GIVING
The most famous sermon on Stewardship by John Wesley, our “founder of Methodism,” is Sermon 50, The Use of Money” [1] In the sermon, Wesley outlines his three rules for being faithful stewards of God’s blessings: (1) Gain all you can; (2) Save all you can; (3) Give all you can.
Wesley elaborated in great detail on each of these points:
1. Gain All You Can
• We ought to gain all we can gain…without paying more for it than it is worth (be diligent in your spending)
• Cautioned that “we ought not gain money at the expense of life, nor (which is in effect the same thing) at the expense of our health."
2. Save All You Can
Wesley directed the congregation to save all they can in stating: “Do not throw the precious talent into the sea…do not throw it away in idle expenses, which is just the same as throwing it into the sea. Expend no part of it merely to gratify the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eye, or the pride of life.”
Let’s take a closer look at the last sentence of the quote:
• Desire of the flesh, e.g., elegant living or living beyond what is needed
• Desire of the eye, e.g., buying things that are beyond what is sufficient or necessary
• Pride of life, e.g., spending on items to “gain the admiration or praise of men." Wesley said, rather than seeking approval from others, “be content with the honor that comes from God.”
In essence, he was stating that we should use our God-given wisdom in determining how to use the money that God has entrusted us with.
3. Give All You Can
In the sermon, Wesley emphasized that:
• When God created us, he entrusted certain things (such as money) for only a season; and,
• We should employ our resources…in such a manner that it may be a holy sacrifice, acceptable through Jesus Christ.
Another highlight of his sermon was that the right use of money is a God-given talent, an “excellent gift of God, answering the noblest ends.” Listen to how Wesley outlines what the Church can do with the tithes of members: "In the hands of His (God’s) children, it is food for the hungry, drink for the thirsty, raiment (clothing) for the naked: It gives to the traveler and the stranger where to lay his head. By it we may supply the place of an husband to the widow and of a father to the fatherless. We may be a defense for the oppressed, a means of health to the sick, of ease to them that are in pain; it may be as eyes to the blind, as feet to the lame; yea, a lifter up from the gates of death!”
Essentially, we are financing tools for bringing people to Christ…we are His hands & feet.
