Giving to the Church: A Historical Look at Stewardship - Report Example

Giving to the church: A historical look at stewardship  Introduction The concept of giving to the church or stewardship is not a new one for it has existed for as long as humanity and Christianity have known each other over the centuries, from the time of the Old Testament, through the New Testament and over the subsequent Christian generations in the universe. Throughout the world, Christian Stewardship is a central religious theme and a very fundamental guide for the practice of Christian life since the biblical foundations of Christianity are very clear on the aspect of worship through giving. In this respect, the gospel teaches Christians to worship God through generous giving of, not just their finances and material possessions, but also their time and talents because by doing so it is service to God. Benevolence and hospitality are ideal Christian traits that all true Christian believers are expected to embrace in the kingdom of God since all things belong to the Lord, and human beings are just but the keepers of God’s creation. In this respect, Christians bear the sole responsibility of taking care of God’s creation through benevolence and hospitality, by making good use of their God’s granted gifts such as time, talents, as well as their material possessions. Throughout the Old Testament to the New Testament, the bible refers to Christian stewardship as the foundation of true Christian living, and this has been witnessed in the practice of Christianity through the 21st century church benevolence missions that have helped the poor and the needy alike1. This paper will examine giving to the church from a historical perspective by revisiting the Old Testament period around the time the temple was completed to look at how Christians in the early church shared their possessions. Furthermore, this paper traces stewardship through the 21st century and the manner in which it has enabled benevolence and ministry work, particularly in respect to the black church and their support for colleges, schools, and their communities. The concept of Christian Stewardship Stewardship refers to the theological belief that human beings are the custodians of the world2, or the responsibility that Christians have in maintaining and using their God granted gifts wisely, as His collaborators in the work of creation, redemption, as well as sanctification3. According to the illustrations given in the passages of the Old Testament such as Kings 4:6 and Isaiah 36:3 among others, a steward is simply someone that looks over the household; the best example of a steward in the bible is most probably Joseph, when he served as the keeper of Potiphar’s house in Genesis 39:4-6. The concept of stewardship in the bible goes beyond merely serving since it encompasses aspects of generosity and hospitality; Abraham and Sarah provide a good model of what Christian stewardship should be concerned with, when they show hospitality and generosity to the three strangers who stopped at their house one day4. The Old Testament principles concerning the stewardship of material goods can be summarized effectively in proverbs 3:9, 10, which highlights that believers give to honor the Lord and to make a confession of their faith. The scripture also notes that believers give gifts for God’s use while trusting in the Lords generosity that supersedes all human knowledge and understanding5. The concept of stewardship involves both our finances and our willingness to contribute them to the agents of social change, but it also extends further to encompass everything we are and everything we do as Christians in God’s world of creations6. Just as the Christian church cannot survive without the financial support of Christian believers in the face of the current practicalities of the physical world, it cannot also thrive without the love, care, and time of the congregation. In this respect, the concept of Christian stewardship in the practical world of the Church implies service with one’s finances, time, and talents for the benefit of others; by doing so, Christians benefit from God’s generosity since He is the creator of everything in the world. The church is at the core of human service through benevolence and hospitality programs that target the needy and the poor in society since the essence of stewardship from a religious point of view is to serve others. Christian stewardship is indeed commissioned by God right from the time of creation when He puts man in charge of all creation by asking him to have dominion over other creations. God also commissioned stewardship when He put man in the Garden of Eden and asked him to tend it, which when translated it simply means service to the garden; taken from these two perspectives, stewardship inevitably implies service to ensure that God’s creation survives and thrives. The greatest challenge for Christians in the 21st century is how to protect our endangered planet from the catastrophic consequences of human actions that threaten our very own existence as custodians of the environment7. For instance, the planet is faced with the threats of global warming, depletion of energy reserves, extinction of many plant and animal species, among other critical concerns in the environment. Christians have to play a role by exercising God’s generously granted authority to restore order in the chaotic planet while supporting their brothers and sisters to live to their full potential through servant leadership. Stewardship in the Old Testament Throughout the Old Testament, the concept of stewardship begins and ends with God as the creator of the universe and everything that is in it; God delegated the custodianship of all his creation to the human beings in Genesis when He asked Adam and Eve to rule over the creation on His behalf8. The implication of this is that Christians give what they have because it all belongs to the Lord and they only possess these God’s creation as His delegates; Abraham acknowledges this fact when he goes to make a sacrifice of his son by declaring that everything he has belongs to the Lord. Later in Deuteronomy 25:19, when the Israelites are just about to take possession of the Promised Land, they are reminded not to ever forget that the land is God’s gift and inheritance to them and as temporal tenants, their administration of the land was limited to the use of the resources entrusted to them as God’s stewards. The concept of stewardship is highlighted through the rules governing the usage of the land, which required the Israelites to till the land only for six years leaving it fallow and unused on the seventh year to allow the poor to get food from it and the wild animals to eat what remains. The laws governing the Year of Jubilee in the Old Testament also highlight the concept of stewardship as every fifth year was consecrated as a fresh start throughout the land of Israel as seen in Leviticus 25: 8-54; during this time, outcasts and prodigal sons returned to their homes while debts were forgiven9. Immediately the people had settled down in the promised land, the Lord makes a claim on the promise their fore father Jacob made to give back tenth portion of all produce; the people begin to uphold put aside a tenth portion of all seed of the land or of the fruits of the trees for the Lord as tithe. In Deuteronomy 26:1-14, God commands the people of Israel to give the first fruits of all their crops and livestock as tithe of their produce in support of the temple worship10. The people indeed honored the Lord by giving the first fruits of their produce generously with thanksgiving to the Lord and this tithe is used to feed the poor, the widows, and the orphans in the land of Israel. The songs of worship and praise of the Old Testament covenant people also contain numerous references and reminders of the Lord as the sole creator of the universe and all creation in it, thereby highlighting their thorough understanding of the principles of stewardship. The people of Israel upheld the culture of tithes and offerings, which included three main tithes, the first one being the tithe of the Levites, and the second one being a celebration of domestic products tithe; the third most significant tithe was the Charity tithe, an expression of worship of God as the owner and giver of everything. The Israelites took the celebration tithe of agricultural products to the temple in Jerusalem and the whole family ate the tithe in the temple precincts11; celebrating harvest in the temple in God’s presence with their families was a sign of appreciation for the blessings from God in form of the wonderful harvest. The charity tithe took place every three years and the Israelites stored their tithes in their hometowns for use by the Levites who had not been allotted land alongside other tribes; the widows, orphans, as well as resident aliens who were considered poor and marginalized in the Old Testament could also draw from these food reserves. The Israelites gave generously to help the needy in their hometowns so that the Lord would continue to bless their work; the generous contributions to the food storehouse ensured that the Levites as well as the poor and marginalized groups of people did not starve. The Levite tithe was taken to the temple as an offering to the Lord to compensate the Levites for not having any sort of Agricultural based income unlike the rest of the Israelite tribes who had been allotted land for tilling12; tithing in the Old Testament highlights a number of points of significance today. Firstly, it shows that the Israelites approached tithing as an opportunity for celebrating the generosity of God and expressing gratitude for it and secondly, it was a means of providing for the poor and marginalized in society; in this regard, the Old Testament highlights generosity and hospitality as the obligations of all Christians who regard themselves as God’s people. In other references, the Old Testament also highlights that tithing was used to aid the clergy personnel in their daily work in the temple. The Israelites brought gifts to the Lord for the building of the temple in 1 Chronicles 29:9; the bible records that even David was overwhelmed by the outpouring of generosity that was expressed by the people of Israel who gave freely and wholeheartedly13. David too acknowledges that everything belongs to Lord when he prays and says that he had given willingly and with honest intent that which belonged to God; overall, the Old Testament teachings on stewardship highlight three basic principles. Firstly, that God owns everything, and secondly, believers are responsible for their management of God’s resources; thirdly, the Old Testament teaches that giving is an expression of worship that acknowledges God’s ownership of all things. Stewardship in the 21st Century The concept of stewardship in the 21st century has increasingly become elusive to practicing Christians since they only find it palatable as a mere theological principle but not as a call to true discipleship and Christian living. A large proportion of Christians in the 21st century would be free to accept the concept of stewardship in its abstract sense but when it comes to the actual practicalities of life, they are slightly reluctant to embrace it wholly since it thoroughly impinges on tangible realities. Nonetheless, the concept of stewardship as expounded in the Old Testament is still relevant to the church in the 21st century and it is at the core of all forms of charity and ministry works that many churches today get involved with, especially in the black church, which supports colleges, schools, and communities. Christians today are still guided by the stewardship principle of God’s ownership of all creation to give out not only their material possessions, but also their time and talents in support of Christian ministries and social charities in the community. The understanding of stewardship in the 21st century must go beyond matters of finances because the Old Testament principles of stewardship encompass the aspect of submitting to God in all spheres of life; the crisis in the church today, of the difficulties in meeting financial goals of ministry, in the 21st century has been attributed to the problem of discipleship. The concept of stewardship has slightly been underplayed today especially because essence of discipleship has been lost to the church14; the knowledge of what it means to be a follower of Christ in the 21st century is limited to a series of creeds and a set of prayers unlike before. The church of this century is defined by disciples who have no problem taking up their cross, only that it must be light to bear, and fitting within their schedules and lifestyles. A visitation of the he Old Testament implication of stewardship yields wonderful lessons for the church today, highlighting the fundamentals of giving to the Lord and what it means to be a God’s steward, ideals that have long been forgotten by the present church in North America in particular. The Black Church, which is simply the African-American church that largely ministers to a large population of the African-American congregation in the United States engage in a lot of benevolence activities and ministry work with the principles of stewardship at the core of their activities. Most black churches in the United States date back to the Post Slavery period, when a majority of the freed slaves continued to create congregations and church facilities that led to the cultural distinction of communities and worship. The freed slaves established a unique and empowering form of Christianity that highlighted the African spiritual traditions of generosity and hospitality; the African-American tradition of worshiping together and taking care of each other’s needs through principles of stewardship has been entrenched throughout the centuries to date. These black churches have increasingly become the centers for communities since they served as school grounds in the wake of the Civil War, providing social welfare to the African-American populations including providing for the needy and the underprivileged individuals. Furthermore, the black churches established schools, orphanages, as well as prison ministries thereby fostering strong community organizations as well as providing spiritual and political leadership to the black community particularly during the civil rights movement period. Since the black church in the United States started as a protest and revolutionary reaction against slavery and racism, it undertook the burden of freeing the black community through stewardship; for instance, the free black congregation in the state of Pennsylvania provided aid and comfort to slaves who escaped and helped them build new lives. Based on these early foundations of stewardship, the black church has engaged in plenty of missions aimed at transforming the African-American communities through the 21st century15; the hospitality and generosity of the African-American congregation has played a very fundamental role in the ministries that the black church has conducted throughout the century. The Church has been able to support many benevolent programs targeting the needy and the less fortunate in society, as well as those affected by pandemics and other challenging life-threatening events thereby strengthening the community. Throughout the history of the black community, the black church has played a very fundamental role in enlightening the black societies through their wide-range programs and ministries; black preachers such as Dr. Martin Luther King have provided leadership through the civil rights movement, encouraging education, as well as economic development. Since the establishment of the first black schools and colleges of training in the United States, the black church has continued its stewardship in funding the growth and development of these institutions through the 21st century; the black church congregation contributes towards the maintenance of these schools and the provision of essential social services to the communities they serve. Middle-class women in the black church have declared themselves through organized civil societies that have sought to report the numerous social matters affecting the African-American community in the 21st century16. Apart from that, these societies have also provided job training opportunities and reading education while working to improve the living conditions of the black communities. The women have helped to raise money for the African church missions while alleviating the burden of poverty, violence, drug abuse, and racism as well as prison ministries in the African-American community. Overall, the black church has continuously provided the moral and ethical leadership for the African-American community through the 21st century, giving hope, faith, and joy to the black congregations over the years17. The African-American society has survived numerous atrocities in the history of the black community through the liberation struggles in the era of slavery and the subsequent years of racial segregation18, due to the stewardship of the black church. The black church has committed to spreading the message of hope, freedom, and liberation, while continuously providing solutions for the African-American communities in the 21st century. The church has understood its role in an increasingly transforming world as that of addressing all aspects of human existence rather than merely focusing on the message of the kingdom yet the congregation it preaches to is beleaguered by social challenges19. The black Church has become more holistic to address a broad spectrum of issues that lie outside the spiritual realm; the black church is now aggressively preaching about socio-economic, educational, as well as cultural empowerment, alongside its spiritual liberation message. The Church has conceptualized stewardship as redemption theology that encompasses the double meaning of liberation and confederation in which the black church’s purpose in the 21st century is to liberate individuals from all human-caused states and circumstances20. The black church has also provided a foundation for all other forms of legitimate benevolent, social, entrepreneurial, and mutual aid movements that exist in the United States today. Throughout the century, the black community has demonstrated great ability and willingness to stick together as a united people21, and the black church has played a very fundamental role in solidifying this togetherness. Denominational barriers often do not mean a thing when there is a need for the community to rally behind a common course like justice, freedom, and liberation of the black community22, which has often been marginalized due to the brutalities and oppression of the white racist society. Conclusion Ultimately, we can trace the roots of the concept of stewardship in the history of the church from the onset of creation when God commissions man to take care of all creation, to the times of the biblical fore fathers like Abraham and Moses, and through the history of the covenant people of Israel in the Old Testament. Stewardship is a central aspect of the Christian faith and service, benevolence, and hospitality are crucial aspects of Christian worship of the Lord; Christians are responsible for serving God by taking care of God’s creation by making good use of their material possessions, time, and talents. The Old Testament provides the fundamental principles of giving to the Lord as worship; firstly, the central principle of stewardship is that God as the creator of the universe and everything in it is the principle owner of everything under the son. Secondly, the Old Testament is very clear that believers are responsible for their management of God’s resources, and they do so as God’s stewards; finally, the Old Testament teaches that giving is an expression of worship that acknowledges God’s ownership of all things. Bibliography Calivas, Alkiviadis C. “Approaching the 21st century: Challenges and opportunities for evangelism.” Greek Orthodox Theological Review (1997). 42(3): 445-467. Daniels, Ron. “Black America in the 21st century: Compete or perish”. Black Collegian, (2001). 31(3): 80-82.  Dassie, Wylin and Norbert, Wilson. “African-American health activism in the 21st century: Black women and the farm bill.” Race, Gender & Class 20(1): 232-243.  Furrer, Canon Thomas. 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