles, rummage sales, etc. God’s work should be supported by the tithes and offerings of God’s people.

The tithing Christian is:

1.   Seeing that the needs of God’s work are met.

2.   Receiving blessing because he is faithful to the Lord.

And then the tithing Christian can go on to greater blessings by sacrificing to give offerings to the Lord’s work.

Growing in Grace – Lesson 7 – Print Out Here

©2012 Mark Davis

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Growing in Grace – Table of Contents

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Continued Reading:

• The Spiritually Dormant Life
• How Full Is Your Bucket?
• What Is It That Saves You?
• Your Spiritual Wages
• Personal Accountabilities

Related Articles:

• Ten Things I’ve Learned about Tithing (docsology.wordpress.com)
• Components of Biblical Stewardship (2 of 7). (greatriversofhope.wordpress.com)