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The Sermon on the Amount
by Heidi Husted
Text: Matthew 6:19-24
Topic: What stewardship isn't and is
Big Idea: Stewardship means investing 100 percent of everything we have and are with God.
Keywords: Stewardship; Money; Tithing; Giving
Introduction:
- Illustration: A little girl is overcome by tears after she learns to tie her shoes, because she's going to have to do this the rest of her life.
- That's how some of us feel about Christian stewardship.
- Stewardship is a lifestyle God has called us to.
- Stewardship includes money.
We must invest in heaven and not earth.
- Earthly treasure is a bad investment.
- Illustration: Joke: When Jack Benny was accosted with "Your money or your life," he says, "I'm thinking, I'm thinking."
- Illustration: Clarence Jordan quote: "Most of our assets are not taken with a pistol but with a pencil."
- Illustration: A corpse was found in Pompeii of a woman clutching jewels as she tried to flee the erupting volcano.
- Illustration: Jim Elliot quote: "A person is no fool to give up what he cannot keep in order to gain what he cannot lose."
- Instead, make big investments in heaven.
- Heavenly investments are a sure thing, for we are valuing what is really valuable, eternal.
You cannot invest in both heaven and earth.
- We cannot serve God and the good life.
- If we do, everything becomes blurry, or we'll be in the dark.
- Jesus wants us to consolidate the capital of our lives and to be about God's business.
- We cannot serve two masters.
- Illustration: Professor Dale Bruner says when we try to be a part-time devotee to the god success, we will lose touch with the living Lord.
We need to clear up some misconceptions about stewardship.
- Jesus is not saying we can't earn a living.
- He is not saying it is wrong to be rich or talented of have time and energy on your hands.
- Jesus is not saying we can't have things.
- Just because we don't have a lot of money, doesn't mean this doesn't all apply to us.
- Stewardship is not about how much of what I own I will give to God.
- It is not about balancing the budget.
- It is not about paying dues.
- It is not fundamentally a fund-raising program.
Conclusion
- Fundamentally, stewardship is about giving 100 percent of who I am to God.
- Illustration: The historian who discovered the account ledger of the Duke of Wellington thinks he has good clue as to what the duke thought was really important.
- What if someone found our checkbook—what would they say are our priorities?
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