Stewardship Starts with Faith

Introduction

This morning, I want to begin a new series entitled “Managing God’s Money.” Over the next couple months, we will walk through several great passages where God addresses money and material things.
You’re probably wondering, “Why this series? Is Pastor Kit trying to squeeze more money out of me?” We will talk about giving because the Bible does, but that’s not what’s driving me. Rather, I’ve got 3 big reasons for doing this series right now. 
First, money is tight and people are stressed. I talk to people all the time who are worried about money. They’re barely making it, work is unsteady, debt is overwhelming, and it’s stressful. You can’t sleep. It strains your marriage. It hangs over everything. 
You’re not alone. Take a look at this chart on inflation. Inflation over the past 25 years is 92.6%! Everything in red has become terribly more expensive including essentials like food, housing, and medical care. Or consider this chart on housing. Affordable housing is crucial to a healthy middle class. In 1969 97% of communities had affordable housing. Today, it’s 21%. And people feel it. This is a chart on voter’s perceptions. The last line says that 44% of people think that having a family is unaffordable. Only 13% think it is affordable. That’s bad on multiple levels. So, I must talk about money because it’s on your mind, it’s a big part of life, and you must bring it under Christ’s lordship.
Second, materialism tugs at your heart. Credit card debt in America is $1.23 trillion! The average Californian has $9,000 in credit card debt. That is a big stressor. And that sort of debt generally reflects greed and discontentment in God’s provision. It’s a problem we must address.
Which brings me to my third reason. What you do with your money reflects and shapes your heart. That’s the main reason I am giving Sunday am real estate to this issue. God didn’t call me to be a financial advisor; he called me to be a pastor, and I care about your heart. And generally, bad financial practices reflect heart problems. 
Jesus agrees (read). I am starting here because managing God’s money must begin with a right view of God, strong faith, and a singular focus on serving him. My title today is, “Stewardship Starts with Faith.” Jesus challenges our faith and focus with a series of piercing questions. So, my outline consists of 3 questions and new attitude. The first question is…

i.  Is your life about things or about eternity (v. 25)?

Look at Jesus’ question at the end of v. 25. Ouch! Jesus is building off what he just said money and wealth (vv. 19–21). You have two options—invest in earthly treasures or heavenly ones. You can’t choose both (v. 24). You will either serve God or materialism. You will either live for this life or the next.
Maybe you’d say, “I’m poor. I can’t serve money because I don’t have any.” I hate to break it to you, but you’re exactly who Jesus has in mind. Verse 25 addresses people who are worried about basic necessities—food, drink, and clothing, and he mentions the same worries throughout the text.
So, you don’t have to be rich to serve wealth. No, plenty of poor people worry about things, and it consumes their focus. Therefore, Jesus confronts worry 6xs, in vv. 25, 27, 28, 31, 34 (2xs). And his prescription is faith, faith in God’s character and the value of his eternal reward. So, I want to say very clearly that the first step toward managing your money well is a right view of God and eternity. Let’s think about this some more. On one side…
A worrier believes life consists of things. Again, Jesus isn’t addressing people who are worried about a Mercedes, a vacation home in Malibu, or the latest entertainment center. No, they’re worried about food, water, and clothes. That’s hard for us to comprehend. 
Yes, food and even water has grown increasingly expensive, and they are probably straining your budget. But none of us are facing starvation, and we have more than enough water to drink with the turn of a nob. Maybe you’ve complained, “I have nothing to wear!” but it’s not literally true. 
But in Jesus’ day, daily bread was a real thing. You worked today to buy tomorrow’s food. And if you depended on a nearby stream for your water, what do you do if it dries up during a famine? And most people only had one, maybe two changes of clothing. They were so precious that it was a big deal to inherit a garment when a relative died. 
So, Jesus isn’t talking about wants but about needs. Imagine how you would panic if you truly had no food, or if you had no clothes to keep your children warm during winter. You’d probably react like v. 31.
And yet Jesus asks, “Is not life…” What is he saying? The worrier believes that life consists of things. When you are a slave to material concerns, you are saying, “I need food more than I need God. God can wait; food and clothing cannot wait.”
Of course, Jesus is not telling you to quit your job and neglect your family. The Bible talks plenty about these responsibilities. Rather, he is confronting a core assumption of most sinners. You often believe life consists of things. You think this world is more real than the next. So, what’s the solution? 
A disciple believes that life is for eternity (vv. 19–20). Managing God’s money well begins with believing that money is not that important because this life is simply preparation for the next. Things last for a moment, but eternity is forever. So, don’t waste your life chasing things that bugs can destroy. Live for eternal treasures.
So, take a moment to consider the biggest stressors in your life. What consumes your focus, your heart, and your budget? Are you living like someone who believes that life is about food, clothing, hobbies, or something else in this world? Or do you live like someone who believes that life is for eternity? You must train yourself to think rightly about the stuff of this life and to give all your heart to preparing for the next life. Jesus’ 2nd convicting question is…

II.  Are you God, or is God, God (v. 27)?

Jesus knows what you are thinking when you hear all this talk about living for eternity. “Jesus, I can’t afford to give generously.” Or “I can’t quit my job over my convictions. I need it.” Or “Getting to church isn’t that important. My son needs a scholarship.” On it goes. Jesus knows our worries stand in the way of serving God. So, the point of vv. 26–34 is to say, “Serve God and trust him to take care of the rest” (v. 33). 
That’s hard because we think way too much of ourselves and way too little of God. So, Jesus wants to raise your view of God and lower your view of self. With that in mind notice the question of v. 27. Are you God, or is God, God?
Jesus exposes our absurdity. Worry will not lengthen your life, but people lay awake all the time worrying about death. Ironically, they are only aging themselves and potentially shortening their lives. So much of what we think and do makes no sense. On the one hand, Jesus confronts the fact that…
A worrier has a high view of self. In other words, one of the biggest reasons we worry is because we try to carry the weight of the world on our shoulders. We think it’s up to me to fix all my problems, or we think the world revolves around my ability or inability to solve everything. 
One reason we stress about money and compromise our service to Christ is that we assume I am the answer to my financial problems. 
But Jesus says, “How arrogant of you to pretend that you are sovereign.” Men, your children need the Lord more than they need any financial advantage or experience you can give them. You are proud if your actions say otherwise. God is sovereign, not you. 
Prosperity is a blessing, but it tempts you to believe you are sovereign. If I work hard enough, save enough money, and invest wisely, I can shield myself from all hardship. You believe, “I have made myself safe. I am in control of my future.” How arrogant! You are very small. So, what is the solution?
A disciple has a high view of God. God is sovereign, not you. So, stop trusting your abilities and instead trust the Lord to provide. 
Of course, the wrench in all this is that God expects you to work, budget, and save. I’m not telling you to quit your job and give away all your money. And there is legitimate pressure that comes with responsibility. Jesus is not telling you to ignore reality or God-given responsibility. We can’t escape that pressure and we shouldn’t. 
But you cross a line when taking responsibility turns into compromising God’s priorities. For example, how many Christians give hardly anything to the church, and they are rarely generous to their neighbor because generosity must wait until after they put aside 10% for retirement, pay off their debt, and build a big college fund for their children? They never say it, but they believe my control matters more than God’s favor. I must provide because I don’t trust God to do it for me. 
So, managing God’s money begins with faith. You must believe that God is good, wise, and absolutely sovereign. The test of your faith is, are you willing to obey him to the point that you aren’t sure how it will all work out, but you know God will provide. You value God’s favor over your own manmade security.
American prosperity has corrupted many of our assumptions about what we must control. There’s no room left for faith in a big God. Step back and evaluate how many hours you must work, what you can afford to give, and how much time you should invest in ministry.
Do you believe that you are God or that God is God? Face Jesus’ question honestly. Jesus’ 3rd convicting question is…

III.  Does God care for you (v. 26, 28–32)?

Once again, faith is hard because it requires ceding control to God. That scares us. Notice first…
A worrier doubts the goodness of God. Once again, Jesus highlights our most basic needs. First, v. 26 confronts how we worry about food while birds don’t worry at all.
Birds are a great illustration because they are not lazy. Have you ever watched a small bird work feverishly? They work hard. So, Jesus is not saying you should kick back in your Lazy Boy and wait for God to send you food.
But birds don’t stress like we do. They don’t “sow,” “reap,” or “gather into barns.” They don’t worry about the future. Instead, they trust their God-given abilities and the ecosystem God has provided.
BTW, some of some of these things are incredible. I enjoy watching wildlife shows, and it’s amazing to see how God has given unique abilities to a wide variety of birds to live and thrive in all sorts of environments. God cares for birds in magnificent ways. 
So, Jesus asks, “Are you not worth much more than they?” What a question! God loves you infinitely more than he does a bird. Jesus died for you. So, why do we worry that God will let us starve? It’s absurd. 
What would you think if one of your kids came to you and said, “Dad, I am really worried that you are going to let me starve.” You’d think, “That’s ridiculous! I would die before I would let that happen. Don’t you know how much I love you?” God is just as complexed when we worry about things. Why do we doubt his goodness when he has done so much for us?
Then Jesus reinforces his point by talking about lilies and grass. He is probably thinking of something very similar to the beautiful desert blooms we get in the spring. 
Wildflowers don’t toil like men laboring in the field or spin, referring to ladies at home feverishly working to spin yarn. Instead, the flowers just stay in their place and let God grow them. 
And God does a marvelous job. Verse 29 says, “Not even Solomon…” Solomon had a legendary wardrobe and lifestyle. But it doesn’t compare to the beauty of a valley of wildflowers.
God is good, and God is generous. The evidence is everywhere. God didn’t just make a functional world; he made a beautiful one. 
So, consider Jesus’ question in v. 30. He’s describing how Jewish women used dead grass to start the fires in their ovens. It makes a quick flash, but you need something to more to bake bread. Dead grass is worthless.
Yet for a time God marvelously clothes it with wildflowers. Therefore, Jesus asks, “If God cares this way for something as worthless as grass, ‘Will He not much more clothe you?’” Why do we doubt him? 
But we do. Jesus adds, “You of little faith.” Ouch! When I worry about material things, I have failed to believe that God is good, kind, and faithful. So, what’s the solution?
A disciple rests in God’s goodness. God is good. God is generous. Do you believe that (7:9–11)? You will never be a good steward of God’s money until you believe Jesus. 
Now, Jesus is not saying that his purpose is always comfortable and pleasant in the moment. Jesus doesn’t promise bountiful blessings and a life of ease. Sometimes his purpose is painful. Earlier in the Sermon, Jesus warned that many of his disciples will be persecuted. We don’t like that. We want to be comfortable.
But Jesus said, “Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” You must believe that God’s purpose is better than your own. If God takes your comfort, it’s okay because Jesus has something better for you. In the short term he is forming godliness in you and genuine godliness brings joy and peace that stuff will never bring.
And life is for eternity. It’s okay if life down here is hard because I have eternity to enjoy the Lord. The same is true for your children. Who cares if they get to Disneyland or make it big on Wall Street? Prepare them for eternity so that they can enjoy the blessings of God forever. 
God is good! God is generous! Stop worrying about this thing and that. Focus on your good God and trust that he will give you what is truly good. Good stewardship starts with faith. When you have strong faith, you can embrace…

IV.  A New Attitude: Serve God and let him take care of the rest (vv. 31–34).

Once again, we must hear Jesus in the context of the entire Bible. The Bible commands us to work hard. Providing is a core responsibility of biblical manhood. The wise man prepares for the future. You should set your children up for success. 
But don’t let any of these become your god because, “No one can serve two masters…You cannot serve God and wealth.” So, how should you live? Verse 33 establishes a new attitude.   
Jesus says, “seek first His kingdom and His righteousness.” I love that simplicity. One of our biggest reasons we worry is that we feel like we are being pulled in 50 directions at once. Jesus gives you two priorities. 
First, seek his kingdom, meaning the coming kingdom of Christ. Jesus will come again, conquer evil, and reconcile all things to himself in a righteous, just, and compassionate kingdom that will last for 1,000 years prior to the eternal state.
So, Jesus is urging you to live for the next life, not this one. Prepare for eternity. Of course, a huge aspect of living for the kingdom is bringing along as many people as possible. John the Baptist cried, “Repent for the kingdom of God is at hand.” Jesus did the same. And v. 33 commands you to fulfill your role in calling others to salvation and mature discipleship. 
You have all eternity to enjoy creature comforts, but you only have a short time to make an eternal impact. Invest in eternity. Make sure your family knows that you care about their souls more than anything else. Seek first the kingdom with your budget. Put your money where your mouth is and be generous and missional. Seek the kingdom.
Don’t miss the fact that Jesus says, “seek His righteousness.” Throughout the Sermon Jesus continually emphasizes practical righteousness. You must be honest, love your spouse, love your friends and your enemies, pray, fast, and on it goes. Be righteous. I tell parents all the time that the best gift you can give your kids is your own godliness. It’s the best advantage you can give. So, press toward Jesus.
But you may think, “It’s not that simple. I must make a lot of money. I must save for retirement. I must build a college fund.” I don’t want to discount any of those. Praise God if he allows you to have them. But don’t serve them. 
Let God take care of the rest because Jesus promises, “all these things will be added to you.” He doesn’t mean you’ll be wealthy. In context he means food, drink, and clothing.” But Jesus promises to meet your needs. He promises to meet your family’s needs. God will take care of you as you do his will.

Conclusion

We’re going to get to lots of other practical things about finance. But none of it matters if your heart is full of pride, self-reliance, and greed. Stewardship starts with faith and an eternal focus.
Jesus is calling you to fundamentally shift how you think about life. You must believe that God will take care of you. You must believe that life is about God, not material things. Be honest with yourself. Maybe you are living for wealth and fitting God in the cracks. See that he is good, and he is strong. Seek God and trust him to provide.