Building on the Foundation

  Both Old and New Testaments warn us again and again about false teachers and false doctrines. As we’ve observed before, it is so easy to be deceived if we don’t continually stand guard against it. In one of these many warnings, the apostle Paul wrote, “But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ” (2 Cor. 11:3). What is this simplicity Paul spoke of? “Simplicity” is Strong’s # G572, haplotēs . Thayer’s Greek Lexicon defines it as, “singleness, simplicity, sincerity, mental honesty; the virtue of one who is free from pretence and dissimulation; openness of heart manifesting itself by benefactions, liberality.” Elsewhere in the New Testament, this word is translated as “liberality” (generosity) or “sincerity.” For example, “he who gives, with liberality [ haplotēs ]” (Rom. 12:8). The Septuagint employs this same Greek word to describe integrity, innocence, or uprightness (2 Sam. 15:11...

  In Luke 16:10-12, following the parable of the unjust steward, Yeshua/Jesus told us, 10 “He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much. 11 “Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? 12 “And if you have not been faithful in what is another man’s, who will give you what is your own? There are at least two things we can conclude from this statement. First, we must love, obey, and be faithful to our Creator in all things, no matter how big or how small. Secondly, we must not waste our Master’s goods, but be good stewards of the blessings He has bestowed upon us. In a previous blog post , we examined how to be good stewards of the physical bodies and health that God has blessed us with. In this one, let’s examine the specific topic of Jesus’ statement: money. How can we be good stewards of the money and physical possessions He has given u...