Main Text: 1 Timothy 6
Finishing the Stewardship Conversation
We are finishing today our study on how to be a good steward. That is what we have been looking at for several weeks now, even with the interruptions of snow and everything else that came along. We have been considering how to steward well the many things that God has placed into our lives.
Throughout this series, we have talked about stewarding our souls, stewarding our minds, stewarding our time, and stewarding many other aspects of life. If there is one primary principle I hope you take home from all of this, it is this: if you have something in your life, God gave it to you. It belongs to Him, and we are called to use it for His glory. If you have grasped that, then these weeks have not been wasted.
Yet there is one area we have not addressed directly until now. When most people hear the word stewardship, they think immediately of money and possessions. They think about finances. They think about tangible belongings. I intentionally did not begin there, because I wanted us to understand that we are called to steward much more than what we own. We are called to steward who we are. Still, we cannot ignore the tangible. We must consider how to steward our possessions well.
A Complicated Relationship with Money
As Christians, we have a complicated relationship with money and possessions, and the climate of the modern church has made it even more complicated.
On one side, we see the prosperity gospel. It has gained attention and influence in the United States. There are televangelists who have made millions preaching a message they have crafted, a message that essentially says if you follow Jesus, give Him your life, give enough money to the preacher, and do all the right things, God will fill your life with tangible blessings. If you are not rich, then perhaps your faith is lacking. Perhaps you have not given enough.
On the other side, we live in a culture completely consumed with material possessions. If people are not living for entertainment, they are living for money. They are living for the next purchase, the next upgrade, the next experience. Retail stores surround us. Car dealerships, mattress stores, toy aisles, and endless online carts all testify to a society engrossed with buying.
So we have a distorted gospel about possessions, and we have a culture obsessed with possessions. Then we open the Bible, looking for clarity, and at first it almost seems more confusing. Jesus speaks about denying yourself, taking up your cross, and following Him. He tells one man to sell what he has. He reminds another that “foxes have holes, and birds have nests,” yet He had nowhere to lay His head.
Yet we also read about David, who amassed great riches while following God, about Solomon, the wealthiest and wisest man in the world, and about Abraham, who was blessed in abundance. We do not see these men condemned for their wealth.
So what does a right relationship with money and possessions look like according to the Word of God? How do we live in a world full of things and do so in a way that honors and glorifies Him?
To answer that, we turn to 1 Timothy 6.
“But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.”
— 1 Timothy 6:6–8
“For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”
— 1 Timothy 6:10
“Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;
That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate;
Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.”
— 1 Timothy 6:17–19
From this passage, we find three guiding principles for stewarding our possessions for the glory of God.
1. Be Grateful
Paul tells us, “godliness with contentment is great gain.” He reminds us that we brought nothing into this world and will carry nothing out. With food and clothing, we are to be content.
God is the giver of good gifts. When He created the world, He called it not just good, but very good. He created food to taste good. He created beauty to be enjoyed. He placed Adam in the garden and told him to cultivate it and enjoy it.
The pleasures of creation were designed to point us to the greater glory of the Creator. When we admire a painting, we want to know who painted it. When we see something beautiful, we look for the name attached to it. In the same way, when we enjoy good food, a comfortable home, or a climate-controlled car ride to church, these are not random conveniences. They are gifts meant to stir gratitude toward the God who made them possible.
There is nothing wrong with thanking God for your mattress, your meal, or your vehicle. You are not in sin for having things. Paul even says that God “giveth us richly all things to enjoy.”
The disconnect comes when we are so focused on having more that we fail to appreciate what is already in front of us. The average American would be considered wealthy by much of the world. You may not feel rich, but to many, you are. Gratitude and contentment guard the heart from greed.
Be grateful.
2. Be Guarded
While we are told to enjoy what God has given, we are also warned.
“But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare…”
— 1 Timothy 6:9
Notice the distinction. Paul does not condemn being rich. He warns about desiring to be rich. Those whose will, whose aim, whose driving ambition is wealth fall into a trap.
Money itself is not evil. It is a tool. But “the love of money is the root of all evil.” When possessions move from being tools to being treasures, when they take the place that belongs only to God, we are in danger.
We were meant to use possessions for God’s glory. Instead, our sinful hearts begin to worship them. We wait for the next release, the next upgrade, the next financial milestone, and without realizing it, we begin serving the possessions rather than using them.
Paul describes this as a snare, a trap. When you want something badly enough, you will justify almost anything to get it. The desire for riches leads to “many foolish and hurtful lusts.”
The presence of possessions is not the problem. The posture of the heart is. Be grateful for what you have, but be guarded that those things do not own you.
3. Be Giving
Paul gives a direct charge to the rich, and it is not to abandon their wealth, but to steward it properly.
“That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate.”
— 1 Timothy 6:18
To “communicate” in this context means to share, to provide for the needs of others. We are to hold our possessions with an open hand. Enjoy them while they are in your care, but when God moves you to give, give.
God has not given us resources to create stagnant reservoirs. He has made us to be streams, passing His goodness on to others. Imagine what the church would look like if we were as concerned with meeting one another’s needs as we are with meeting our own. Imagine the testimony to the world.
You may say, “I do not have much to give.” God is not measuring the amount. He is looking at the heart. He is pleased with cheerful generosity, whether it is five dollars or the keys to a house.
Paul goes further:
“Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come…”
When you give, you are investing in eternity. The rewards of heaven are not theoretical. Paul spoke confidently of the crown laid up for him. God promises real, tangible reward in the life to come. There is nothing you part with in this life that He will not repay in greater measure.
It will be worth it.
A Final Challenge
As you leave this place and go enjoy the tangible blessings God has given you, I challenge you to do three things this week.
First, intentionally enjoy what God has given you with gratitude.
Second, guard your heart so that possessions never take the place of the Giver.
Third, make one intentional act of giving. Choose someone. Meet a need. It does not have to be large, but let it be deliberate.
If we make generosity a habit, we will see the blessings of God in ways we have not before.
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