“…Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look I, have gained five more…” Matthew 25:20 (NKJV)
Stewards are overseers entrusted by their superiors with the responsibility of caring for their goods. The New Testament likens a steward to a curator, a manager, or even a superintendent responsible for a household.
In Ephesians 2:8 Paul speaks about the stewardship of God’s grace that God had entrusted him with to preach the Gospel to the nations. Similarly, we as Christians have been entrusted by God with the responsibility to share the Gospel of Jesus throughout the earth (Matthew 28:19). Every Christian has been given resources by God in the form of gifts, and we will have to give an account for our stewardship of these gifts when we meet Him (1 Peter 4:10).
As faithful stewards, God expects us to use every gift He has given us to advance the Kingdom. This means doing our part in the House of God and serving faithfully in whichever area of ministry He has led us to serve in. We also have a responsibility to represent God well and serve Him faithfully in the marketplace. That includes making an effort to share the Gospel with those we interact with daily and letting our lives be a godly example.
It is of utmost importance that we take care not to mismanage the gifts that God has entrusted us with. We do not want to be caught in the category of the unfaithful servant who buried the talent his master entrusted him with. He was cast into outer darkness as a reward for his unfaithfulness. We must strive to become like the two faithful servants who multiplied their talents so that when we meet our Master, we will hear ‘Well done thou good and faithful servant’ and enter into His rest as our reward.
Prayer
Father and God, we come to You today to thank You for every gift that You have placed within us – those that we are aware of and those that are unknown to us. We ask that You stir up and unearth every gift that You’ve blessed us with and empower us to faithfully steward them so that Your purposes for us may be accomplished and Your kingdom may be multiplied on the earth. Thank You for doing it, Lord. In Jesus’ name, we pray, Amen.
Read: Genesis 2:15; 2 Corinthians 9:6
Bible Reading Guide: Psalm 119:121-128; Philemon 1; Lamentations 2:7-22; Lamentations 3:1-39
