PCA HISTORICAL CENTER
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Studies & Actions
of the General Assembly of [9th General Assembly (1981), Appendix K, pages 272-277.] THEOLOGY OF STEWARDSHIP
A theology of stewardship is a
vehicle which seeks consistently to relate the Word of
God to all that is understood to be stewardship and stewardship activities.
A Biblical basis for stewardship must begin
with die affirmation that God is sovereign
and that we recognize Him as exercising divine ownership over all that there is
(Ex. 19:5, Ps.
24:1, Ps. 50:10, Hag. 2:8).
Stewardship is exercised personally and
corporately by the Church. In this paper we
will seek to affirm our belief in the personal and corporate aspects of
stewardship and then
explore the implications these beliefs have for the stewardship programs and
activities of the
Presbyterian Church in America.
PERSONAL STEWARDSHIP Stewardship is first and foremost a personal
matter. Each believer has a ministry (Mt.
24:14-30) in the pursuit of which he arranges his life in conformity with God's
declared will,
responding to His covenant call of grace.
As was his Lord, the Christian is a servant
(Isa S3, Phil. 2:4-11). The Pauline
command, "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus,"
obligates us to follow
closely the words of our Lord, and we discover that those words leave no room
for arrogance,
jealousy, prejudice or covetousness. They do not leave us the luxury of
approaching life on the
intellectual level in contradistinction from the commitment level. Rather, by
His indwelling
Spirit, Christ enables us to follow Him in being servant to all (Mark
10:43-45).
Our servanthood must
be seen as sonship, for, like the firmer of the prodigal son, God is more interested in having sons
man slaves (Rom. 8:12-17). Yet, if we are servants, we must see
the nobility of our servant roll, originating as it does, not with man's duty,
but with God's love,
making us bondservants of the most high God, and preparing us to offer the
highest service to
God and men (Ac. 16:17). The enslavement to anyone or anything else will pull
an individual
increasingly farther from the service of God (Luke 14:26, Mat. 6:24).
When our priorities are right our
servanthood is a joyful expression of faith and not a
burden. God does not ask us to neglect our families but to readjust our
relationship and put Him
first. Likewise, He does not tell us to abandon our wealth but to use it for
the purpose He has
given it.
As Jesus Christ served our deepest needs,
so our stewardship is to serve the deepest
needs of others. Neighbor-love is paramount in the stewardship picture. Christ,
in the parable
of the good Samaritan, showed not only that all men are our neighbors, but also
that love of
men will result in service to men (Luke 10:25-37). Related to this is the death
of self as a part
of the servant-life (John 12:24-26; Mt. 8:31-38; Rom. 12:1). Like an Old
Testament sacrifice to
be consumed, the believer himself is upon the altar. The more we sacrifice of
ourselves, the
more alive we become, and the stronger for service. Thus, our faith must direct
all our
decisions and affect our habits and indulgences. A man who is being sacrificed
will sacrifice
many false and fleeting fashions of this world. He has died to the world and
self. The Lord
Jesus set the example in the things he denied Himself: carnal satisfaction,
popular acclaim,
prestige and honor, showing His love by denying Himself while freely serving
others.
A servant need not suffer unduly, or be
impoverished or mediocre. What is implied by
our servant-position is discipline. God gives some much and others little, but
love will give
insights into the way goods and gifts should be used (1 Cor. 13:3). Paul's
insistence upon
discipline (1 Tim. 4:7ff; 1 Cor. 9:26, 27) cues each Christian to his own
commitment. As
servants we ask, what can we do? What can we do without? What can we do with
and for
others?
Each Christian has talents and abilities.
These are God-appointed and give us
opportunities for service. Jesus spoke of such opportunities (Mt. 25:15; Mark
13:34, as did
Paul (Rom. 12:3-8; Eph. 4:4-16). Christians are responsible to test their capacity, rather than go
on haphazardly trying to fill needs as they arise, or attempting too much for
their abilities and
doing work others ought to be handling. Neither approach ministers according to
God's plan.
Continuously, we must look to the local church and help everyone in searching
out the gifts
God has given him. This variety of gifts involves the use of our material
resources, cars, Women have special ministries. Even since
Eve, they have been endowed with a
capacity for sensitivity to others, for tender love, for self-giving, and for
understanding. God
put human lives into women's hands in special ways through childbirth and
homemaking. Also,
a woman's creativity expresses itself through her relationship to the outside
world and she can
refresh the world through her spiritual insight and service (Prov. 31:16-31;
Tit. 2:3-5).
Not only our gifts but also our possessions
must be managed to fulfill responsible
stewardship. Here neither covetousness nor materialism may be allowed to block
the proper use
of our possessions and income. Paul warns, "The love of money is the root
of all kinds of evil"
(1 Tim. 6:10). Paul was referring not to an occasional evil but to something
that becomes an
actual way of living, and which is a universal disease, having its roots in the
ground of not
believing God.
Basic problems in giving are the result of
a lack of knowledge, faith, and love. A false
sense of values and covetousness are also hindrances to Biblical giving.
Scripture very plainly sets forth
principles to be observed in giving. We need to
understand and know the meaning of money which is received in exchange for use
of time and
abilities. We should give as a part of worship (Ps. 96:8). Our giving is to be
an expression of
love (1 Cor. 8:8). Our giving is to be without ostentation (Mt. 6:31). We are
to give freely and
with simplicity (Mt. 10:8; Rom. 12:8). We should be cheerful givers (2 Cor.
9:7), and
understand that generous giving is a grace or gift from God (2 Cor. 8:1,2). To
"seek the Lord
first" (Mt. 6:33) is the goal of life and of Christian giving (Deut. 6:17;
1 Cor. 6:2; 2 Cor. 8:12).
Christians may pose to themselves the
following questions to consider seriously with
respect to the expression of their faith through Christian giving: Does all my
spending show a
Christian sense of values? Do my offerings represent the first fruits of my
income? Are
spiritual causes given the priority? Are my offerings a generous portion or
percentage of my
income? Am I willing to live without some of the luxuries of our American life
in order to
share a larger portion of my goods with die Master? Am I willing now to
increase my offerings
by 3 or 4 percent or more if I am giving less than 10 percent, knowing that if
tithing is required
by God any percentage less is sin?
Is tithing to be a part of personal
stewardship? There is little doubt that tithing has been
a great blessing to many, but we need to re-evaluate this institution on the
basis of Biblical
theology. Old Testament believers brought 10 percent plus thank offerings and
they were
blessed. Early Christians in many cases gave more than 10 percent although God
did not
specifically demand more. The Old Testament shows many examples that believers
should tithe
and the Apostle Paul seems to imply the time or at least proportionate giving
in 1 Cor. 16:2
when he uses the words "...let everyone of you lay by him in store, as God
hath prospered
him..." Giving according to the degree of prosperity certainly has the
tithe in view when you
consider the Jewish viewpoint of stewardship. Yet Christian stewardship
recognizes not only a
tenth but all as belonging to God and man acts as the trustee of all. New
Testament giving is
not a hard and cold fact of decimals and arithmetic, but is the practice of
love (John 14:15; 2
Cor. 8:24).
"Christ Himself has placed His
approval and set His imprimatur upon the tithe, as the
proper old covenant observance, "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites! For ye pay
tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matter of
the law,
judgment, mercy and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the
other undone"
(Mt. 23:23). In mat verse Christ is rebuking the scribes and Pharisees because
of their
hypocrisy. They had been very strict and punctilious in tithing the herbs, but
on the other hand
they had neglected the weightier matters such as judgment, or justice, and
mercy. But while
Christ acknowledged that the observance of justice and mercy is more important
that tithing - it
is a 'weightier matter' - while, He says, these they ought to have done,
nevertheless He says,
these other yet ought not to have been left undone. He does not set aside the
tithe, as he might
easily have done here. He places justice and mercy as being more weighty, but
he places His
authority upon the practice of tithing by saying, "These ought ye to have
done, and not to leave
the other undone." ft is well for us if we by the grace of God have not
omitted justice and
mercy and faith: ft is well if by the grace of God those things have found a
place in our midst,
but the tithing ought not to have been left undone, and Christ Himself says
so."1
Actually, the tithe is not man's real
problem. His real problem is in putting God first
and giving generously. 'God's grace is sufficient to lift us even after the 10%
is passed and
enable us to go beyond that standard. Many people have real spiritual problems
and attitudes to
conquer first before they can consider tithing. God's Word challenges us that
to withhold a
tithe is to rob God.
CORPORATE STEWARDSHIP
The primary
responsibilities of the church are the worship of God, the evangelization of
the world and the edification of the church through the proclamation of God's
Word (Mt. 28:19-20, "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded
you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world")
On the basis that the church is entrusted
with the Gospel of Christ, we can define
corporate stewardship as "the orderly practice of mobilizing the total
dedicated potential of the
whole church, based on the conviction that this is a trust from God and fully
implementing His
will in the building of His kingdom at home and in all the world."2
It is important that a theology of
stewardship be bound inextricably to the purposes and
goals of the church as a whole. H. G. Coiner has written: "That God has
elected His people to
be His agents of reconciliation is a claim made not by the church but on the
church by its Lord.
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1 Arthur W. Pink, Tithing (Swengel,
PA), p. 12
This claim is to be
accepted humbly and fearfully by the Christian church... The nature of the
church as the reconciled community is inseparable from the function of the
church as the agent,
or minister, of reconciliation."3
The Biblical basis for a corporate effort in stewardship is based upon the interdependency of believers. The church as the body of Christ has many members, but these members are to function together. Both 1 Cor. 12 and Rom. 12 focus on the mutual dependence of the members of the body. Specifically, Scripture gives us examples
of how a group ministry of stewardship
functions. In the Old Testament, corporate stewardship was exercised in the
collection of gifts
for the building of the Tabernacle, Ex 35:22 "And they came and both men
and women, as
many as were willing hearted, and brought bracelets, and earrings, and rings
and tablets all
jewels of gold: and every man that offered, offered an offering of gold unto
the Lord."
The New Testament provides further examples
of group stewardship. The early church
was engaged in meeting die needs of its poorer members. Acts 4:34 and 35
relates, "Neither
was there any among them mat lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or
houses sold
them, and brought die prices of the things that were sold, and laid diem down
at the apostles'
feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need."
It should be an
objective of each church to provide support for its needy members. This
responsibility should
not be given to die state.
The early church exercised corporate
stewardship in the supporting of the Apostle Paul
as he proclaimed die Gospel of Christ: "For even in Thessalonica ye sent
once and again unto
my necessity." (Phil. 4:16).
The primary concern of group stewardship is
not in the raising of money but in
corporately reaching the world for Christ through the equipping of the saints
and the
proclamation of the Gospel (Eph. 4:7ff). Corporately the church must seek not
just to raise
money but to raise men.....for I seek not yours but you.: (1 Cor. 12:14).
Responsibility in stewardship is both
corporate and personal. Along with our
responsibility we must also acknowledge our accountability. Scripture tells us
that God's
people are to be held accountable for their stewardship In Luke 12:48 we are
told, "...For unto
whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have
committed
much, of him they will ask die more."
It may be further stated that we are
accountable to God for choosing certain areas
within die church in die exercise of our stewardship. As stewards we must
submit ourselves to
God who "alone is die Lord of die conscience."
There is a tremendous responsibility placed
upon a man, who for example, chooses
where he will place die greater portion of his contribution to Christ's Church.
His decision
must be based upon a prayerful, studied inquiry into the Word of God. A. A.
Hodge in his
commentary on the Westminster Confession of Faith states, "All Christians
promiscuously are
commanded to search the scripture and to resist die authority even of
legitimate church rulers
when it is opposed to that of the Lord of die conscience." This certainly does
not excuse giving
to the work of die church, if fact if amplifies die responsibility of the
steward to make his giving As stewards who are to be held accountable
we must prayerfully seek to exercise our
stewardship in a manner that is consistent with and obedient to God's Word. Corporately, the members of the
Presbyterian Church in America exercise their
stewardship through the denomination as it operates on four principles of
stewardship adopted
by the General Assembly: (1) The church is responsible for carrying out the
Great
Commission. (2) The work of the church as set forth in the Great Commission is
one work,
being implemented on the General Assembly level through our equally essential
committees.
(3) It is the responsibility of all member congregations to support the whole
work of the
denomination as they be led in their conscience held captive to the Word of
God. (4) It is the
responsibility of the General Assembly to evaluate needs and resources, and to
act on priorities
for the most effective fulfillment of the Great Commission. We believe that
this paper affirms
the validity of these four principles as being a scripturally sound and worthy
basis for corporate
stewardship.
IMPLICATIONS The question to be raised is, To what extend do the present methods of raising funds for the work of the church conform to the underlying principles of stewardship as found in God's Word?
The present practice within the PCA is that
each of the four major committees has the
responsibility of raising its own budget.
It is not possible to prove from scripture
whether this principle of operation for the
General Assembly is Biblical or not. However, we can take the Biblical basis
for stewardship
that we have already discussed and apply the principles for giving to the
practices of these four
committees in their fund raising activities.
It is evident that tensions can exist in
the implementation of two of the principles under
which the General Assembly operates. Those principles are: (1) the work of the
church as set
form in the Great Commission is one work being implemented on the General
Assembly level
through our equally essential committees, and (2) it is the responsibility of
every member and
every member congregation to support the whole work of the denomination as they
are led in
their conscience held captive to the Word of God. The tension which can exist
between these
two principles is a result of the question that if the work of the church is
truly one work why
should a congregation or individual express discrimination in his giving to
individual
committees? The fact is that both of these principles are valid. The work of
the church is one
work and a Christian does have the prerogative to designate his giving
according to the dictates
of his conscience as he is led by the Lord. Tension between these two
principles occurs only
when there is a lack of trust between members of the body of Christ within the
denomination.
We have already stated that the Biblical
basis for corporate effort in stewardship is
based upon the interdependency and unity of believers as members of the
Presbyterian Church
in America we must act in good faith and with mutual trust for one another,
believing that our
system of government provides the checks and balances that will keep us from
being led astray.
Such mutual trust is fitting in the church of the Lord Jesus, who prayed that
they all might be
one, (John 17:21). It was characteristic of the early church to manifest this
oneness and mutual
trust through having all things common (Acts 2:44,43). Betrayal of this trust
had serious We need to practice the Biblical principle
of 1 Corinthians 10:24 which states, "Let no
man seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor." Waldo J. Werning has
written "There
can be no individualism that allows any member to go his own way and ignore his
responsibility
to the group or deny the group's responsibility to him...True stewardship can
hardly be
exercised is there is little or no edification and ministry to one another by
individual
Christians"4
The trust that we
exercise towards one another should affect our stewardship in two
ways. First, we should trust God that He will direct the consciences of our
members to give to
the work of the church through its four committees. Secondly, as we exercise
our stewardship
in giving to the work of the church, we should trust our committees to
faithfully carry out the
work of the church and not withhold our gifts because of lack of trust.
The recent history of many denominations
reflects a familiar pattern: Liberalism,
having crept in by stealth and subterfuge to take control of the ecclesiastical
machinery, changes
its tactics, once power, lording it over God's heritage in such key areas as
disposition of funds,
Christian education and ministerial preferment. By alternating strategies of
sweet
reasonableness when in the minority and of iron-fisted tyranny when in the
majority, the liberals
have exposed themselves and exhausted whatever reservoir of goodwill and trust
they had with
conservatives. The Presbyterian Church in America, owing much of its beginning
impetus to
the reaction against such things, has quite a different (though brief) history
It is possible for these two principles
(the work of the church is one work and Christians
may give as they are led by God) to be effective in the stewardship ministry of
the church
provided that they exist in a framework of Biblical trust and unity
Raising funds for the ongoing work of the
church by the General Assembly's
committees is a necessary part of stewardship, provided that the methods and
messages
employed are biblically based The Apostle Paul did not hesitate to mention the
need for giving
to his "necessity" in his letter to the Philippians Also, as
believers, we are to "provoke one
another unto love and good works" (Phil. 4; Heb 10:24)
In his book, "The Stewardship
Call," Waldo Werning, in discussing methods and
motivation in stewardship programs, states: "God motivates as we serve one
another by
proclaiming His covenant Word of Grace. Faithfulness to the call is always the
product of the
Gospel. Stewardship can have no other foundation than the gospel of
forgiveness. God's
absolving and strengthening grace is the theological thread in His plan that
keeps all
stewardship messages and activities in proper perspective."3 Our goal in stewardship education Again we must remind ourselves of the trust
and unity that we must exercise in our
efforts to raise funds. Not only do we expect the members of the institutional
church to trust us,
but the committees involved must also exercise that same trust and unity among
and toward
each other. "The institutional church needs to remember the diversity that
exists in the unity of
the body through the priesthood of believers and to encourage the expression of
diversity
instead of demanding blind conformity. The church will do well to idealize
instead of ____________________________________________________________
IMPLEMENTATION
The Subcommittee for Stewardship also
provides an adequate forum for discussion of
ideas and plans. We must recognize that there will be times when plans for
activities will
overlap. The Subcommittee on Stewardship is one place where discussion of these
overlapping
plans could take place. Frank discussion in this area should be made in a
spirit of love, trust and
unity. It should be clearly understood that in our system of Presbyterian
polity no decision of a
committee where discussion of these ideas takes place would be binding.
However, such frank
discussion is helpful and could act as one more deterrent to divisiveness and
so-called The Subcommittee on Stewardship Ministries
should also provide and adequate base
for the implementation of stewardship programs. According to the General
Assembly Minutes, the Subcommittee for Stewardship is to be itself a servant to the
Presbyteries and the
membership of each local church within the denomination. The Subcommittee seeks
to inspire
and inform the people in both the theology and practice of Biblical
stewardship, with a goal of
enlisting each member of each local congregation in a revived personal
commitment of time,
talent, and treasure to Christ.7 The Subcommittee, in consultation
with the four major It is incumbent upon all of God's people to
exercise stewardship in every area of their
lives. Our motivation for stewardship must be based upon a love for God and a
desire to be
obedient to His Word. "He that hath my commandments and keepeth them, he
it is that loveth
me: and he that loveth me, shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him and
will manifest
myself to him." (John 14:21). Thus motivated, the church through its
members, officers and
courts must continue to teach and exhort one another in the area of
stewardship. Stewardship
efforts exercised within the church and implemented through committees,
programs and
literature are an important part of the total ministry of the church as it
seeks to reach into all the ____________________________
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