Bible Studies
THE DOCTRINE OF STEWARDSHIP
(PART ONE)
In the secular realm, a “steward” is a person who is hired or appointed, and is financially compensated for managing the business affairs of someone else. Most of us are familiar with the crooked steward in the parable of (Luke 16).
In the spiritual realm, EACH and EVERY born again believer has been appointed a steward over all that God has given him/her. Whereas the secular steward manages what he has been given charge over the management of the possessions of his employer, the spiritual steward manages what he has been given, to use such things in ways that brings the maximum glory to God. The secular steward is financially compensated, the spiritual steward is rewarded at the 1Cor. 3: 12-15 evaluation of believers.
This 1Cor. 3: 12-15 event has got NOTHING to do with who lives in Heaven, but has got much to do with HOW any one given believer will experience Heaven. All born again believer’s will experience the general environment of Heaven, but not all born again believers will receive the same reward (1Cor. 3: 12-15) and/or privileges (Rev. 2/Rev. 3).
The employer owes his steward financial compensation for services rendered, but God “owes” His stewards NOTHING. God chooses to REWARD His stewards. God makes available everything, including TIME and all the logistical needs, for each soul to complete the work that He has assigned to each and every individual believer (Phil. 4: 19). Each believer will give an accounting (Romans 14:12) to God of what he did (or didn’t do) with ALL that God has gave him for HIS glory.
Unbelievers (of the Gospel) are not present at this 1Cor. 3: 12-15 evaluation. Judgment day for the unbeliever is a separate event that ends with ALL of them being tossed into what the Bible calls the lake of fire (Rev. 20: 13, 15) where they will spend all of eternity.
The TRUE post salvation spiritual life is NOT for the purpose of retaining salvation. Salvation is an unmerited gift given by God to all who choose to believe in a presentation of the TRUE Gospel Message. The gifts and calling of God are “irrevocable-Romans 11: 29 NASB). Salvation can not be earned and is NEVER deserved.
The purpose of the post salvation spiritual life is to glorify God. The post salvation spiritual life does NOT begin until one has already been born again (John 3: 3, 7), at which time he/she receives a regenerated human spirit (Titus 3: 5) and is forever changed from being spiritually dead to being spiritually alive. This transformation is the work of God the Holy Spirit and requires NO input from Man or clergy.
The post salvation spiritual life begins at the moment of salvation and comes to its end when the soul and regenerated spirit of the believer departs the body here on Earth and goes home to be with the Lord. In the meantime, the purpose of the post salvation spiritual life is to bring further glory to God.
The stewardship of the appointed time one has been given here on Earth sets the stage and plays a major role in the identification and execution of the TRUE post salvation spiritual life.
Our biological parents may or may not have had a baby in mind when what would become our humanity was conceived. It was God who created our soul and spirit and placed them into the body of His choosing at birth (John 3:6/Gen 2:7). Our physical bodies have a biological life span that begins at conception and terminates at death.
Every soul has an appointed life span here on Earth that begins at birth and ends when the soul departs the body at death. What we choose to do with that appointed life time is what the stewardship of time all about. When this appointed time period ends, the body dies and eventually turns to dust (Gen. 3: 19), whereas the soul, created in God's everlasting likeness continues to live on into eternity future.
Life of the soul after death of the body is not a matter of if, but a matter of where and how each one of us will experience eternity.
The first time that any one born into the dispensation of the Church Age glorifies God is IF and when one chooses to believe in a presentation of the TRUE, unadulterated Gospel Message. From that point on, the born again believer has the opportunity to continues to glorify God by learning and applying the principles of the Word of God to the moment to moment events and circumstances of his life here on Earth. This applies regardless of where he is or what he is otherwise doing. Post salvation discipleship is a 24-7 lifestyle, not like a switch that can be turned on or off at will.
The issue with most believers is that we are more concerned about what we will gain (or lose) now and/or in Heaven than we are with the glorification of God. “What’s in it for me?”, is an age-old question. Peter had the intestinal fortitude to ask, but have no doubt the others were equally interested in what the Lord had to say.
“The Peter said to Him, “Behold we have left everything and followed you; what then will there be for us (Matt. 19: 27 NASB).”
At least in the case of these disciples, they DID give up and risk much (humanly speaking) to follow the Lord. With the exception of John, all of the apostles were eventually martyred for their lives of faith. Tradition tells us that an attempt to burn John with oil failed. Scripture (Rev. 1: 9) tells us John was exiled to the island of Patmos where he later received the information that became what we now know as the New Testament Book of Revelation.
Many of us ponder the same what’s it for me question while finding it burdensome to set aside as little as 1 out of 168 (less than 1%) hours a week to corporately worship Him, or to devote 10 minutes out of 1440 (0.006%) minutes a day to study His Word and/or communicate with Him in prayer. For many of those who do, it is not for the glory of God, but for the primary purpose of getting something out of it for ourselves.
As far as our money is concerned, if that is truly a reflection of where our hearts are (as Luke 12: 34 says it is) then many of us have need a spiritual heart transplant (Psalms 51: 10).
Most of us have a fairly accurate knowledge of what the balances are in our financial accounts at any given time, but how much thought is given to the balance of our bank account in Heaven? Some of us aren’t even aware that such an account exists (Matt. 6: 20) or what it takes to make a deposit in it (1Cor. 3: 12, 13).
Virtually EVERYTHING can come under the umbrella of stewardship, but for the purpose of this study, we will focus on the managing of one’s time, money, body, soul structure, and spiritual gift. I have chosen these issues as these apply to all of us, regardless of one’s socioeconomic status, occupation, or geographical location here on Earth.
The Stewardship of Time.
We are not all given the same amount of days here on Earth, but we are given all the time that one needs to fulfill God’s purposes. Adam was given 930 years (Gen. 5: 5). This was 30-31 times longer than the Earthly life span of the humanity of the Lord Jesus Christ. David’s son died in infancy or early childhood (2Sam.12:14). What all of them had in common is that each one, knowingly or unwittingly accomplished the role/part that God had in mind for each one of them when He authored the *Divine Decree (Psalms 139: 16) before any one of them was born.
The *Divine Decree does not violate the Divine Decree or our accountability. God, knowing the choices that we would make is what enabled Him to pen the Divine Decree.
Regardless of how relatively brief or long one’s appointed life span here on Earth may be, everyone is given exactly the same amount of time during each day.
Time should not be confused with opportunity. We may (or may not) be given multiple opportunities to accomplish the same goal. Time can not be recycled. Once time is spent, invested, or wasted, it is gone forever. We might spend more time trying to undo the results of the time we spent unwisely, but that might also prove to be a further waste of even more time.
There are many ways of measuring time, but for the purpose of this study we will take a look at it in terms of solar measurement, as this is the common standard to which we can all relate . In a solar day, there are 24 hours; or 1440 minutes; or 86,400 seconds. No one is given any more or any less time in any given single day than anyone else. What makes us different, is HOW each (second) tick of the 86, 400 ticks of the clock is spent, invested, or wasted on any given day.
The Lord Jesus Christ accomplished more during the six hours on the cross than any other person in a human body ever has or ever could.
God, government, marriage, children, extended family, friends, careers, training, education, occupations, labor, health, exercise, socialization, recreation, entertainment and hobbies ALL require an amount of time be invested if one is to make the best out of any one of them.
Some of these activities can be accomplished while multitasking (doing more than one thing simultaneously), whereas others, such as the edification of one’s soul structure, require one’s exclusive focus of attention for best results.
What an advancing disciple needs to learn from the get go is that discipleship is a 24-7 lifestyle and there is NO time off. We, as disciples, are to be ambassadors of Christ (2Cor. 5: 9), no matter where we are or what we are otherwise doing!
Yes, we set aside time to worship and be trained for spiritual combat in the local assemblies or ministries that God has in mind for each one of us, but it is out in the devil’s world in the midst of our daily activities that we called to execute 99% of the post salvation spiritual life!
Every dispensation (specific periods of time) has a primary agenda that is to be the primary focus of attention of believers. Here in the dispensation of the Church Age, the primary agenda is the fulfillment of the Great Commission. The Great Commission involves preserving and proclaiming the TRUE Gospel to unbelievers, and to make disciples (students and appliers of the Word of God) out of those who, as a result of becoming believers, are born again.
To be continued…
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