Stewardship

APAD DAY 4

by Daniel Owino Ogweno
02/20/17
Not For Sale
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Part 1:

 Branches of Stewardship:
Identify; Produce; Consume; Manage, and Distribute

 Introduction to Part 1:

 In this section we are going to look at the importance of identifying who we are; the talents and resources that God has given us. This process starts with the acknowledging the fact that we ourselves belong to God. It should also be a matter of immanence that all we have belongs to God.

 If we successfully keep ourselves aware of the fact that we belong to God and that He also owns everything we have, it will be clear that we will ultimately give an account about our stewardship. We are going to stress the importance of producing what should be produced; utilize what is meant to be utilized; save what is meant to be saved; distribute what is meant for distribution and generally manage everything in a way that glorifies God.

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—Chapter 1—

INTRODUCTION AND SCOPE OF STEWARDSHIP:

You and the Things You Own Are Owned

 “But now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.” —Isaiah 43:1. 

Your life is not exclusively yours; you are only its steward. Your life belongs to God, and you will give an account about what you did with it.

Stewardship: The Initial Assignment

The doctrine and practice of stewardship is one of the most ignored aspects of Christianity today. The story of creation shows God’s preparation for man’s arrival. The Creator started by creating resources, defining the framework of time and availing space for man.

As man drew his first breath and became aware of himself; aware of God and aware of his environment, he must have known by intuition; by instruction and by interaction Who placed him there and Whose environment he was inhabiting. He would take instructions of life from the Life-Giver.

"For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring."—Acts 17:28.

The above scripture was the apostle Paul’s quotation to men of Athens of their own ‘pagan’ philosophers and poets (Cretan philosopher Epimenides and Cilician Stoic philosopher, Aratus). Their God-consciousness had left them with superstitions and belief in an unknown God. The most important thing here is that even the pagans know there is a God.

Let us consider the very first statement God made to the first couple after He created them:

"… Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth."—Genesis 1:28.

That was the introductory statement God made to man! That statement remains true today as it was then. In that introduction was packaged a work that would be intensive; a supervision that would be extensive and a fruition that would be impressive. In it is embodied an enormous power; a laborious assignment and a wondrous wisdom. But what word can capture the whole essence of the magnificence of the above statement other than “stewardship!” God had availed the initial resources. Man would take over in order to manage them. This is why he was created. In the process, if he took the due responsibility; embraced an unassailable integrity and engaged in daily accountability, the result would be multiplicity, sustainability and authority over the realm that had been given to him. And the bigger picture of his allegiance to God would constitute the worship of the Creator.

Things went so wrong when man’s integrity and responsibility were compromised. As a result, accountability was a disaster and a desperate attempt to take refuge in a blame-game started in earnest. Ever since, man has tried in vain to get things to work as was originally intended. But thank God: the coming of Jesus ushered a new era with an offer of a second chance to rectify the original error. It was only through a divine initiative that restoration could be achieved.

If we listen to the Holy Spirit and refuse to listen to the flesh and the devil, we can get it right again because the instruction is out there. If we are willing, we can appropriate this instruction so that it can indwell us. The Spirit that used to call from behind saying, “This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left” (Is. 30:21) can now call us from within because He lives in us (1 Cor. 6:19).