Managing 2024 Well
Part 3
-Our Attitude about Money & Giving and Maximizing Opportunity.
True Giving Heals
“No one can serve two masters… You cannot serve both God and money.”
–Luke 16:13
The Parable of the Shrewd Manager
-Luke 16:11-15
Jesus told his disciples: “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 2 So he called him in and asked him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.’ [Fired] 3 “The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg— 4 I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’ 5 “So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ 6 “‘Nine hundred gallons of olive oil,’ he replied. “The manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred and fifty.’ 7 “Then he asked the second, ‘And how much do you owe?’ “‘A thousand bushels of wheat,’ he replied. “He told him, ‘Take your bill and make it eight hundred.’ 8 “The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this WORLD are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the LIGHT. 9 I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings. 10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. 11 So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? 12 And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own? 13 “No one can serve two masters. [Don’t let money master you] Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” 14 The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. 15 He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts. What people value highly is detestable in God’s sight.
Jesus did not commended the Manager/Steward for cheating.
He commended him for
MAKING GOOD USE OF HIS OPPORTUNITY.
*Money is in competition for our heart.
*You can’t serve both God and money.
*Everyone give preferential treatment to either one or the other
I want things that money can buy.
I want things that money can’t buy.
[Spiritual wealth]
I want things that money can buy, but are never to trust in those things for peace or security.
That come only from God.
Money is not evil, the love of money is.
“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”
- 1 Timothy 6:10
I want things that money can’t buy.
[Spiritual wealth]
God doesn’t care about or even need your money.
He cares about and needs YOU.
The key to our spiritual growth is
Luke 16:11
“If you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?”
How we handle our finances has a lot to do with the amount of spiritual riches that we will experience.
*God is not looking at how much money we have.
*He is looking at how we are handling the money that we have.
*What is our attitude towards it?
Four Godly Attitudes Towards Money
1. Be CONTENT with what you have.
“Godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 8 But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 9 Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. 11 But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. 12 Fight the good fight of the faith.” [Properly valuing God over things]
-1 Timothy 6:6-12
Love people, use things.
Don’t love things and use people.
We trust in God who richly supplies riches, not in riches.
2. Trust in God not in riches.
“My God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”
-Philippians 4:19
We trust in God who richly supplies riches, not in riches.
3. Be Generous
Generosity reflects the heart of God.
“A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.”
–Proverbs 11:25
4. Walk in Faith not in Fear.
"Do not worry about tomorrow…"
Don’t let worry and fear dictate your finances and decisions;
let faith.
Don’t buy things that you don’t need, with money that you don’t have to impress people that you don’t even like.
We don’t HAVE to give.
We GET to give.
-Maximize opportunity with your giving.
True Giving Heals
“Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you.”
- Matthew 6:33
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