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[0:00] 1 Corinthians 4 Let a man some account of us as of the ministers of Christ, as stewards of the mysteries of God.

[0:18] ! Moreover, it is required in stewards that a man be found faithful. Stewardship. A steward is one who has been entrusted with something.

[0:31] And Paul speaks here of people entrusted with the gospel. He says we are ministers, or servants in other words, and also we are stewards.

[0:42] Stewards, it's got something more than just being a servant, we're actually all stewards as well. And stewardship is right through the book, right back from Genesis. We see that from the beginning of time, God entrusted the earth to Adam and Eve, right from the beginning.

[1:02] To mankind, he gave that stewardship to be caretakers of the planet. And yet God retains the overall rulership.

[1:15] He's really sovereign. He's created all things. And yet, he entrusts things to us. And that's the wonder of stewardship. Because it means that we all have a responsibility.

[1:27] Every one of us has some responsibility. And there was a man, Daniel Webster, a famous American man. He said, He said, He said, He said, He said, He said, When it all boiled down to it, that was the most important thing for him.

[1:47] My responsibility to God. And when Daniel Webster made this statement, he was in a room with all these famous people, statesmen from different countries.

[1:58] It was a banquet. There were presidents there, heads of state. Lots of famous people were there. And they were there to honour him. And during that banquet, someone asked him, Mr. Webster, what is the most profound thought that ever entered into your mind?

[2:13] And that's what he replied with. He said, His responsibility to God. In fact, he made that statement. And when he did it, he became so emotionally affected, he had to excuse himself.

[2:25] And he went out and then came back into the room. And then for 30 minutes, he talked about the responsibility that he felt of managing the resources that God had given to him.

[2:37] The most important responsibility, the most important thought I ever had, was that of my individual responsibility to God. That's what we're talking about today, is about that responsibility, that stewardship, that God has entrusted to you, to you, to me, to each one of us, a responsibility, a stewardship.

[3:00] The things that we have are not our own. In Psalm 24 verse 1 it says, The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and they that dwell therein.

[3:12] Everything belongs to God. Everything. All of my time, all of my money, all of my abilities, they all belong to God. And it's all glory to him.

[3:23] And, you know, it's easy to sing that song, I surrender all. And yet surrender very little, really, don't we? When it really comes down to it, we surrender very little of our lives.

[3:37] But really, it is all his. All that we have is his. And stewardship is that principle that in the New Testament we see that stewardship meant house management.

[3:52] It meant of that trusted, responsible servant who had a special responsibility, an authority within the home that was given by the owner.

[4:04] An authority to manage the things of the household, whether it was a farm or a business, or some other affairs of the owner that were entrusted to the steward in that special capacity.

[4:17] Now we could compare it these days with, for example, a manager of a restaurant. They don't own the restaurant, but they manage it. They run the business on behalf of the owner.

[4:29] According to his aims and purposes, the manager makes their day-by-day decisions about how to deliver what the owner wants. And it's the same with our stewardship for God.

[4:40] That we really are just entrusted with things for this lifespan that we live. And yet, it is all owned, really, by the Master, our God.

[4:53] And stewardship speaks of the responsibilities every one of us have that we've been given. As it did speak in the Bible days of the guardian of the children and the administrator of the affairs of the household.

[5:08] They would look after things in the absence of the owner. And stewardship for us these days means that wise management that God wants for us to have of his resources.

[5:19] And friends today, every one of you here today has gifts and abilities and callings, responsibilities to live that life that he has given you to breathe, to live and to decide what you do with your life.

[5:37] He's given you that measure of, he's entrusted you to wisely decide how to live. With that very finite resource of your life.

[5:49] You know, in case you didn't realise it, your life is finite on this planet. It's a finite resource. It's a very precious resource, isn't it? You know, people talk about the oil running out one day.

[6:02] Well, more important is the hours of your life are running out. Like sand through the hourglass. So are the days of our lives. Who said that? That's not in the Bible.

[6:12] But it's a Bible principle, isn't it? Like sand through the hourglass. That's the reality of it, brothers and sisters. And the responsibilities are yours and mine. How we live our lives with that finite resource that he grants us by his grace.

[6:28] Every day is a gift. That's why they call it the present. And we should value it. So we are stewards. Stewards. And everything we have. Everything we have.

[6:39] Not just our possessions, but our personality, our abilities, our experiences, our opportunities, our learning, our family, our friends.

[6:51] Everything is his. Given and entrusted to us. For a time. For a season. To you and to me. So let's thoughtfully consider the impact of our lives.

[7:04] And how wisely do we live with this resource, this finite resource. All of us are stewards. All of us are stewards. Either you're a wise steward or you're an unwise steward.

[7:18] Whatever the case, you are a steward. Whether you like it or not. Whether you realize it or not. And Paul says, Moreover, it is required in stewards that a man be found faithful.

[7:28] He says, Of all things that stewards should know is that you should be found faithful. He says that's what's important. He commands faithfulness.

[7:39] So be faithful. Being faithful. What does that mean? You could say it means living truthfulness.

[7:50] Living honesty. In integrity. In dependability. Confidence. The opposite of faithfulness. Unfaithfulness. Is something that the Bible condemns.

[8:04] Unfaithfulness. It says that unfaithfulness is painful. It says it's like having a toothache. Oh. You ever had a toothache? Unfaithfulness is like that.

[8:15] That's what Proverbs 25.19 says. It says confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble is like a broken tooth. And a foot out of joint.

[8:29] Unfaithfulness is like a broken tooth. Faithfulness is a quality often missing these days. Sadly. Faithfulness. It's lacking. You know.

[8:40] I could condemn all you Aussies and say Aussies are particularly renowned for it. Unfaithfulness. Uncommittedness. You know. She'll be right, mate. You know. Easy going. Care free.

[8:50] No worries, mate. It's the kind of Aussie culture. You know. I'm a kind of. I'm a converted Aussie. I'm a. I've been a naturalised Aussie. So. You know. I'm part of the problem too.

[9:02] I'm not condemning everybody here today. But. It's a. It's something about human nature. Not just Aussie nature. But human nature. Isn't it? It tends to be uncommitted. You know.

[9:12] Care free. You know. No commitment. No ties. How some treat marriage. Faithfulness is a quality often missing. It's lacking.

[9:23] People all too easily give up. They give up. And Proverbs 24.10 it says. If thou faint in the day of adversity. Thy strength is small. Don't faint.

[9:35] Don't faint. Even in the day of adversity. Press on. Press on regardless. Press on. Don't give up the fight. Don't give in. Press on. Don't.

[9:46] Aren't faithfulness. It's like fainting in the day of adversity. You know. When the day of adversity comes. We should dig deeper. And get. Stronger. More grounded. As the tree that's blown by the wind.

[9:58] Gets stronger. So we should. Not. Be put off by adversity. But be made stronger. And faithfulness is something that can grow. We can learn it. And develop it.

[10:08] Faithfulness speaks of loyalty. Of character. Of reliability. It's equality. Uncommon. But God. Commends it. Commends it.

[10:19] And Paul tells Timothy to search out. Faithful men. Look for faithful men. And they're the ones you should select. Faithful men are the ones that you choose. To do the work.

[10:30] Search out faithful men. Faithful men to train. To work with. He says in 2 Timothy 2. The things that thou hast heard of me. Commit.

[10:41] Thou. To faithful men. Commit. To faithful men. That they may be able to teach. Others. Also. How we need. Faithful. Men.

[10:52] And women. Faithful. People. Brothers and sisters. So important. And we should all be. Considering our lives. Am I going to be a wise. And faithful.

[11:02] Steward. There are many areas. Of life. That we call to. Have stewardship of. The sun. And these are common. They're commonly.

[11:14] Referred to in sermons. This is not. Necessarily. Original. With me. There's numbers of T's. The T's. Of stewardship. And so. I'm going to break. Baptist tradition here.

[11:26] And not give you. A three point sermon. But a five point sermon. Wow. So it's going to be a lit. And I won't be that much longer. But a five point sermon. So. I'll test you later.

[11:36] And you can test me too. Because I. That's one of my big faults. I write it all down. And then I forget what I've just said. But. You know. The Bible says. Be not a forgetful hearer. Not a forgetful preacher. So I can get away with that.

[11:47] But no. Five points. Brothers and sisters. That you can note today. Five points. Consider. The stewardship. Of. Your testimony. The stewardship.

[11:58] Of your testimony. We're stewards of the mysteries of God. In other words. The gospel. We've got a stewardship. Guard your testimony. Guard your testimony.

[12:10] The testimony. Your testimony. Means the witness. Of your life. And. Whether you. Realise it or not. People are following you.

[12:21] People are following you. Especially when you get older. They think that you're wiser. But it's not necessarily so. But. You know. As you get older. People look up to you. Fathers.

[12:32] Children are looking up to you. We can say that today. Amen. And. Mothers. Children are looking up to you. People are watching your life.

[12:43] The testimony. Of your life. Oh. She said she was a Christian. And did you see what she just did? Oh. That guy over there. He clearly reckons he's a Christian. Oh. Wow. Wow. Is that what a Christian's meant to be?

[12:57] God. Your testimony. God. Your testimony. The testimony. Of your life. People are watching you. People are following you. People are listening to you. Do it.

[13:08] Your reputation. You know. It's easy to lose. Your testimony. Very easy. Slip up once. And then. Your record's blotted for life.

[13:19] That's how people are. Isn't it? You know. I knew a preacher. A preacher. And. He was. Accused. Of an indiscretion. He was accused of something. And his name's.

[13:32] Mud. And I believe he didn't do it. I believe he didn't do it. He just. He. Was. In a moment of time. He was in a place. And.

[13:43] People made. Suggestions. And suspicions were raised. And. He's. Suffered. Ever since. And he's in his. Eighties. Probably now. But his testimony was damaged.

[13:56] Guard your testimony. You can't. You can't. Take note of that. Enough. Accusations. Don't put yourself in a situation. Where you're going to be accused.

[14:07] Of things. Guard your testimony. A person who has a good testimony. Is in a position. Where people will listen to them. They'll have an influence in the world. For Christ. They'll advance the work of God.

[14:18] And our purpose in life. Is to glorify God. Ephesians 1.12. It says. That we should be. To the praise of his glory. That we should be. To the praise of his glory.

[14:29] Who first trust in Christ. Praying. For strength. To maintain your testimony. To follow the spirit. And not the flesh. As Matthew 26.41 says.

[14:40] Guard against sin. You know. That moment. Where you slip. People will hold it against you. Don't give the devil an inch. Don't give him a grounds.

[14:51] Watch yourself. And for all of us too. Preachers especially. For all of us. It says. Wherefore let him. That thinketh. He standeth. Take heed.

[15:02] Lest he fall. 1 Corinthians 10. Verse 12. We might be the most credentialed. And amazing. Minister of the gospel. And we've seen. How that has happened to some.

[15:13] Sadly. When we think. That we stand. Take heed. Lest we fall. It's not. Something that. Any of us. Are immune to. We can all damage. Our testimony.

[15:24] Avoid putting temptation. In your way. So. Number one. Consider your testimony. Number two. Consider the stewardship. Of your temple. Your body. 1 Corinthians 6.19.

[15:35] We read of the body. Consider the stewardship. Of your temple. Temple. Now. I was here on the weekend. Or Friday. And there was someone busy. Vacuuming this place.

[15:47] And getting it just so. Spick and span for you. So that. Everything was shiny. And clean. And they were looking after the. You could say the temple. Of sorts. This building. But much more important.

[15:58] Than a physical structure. Of a church building. Or a meeting place. Is the temple. That is. Your body. God says that's important. He says.

[16:08] Know ye not. That your body. Is the temple. Of the Holy Ghost. Which is in you. Which ye have of God. And ye are not your own. For ye are bought.

[16:20] With a price. Therefore glorify God. In your body. And in your spirit. Which are God's. Your body. And your spirit. Belong to God. So God has given you.

[16:30] And me. A temple. To manage. A temple. To look after. We've only got one body. We want to look after it. Don't we? We want it to go the distance.

[16:41] Don't we? So we want to look after it. To be the best we can be. To keep healthy. And trim. You know. Taught and terrific. Like me. You know. You just got to look after those muscles.

[16:53] And you know. That stamina. That body. That is yours. We want it to go the distance. Look after it. Be sober. You know. Treat that body with care. Be sober.

[17:04] You want your partake of. Choose wisely. Your diet. Your exercise. Take good care of your health. So that your body can last. And go the distance.

[17:15] Discipline your body. It says in 1 Corinthians 9.27. Present your body to God. Romans 12. Glorify God in your body. So there's a. It stands for we've got a stewardship. Of our temple.

[17:26] Of our home. Of our family. We've got the ministry of parents. As children. Are a gift from God. There's the privilege of marriage. That responsibility. That there's so many.

[17:37] Stewardships. We could talk about. In 2 Corinthians 6. It tells how. Hear O Israel. The Lord our God. Is one Lord. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God. With all thy heart.

[17:47] And all thy soul. And all thy might. And these words. Which I command. They shall be. In thine heart. And they shall teach them. Diligently. Unto thy children. And shall talk of them.

[17:58] When thou sittest in the house. And when thou walk us by the way. When thou lies down. And when thou risest up. There's a sense. Where we've got a ministry. As parents. As fathers. And mothers.

[18:09] You've got a ministry. For your children. There's that. In a sense. That temple of your home. As well. And how is your temple. The temple of your body. Proverbs 4. It says.

[18:19] There's some areas. We should watch. In Proverbs 4. 23. It talks about. Four things. It talks about. Keep thy heart. With all diligence. It talks about.

[18:30] Put away. Perverse lips. It talks about. Your mouth. How you speak. It talks about. Guarding your eyes. Look straight ahead. And then your feet. Ponder the path.

[18:41] Of thy feet. So your heart. Your mouth. Your eyes. Your feet. We've got a stewardship. How is your temple today? Do you guard those things? In Proverbs 6.

[18:52] It says there's some things. God hates. Proverbs 6. From verse 16. Eyes. Tongue. Hands. Heart. Feet. Mouth. So lots of things there.

[19:02] In Proverbs 6. From verse 16. You can read that later. It talks about. The eyes. God hates a proud look. The tongue. He hates a lying tongue. Hands.

[19:13] He hates hands that shed innocent blood. Heart. He hates a heart caught up in wicked imagination. Feet. God hates feet that are swift in running to mischief.

[19:24] And a mouth. God hates a false witness who spreads lies and sows discord. So lots of areas of our life. Consider those Proverbs 6. 16 to 19.

[19:34] Read that later in Proverbs 4. 23 to 27. In a nutshell it says be a good steward. Be a good steward of your temple. Your life. Glorify God with your life.

[19:46] You've only got one life. You know. I know. My dad says. Only one life. To live. It will soon be passed. It will soon be passed.

[19:56] Only what's done. Only what's done will last. I need coaching there. But if I don't have it written down I lose my train of thought. Glorify God with your life.

[20:09] That's the bottom line. There's a story about. In World War 2. World War 2 had just come to an end. And the European world was in ruins.

[20:20] And many Americans stayed behind to help rebuild. After the warfare was all over. And there was a soldier driving through the streets of Germany. And he saw a 10 year old boy.

[20:32] An orphan boy looking in the window of a bakery. Wanting what was inside. And the soldier pulled up the jeep. And jumped out. And asked the boy if he wanted some of those.

[20:42] And the boy said yes. The soldier went in and bought a sack of donuts and cakes. And brought it out to the boy. And the soldier was getting into the jeep.

[20:53] And the little boy asked him. Are you God? You know when we do things for other people. We can shine a little bit of God's light.

[21:05] In their circumstances. We had a lady approach us last week. As a church. Their house had been broken into. They had a freezer raided.

[21:17] And the place was vandalised. And she contacted the church. And we were able to give her a little bit of something. To help tide her over. And you know when.

[21:28] It's hard with such things. You've got to balance such things. And think well are they just. You know leaning on us. Or. No. We want to be God to them. Don't we?

[21:38] We want to be Christ to them. We want to be Christ's hand extended to them. Show Christ's love to them. And hopefully. They will respond to that love. And you and I. Are like God to people.

[21:49] When we visit people. When we try to minister to people. You're like Jesus visiting that place. You're like Jesus talking to those people. That's the kind of.

[22:00] Precious truth of it. That you and your lives are very precious to God. And give of yourself to God. And let God use you. As you use that soldier with that young boy.

[22:12] And in Luke 12. It tells us an account. Our Lord told an account. Of a good steward. And a poor steward. One was a good manager. One was a mismanager.

[22:23] And friends. We can mismanage our lives. We can be like a bad manager. A bad manager. Who makes poor decisions. And a lot of people suffer for that. When there's a bad manager.

[22:34] But let's rather be a good manager. A steward who does what is right. And sensible. And appropriate. And is going to bless the owner.

[22:44] Our God. And friends. We ought to consider. As in the light of this parable. The context was. The Lord Jesus said. Of the coming. Of the son of man. The context was.

[22:57] Be ready. Be ready. Because some are going to be found. To be poor managers. Some are going to be found. To be good managers. To be faithful and wise. So we ought to be wise. About God's resources.

[23:08] He's put in our care. We talked about testimony. We talked about the temple. Of your body. What are some other things. We should be. Good stewards of. The third one.

[23:19] Is consider. The stewardship. Of your time. Now we talked about time. Already to a degree. It's a gift from God. Your time. Is precious.

[23:30] Every second. Every minute. Every hour. Every day. And how we use those precious moments. Reflects. The values of our life. It reflects the stewardship. Of our lives.

[23:42] Psalm 31 15. It says. My times are in thy hand. We don't know how much time we've got. My times are in thy hand. Make that your prayer. Do we stop and think.

[23:53] About the stewardship. Of our time. You know. It's. Tick. Tick. Tick. Tick. It's running out. And treasure. Every moment. That you have.

[24:04] Psalm 90 verse 12. It says. So let us number. Our days. That we may apply our hearts. Unto wisdom. Teach us to number. Our days. God. May give you. 70.

[24:15] 80 years. Of time. In this world. He may not give you that long. You don't know how long you've got. And the Bible says. Whatever the case. Ephesians 5. Redeem the time.

[24:27] Because the days are evil. In other words. Make the best of that time that you have. And so that when our Lord comes. We'll have managed that time well. We won't have fridged it away. On vanities.

[24:37] And wasted it. But we'll have used it. We'll have employed it wisely. The fourth one. Consider the stewardship of your talents. Romans 12.

[24:47] Paul writes in verse 6. Having their gifts differing. According to the grace. That is given to us. Every Christian has different gifts and abilities.

[24:59] You've got more gifts and abilities than me. In so many ways. Each one of you here. Is gifted. And able. In so many ways. Able to serve the Lord.

[25:10] Or do we serve our own interests instead. You've got gifts. Some natural. Some kind of. You're born with.

[25:20] It's kind of in your nature. And some that you develop and learn. Through training. Some that you learn and receive. Through God's empowerment. As God enables you.

[25:33] You know there's. Someone described it like this. It's a helpful way of thinking about it. Shape.

[25:45] Shape. It's one way of thinking about the talents of your life. For example. S. We're looking at shape. Remember this. First one.

[25:56] S. Spiritual gifts. Some come from God. Empowering you by his Holy Spirit. When you're saved. He gives you a spiritual gift. A number of them.

[26:07] Spiritual gifts. H. Stands for your heart. In other words. Your passion. What are you passionate about? Rodney's passionate about graphic arts. And God's using him to help make the banner.

[26:19] And the t-shirts. And some of the artistic things for this church. God's given Rodney. A passion. In that area of his life.

[26:32] He's got a heart. And God will give something. Or put something on your heart. To do for God. A. Abilities. Abilities. You've got abilities.

[26:43] Some of you have got great abilities. Working with children. Or working with young people. Or working with technology. He's given you abilities. They are precious things.

[26:55] That you can have a good stewardship of. The P. In shape. Stands for personality. You've got different personality types. Some people more outgoing. Some less so.

[27:07] But every personality. Has a quality to it. And then experiences. God uses your experiences. You might have been through some horrible things. God can use even those experiences.

[27:20] So you can comfort others. So you can bless and encourage others. So just to recap. Shape. Spiritual gifts. S. H. Your heart. Your passion. A.

[27:30] Abilities. More than natural abilities. P. Your personality type. And E. The experiences of life. All of these things go to making the shape of our lives.

[27:41] And all of our different shapes are different. We've all got different variables of such things. But God's put you in charge of your talents. He's given you talents.

[27:51] Giftings. Abilities. Callings. You can serve God in so many ways. It's boundless. There's boundless opportunities to serve God. Whether it's in practical ways.

[28:02] Around the church facility here. Tidying up. Or having responsibilities of different kinds. You've all got something you can do for God. And you might think.

[28:13] Oh what I'm doing is not really important. Every heart has got an important place. Every member of the body is vital for it to function.

[28:25] And so whether it be kitchen work. Working with children. Ladies ministry. Outreach. Serving. Ushering. Visiting. Sending cards. Writing letters.

[28:38] Making phone calls. We all can do something for the glory of God. And maybe there's things you haven't started to do. That hey I could do that. I could do that.

[28:49] I'm going to put my hand up and say. I want to do that. For the glory of God. Well you know. It blows preachers away. When someone actually says. Hey. I'd like to do this.

[29:00] Wow. I didn't even have to badger them. Or coax them. Or prod them. Or prompt them. Or push them. Or kick them. And like Joshua today. You know. They just get out of their seats.

[29:11] And say. I want to do something. Amen. That's what we need. That's what we need. Consider the stewardship of your talents. You come in a unique shape.

[29:23] And God has gifted you. And empowered you. And talented you. So consider thus far. We've got four points. I'm nearly there. Consider the stewardship of your testimony.

[29:33] Of your temple. Of your time. Of your talents. And lastly. Consider the stewardship of your treasure. Your treasure. Matthew 6.21.

[29:43] It says. For where your treasure is. There will. Your heart be also. What is it that you treasure? Money is a gift from God.

[29:55] God owns it. God helps us to earn it. And to use it. Use it wisely. Use it wisely. Now Christians are God's stewards. We're managers.

[30:06] And one area is treasure. You know. Last time I went to a funeral. There wasn't a moving truck behind the hearse. You know. Where people were taking their possessions with them.

[30:16] We can't do it. You know. All of those wonderful things. That we treasure. In terms of possessions. It all goes back to God. It's his anyway.

[30:28] So how do we use our money. Our possessions. How do we make wise spending decisions. You know. There's a story told. It's kind of a. Obviously tongue in cheek.

[30:39] Story. About a very wealthy man. And one day he died. And he went to heaven. And he was walking around with St. Peter. And St. Peter showed him the mansion of the gardener.

[30:51] And oh. He was so impressed with it. It was a huge mansion. And he said. Wow. You mean my gardener is going to live there? And then St. Peter said. Yeah. That's the mansion for your gardener.

[31:02] And he went a little further. And he showed him another huge mansion. And said. That's the mansion of the missionary that you knew. When you were a kid. That went to a foreign country.

[31:15] And he said. Wow. You mean that's where he's going to say. This is incredible. And by this time. This worldly man could hardly wait to see. What his house was going to look like. Then they turned the corner.

[31:26] And there was this little shack. About six by eight. With a few boards. Leant up against each other. And Peter said. That's your place. And the guy was appalled. And he said.

[31:37] What do you mean? My gardener got a mansion. The missionary got a mansion. And I've got to live in there. Why is that? And Peter looked at him and said. Well. To be honest with you.

[31:48] We did the best. We could. With what you sent us. So this is the question for all of us today. How are you handling the treasure.

[31:58] That God has entrusted to you. You know. The house that you have. Are you hospitable with it? Those possessions that you have. Do you try to engage. What God is putting in your hands.

[32:09] For God's glory. You know. When someone needs a car. Do you lend it to them? When there's opportunity to bless people. When there's opportunity to use the resources. That you have. Do you try to use the resources that you have.

[32:21] The money that you have. Wisely. Invested. You know. The Bible talks about true riches. It talks about being rich towards God. And it's been said that.

[32:33] How we handle what we've got now. Will determine what we will receive. Of course. It's not about works. And we don't earn it. But there is a sense of. There is a reward.

[32:43] For faithful stewardship. That's the point. And we all have treasure. We all have treasure. And the point is. Use it wisely. Use it wisely.

[32:54] You know. There's some people I know. That are accumulating things. So they can send them over to Congo. And that's radical. Isn't it? That's radical stuff. There's people that are.

[33:04] Are spending quite a deal of money. To go on a plane to Kenya. Out of their own pocket. So they can go and bless people. In that place. It's the stewardship of our treasure.

[33:15] Isn't it? You want to be wise about that. And it's been said. That the amount of treasure we have. Is not. What's most important. It's what we do. With what.

[33:26] We have. It's what we do with our treasure. That is most important. Now someone heard about. Neil going to Iraq. And they said. We want to give. We want to give for that. Now these are not people.

[33:37] That are. That are. Well to do. But they want to give. What they have. To the need. Now that's. That's showing. That you've got a stewardship. Of your treasure. That's a blessing.

[33:48] It's more blessed. To give than to receive. We need to consider. These things. So consider. These things today. Brothers and sisters. In your life. Consider. The stewardship today.

[33:58] Of your testimony. How you're living. Your life. Of your temple. Your body. Use it wisely. Don't hurt it. Make it live longer. Keep it healthy.

[34:09] Your body. Your temple. Your time. Every moment. Precious. Precious time. Your talents. You've got talents.

[34:19] Don't bury them. Put them under a rock. Let them be employed. Engaged. Volunteer. Be a steward of your talents. And lastly.

[34:30] A steward of your treasures. Of your treasure. Be rich towards God. Be rich towards God. Bless God. Bless his people. And you'll bless your heart. As you give.

[34:40] And are we offering our lives. Our substance to him. To bring glory to him. Brothers and sisters today. Let's resolve to be faithful stewards. An important note to close.

[34:52] It tells us in the word. In Luke 16. The Lord recounts. A story of the master. And of some stewards. And he comes to them. In Luke 16. And the master says to the steward.

[35:04] Give an account. Of thy stewardship. Give an account. Of thy stewardship. One day he'll say that to you.

[35:15] Will you be found faithful? How can we be faithful? You might say. Wow. I think I've blown it on all five of those things. I think I just. Just as well give up.

[35:26] It's too hard. You might think. Oh. I've been so unfaithful. You can turn the corner today. You can stop that today. You can say. No. I'm going to decide today.

[35:37] I'm going to be a wise steward. With whatever's left of my life. Here below. So that I can live it to God's glory. You might feel like you've tried and failed. It's too hard. Your testimony. Your temple.

[35:48] Your time. Your talents. Your treasure. Maybe all counts. You think. Well. I know I could do better. We all can. We all can. But. Friends. The good news is that God enables us.

[36:00] He enables us. Just to close. It says. In Isaiah 14. It tells of the everlasting God. The creator. Of. The earth.

[36:12] He faints not. Neither is he weary. It says in verse 29. He giveth power to the faint. And to them that have no might. He increases strength.

[36:23] Even the youth shall faint and be weary. And the young men shall utterly fall. But. They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings as ingles.

[36:34] They shall run and not be weary. And they shall walk and not faint. He gives power to the faint. So. Brother. Sister. Today. You might think. I've tried and failed.

[36:46] I'm a poor steward. I'm an unwise steward. I'm an unfaithful steward. He gives power to the faint. And he renews our strength. If you will wait upon him. Wait upon him today.

[36:57] Let us pray. Let us pray.