The Hillsboro Christian OCTOBER 2021 - VOLUME 61
FAITHFUL STEWARDSHIP
In This Issue of The Christian by Jim Bush “Steward” is an odd little word. It is actually a word we don’t use all that much anymore outside the church world. Steward can be either a noun or a verb. When I hear that word, I most often think of it in its noun form. And because of the power of the formative years, the way I typically hear that word in my mind is the 4th definition in the Merriam-Webster online dictionary: “an employee on a ship, airplane, bus, or train who manages the provisioning of food and attends passengers.” For some reason that word has fallen out of favor in the travel industry, at least in the airline portion of it. Those who care for and serve the passengers on a plane are no longer referred to as stewards and stewardesses, they are flight attendants. I’m not exactly sure why the change. Since Faithful Stewardship is one of our core values, and the upcoming sermon series will carry us from the 2nd half of October through all of November (our stewardship month), we wanted to take a little time to unpack that word from a more biblical perspective.
In this issue of The Christian the lead article is written by Jim Newman, our minister of missions in the land “Down Under” (Australia). Jim does an excellent job giving us a broad and solid understanding of this concept. It is a concept that is central to God’s design for mankind regarding the resources with which He has entrusted us for the care and welfare of the people around us and the world in which we live. Adam and Micah add perspective that is helpful and challenging. It is certainly a topic that our Lord intends us to understand and a lifestyle we are to embrace with vigor, joy and faithfulness. Take the time to read these articles and stretch your understanding and obedience a little bit. Let me also give you a sneak peek at the upcoming Stewardship message series that will begin October 17. We will unpack the powerful little letter of Paul to the Philippians, employing the lens of A Disciple’s Stewardship. If you think, “Oh no. Another series on money.” Think again. Though stewardship certainly includes the subject of money it is so very much more than that. Let me encourage you now to spend a lot of time in the powerful and joyful little letter of Philippians. Read it again and again (maybe once a week for the next 6 to 8 weeks), take note of
key verses and surprising statements, memorize verses that the Holy Spirit uses to awaken your conscience, and pray over the things you observe and learn. In this study together we will take time to consider and apply the following stewardship principles for a disciple of Christ. Stewardship of Position – Philippians 1:3-30 Stewardship of Attitude – Philippians 2:1-18 Stewardship of Relationships – Philippians 2:19-30 Stewardship of Heritage – Philippians 3:1-11 Stewardship of Time – Philippians 3:12—4:1 Stewardship of Thought – Philippians 4:2-9 stewardship of Resources – Philippians 4:10-20 Through this issue of The Christian, and in the upcoming series, be challenged, be encouraged, be courageous! Together and in all ways may we be found Faithful Stewards. For the Glory God Alone
Jim
Jim is currently serving HCC as Lead minister, but in years past has also served as Youth Minister, Worship Minister, Associate Minister and Minister of Discipleship. He has also served churches in Cincinnati, OH, Longmont, CO, and as director of Burning Bush Ministries. Jim is passionate about the Word and loves memorizing Scripture, being out of doors enjoying the vast beauty of God’s creation, best done on a wooded or mount hike with his wife Jean or from the saddle of a bicycle.
1 Peter 4:10
by Jim Newman Around twenty-five years ago I traveled to Puerto Rico to do research at a theological library as I worked to complete the thesis for my masters’ degree. One of the first items on my agenda was to rent a car for the week. The missionary I was staying with said, “Don’t rent a car, use mine; it belongs to the Lord anyway.”
possessions is an important part of stewardship, it is much more. Stewardship has been an important part of man’s response to God’s provision from the beginning as we find in Genesis 1:26, 28-30; 2:15. As Creator, God owns everything but he gives man authority to use, nurture, and protect his creation.
The car was registered in this young man’s name and he had paid for it from his own pocket, but he explained, he was only a steward of what God had provided. So I drove his car back and forth to my destination each day and thankfully didn’t have any accidents.
In the New Testament, the word translated as steward is the Greek word oikonomia, from which we get the English word economy. This word is used ten times in Scripture and literally means the manager of a household. In the first century many Jews lived outside of Palestine, but still owned property there, so they would hire someone to manage the estate. A steward was put in charge of the home and han-
When the topic of stewardship arises people often think of money, and while money or
dled all the needs associated with caring for the house and land, but they didn’t own the property. Joseph is an example of a steward working in the house of another as he served Potiphar (Gen. 39:4-6). Throughout scripture we are taught how to be stewards in every area of our lives. In Titus 1:7, elders are stewards of the Lord’s church, Paul and Apollos were stewards of the gospel as they taught it faithfully (1 Cor. 4:1,2) and Christians in general are to use every gift to the glory of God according to 1 Peter 4:10. There are other instances where the word stewardship is not used, but the concept is clearly seen. We need to be stewards of our lives, possessions, abilities, and the gospel itself.
Let’s think first about the foundation of stewardship.
make whatever choices they want. “My body, my choice” is a popular refrain in our world today. In the realm of relationships people often say, “We are consenting adults and it’s my body; I will do what I want and besides, we are not hurting anyone.”
our old self. Paul says in Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
The flaw in claiming personal autonomy apart from God, is not understanding that we all belong to Him as a part of Creation, and if we are Christians, we belong to Him because He redeemed us through the blood of Christ.
Second, consider the function of stewardship.
C. S. Lewis appropriately wrote in Mere Christianity, “Every faculty you have, your power of thinking or of moving your limbs from moment to moment, is given you by God. If you devoted every moment of your whole life exclusively to His service, you could not give Him anything that was not in a sense His own already.”3
Paul writes to the church in Corinth in 1 Cor. 6:19-20, “… do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were ought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” In essence, Paul is saying, “you do not belong to you.”
ble of the Talents in Matthew 25:14-30. In this well known parable, a man goes on a journey leaving behind his property to be cared for by three servants. To one he gave five talents, to a second he gave two, and to the third he gave three.
We often hear people say, “I can do what I want.” Especially with our physical bodies, people claim their freedom to
In Christ, we have relegated our old life to the past as we have been transformed into new people. We have died to
David writes in Psalm 24:1, “The earth is the LORD’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein.” 1 The same thought is repeated in Psalm 50:10-12. We are stewards because everything we have, including our own lives, comes from the Creator. We belong to God because we are made by Him and in His image, giving human beings tremendous value. We exist for the very purpose of being a servant in fellowship with God and of having dominion in stewardship over the earth he has given us to protect and preserve.2 God made us (Jer. 1:5; Ps 139:13) in His image and thus has authority over us as a part of His creation.
As stewards we utilize every possession, ability, and opportunity to bring honor to Christ, to glorify Him, and to build His kingdom. Jesus tells the Para-
The five and two talent men doubled their talents through what Jesus called trades. Perhaps they expanded the business or started a new venture. The actions were right be-
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, [a] and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
cause they were faithfully discharging their duties as stewards. The one talent man, however, buried his talent in the ground, unwilling to take any risk to carry out the master’s wishes. When the master returned, he richly praised and blessed the two faithful servants while chastising and pronouncing a great punishment upon the third. In this parable, the master represents Jesus, who will one day return to reward the faithful and punish the disobedient. The servants were given a disparity of talents. The first re-
ceived five times as much as the third, though even one talent is estimated to have equaled about twenty years of wages for a servant. Likewise, we are all blessed greatly by God, though we have been entrusted with differing types and amounts of talents. For us a talent could equate to money, abilities, time, etc. In today’s world some view it to be unfair and unjust for one person to have more than another. They argue that there should be not only an equality of opportunity, but also equality in outcome. This parable shows this isn’t the way life works.
The amount of talents given and gained is not the important criteria for judging faithfulness. The function of stewardship is to faithfully utilize all that God gives us, in His service, to the best of our ability. God does not expect us to do what we are incapable of doing, but to be faithful in what we are able to do. It is true that investing our talents may be risky. For the two faithful servants, their business ventures could have failed and money could have been lost. They exposed themselves to the possibility of failure.
The third servant, who Jesus calls wicked and slothful, buried his talent. He took no risks and expressed no faithfulness. How many times have we buried the talents that God has given us? Maybe we have intended to use our talent later; perhaps when the kids are older, or when they leave home, or when we retire and have more time. During this time our talent remains buried while the expected day of faithfulness may never arrive. This parable shows the decisions of stewardship have consequences. This master had been gone a long time, but return he did, and when he returned he wanted to know what each man had done with what he had been entrusted. One day our Lord will return just as he has promised. How tragic it would be to be cast from the presence of the Lord to a place of darkness and torment, but how great it will be to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.” Every dollar we have, every ability that we possess, every opportunity that comes, every moment we are granted, and the very breath we take is a blessing of God given to us by our Creator. Let’s use each
one to His glory as we await the victorious return of our Savior and Lord. All Scripture references are from the English Standard Version 1
2 Cottrell,
Jack. The Faith Once For All: Bible Doctrine For Today. College Press Publishing Company, Inc., Kindle Edition 3Lewis,
C.S. Mere Christianity. Lewis, C.S. Mere Christianity. New York: Collier, 1952, p. 125
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
From childhood, Jim was keenly interested in oversees missions and came to realize there are few people who are able or willing to work full-time in evangelism outside the USA. Jim believes God has prepared and enabled him to work with people across cultures. This passion for overseas ministries has led Jim to teach and preach in Australia, Grenada, Haiti, Mexico, and the Philippines. He and Becky currently serve at Eastern Downs Church of Christ in Australia.
TRUNK N TREAT THURSDAY EVENING OCTOBER 28TH 6:00 - 8:00 If you can help hand out hot dogs and water, or if you can help set up or tear down for this event, please contact Adam
Steele
by Adam Steele
Stewardship is a broad biblical concept that reaches to almost every area of our lives. We need to practice stewardship with our money, responsibility, talents, time, etc. What I have seen play out in my life is that I may practice stewardship in one area, while failing to practice it in another. One of the areas that I have always struggled with stewardship is how I spend my time. I am a procrastinator by nature and if I don’t put in the effort I will fall behind on projects very quickly (for instance, I started this article 4 days ago). The question is, “What does it look like for us to practice stewardship with our time?”
background, upbringing, race, time-period, country, financial status, we all have only 24 hours in each day. The way we spend the time we are given is what makes all the difference. Most of the time we spend every bit of the time we are given. Work, school, practice, running errands, doing chores, watching TV, eating out, looking at social media, and if we have any time left at the end of the day sleeping. When was the last time you were bored? How do you feel when you find yourself with nothing to do? Do you struggle to relax without feeling guilty for doing nothing?
Time is one of the great equalizers. No matter what your
In Ephesian 5:15-16 Paul gives this instruction for what type of
attitude we are to have towards time. “So then, be careful how you walk, not as unwise people but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil.” The phrase “making the most of your time” is the Greek word for “redeem”. The idea of redemption had to do with purchasing someone who had sold themselves into slavery. This word is also used to refer to God’s work of purchasing our salvation through Jesus’ death on the cross. So, what does it mean to redeem our time? I have noticed that often my schedule is filled not by my thoughtful choice but by the urgent or required. We spend lots of time at our jobs because
we must. We go to school because our parents tell us we don’t have a choice. We go to every birthday party because they are family. However, most of the things I tend to not have time for are the things I think of as most important. Calling my parents, checking in on family and friends, spending quality time with my kids, reading, memorizing scripture, etc. These are the things I put the most real value on but struggle to spend actual, consistent time doing. I know of a preacher who once said, “If I do not define the important, then during the week that which is merely urgent will rush in, disguised as the truly important, and will crowd out everything else.” This is what it means to redeem our time,
we don’t allow our time to be enslaved to what is urgent, required, or just staying busy. We buy our time back so that we can spend as much as possible on what truly matters. My prayer, for you and for me, is that we can do a better job spending the 24 hours that is allotted to us. That we will evaluate how we spend our time and make adjustments where we can so that we are using our time wisely. The days are evil and if we are going to glorify God in the midst of these evil days, we must be good stewards of our time.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Adam has passion for ministry and for God’s word and has served as our Associate Minister-Discipleship & Youth and Families Minister since 2016.
Grace and Peace Adam
“If I do not define the important, then during the week that which is merely urgent will rush in, disguised as the truly important, and will crowd out everything else.”
As we have been exploring the concept of stewarding well what God has given to us, I decided to go on a brief hunt. I’m a bit of a nerd and like to know the why behind things. I’ve had the privilege throughout my life to spend time studying a few different languages and the story of the evolution of words has been fascinating to me. Sometimes words that we use are directly anglicized (and into English) from a word with a similar meaning in another language. Sometimes there is a longer story behind where a word comes from. According to etymonline.com our modern word ‘talent” has
just such a story. See the word comes from the: late [13th century], "inclination, disposition, will, desire," from Old French talent ([12th century]), from Medieval Latin talenta, plural of talentum "inclination, leaning, will, desire" ([11th century]), in classical Latin "balance, weight; sum of money," from Greek talanton "a balance, pair of scales," hence "weight, definite weight, anything weighed," and in later times sum of money," from PIE *tele- "to lift, support, weigh," "with derivatives referring to measured weights and
thence money and payment” [Watkins]; see extol. An ancient denomination of weight, originally Babylonian (though the name is Greek), and varying widely in value among different peoples and at different times. [Century Dictionary] According to Lidell & Scott, as a monetary sum, considered to consist of 6,000 drachmae, or, in Attica, 57.75 lbs. of silver. Also borrowed in other Grmanic languages and Celtic. Attested in Old English as
talente. The Medieval Latin and common Romanic sense developed from figurative use of the word in the sense of "money." Meaning "special natural ability, aptitude, gift committed to one for use and improvement" developed by mid-[15th century], in part perhaps from figurative sense "wealth," but mostly from the parable of the talents in [Matthew 7:14-30]. Meaning "persons of ability collectively" is from 1856. How fascinating that our modern understanding of the word ‘talent’ finds its direct lineage from the teachings of Jesus on how we choose to use the gifts that God has given us for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. The core of Jesus’ teaching in the parable of the talents is to use what God has given us to serve the kingdom. So how has god gifted you? Has he gifted you with showing hospitality? If so you ought to use that gift in whatever way you can to create spaces where people can grow in relationship and connection with one another and Jesus. Has he gifted you in service? If so, you should be finding opportunities to serve the people
of God in such a way that the kingdom of God can flourish because of the work that you do in the background. Has he gifted you to teach? Then teach! Has he gifted you musically? Then use that gift to glorify him! Has he gifted you to lead? Then you better find a way to lead people to him! Remember, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ” (Colossians 3:23-24 (ESV)).
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
If you are looking for a great starting place to serve go to https://hillsborochurch.net/ ministries If you are ready to get involved now fill out the form at https:// hillsborochurch.net/ iaminterested
Micah is our worship minister and is passionate about finding ways for people to serve the body of Christ and the Kingdom of Heaven in whatever way God has gifted them for kingdom service. If you ever have questions about getting involved he would love to chat with you either during normal office hours or after a service (in between wrangling any one of his 4 crazy, lovable little ones.)
OUR LAST COOKBOOK WAS PRODUCED IN 2002 (pictured below)
We are so excited! The Faith in Acton Ministry has taken on the task of creating a new church Recipe Book!
The cookbooks will be available for purchase for $20.00 each and any funds collected that exceed the cost of the cookbooks will be designated to benefit our HCC Youth programs.
Order forms will be available in the front lobby and the cookbooks will be available by Mother’s Day. (These would make a nice Mother’s Day gift, hint, hint)
So ladies (and gentlemen), we are asking you to submit your favorite recipes for this
cookbook. There will be paper forms in the front lobby to submit your recipes on. Pick one up, write out your ingredients and instructions (please write legibly), and either drop your submission to the church office or you can drop them in the Giving boxes with special colored envelopes that will be provided. You may submit more than one recipe.
Deadline for recipe submission is December 17th.
You may also submit your recipes online at our website: hillsborochurch/net/ recipes
Intercessory
Prayer requests
10-01-2021
Health and Other: Sue Bryan Denver Conley Ohio Mission Bible Training Center Janet Pence Wayne Wiedenbein
Shut Ins: Barbara Boris Jewel Calmes Marvin Gotherman John Porter Angela Ruble Carol Setty Ruby Wallingford
Cancer: Jeffery Aurigema Luke Bihl Jim Cook Kari Crafton Bob Fisher Diann Hensley Judy Roush Mark Sears
Family Loss:
Missions: The Brittons, The Millers, The Newmans,
HCC Leadership: Steve Allen Jim Bush Roger Epley Dan Fauber Mike Labig Richard VanZant
Military: Tyler & Cindy Amos Chad Blankenship Justin Brandt Ryan Burns Mark Conover Thadeus Conover Corey Hughes Kyle Kessinger Taylor Sweeney
Average attendance for the month of September was: 322 Average weekly giving for the month of September was: 11,411.78 Our weekly need is: $11,229.13
WILL BE MEETING OCTOBER 21ST FROM 5:30 TO 7:00 IN THE CONNECTION CAFÉ.
Check out our website : hillsborochurch.net/mops
155 W. Walnut St. Hillsboro, Ohio 45133 937-393-1752
hillsborochurch.net
COME JOIN US SUNDAY MORNING! 9:00 or 10:30