THE 7: GREED - beresolute.org · THE 7: GREED 1 He also said to the disciples, “There was a rich...
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RESOLUTE Copyright 2016 – The 7 Deadly Sins www.beresolute.org MISSION: “Discipling and developing men as leaders.” 9 THE 7: GREED 1 He also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions. 2 And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Turn in the account of your management, for you can no longer be manager.’ 3 And the manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. 4 I have decided what to do, so that when I am removed from management, people may receive me into their houses.’ 5 So, summoning his master's debtors one by one, he said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ 6 He said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ 7 Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’ 8 The master commended the dishonest manager for his shrewdness. For the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light. 9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings. 10 “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. 11 If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful in that which is another's, who will give you that which is your own? 13 No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” LUKE 16:1-13 QUESTIONS FOR SMALL GROUPS: • What does the word “stewardship” mean? Write it down. • How does your family history influence your attitudes and actions as they relate to stewardship? • Do you think God cares when we do not steward what He has given us? Why does He care? (Now read out loud and discuss the text below.)
Transcript of THE 7: GREED - beresolute.org · THE 7: GREED 1 He also said to the disciples, “There was a rich...
RESOLUTE Copyright 2016 – The 7 Deadly Sins www.beresolute.org MISSION: “Discipling and developing men as leaders.”
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THE 7: GREED
1 He also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions. 2 And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Turn in the account of your management, for you can no longer be manager.’ 3 And the manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. 4 I have decided what to do, so that when I am removed from management, people may receive me into their houses.’ 5 So, summoning his master's debtors one by one, he said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ 6 He said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ 7 Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’ 8 The master commended the dishonest manager for his shrewdness. For the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light. 9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.
10 “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. 11 If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful in that which is another's, who will give you that which is your own? 13 No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
LUKE 16:1-13
QUESTIONS FOR SMALL GROUPS: • What does the word “stewardship” mean? Write it down. • How does your family history influence your attitudes and actions as
they relate to stewardship? • Do you think God cares when we do not steward what He has given
us? Why does He care?
(Now read out loud and discuss the text below.)
RESOLUTE Copyright 2016 – The 7 Deadly Sins www.beresolute.org MISSION: “Discipling and developing men as leaders.”
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RATE YOUR STEWARDSHIP Since stewardship is the antithesis of greed, take a moment to rate your own stewardship. Use the scales below each question to rank yourself. Place a mark or line across the bar which best represents your current stewardship posture.
How often do you invest treasure, time, or talent with forethought?
If God were to call in the accounts under your management, how often could he have counted you as a faithful steward?
How often do you use material resources for supernatural advantage over your own personal advantage?
How often do you leverage the resources of this life as a means of building spiritual relationships?
How often do worship God over idolizing the things of this world?
RARELY SOMETIMES OFTEN
RARELY SOMETIMES OFTEN
RARELY SOMETIMES OFTEN
RARELY SOMETIMES OFTEN
RARELY SOMETIMES OFTEN
QUESTIONS FOR SMALL GROUPS: • Share how you ranked yourself above? One thing you do well, and one
thing that needs improvement. • Read the “Ancient Wisdom” below.
ANCIENT WISDOM: Greed also known as “avarice” which is an unusual desire for wealth and possessions. It is synonymous with coveting, the last of the 10 Commandments. Greed is simply a disordered love. It strikes the rich and poor and turns objects into gods, which is idolatry and it starves our faith.
RESOLUTE Copyright 2016 – The 7 Deadly Sins www.beresolute.org MISSION: “Discipling and developing men as leaders.”
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WHAT IS STEWARDSHIP? Stewardship is a Christian ethical attitude and principle that involves the responsible management of God’s resources. Stewardship should be applied to all aspects of the environment, economy, health, possession, talents, relationships, and the like. For the Christian, everything belongs to God and we simply manage the property of God as his servant. Since everything belongs to Him, we should have the attitude and the point of view that “our things” are really His things, including our very physical bodies and spiritual gifts. So there is really only one stewardship principle: God owns all things so keep your grimy hands off!
HOW DO WE BECOME BETTER STEWARDS? For sake of application let’s apply the following to money, but keep in mind these are biblical principles that should be applied to everything we steward (i.e. spiritual gifts, possessions, relationships, etc.), not just money.
STEP ONE: UNDERSTAND YOUR GREED. You are greedy, admit it, and then identify specifically how greed is manifest in you. This is an issue for both the rich and the poor. Your disposition toward money (or anything) is everything since stewardship and generosity are a heart disposition issue. God does not need money or anything. He wants your heart and your disposition toward money is the leading indicator of your allegiance.
STEP TWO: BECOME AN ACTIVE STEWARD. Stewardship is an exercise and discipline. Make it a daily endeavor until your behaviors change. See your identity as a steward and you your position toward God’s created things will change.
STEP THREE: PRAY BEFORE YOU SPEND OVER $_______. Godly stewards view every purchase as an investment. Watch your spending patterns and stay out of the electronics store!
STEP FOUR: STEWARD “FROM THE TOP.” Do you give what is right (correct) or what is left (leftover)? Start with a tithe (10-23%) but remember God does not want a percentage; God actually wants everything (100%)! Attitudinally the discipline of a tithe is a step in the transformation process.
STEP FIVE: BE CHEERFUL. This is not being happy about what we gave but rather cheerful in what God gave for us!
STEP SIX: REPURPOSE & INVEST TO GIVE. The person with the gift of giving seeks to save to invest for the purpose of having more to give. On the other hand, the bargain hunter saves to spend for the purpose of having more to spend.
QUESTION FOR SMALL GROUPS: • How can you improve your stewardship this week?
1 • KNOW GREED
2 • ACTIVELY STEWARD
3 • PRAY
4 • GIVE THE TOP
5 • BE CHEERFUL
6 • INVEST
