Teaching His disciples, Jesus began to use this parable: “There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and an accusation was brought to him that this man was wasting his goods…” (Luke 16:1). Let us pause here. The Lord introduces a concept of stewardship and ownership — where there is an owner and one who manages the resources of the one who owns. This is an important distinction for the child of God because of the behaviour that follows whether one believes they are an owner or a steward. Owners carry the full weight on their shoulders because everything is up to them; they carry the risk and the full responsibility for the resources, while stewards operate under the set understanding that there is someone greater than them, who is responsible for them and who they can always lean on in times of need. This is the same distinction that drove the apostles in Scripture to refer to themselves as slaves, workers, bondservants of the Lord Jesus Christ, because they knew that they did not send themselves, and that everything they do, they do in the power of, and to the glory of Jesus. Their lives did not belong to them (Galatians 2:20), their bodies were not their own (1 Corinthians 6:19); there was someone responsible for them, and they did not have to have the answer to every question life threw at them — they belonged to the Master. What a relief! What a cause of rest!
When our mentality shifts from thinking like owners and lords over our own life, with the understanding that we belong to God, we begin to think and operate like stewards. We come to the understanding that “every good and perfect gift comes from above” (James 1:17) and that we are not the strength of our own lives. This liberty then propels us into submission and agreement with the Lord, because our arsenals understand that He is the one in charge. This becomes evident through our ability to follow grace instructions; no matter how big the task ahead of you seems — if God said to do it, you have the assurance that He will supply the grace needed for completion and success. This was the understanding of Abraham, that while he prayed for Isaac for many years, he knew that Isaac’s life belonged to God and He could do with it whatsoever He pleased. However hard, he was able to agree with God’s call for Isaac’s life (Genesis 22:2), because he concluded that “God was able to raise him up, even from the dead…” (Hebrews 11:19). Had he then chosen to disobey God, because he believed Isaac belonged to him and he had the final say, he would have failed the test of God.
Abraham’s stewardship mentality can also be seen at a time when he had contentions with his nephew Lot over their resources and living arrangements. Abraham told Lot to choose the land where he would settle, and Lot chose that which appeared to be green and prosperous towards the east, and Abraham settled in the opposite direction. After they had parted, the Lord came to Abraham and said, “Look around from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west. All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever” (Genesis 13:14). It did not matter to him where he ended up; he knew who backed him, and he knew by whose power he prospered. Lot did not have that same revelation; he believed himself an owner, and his fate was not favourable, needing Abraham to rescue him from the very thing he chose himself (Genesis 14). Let us learn from Abraham, who humbled himself under the government of the Lord and put himself under the full care and responsibility of the Lord, who then cared for him and prospered him in all his ways. Stewards do not worry; they rest in the power of their Master, and we have the greatest Master of all—Jesus! Amen!
Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for this fresh understanding that You have brought us. An understanding that we are stewards and not owners, an understanding that we belong to You and that You are responsible for our lives. We thank You for liberty, peace and rest. And we pray for our minds to receive this light, in the name of Jesus. Amen!
