17
The Wise Steward
“Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more. So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. “After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’ “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ “The man with two bags of gold also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.’ “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ “Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’ “His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest. “‘So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
Matthew 25:14-30
Have you ever wondered what life would be like if you lived in a different era?
What if you lived during biblical times, or during colonial times, or even in the middle ages? What would you have worn, eaten, or done for work? It’s true that lots of things have changed over time, but also there are many things that are the same, ideas passed from era to era because they are logical and rooted in truth. One of those ideas which have stuck around since the beginning of time to right now is the principle of stewardship. During the middle ages, one honorable position within all castles was known as the steward. The steward was the person who was placed in charge over all the aspects of taking care of the castle. Their job became even more important when the King or Lord of the castle was away. The steward represented the lord of the castle in all business dealings, and took care of all aspects of the castle as if the castle was theirs. They did all this knowing that the castle didn’t actually belong to them.
The position of the steward wasn’t invented in the middle ages. It was a biblical principle long before and was actually instilled by God at the very beginning in the story of creation. Adam was placed by God Himself as a steward over all creation. God was the owner, but He granted Adam authority over creation to work it and take care of God’s creation with total authority and dominion. Stewardship has been around as long as there have been things to steward, and it’s still true today. We are all God’s stewards here on earth. We do not own the earth, but God has created and called us to be fruitful, multiply, spread out and take dominion over all of creation. God expects that we will be faithful with what He has entrusted us with. This is what wise and good stewardship are; taking what God has given to you and increasing it.
Jesus illustrates this principle brilliantly with his Parable in Matthew 25. There are so many valuable insights from this one short passage we could dig into, but at its core, this is a story about stewardship. Each of the servants was entrusted with portions of the wealth of their master. It’s important to remember that the gold was not given to them; it was entrusted to them. Meaning, it still belonged to the master. They were just taking care of it while the master was away. Another insight to consider is that the master didn’t give his servants all the same amount. He gave to them according to their ability. In the same way, God is calling each of us to be faithful with whatever He has entrusted to us, whether it is a lot or a little.
The master is equally pleased with the servant who doubled two bags of gold as he was with the servant who had five. This once again shows us that God is not concerned with how much we do, only that our hearts are in the right place and aligned with His own. The final servant did an evil thing in not stewarding well what the master had given to him. Out of fear, he buried the gold in the ground. The reason that this action was so grievous to the master was that it was done out of fear and not faith. Faith is the only way that we can please God. A wise steward acts in good faith. They live a life of faith-filled obedience to God. A faith-full servant is a servant full of faith!
Did you notice that the master never asked for the bags of gold back, even though they belonged to him? He asked that what was poorly stewarded be given to the one who stewarded well. This is such an important thing to keep in mind. We are not only stewards, but we are also the sons and daughters of God. This means we are called to be stewards of what God has entrusted us; but we are also the recipients of God's inheritance. We will share in the riches of God in eternity!
This entire concept of stewardship is based on the nature of God as a multiplier. God loves to see the increase and expansion of His kingdom. When we live a life aligned to Gods heart in faith, we cannot help but see an increase as a result of that. God loves to multiply and bless what we give to him, just like a seed being planted in the ground that becomes an oak tree. But God cannot increase what is not offered to Him. If we keep a tight grip on the seed and never plant it in the ground, what was intended to become something great and awe-inspiring will die in our hands.
Let’s be people who leave a legacy of stewarding well, what God has entrusted to us!
What if you lived during biblical times, or during colonial times, or even in the middle ages? What would you have worn, eaten, or done for work? It’s true that lots of things have changed over time, but also there are many things that are the same, ideas passed from era to era because they are logical and rooted in truth. One of those ideas which have stuck around since the beginning of time to right now is the principle of stewardship. During the middle ages, one honorable position within all castles was known as the steward. The steward was the person who was placed in charge over all the aspects of taking care of the castle. Their job became even more important when the King or Lord of the castle was away. The steward represented the lord of the castle in all business dealings, and took care of all aspects of the castle as if the castle was theirs. They did all this knowing that the castle didn’t actually belong to them.
The position of the steward wasn’t invented in the middle ages. It was a biblical principle long before and was actually instilled by God at the very beginning in the story of creation. Adam was placed by God Himself as a steward over all creation. God was the owner, but He granted Adam authority over creation to work it and take care of God’s creation with total authority and dominion. Stewardship has been around as long as there have been things to steward, and it’s still true today. We are all God’s stewards here on earth. We do not own the earth, but God has created and called us to be fruitful, multiply, spread out and take dominion over all of creation. God expects that we will be faithful with what He has entrusted us with. This is what wise and good stewardship are; taking what God has given to you and increasing it.
Jesus illustrates this principle brilliantly with his Parable in Matthew 25. There are so many valuable insights from this one short passage we could dig into, but at its core, this is a story about stewardship. Each of the servants was entrusted with portions of the wealth of their master. It’s important to remember that the gold was not given to them; it was entrusted to them. Meaning, it still belonged to the master. They were just taking care of it while the master was away. Another insight to consider is that the master didn’t give his servants all the same amount. He gave to them according to their ability. In the same way, God is calling each of us to be faithful with whatever He has entrusted to us, whether it is a lot or a little.
The master is equally pleased with the servant who doubled two bags of gold as he was with the servant who had five. This once again shows us that God is not concerned with how much we do, only that our hearts are in the right place and aligned with His own. The final servant did an evil thing in not stewarding well what the master had given to him. Out of fear, he buried the gold in the ground. The reason that this action was so grievous to the master was that it was done out of fear and not faith. Faith is the only way that we can please God. A wise steward acts in good faith. They live a life of faith-filled obedience to God. A faith-full servant is a servant full of faith!
Did you notice that the master never asked for the bags of gold back, even though they belonged to him? He asked that what was poorly stewarded be given to the one who stewarded well. This is such an important thing to keep in mind. We are not only stewards, but we are also the sons and daughters of God. This means we are called to be stewards of what God has entrusted us; but we are also the recipients of God's inheritance. We will share in the riches of God in eternity!
This entire concept of stewardship is based on the nature of God as a multiplier. God loves to see the increase and expansion of His kingdom. When we live a life aligned to Gods heart in faith, we cannot help but see an increase as a result of that. God loves to multiply and bless what we give to him, just like a seed being planted in the ground that becomes an oak tree. But God cannot increase what is not offered to Him. If we keep a tight grip on the seed and never plant it in the ground, what was intended to become something great and awe-inspiring will die in our hands.
Let’s be people who leave a legacy of stewarding well, what God has entrusted to us!