Owners vs. Stewards

Readings for today: Matthew 21-22, Psalms 91

I raised my kids to be independent thinkers. Strong-willed young women and a young man who can make their way in the world. I love how each of them is finding their place and it is a privilege to walk the journey with them. One of the many lessons I’ve tried to teach them is the difference between stewardship and ownership. When we grow up, we don’t own much. Everything from food to clothing to a roof over our heads is provided. Our job is to be good stewards. Clean our rooms. Follow the house rules. Take care of what we’ve been given. Then we get older. We graduate from high school. Become legally responsible. We start to become owners. We get a job. We pay the bills. We buy things like our own cars or cell phones. As a parent, I no longer have much authority over how my child takes care of their home or how much money they spend on gas or the number of apps they download on their phone.

All four Gospels tell the story of Jesus cleansing the Temple and this creates all kinds of confusion and chaos. When Jesus drives out the money-changers and turns over the tables of the loan sharks, the Jewish religious leaders ask Him an important question. “By what authority are you doing these things? Who gave you this authority?” (Matthew‬ ‭21‬:‭23‬ ‭CSB‬‬) In other words, who gave you the right to disrupt the Passover? Who told you to bring in the blind and the lame and begin healing? Will you not put a stop to the praises of the children? Jesus’ reply could not be more clear, My house shall be called a house of prayer but you make it a den of robbers. Jesus is claiming rightful ownership of the Temple. He is making it clear to the religious leaders that their stewardship of the sacred places has come to an end. The rightful owner is now on the scene and He will do with His house as He wills. And what is His will? His house shall be a place of prayer. A hospital for healing. A sanctuary for praise.  

Imagine how you would feel if someone lived in your home and trashed the place. I have a good friend who owns a rental house in the Denver area. Several years ago, a tenant used his house to grow weed and cook meth. After going to court to get his tenant evicted, my friend had to gut the house and start over. It cost him thousands of dollars not to mention the time and effort he had to put in to get his house back in working order so it could be rented again. Now put yourself in Jesus’ sandals. The people you’ve entrusted your home to have trashed the place. They have turned it into a den of robbers. Exploiting the pilgrims who come for Passover each year. They make hefty profits by price gouging the people, especially the poor. So He makes a whip of cords and drives them out. He turns over the tables and throws them out. Do you understand now why Jesus is so upset? Zeal for His own home has consumed Him and He will do whatever it takes to restore His house to it’s former glory.  

Now let me give you an even more radical take. Jesus doesn’t just assert His authority over His house, He asserts it over all of creation with the fig tree. Not only that but He tells His disciples that if they have faith and embrace the Kingdom life, they will be able to operate with His authority in the world. They will be able to do to the fig tree what Jesus did! Why? They are no longer tenants in God’s Kingdom but sons and daughters! In a sense, we’ve been given an “ownership” stake in all of creation and God expects us to exercise dominion and authority and responsibility in His name and for His glory.

Readings for tomorrow: Matthew 23-24, Psalms 92

By Whose Authority…

Readings for today: Matthew 21:23-46, 22:1-14, Mark 11:27-33, 12:1-12, Luke 20:1-18, John 12:37-50

I raised my kids to be independent thinkers. Strong-willed young men and women who can make their way in the world. I love how each of them is finding their place and it is a privilege to walk the journey with them. One of the many lessons I’ve tried to teach them is the difference between stewardship and ownership. When we grow up, we don’t own much. Everything from food to clothing to a roof over our heads is provided. Our job is to be good stewards. Clean our rooms. Follow the house rules. Take care of what we’ve been given. Then we get older. We graduate from high school. Become legally responsible. We start to become owners. We get a job. We pay the bills. We buy things like our own cars or cell phones. As a parent, I no longer have much authority over how my child takes care of their home or how much money they spend on gas or the number of apps they download on their phone.

All four Gospels tell the story of Jesus cleansing the Temple. Mark’s Gospel, however, contains a very important nugget of information. When Jesus drives out the money-changers and turns over the tables of the loan sharks, the Jews ask Him an important question. “Who authorized you to speak and act like this?” In other words, by whose authority do you do these things? Who gave you the right to disrupt the Passover? Who told you to bring in the blind and the lame and begin healing? Will you not put a stop to the praises of the children? Jesus’ reply could not be more clear, My house shall be called a house of prayer but you make it a den of robbers. Jesus is claiming rightful ownership of the Temple. He is making it clear to the religious leaders that their stewardship of the sacred places has come to an end. The rightful owner is now on the scene and He will do with His house as He wills. And what is His will? His house shall be a place of prayer. A hospital for healing. A sanctuary for praise.  

Imagine how you would feel if someone lived in your home and trashed the place. I have a good friend who owns a rental house in the Denver area. Several years ago, a tenant used his house to grow weed and cook meth. After going to court to get his tenant evicted, my friend had to gut the house and start over. It cost him thousands of dollars not to mention the time and effort he had to put in to get his house back in working order so it could be rented again. Now put yourself in Jesus’ sandals. The people you’ve entrusted your home to have trashed the place. They have turned it into a den of robbers. Exploiting the pilgrims who come for Passover each year. They make hefty profits by price gouging the people, especially the poor. So He makes a whip of cords and drives them out. He turns over the tables and throws them out. Do you understand now why Jesus is so upset? Zeal for His own home has consumed Him and He will do whatever it takes to restore His house to it’s former glory.  

Now let me give you an even more radical take. Jesus doesn’t just assert His authority over His house, He asserts it over all of creation with the fig tree. Not only that but He tells His disciples that if they have faith and embrace the Kingdom life, they will be able to operate with His authority in the world. They will be able to do to the fig tree what Jesus did or throw mountains into the heart of the sea. Most importantly, whatever they ask for in prayer will be given to them. Why? They are no longer tenants in God’s Kingdom but sons and daughters! In a sense, we’ve been given an “ownership” stake in all of creation and God expects us to exercise dominion and authority and responsibility in His name and for His glory.

Readings for tomorrow: Matthew 22:15-46, 23:1-39, Mark 12:13-44, Luke 20:19-47, 21:1-4, 13:31-35

God and Money

Readings for today: Haggai 1-2

“Well, the God I believe in isn’t short of cash, mister.” - Bono

Why does God care about our money? Why does He care about how much we make and how much we give? Why does God care about what each individual does with his or her wealth? Why does God care what the nations do with their wealth? Surely He doesn’t need it. Surely our currency holds no value in His Kingdom where the streets are literally paved with gold. Surely gold, silver, coins, and cash are worthless in a place where there is no need or lack or want. So why does God talk so much about money throughout the Bible? Why does God say things like He does today in our reading from Haggai,

“‘I own the silver, I own the gold.’ Decree of God-of-the-Angel-Armies.” (Haggai‬ ‭2‬:‭8‬ ‭MSG‬‬)

God cares about money because He cares about us. He cares about what money and wealth does to our hearts. He cares about what happens to us when we acquire too much, too quickly without having the spiritual maturity to handle it. He cares about us clinging to it. Trusting in it. Finding our safety and security in what we make or what we save or what we own. The love of money is one of the primary competitors to the love of God which is why the Bible calls it the “root of all kinds of evil.” The people in Haggai’s day delayed the rebuilding of the Temple because of a perceived lack of resources. God, however, knew better. Listen again to what He says, “A Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies: “The people procrastinate. They say this isn’t the right time to rebuild my Temple, the Temple of God.” Shortly after that, God said more and Haggai spoke it: “How is it that it’s the ‘right time’ for you to live in your fine new homes while the Home, God’s Temple, is in ruins?” And then a little later, God-of-the-Angel-Armies spoke out again: “Take a good, hard look at your life. Think it over. You have spent a lot of money, but you haven’t much to show for it. You keep filling your plates, but you never get filled up. You keep drinking and drinking and drinking, but you’re always thirsty. You put on layer after layer of clothes, but you can’t get warm. And the people who work for you, what are they getting out of it? Not much— a leaky, rusted-out bucket, that’s what.” That’s why God-of-the-Angel-Armies said: “Take a good, hard look at your life. Think it over.” (Haggai‬ ‭1‬:‭2‬-‭7‬ ‭MSG‬‬) The people in Haggai’s day had put the proverbial cart before the horse. They tried to provide for themselves rather than rely on God. They put their physical needs before their need to worship. They built fine homes and ate fine meals and drank fine wines while the work on the Temple languished. The problem was not a lack of resources but mixed up priorities.

We face the same struggle in our own day and time. The human heart hasn’t changed much over the years. We are still so easily tempted to fall in love with money. To place our trust in our own resources. To find our security in our wealth. This is especially true in a capitalistic society which prizes the pursuit of wealth and the accumulation of resources above just about everything else. Again, the issue isn’t money per se nor is it wealth per se, it’s what the accumulation of these things does to our hearts that puts us in grave spiritual danger. And this is why God is so quick to remind us that He owns it all. He owns all the silver and all the gold. He owns all the money and all the stock and all the bonds and all the banks on the earth. He is the one who holds all the resources of creation in His hands.

When we adopt this understanding, we are set free. Free to give generously and sacrificially of all we have to help those around us. Free to offer all we have in service to the Lord for the expansion of His Kingdom. Free to place our trust in the Lord for our provision rather than worry and fret over the state of our 401k. This is how God wants us to live and it is why He claims all things - including our money - as His own.

Readings for tomorrow: Zechariah 1-7