8.14.10 "Responsible to No Mere Man"

"Responsible to No Mere Man"

Nehemiah 7:61-9:21
I corinthians 9:1-19
Psalm 33:12-22
Proverbs 21:11-12

I Corinthians 9:1 "I am an apostle, God's messenger, responsible to no mere man."

We've been talking over the last couple of days about carrying the vision, working hard, and knowing the voice of God. I guess that today's DEVO would fit into this "mini-series".

We MUST understand the RESPONSIBILITY that comes with the call of God on our lives. This is a BIG deal that I think we too easily shrug off into a minor thing. The verse I'm using from 1 Corinthians 9 is not directly speaking to what I'm talking about, but it says a whole lot! In context, Paul is talking to the Corinthian believers about how they need to support those in ministry. I'm not speaking to that issue at all, but Paul's first statement is HUGE! He is not responsible to mere man, he's responsible to God! Guess what? So am I. So are you.

You're thinking, "what's so profound about this?"

We need to understand the awesome responsibility of being the caretaker of all the resources given to us from God. I'll use finances first, because I think it's a tangible resource that we can all relate to. We understand the principle of tithing, and we walk in obedience to it. We know we must give him our first fruits. Then, with the other 90% we know we should be good stewards. But how seriously do we take that stewardship? What do you do with $50? What do you do with $100,000? Do you act differently toward different amounts? why?

If we are careless with finances, we can get this casual sub-conscious thought: "Oops, I guess I wasn't a very good steward there, oh well..." We don't think it's a big deal. A while back I heard a story on the radio where a city official threw this party downtown and went into the red by several hundred thousand dollars. I didn't get the full story, but my impression was that the individual responsible for this had the attitude of "oops, oh well..." You can see the problem here.

Stewardship is a BIG deal in every area of life! I want to speak now in terms of what you are called to do. Your vision, your career, your calling. You are "responsible to no mere man" in this as well. You can't take a "oops, oh well..." attitude in the stewardship of the gifts, calling and vision God has placed upon you. You have to understand the gravity of this message.

We often see airliners taking off over our house. Once, when airliner went by I felt the Lord say, "What if the pilot said, oops, I wasn't a good steward of my gifts today..." What would the result be? "I probably shouldn't have crashed that plane..." What's the difference? Your answer may be, "well, he's responsible for all those lives... I don't have that kind of responsibility..." How do you know?

God has equipped you for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:17) He didn't give you gifts and resources so you could spend your life "playing house". He gave it to you because you are to be a good steward. We have a saying with the choir & drama ministry: "Why be faithful in small things? Because God has BIG plans!" You don't know whether the gifts you have are $50 or a million dollars in God's plan. Either way, you need to understand the heart-discipline of stewardship and responsibility.

Responsibility is the spiritual principle of Active Ministry Involvement. You can't live the Balanced Christian Life without living a life of responsibility. This means being a good steward of your Time, Talent and Resources.

Maybe if we understood that we were going to be "audited" in regards to our resources. God's going to be checking the receipts of what we've done for His glory. (Matthew 25:14-30) If you knew you were about to be audited, you'd get your stuff in order. Well, get your stuff in order, cuz you're going to be audited!

This needs to be a part of who we are. There's no vacation from being a good steward of the resources God has given. It must be an ingrained part of life. I am responsible to no mere man. I Timothy 4:14-15 says "Do not neglect your gift... Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress." 2 Timothy 2: 15 says "Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth." (because you're going to be audited today.) (Note: It is good stewardship to have a vacation! :) )

Live today as if you're flying a plane, because you are. We have a great responsibility for the gifts God has given us, and we are responsible TO the One who's given them. It's with that intensity we must treat our stewardship.



Through the Power of the Spirit,
Live the DREAM!

P Greg


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