Don't Bury The Bag

Keep It 100 Series | Part 2 | Luke 16:1-13

Last week we established the foundation: GOD owns everything. Your money. Your time. Your gifts. Your family. Your future. Your very life! 100% of it belongs to Him and is entrusted to you.

So the natural follow-up question is this: okay, so what does He want me to do with it?

That's exactly where we're going this week. And Jesus has a lot to say about it in Luke 16.

But before we get there, let's make sure we understand what stewardship actually is, because most of us shrink it down to a money conversation when it's actually much bigger than that.

Stewardship is what happens when the truth of GOD's ownership moves from your head to your hands. It's easy to say "GOD owns everything" go ahead and try it right now. See? Easy. The hard question is this: do I live my life like that?

Because stewardship isn't just about managing money. It's managing everything GOD has entrusted to you. And ultimately, it forces every one of us to wrestle with one question: who is in charge of my life?

Stewardship is not a money issue. It's a Lordship issue.

Faithfulness Is Revealed In The Little (Luke 16:10)

"Whoever is faithful in very little is also faithful in much, and whoever is unrighteous in very little is also unrighteous in much." — Luke 16:10

We tell ourselves a comfortable lie: if I had more, then I'd be faithful. More money. More time. More influence. More opportunity. Then I'd give. Then I'd serve. Then I'd show up.

But Jesus says that's not how faithfulness works.

Faithfulness isn't persuaded by circumstances, it's revealed by character. It can never be proven by how much a person has. It's always a matter of what a person chooses to do with what they've been blessed with.

Think about the widow of Zarephath. Think about the widow's mite. Faithfulness was displayed in their willingness to use their little resources maximally. The issue was never quantity. It was always the faithfulness demonstrated through surrender.

So if you're waiting to have more before you do more… stop. Be faithful with the paycheck you have today. The season you're in today. The relationships you have today. This body. This life. Today.

Faithfulness isn't proven by what you'd do with more. It's proven by what you're doing with what you already have.

Money Isn't The Treasure. It's The Test. (Luke 16:11)

"So if you have not been faithful with worldly wealth, who will trust you with what is genuine?" — Luke 16:11

Jesus talked about money more than anyone else in the New Testament. And that's not a coincidence.

Money is a great revealer. You want to know who someone really is? Watch their relationship with money. How we handle it exposes what we trust, what we fear, where our priorities actually are, and what, or who, we worship.

Money isn't the goal for the Christian. But it is an incredibly accurate diagnostic tool.

And here's where it gets real: this cuts in both directions.

Are you spending frivolously? Maxing out credit cards. Using money to pacify an overwhelmed life. Pretending GOD has nothing to say about your spending habits? Proverbs 22:7 says the borrower is a slave to the lender. That's a stewardship issue.

But are you hoarding? High income, always spending large on yourself, continuously increasing your quality of life and calling it wisdom? GOD doesn't give you the income you earn just to keep upgrading your comfort. One of the reasons He allows us to earn much is so that we can give much. That's a stewardship issue too.

The question isn't just about your net worth. It's about what your relationship with money reveals about what you worship.

Money isn't the treasure. It's the training ground. And GOD is watching what you do with it.

Treat GOD's Things Right (Luke 16:12)

"And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to someone else, who will give you what is your own?"— Luke 16:12

Jesus says it plainly: you are managing someone else's property. Same truth David declared in Psalm 24. Different teacher. Same lesson.

And managing someone else's property well requires intentionality. Because without guardrails, we drift. Spiritually. Relationally. Physically. Financially. The hymn writer said it best: prone to wander, Lord I feel it… prone to leave the GOD I love. That's not just a lyric. That's depravity. And we all have it.

So what does intentional stewardship look like practically? It looks like building a framework for your life that helps you steward everything GOD has entrusted to you; not just your money, but your faith, your family, your health, your relationships, your finances, your rest.

Proverbs 21:5 says "the plans of the diligent certainly lead to profit, but anyone who is reckless certainly becomes poor."If your life has no direction, it will always drift toward distraction. That's the default. You have to be intentional to fight against it.

Stewardship Is A Lordship Issue (Luke 16:13)

"No servant can serve two masters… You cannot serve both GOD and money." — Luke 16:13

Watch how Jesus moves in this passage. He starts with stewardship. He talks about money. Then He lands on worship. Checkmate.

Because stewardship was never primarily about money. It has always been a Lordship issue.

The small questions are: how much should I give, where should I give, what percentage? Those matter, we'll get there. But the BIG questions are: who is Lord over my life? Who has final authority? Who determines my priorities? To whom do I pledge my allegiance?

Jesus says you cannot serve two masters. Not because money is evil, it isn't. But because money makes a terrible GOD. It will always demand more than it delivers and leave you emptier than before.

So the real question of stewardship isn't "what do I own?" It's "who owns me?"

Your money will always follow its master. It will always follow what you worship. So let the answer to that question be clear: Jesus is Lord. Over everything! Including the account, the calendar, and the career.

Don't Bury The Bag.

GOD is not asking for a percentage. He's asking for surrender. And surrendered people stop treating GOD's stuff like it's theirs. They ask: GOD, now that I know everything is yours, how do you want me to manage it faithfully?

That's stewardship. That's a great place to be. And if you're there, you're ready for what's coming next week.

Don't bury the bag.

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