Good Stewards

Stewardship: the management of the property of another.

God supernaturally blesses us when we return to God what He requires.

He also blesses us when we manage His resources according to His principles. 

We can live with no financial stress.  It comes when you realize that what you have is not yours. 

Are we going to return to God what He has given us worse off than when He gave it to us?

Please read Matthew 25:14-29 NKJV    

Matthew 25:21 (NKJV)

21 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’

This is the only place where well done is used in judgement, and it is in reference to how we manage God's money. 

God is going to judge you by what He gave you.  

  

1. I am not the owner.

Psalms 50:12 NKJV

“If I were hungry, I would not tell you;For the world is Mine, and all its fullness.

1 Corinthians 10:26 NASB

For the earth is the Lord's, and all it contains.

2. I am a steward.

Deuteronomy 8:18 NKJV

“And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.

Stewardship: to protect and expand the resources of another.

You are God's bank, and He has invested His deposits in you for Him to retrieve later as He directs.  

3. Am I a good steward?

Luke 12:16-21 NKJV

16 Then He (Jesus) spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 17 And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ 18 So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.” ’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’ 21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

He didn't get rebuked not for earning it, or expanding his storage.  He got rebuked for thinking that it was his.  

What is the Holy Spirit saying to me through this message?

Robert Morris, Gateway Church

http://gatewaypeople.com/ministries/life/events/beyond-blessed-a-gateway-series/session/2019/01/26/good-stewards

Why God Can't Bless

We get to give.  

Not give to get.  

When we talk about blessed, we're not talking about just your wallet.

1. It Takes Two Legs to receive God's blessings which are generosity and stewardship.

If you are generous but not a good manager of God's money, you will give to the wrong things.

If you are a good manager of God's money, but are not generous.  You won't give it to the right people.

  

God purpose is to channel his resources through you to the right people.

  

You must be generous and a good manager of God's money for God to channel it through you. 

God has all the resources, and then there is all the needs in the world.  

What's in between?  

You are. 

  

Because God channels and directs His resources through His children. 

If God is trying to move His resources through you to those in need, but He can't. 

He'll move on to someone else.

Blessing us is God's idea not ours.  

Read what God said to Abraham. 

Genesis 12:2 NKJV

I will make you a great nation;I will bless you And make your name great;And you shall be a blessing. 

2. Why Talk About Money? 

Doesn't the Bible talk about money a lot?

Every time that someone worshiped in the Bible.  They brought an offering.

  

God put tithing in the Scriptures.  

Jesus talked about money and possessions 16 out of 38 parables. 

Was Jesus trying to get their money?  

Jesus didn't need their money. 

The money in your account is not your money anyway.  It's Gods.

  

Psalm 24:1 (NKJV)

The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness,
The world and those who dwell therein.

God is the owner of all things, but we are the stewards or His money managers.  

It's actually a blessing for you to learn how to give and be a good money manager. 

Jesus taught about money and possessions because He was trying to get their hearts. 

Matthew 6:21 NKJV

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Wherever you put your treasure, your heart will follow.  

If you want your heart in your church, put your treasure there. 

When we give people an opportunity to give, we are giving them an opportunity to be blessed, so they can be a blessing. 

3. Being a Blessing.  God blesses us for two reasons.  One is that He loves us.

There is nothing wrong about wanting to buy a house in a safe neighborhood, or to buy a car that won't break down.  

However, God also blesses us to be a blessing.  

I Chronicles 4:9-10 NKJV

9 Now Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.” 

10 And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory (income), that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain (not to cause pain, but a blessing)!” 

So God granted him what the requested.

Jabez asked to be blessed financially.

Was it an evil prayer?  

If it was an evil prayer, why did God grant it?   

Why would God call him more honorable for praying it?  

An honorable man, Jabez, prayed to be blessed, so he could be a blessing, so God granted his request. 

Is it wrong for you to ask God to bless you?  NO!   

It is not wrong to ask God to bless you, so you can be a blessing. NO!

It is not wrong to be a blessing and help others.  

You have to be able to manage your finances for you to be a blessing when God tells you to.  

Ask, What is the Holy Spirit saying to me through this message?

Robert Morris, Gateway Church

Video

http://gatewaypeople.com/ministries/life/events/beyond-blessed-a-gateway-series/session/2019/01/12/living-beyond-blessed