PERSPECTIVE
Quote of the Quarter
by J. L. McElhany (in the Foreword of Counsels on Stewardship, by Ellen G. White, p.5)
"In the realm of Christian life and service the question of stewardship occupies a large and vital place. Every Christian believer is deeply and continuously concerned. Our recognition of the sovereignty of God, of his ownership of all things, and of the bestowal of his grace upon us, is included in a proper understanding of the principles of stewardship. As our comprehension of these principles grows and expands, we are led into a fuller understanding of the way God’s love and grace operate in our lives. While the principles of stewardship concern material things, they are, above all, of a spiritual character. The service of Christ is a reality. The Lord requires certain things of us in order that he may do certain things for us. The doing of those required things in harmony with the divine will lift the whole matter of stewardship to a high spiritual plane. The Lord is not exacting. He does not arbitrarily demand either that we serve him or that we recognize him by returning to him of those things which he gives to us. But he has so arranged the divine economy that as a result of our working in harmony with him in these things, there flow back to us great spiritual blessings. We shall be destitute of these blessings if we fail to cooperate with him in carrying out his plans, and thereby deprive ourselves of those things which we need most."
