Straight Talk about Stewardship

It's really remarkable how the Bible consistently combines spiritual guidance with practical guidance.  Nowhere is this more true than in matters of stewardship.

For example, the psalmist gives spiritual consel, "I rejoiced with those who said, 'Let us go to the house of the Lord.' i.e., to worship God. (Psalm 122:1).  The Law gives practical guidance: "No man should appear before the Lord empty-handed.  Each of you must bring a gift in proportion to the way the Lord has blessed you" (Deut. 16:16).  Jesus alludes to both of these in Matthew 5:23-24 and in the parable of the widow's mite.

People went to the temple for the spiritual purpose of worshipping God, just as we do today.  The gifts they brought were given for the very practical purpose of sustaining the ministry, just as ours do today.  Bringing a gift "in proportion to the way God has blessed you" is an act of worship, just as much as offering a prayer.  Thus it is not something done casually, but rather in gratitude.

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