“EVERYTHING BELONGS TO GOD”
The world around us says: You are what you own. We are owners and consumers – what we buy is ours to do with as we will.
But we say everything belongs to God. We are stewards, making responsible decisions about all that which is entrusted to our care.
PEOPLE FORGET THAT WE REALLY DON’T OWN ANYTHING. EVERYTHING BELONGS TO GOD. WE ARE JUST HIS STEWARDS!
Oftentimes, we hear people casually say “My mansion, my billions, my Mercedes Benz, my law office, my land, my building, my company etc. But if one thinks deeper, one will realize that we DO NOT REALLY OWN ANYTHING in this world. EVERYTHING belongs to and comes from God. We are merely His Stewards. What most people forget is that we are all just transients/travellers here on Earth.
Time and again, great powers collapse and come to an end, be they kings, heroes, world leaders, tycoons, generals and military commanders, professionals, etc. All of them at some point in time pass on to the Great Beyond.
As humans, we get attached to material possessions and honours. That explains the thinking with almost all politicians and holders of positions of power. Once they get to taste power, it is very hard for them to give that up, but what we easily forget is that we basically have NOTHING, as all our talents and good fortune come from God. We were born naked and we will exit from this world with NOTHING as well.
We own nothing. We are entitled to nothing. Even our titles are nothing. We are all stewards, and nothing and no one lasts forever. We are all pilgrims, and we are all just passing by. We all will die, sooner or later. We will carry nothing with us when we leave this world. And we hope we don’t leave our mess behind, just because we were selfish and proud.
PROPERTY THAT BELONGS TO CHRIST
Our lives are not our own. Our time is not our own. Our minds and hearts are not our own. Our relationships are not our own. Our skills and abilities are not our own. They all belong to Jesus Christ, yet we still must decide how to use our lives, our time, relationships, skills and abilities.
We have the new covenant gift of managing someone else’s property. The biblical term for a person who does this is steward.
In the parable of the faithful and wise steward, we see this concept. “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
But suppose the servant says to himself, `My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the menservants and maidservants and to eat and drink and get drunk. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.
That servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows, but the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked” (Luke 12:42-48).
Everything we have is to be used in the Lord’s work. That applies to physical property such as our bodies and homes. It also applies to intangible things such as emotions, relationships and spiritual gifts. Everything we have is the Lord’s. Everything we have should be used for his honor and glory.
At the end of our lives when we meet our Creator, He is not going to ask us for our school report cards; nor ask if we are Summa Cum Laudes or Honours Students; nor inquire if we are lawyers or doctors or engineers; nor interrogate us if we are billionaires or CEOs or Prime Ministers.
He will be more interested in asking us: “What have you done with your life when you were on Earth? What good deeds have you done to improve the lives of your fellow human beings?”
Ladies and gentlemen, when OUR time comes up, HOW would you answer this question when asked?
