Are You An Owner Or A Steward?

If you had a really, really nice car would you readily loan it out? (If you are not into cars think of something else you really cherish and could loan out.) Well, I had a friend in college that just amazed me. Russell had a very nice BMW, which was quite a car for a college student. One day some one came up and asked to borrow the car. He asked a few questions and the car was loaned out. I about fell over and made some comment like "How can you do that?" His reply is seared in my memory, "Its God's car, if He wants a brother to use it that is fine." That was an attitude toward property I do not see lived out very often.

Yet, that attitude is one of the reasons the early Jerusalem church was so healthy. Acts 4:32 contains an interesting comment, "not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own."

Acts 4:32 ends with this phrase, "but all things were common property to them." Some take this to mean that this church had turned into some kind of religious commune that is private property was abolished and turned over to the group.

I think a better conclusion was that they adapted a completely new view of property. That view might have started with a thought like, "My name may be on the title or deed, but really I do not own anything." This idea comes the Biblical teaching that God's people are stewards for Him.

We know that the Disciples spent a good bit of time teaching. I can easily imagine them passing on the different parables Jesus taught. In those parables, the idea of stewardship keeps coming up. Those parables and Old Testament property/inheritance laws point to the concept that really everything belongs to God!

Apparently, they listened and lived out this concept. I say that because they were opening up their homes for gatherings as described in chapter 2. Here in chapter 4 there are believers who see that others are in need. They sense that God wants them to sell some of His properties and donate the proceeds to help. Barnabas is an example of this kind of selfless, obedient steward.

All of this enabled the early Jerusalem Christians to maintain a strong witness through their active love and care for each other. It contributed to the life of the church through the open homes. Plus, being such faithful stewards with their physical property encourages good stewardship in other areas of life.It occurs to me that in living out this kind of stewardship the early church also demonstrated they were obeying the great commandments. "'YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.' This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.' On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets." {Matthew 22:37-40}

This brings me back to my college friend and his car. He took very good care of that car and everything else in his care. He simply held them loosely because they were not his, they belonged to God! Like the early church, he loved God and his brothers and sisters in Christ so much that he did not claim anything as his.

I think the church and Christians in general would be much healthier if we would adapt and live out this view of stewardship. The examples of Barnabas and Russell remind us to fulfill the Great Commandments by being wise stewards.

Written by Rev. Daniel B. Baker May 2005



Articles by Rev. Daniel B. Baker :: Webmaster: Joseph I. Baker