Stewardship

Love and Stewardship
Jim Searls - Steawardship Chairman

St Paul, in his 1st letter to the Corinthians, Chapter 13, [click here for passage-NIV] penned a most beautiful and oft-quoted passage on the importance of love in a Christian’s life.  This passage, as it is translated in the New International Version of the Bible,  is chosen frequently by brides and grooms to be read as a part of their marriage ceremony.  However, as beautiful and as meaningful as these words are in the context of a Christian marriage the message really has a  much broader context.

As a matter of fact the Greek word used by Paul is “agapen” which translates as love, primarily of Christian love, concern; interest; brotherly love; or charity.   The King James Version of the Bible translates “agapen” as “charity” and contains some of the most beautiful passages in the Bible. [click here for parallel NIV and King James Version of the passage]

Using this broader meaning to the translation of love and quoting from the 3rd and 4th verses - “...I may have all the faith needed to move mountains - but if I have no love, I am nothing.  I may give away everything I have, and even give up my body to be burnt - but if I have no love, this does me no good.”  You can give without loving - we do it every day.  We give to our Alma Mater Alumni Association and to many other causes without any thought of a loving Christian relationship.

But, let us complete the above thought “you can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving.”  Again, quoting from St. Paul in verses 4-6 -“Love is patient and kind; it is not jealous or conceited or proud; love is not ill-mannered or selfish,  or irritable; love does not keep a record of wrongs; love is not happy with evil, but is happy with the truth.”  Does this not beautifully express our Christian concept of love?  When we truly love someone or something it is necessary for us to give to that person or cause.

We, at St. Philip’s, have done so much over the years in our giving and we have done this,  as St. Paul said, because of our Christian love.  We have found that we cannot truly love without generously giving.

Bible passage links from BibleGateway.com