Thursday March 29
We are strangers and pilgrims on earth, with heaven - perfect, beautiful, and peaceful - as our ultimate destination (Hebrews 11:13, 14). Until then, we have to live our existence here. The Christian worldview, especially as revealed in the great controversy, allows for no neutral parties now. We either live for God or for the enemy. “He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad” (Matthew 12:30). Whose side we’re on will be revealed, clearly and unambiguously, when He returns.
At some point after Christ returns, those who claimed to follow Him will hear one of two phrases. What are those phrases and what does each one mean?
Christ’s words “well done” are the most pleasing and satisfying words a steward will ever hear. To have divine, unqualified approval expressed over our attempts to manage His possessions would bring unspeakable joy for doing our best according to our abilities, for knowing all along that our salvation is rooted, not in our works for Christ but in His works for us (see Romans 3:21, Romans 4:6).
A faithful steward’s life is a reflection of the faith he or she already has. The attempt at salvation by works is seen in the words of those who sought to justify themselves before God by their works (see Matthew 7:21, 22). Matthew 7:23 shows how futile that self-justification really is.
“When Christ’s followers give back to the Lord His own, they are accumulating treasure which will be given to them when they shall hear the words, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; . . . enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.” - Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 523.
In the end, stewardship is a life lived in which the two greatest commandments, love for God and love for our neighbors, are the motivation and driving force in all that one does.
How well does your own life, and the stewardship revealed in your life, reflect these two greatest commandments?
