Continuing from ‘* Life on Earth is a Test’, ~Rick Warren teaches from his book ‘The Purpose Driven Life’:
This is the second biblical metaphor of life. Our time on earth and our energy, intelligence, opportunities, relationships, and resources are all gifts from God that he has entrusted to our care and management. We are stewards to whatever God gives us. This concept of stewardship begins with the recognition that God is the owner of everything and everyone on earth. The Bible says, “The world and all that is in it belong to Lord; the earth and all who live on it are his.”5
We never really own anything during our brief stay on earth. God just loans the earth to us while we are here. It was God’s property before you arrived, and God will loan it to someone else when you die. You just get to enjoy it for a while.
When God created Adam and Eve, he entrusted the care of his creation to them and appointed them trustees of his property. The Bible says, “[God blessed them, and said, ‘Have many children, so that your descendants will live all over the earth and bring it under their control. I am putting you in charge.‘”(Psalm 24:1)
The first job God gave humans was to manage and take care of God’s “stuff” on earth. This role has never been rescinded. It is a part of our purpose today. Everything we enjoy is to be treated as a trust that God has placed in our hands. The Bible says, What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if all you have is from God, why boast as though you have accomplished something on your own?”7
Years ago, a couple let my wife and me use their beautiful beach-front home in Hawaii for a vacation. It was an experience we never could have afforded, and we enjoyed it immensely. We were told, “Use it like it’s yours,” so we did! We swam in the pool, used all the amenities and had fun! But we knew all along it wasn’t really ours, we took special care of everything. We enjoyed the benefits of using the home without owning it.
Our culture says, “if you don’t own it, you won’t take care of it.” But Christians live by a higher standard: “Because God owns it, I must take the best care of it that I can.” The Bible says, “Those who are trusted with something of value must show that they are worthy of that trust..”8 Jesus often referred to life as a trust and told many stories to illustrate this responsibility toward God. In the story of the talents, a businessman, 9 entrusts his wealth to the care of his servants while he is away. When he returns, he evaluates each servant’s responsibility and records them accordingly. The owner says, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness.”10
At the end of your life on earth will you be evaluated and rewarded according to how well you handled what God entrusted to you. That means everything you do, even simple daily chores, has eternal implications. If you treat everything as a trust, God promises rewards in eternity. First, you will be given affirmation: He will say,”Good Job! Well done!” Next you will receive a promotion and be given greater responsibility in eternity: I will put you in charge of many things.” Then you will be honored with a celebration: “Come and share in your Master’s happiness.”~Rick Warren, The Purpose Driven Life (Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530 USA), 44-46 (This has been published here before. . . .for some reason I am supposed to publish it again. kdm)
