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Christian Stewardship God & Money
Charles Whitehead, leader, speaker and teacher with an international ministry with the CCR, reflects on how to be good stewards of what God has given us. Final Part
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power to ensnare us, and to turn us against God. In our own day we use expressions like "purchasing power" and "economic power", which suggest that people are valued according to what they earn or possess. In I Tim.6:10 we are reminded that love of money is the root of all evil, and we know from Matthew 19:21 that the rich young man was unable to break free from the power of his wealth to worship and follow the one true God. Money is attractive, and some people will do almost anything to get more of it - however much they have, they are never satisfied. This is clearly a challenging area in our lives, so what about our stewardship of money? "A GENEROUS GIVER?" It seems to me that we can possess money as long as money does not possess us. It's given to us by God, it's His, and so it should be used for His purposes. If we understand this it should remove a lot of the anxiety about how we use it. Perhaps the question should not be how much of MY money I give to God's work, but how much of GOD'S money do I keep for myself. Money is part of our lives and service, so we need to be grateful for it and to use it well. In the Old Testament we find the principle of tithing - giving the first ten per cent of what we receive to God as a priority. Many Christians follow this practice today and find it a great blessing - it provides a solid framework for their giving to the Lord and His work. Think how much more money the Church would have if every Catholic tithed, but this principle isn't part of Catholic social teaching. So the question for us has more to do with our attitudes to money and our understanding of the needs around us, than to a principle, rule, or law. How do I feel about money? Am I secretive about it - if so, why? Have I learned to be a generous giver to the Lord's work and to those in need? I shouldn't feel that I have to be secretive or embarrassed about what I have or what I give - it's part of my spiritual service. When I give money, I give of myself too. Personally, I think ten per cent is a very good guideline and it's one that I follow, but not inflexibly - sometimes it may need to be more, occasionally less. The main thing is to recognise that God has to be in control of this area of my life, just as of every other. If I want to be a good steward of the financial resources He gives me, I need to use them as He directs. The parable in Matthew 25 shows us the importance of this. "ON THE WAY" So as I think about Christian stewardship and all that
surrounds it, I find myself challenged to look beyond the personal questions
of how I use my God-given time, gifts, and money, important as these
are. I must also seriously consider my attitude to the gospel requirement
to share what I have with those who live in conditions of severe deprivation,
and not overlook my God-given responsibility for the well-being and
sustainability of the world God has entrusted to us. Quite a challenge,
but not one that I face alone - God is even more interested in His world
than I am. But these are very practical questions, and I have to begin
to answer them at home. The first step is to recognise that everything
I am and everything I have is God's - I'm a steward, not the owner.
When I acknowledge this, I'll find that He takes me on a journey that
will bring me to the place where I can really say with conviction and
honesty that Jesus is the Lord of all my life, knowing that I've finally
surrendered control of every area to Him. Let's not forget that the
Baptism in the Holy Spirit is all about handing the power back to Him
- about letting God be God in my life. When will I get to this place?
I don't know - I'm not there yet, and it may well be a long journey.
But I'm happy to be on the way, knowing that I'm in good company - there
are many others on the journey, and we have the Holy Spirit as our constant
and utterly dependable guide. © Charles Whitehead
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So
far I have not addressed the question of money, but for many of us this
is a major issue. Martin Luther said that three conversions are necessary
- the heart, the mind, and the wallet, and the most difficult is often
the wallet. Jesus spoke a lot about money, and much of what He said
is very challenging. "Woe to you who are rich"; "Do not
lay up treasures on earth"; "Sell your possessions and give;
"You cannot serve God and money"; "It's easier for a
camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter
the Kingdom of God". But financial security is usually very important
to us - that's why political elections are almost always won or lost
on economic policies. When thinking about money, I strongly recommend
Richard J. Foster's book "Money, Sex and Power" published
by Hodder & Stoughton. In it he looks at the dark side, the light
side, and the Kingdom use of money. He highlights two distortions -
firstly, that money is a sign of God's blessing and therefore poverty
is a sign of God's displeasure. Of course we know that God is generous
to His children - but we cannot make that the whole message, as some
try to do. What does that approach say to those who are forced to live
in poverty through no fault of their own? Secondly, that money is neutral
so we just use it in the best way we can. No, says Foster, money has
a power of its own which can win our hearts, energised by the dark side
of our nature. In Matthew 6:24, Jesus tells us that we cannot serve
God and money. By putting money in opposition to God in this way, he's
suggesting it has a spiritual 
Richard
J. Foster, a Quaker, is the author of five books. He is the founder
of Renovare, an infrachurch movement committed to the renewal
of the Church in all her multifaceted expressions.
Richard
J. Foster presents an articulation of Christian vows for those
who struggle with the concept of obedience. The author discerns
those biblical principles that enable us to live out a relevant
and authentic response to the three greatest temptations of our
age - money, sex and power.