Bible Text: Ephesians 4:23-24 | Preacher: Pastor Steve | Series: Stewardship
Stewardship
…refers to the caretaking of anything that God has given to us
…involves the responsibility of managing God’s work and resources through the church
…is not an option
Relationships are the Oxygen of Human Development
Jesus established the Biblical Relational Mandate: Jesus gathered men and women around him and he entered into a relationship with them—shaping them to become shapers of the world.
BUT…
We are TOO BUSY
We love our independence
We love being in control
Ephesians 4:23-24 Let the spirit change your way of thinking, and make you into a new person.
Romans 12:5 Since we are all one body in Christ, we belong to each other and each of us needs all the others.
God wants us to walk through life with other people for three reasons:
It’s safer
It’s supportive
It’s smarter
When you run alone, you run fast. But when you run together, you run far.
Proverbs 12:15 The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but he who heeds counsel is wise.
We have been created to be part of God’s community
Hebrews 2:10 God is the one who made all things, and all things are for His glory. He wanted to have many children share His glory. His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ.
Proverbs 15:22 Plans go wrong for lack of advice; many counselors bring success.
The Basic Law of Relationships
We tend to become like the people we spend time with.
Proverbs 13:20 Whoever walks with the wise will become wise; whoever walks with fools will suffer harm
Philippians 2:5-11 Your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God. He made himself nothing; he took the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form.   And in human form he obediently humbled himself even further by dying a criminal’s death on a cross. Because of this, God raised him up to the heights of heaven and gave him a name that is above every other name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father
Interdependency
Genesis 2:18-25 And the LORD God said, It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.
We are Image Bearers
Genesis 1:26-28 Then God said, Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth…God blessed them, and God said to them, Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.
We are Image Bearers
Our potentiality
Our responsibility
Our stewardship
Psalm 8:4-8
One Heart One Mind
1 Corinthians 12:26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it. If one part is praised, every part rejoices with it.
We are at our best when we function as a healthy biblical community
Mi casa es su casa!
Acts 4:32 All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had