Romans 8:18 – “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”

It is very easy to get caught up in the present and lose track of our ultimate destiny in the Kingdom of God. St. Paul encourages us to keep eternity in mind. This certainly has an application to our support for the Gospel. If we keep our focus on “the glory to be revealed,” we will see our tithes and offerings in a new light.”

What must I do to inherit eternal life? “Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” (Luke 18:18-22) Why should we not sell all that we have and distribute it to the poor?

If we sold everything we have our wife and our children would be neglected. In other words, to sell everything we have, and give to the poor would ignore, even abandon, those whom God has placed in our care. Our money, everything we have, is not to be used solely for the church. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t to be used for the purpose God intends.

Everyone has three stations in life, three spheres in which we live and are to be of service to or neighbors. These stations are the church, the family, and society. We are members of all three of these by birth.

Next week’s article – Three stations in life

God Bless you all! Thank you for supporting Redeemer by The Sea,
Noreen Wenstone, Stewardship Chairperson

We don’t offer ourselves to God just on Sunday mornings or Wednesday evenings, for example. Rather, we give Him our whole selves, all the time. We understand that offering ourselves to God as living sacrifices involves the giving of our time. It requires us to be faithful stewards of the time He has given us. Yes, it means we devote to our Savior all our time. Otherwise we are not sacrificing our whole lives.

You see, God both teaches us, and has graciously qualified us, to present ourselves to Him as living sacrifices – to live as His holy priests, who offer Him acceptable sacrifices through Jesus Christ, all day, every day, in our various callings.

In the passages from Romans and 1 Peter, we hear several examples of Christian self-sacrifice: serving, teaching, encouraging, giving, leading, showing mercy, living peaceably with others, submitting to governing authorities and those over us in the workplace, wives submitting to husbands, husbands honoring wives, showing compassion, and suffering patiently in doing good.

In all these things, and in all our other everyday activities, we sacrifice ourselves by using our time, not just for our own benefit, but also and especially for the well-being of others. Work time, school time, exercise time, study time, mealtime, chore time, recreation and relaxation time, even sleep time – it’s all God’s gift to us to use for purposes that please and honor Him.

This challenges us to think about the way we spend our time, how we utilize our talents, and the way we spend our treasures. Whatever it is I’m doing, am I doing it “for the Lord”? (Colossians 3:23) Am I presenting God a living sacrifice? Am I conducting myself as a holy priest, whose sacrifice is acceptable to God?

Because our Lord sacrificed Himself wholly for us, we offer ourselves wholly to Him as living sacrifices. This is following Jesus in self-sacrifice. By His saving mercy, yes, our sacrifice is acceptable to God. For the sake of Jesus’ finished work, God is pleased with us.

God Bless you all! Thank you for supporting Redeemer by The Sea,
Noreen Wenstone, Stewardship Chairperson

The sin of the world is paid for. God’s Law has been kept perfectly on our behalf. The prophecies have all been fulfilled. Jesus Christ has finished it all! And that, dear Christians, should fill us with complete confidence in our salvation. Since Jesus has finished all these things in His self-sacrifice, we can be fully certain our sins are forgiven, and we have everlasting life!

St. Paul wrote: “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” (Rom. 12:1)

We hear the same teaching in 1 Peter. “As you come to him, a living stone, rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves, like living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 2:4-5)

It’s the very thing Malachi foretold of the Lord, that He would come and purify His priestly people, that they may offer to Him an offering in righteousness. (Malachi 3:3)

So, what does this mean? In view of God’s mercies – that is, because Jesus sacrificed Himself to make us pure, giving His entire self into death – Paul said that we are to sacrifice ourselves entirely to God, offering Him our whole lives. For our Savior did not give Himself for us in part. So, we do not give back to Him in part.

God Bless you all! Thank you for supporting Redeemer by The Sea,
Noreen Wenstone, Stewardship Chairperson

Our Lord teaches us to give generously out of love – love for Him and for our neighbor. Genuine love is always love in deed (1 John 3:18), love such as Jesus showed us all. It is love that sees our neighbor in need and gives generously to help him.  It is love that hears the Word of the Lord and does what it says.  If we truly love, we give generously.  If we give without love, our giving is not truly following Jesus.

We follow Jesus in generosity when we give for a good purpose to thank the Lord and support His gospel ministry and other works of mercy. The people of Israel gave generously for the service of God’s gospel purposes, to construct and support the operation of the tabernacle.  For that was the place where the Lord received the Old Testament sacrifices, through which He bestowed the forgiveness of sins on His people.  So, they gave abundantly – so abundantly that they had to be told to stop giving.  (Ex. 36:5-6)

In the same way, we should bring generous offerings to support the Lord’s work of bestowing His gifts of forgiveness, life, and salvation in our congregations through the preaching and teaching of His Word, Baptism, and the Lord’s Supper. We should support the Lord’s work of caring for those who are poor and needy.

Our Savior calls us to follow His example in generous giving.  Let us then, with thankful hearts, rededicate ourselves to following Him in generosity.

God Bless you all! Thank you for supporting Redeemer by The Sea,
Noreen Wenstone, Stewardship Chairperson

Sixth Thought: We are stewards of the present. Our faithful stewardship takes place in time. Stewardship is not some philosophical endeavor. We are stewards of what we have been entrusted within our time. In worship, at the rail, and in the world, we steward the trust we have been given by God for the sake of those around us. In this way, we are His hands and His feet to serve our neighbor for His glory.

Seventh thought: We are stewards of the future. While we have no control over what happens tomorrow, our stewardship today can indeed affect the future. Our congregations are legacies of the faithful stewardship of those who now rest from their labor with Jesus. As we live today, and as we give today we are laying the groundwork for the future ministry of the local congregation. The Gospel can be proclaimed until Christ returns so that others may hear and be given the same trust of faith we have by the Holy Spirit, and know the joy of being stewards of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

God Bless you all! Thank you for supporting Redeemer by The Sea,
Noreen Wenstone, Stewardship Chairperson

Second thought: We are stewards of people.

As the Lord entrusts us with all things, we are to use the trusts for the benefit of our neighbor. Earlier in 1 Corinthians, Paul lamented the factionalism in Corinth. But, Paul, Apollos and Cephas were indeed used by God to steward people into the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Those who created factions viewed the work of these men wrongly. God allowed these men, and you and me, to be stewards of people for the sake of the Gospel. We have been entrusted with wisdom from God, with talents from God, and with time to be present with those around us for Jesus’ sake. The trust we have received from God was never intended to be hoarded by us. This trust is granted so that we might employ these resources for the sake of those around us. It starts in our families. But then this trust radiates out into our congregation. It permeates the way we live out the Gospel in our workplace and neighborhood, our community activities ad relationships. We use what God has entrusted to us in ways that show those around us Jesus.

God Bless you all!

Next week’s article: Third thought: We are stewards of the world.

Thank you for supporting Redeemer by The Sea
Noreen Wenstone
Stewardship Chairperson

In Corinthians 3:20-22, the Holy Spirit, through the apostle Paul, uses the word “stewardship,” He is talking about much more than our wallets and purses.

“The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.’ So, let one boast in men. For all things are yours – all are yours, and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s”

First thought: All things are yours.

The danger in these words is that we might see the things we have in life as ours. That is not the case in stewardship. God does not give us ownership of the things we have in life. More accurately, He entrusts us with the things that we need to support our body and life and the body and life of our neighbor. God entrusts us with all we need to steward our life and the lives of those around us so that we might be faithful stewards of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

During this Pandemic, it is a good time for us to watch out for our neighbors. Especially, those who are home alone and can’t get out to get the bare necessities to exist during this time.

God Bless you all!

Next week’s article: Second thought: We are stewards of people.

Thank you for supporting Redeemer by The Sea

Noreen Wenstone
Stewardship Chairperson