BOARD OF STEWARDSHIP  - April 2021

Our Father in heaven sent His Son, Jesus, to be our Savior. His atoning sacrifice is the first fruits of all the dead, a pleasing aroma to His Father, so that His perfect life and death count for all who believe in Him. He claimed us as His own children in Holy Baptism. He sustains and strengthens our faith with His Holy Word and His Body and Blood.

As new creatures, who have put on Christ, we bear good fruit. We do the good works prepared for us, which He makes known to us in His Word. By faith then, trusting in the Word of God, we do what he says because He does not lie and always keeps His promises. For “without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him” (Heb. 11:6).

And so the Lord promises: “Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the first fruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine” (Prov. 3:9- 10). How do we honor the Lord with the wealth that God has given us in His generosity? By giving generously to those whom the Lord has called us to love and support: your family, your society, and your church. And His promise is that, in so doing, you will never lack.

A common counterpoint is: “But that’s from the Old Testament!” Our Lord Jesus Himself gives us similar promises in the New Testament. He says, at the conclusion of the parable of the talents: “For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance” (Matt. 25:29).

And then at the end of the parable of the dishonest manager, he says: “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own? No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money” (Luke 16:10–13).

And in His sermon on the mount, he says: “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt.6:19–21).

We have become conditioned against these promises because of their misuse by the peddlers of the prosperity gospel – the guys on TV who say you get rich by putting God in your debt. And thus, we miss out on the fact that God does reward temporal faithfulness in temporal matters with temporal blessings. It’s no quid pro quo. It’s all from God’s grace and His fatherly divine goodness and mercy. But those Bible passages do in fact say what they say! It’s not the Old Testament’s problem. It’s ours. It is almost as if we have become so jaded against this that we think it a virtue to be stingy with our offerings.

But our Father in heaven still loves to bless those who bless others. He loves to give to those who give freely and generously. In fact, he challenges us to challenge Him: “Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need” (Mal. 3:10).

And so, while we don’t give so that we would get, we do receive from the Lord in order to give, and He will bless your giving with more receiving. As St. Paul wrote in Rom. 8:32: “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”

A Stewardship Message!

As you may be aware, there is continuing discussion about our Ministry Spending Plan. I know a good number of God’s People become defensive when confronted with the prospect of not funding the Church Mission effectively. Managing the MSP is like juggling eggs.

The slightest mistake will result in broken eggs. We are always on the brink of failing to pay for salaries or services that we as a congregation have committed to maintain.

There are several points that need to be considered. First, what is your level of giving? The Old Testament calls us to give of our Tithes. Do you remember that a Tithe is 10% of one’s income? Actual offering gifts to General Fund varies from $10 to $600 per week per gift. Bear in mind, some give monthly as they receive their income monthly. But I ask you to think about your giving if you give less than $100 per week. Did you know or realize that when you give a check for $25.00, you are stating that you only received $250 for the past week? Then what about $50? When was the last time you thought about your giving? I have seen people give the exact same amount for 10 years or more, not realizing how much less they are giving in relationship to their income!

Now, I am going to make a statement that will cause feedback. You can designate any offering you want to whatever cause you wish. There are those who give only to Debt Reduction or the Mortgage or building fund. These gifts do not support our church mission. They are misguided in their support of Christ’s mission for our lives. While we need a church building, what good is a church building if there is no church mission?

Gifts to the General Fund, Advent, Lent, Ash Wednesday, Maundy Thursday, and Easter all go to support our MSP. We are reminded to give first to God, what is God’s to begin with. This is before we pay for our rent, food, utilities, etc. Once we have satisfied all of our debts, then we can offer additional offerings to designated causes such as Food Pantry, Pastor’s Discretion, or Homeless Meals etc.

I have been asked to put forward an idea. What if we all gave an extra $5 per week (designated MSP). We receive about 45 General Fund gifts each week, total. This would increase our giving by $225 per week or $11,700 per year. While this may seem impressive, it is not practical unless we all make this commitment.

It is up to each one to prayerfully consider our response to the Gospel. Being Faithful Stewards of the Gifts of God is the center of our church life. My term on the Stewardship team will end on May 31 regardless of someone else stepping forward; I am term limited.

Always remember that a long time ago and in a distant land, Christ humbled himself and become flesh and blood, just like us. He took upon himself all the sins of the world in a time when we knew him not. He gave up His life for our sake. Certainly, we can center our lives on His, pick up our Crosses, and follow Him.

~Rick Mizell, Board of Stewardship Member