As we addressed last week, we tend to think of righteousness in moral terms, not lying, cheating, committing adultery, etc. A large portion of the biblical teachings on righteousness is about managing what we have been entrusted with right. All Christians should be living to hear the words on that great judgment day, "Well done good and faithful servant!" As we are told in The Parable of the Talents, the ones who heard those words were the servants who managed what they were entrusted with well. The one who heard, "Depart you wicked, evil slave," was the one who buried what he had been entrusted with by his Master.
A talent was a measure of the currency of the times, and this parable does specifically address how we handle the money we are entrusted with, which is a primary test of our character and spiritual wisdom. However, it is about more than money, but all of the resources we have been entrusted with, including the spiritual and natural gifts, and people.
The ability to mobilize people is a special grace, an anointing. If we are given the leadership to mobilize a thousand people, we will be held accountable how we managed them. If we have been given the authority to mobilize ten thousand, we will be held accountable for them. Hebrews 13:17 states, "Obey your leaders, and submit to them; for they keep watch over your souls, as those who will give an account." As leaders, we like to quote the first part of this verse, but have we considered the second part? We will give an account for those we have been given to watch over. Since they are going to be judged on how they have managed what they have been entrusted with, have we equipped them in this area to do this well?
When I began teaching even some of the most basic financial and management principles in our churches, I was astonished by how many people said they had never heard such things before in a church, and they were desperate to hear more. I am now determined that basic management and financial principles will be taught along with our basic doctrines courses in our churches and schools.
Certainly getting our basic moral and character issues right are even more fundamental than just learning to manage with efficiency, but one reason why we must get our basic character issues right is so that we can be trusted to manage not only resources, but the nations! This is more about people than resources. Resources are just one way that we help people.
True good management is founded on good character. Let us never think that we can overlook the moral and ethical standards of Scripture, just because we are now managing great resources. However, because the management side of righteousness is rarely addressed by the church, we will spend a bit of time on this. We need to begin by caring about it.
To be careful is to be full of care. If we are careless, it is because we care less. If I gave a gift to someone and saw them just toss it in the corner, neglect it, or carelessly break it, it would be hard for me to want to give them anything else. This is the way that we have been with many gifts the Lord has given to us. Good management, good stewardship, begins with honoring and esteeming what we are entrusted with. This does not mean that we worship it, or let it eclipse our love and devotion for the Giver, but because we love and honor Him so much, we should honor and love everything that He entrusts to us as well.
If we care about what we have been entrusted with, we will take the time to learn how to care for it. That is what management is basically all about. Management does not have to be hard or complicated, but it does have to be a focus or it will not be done well. Giving attention to just a few basic principles of management could radically change our lives. We will be addressing these principles from a biblical foundation, with a historic perspective, as well as the eschatology to understand how they will help prepare us for the future. I think you will find it not only interesting, but very fruitful.
As we discussed a while back, the most powerful and wealthy nation on earth was brought to its knees by a single storm, Hurricane Katrina. The nation was also traumatized by the mismanagement, not only on the part of the government, but also with some of the large charities. This should not have surprised us, and even though it was obvious to most in that situation that the church was able to do far more in some areas than the government or large charities, which was even reported in some of the nation's most liberal media. It was very encouraging the way that many churches and individual Christians responded to this disaster. They did a wonderful job, but we can do much better than we did with some planning and basic management.
Mark this prophetic statement: Management is going to become one of the crucial issues in the times ahead. Waste and inefficiency are going to become increasingly devastating and intolerable. Those who build on sound management principles will begin to rise to the top in every area of society.
Even though the church responded so well to the Katrina Disaster, in general, in some areas churches tend to be some of the best managed organizations, and in some ways they tend to be some of the most poorly managed organizations. We need to highlight and resolve to excel more and more in the areas where we tend to be strong, and we must address and correct the areas in which we are doing poorly—soon. We should always remember that judgment begins with the household of God, and the church will be tested in areas before the world is.
Again, the Lord Himself said that we would be judged as either good and faithful servants or wicked evil servants, based on this one issue—management. It is that important. Inefficiency and mismanagement kills as surely as terrorists, murderers, or drunk drivers. Managed well, the United States has the resources to not only balance our own budget, but pay off our debt very quickly, without raising taxes. We could do this while raising the standards of life worldwide a few notches.
That may sound like a fantastic boast, but studies have shown that in some of our government social services departments, only about 10 percent of their budgets actually get to a person in need. This should, and can be, reversed. Think about how many more people could be helped if it were. Then think about the similar inefficiency in our other departments. What would happen if this waste was corrected? I personally believe our governments, on all levels, could provide twice the services for half the present costs if good management principles were instituted. You are probably thinking about how many politicians ran their campaigns on cutting government waste, only to get in office and do little or nothing. This is understandable because the kind of leadership and wisdom that would take to actually do this may be beyond human capability—it may take the King of kings! That is why we need to keep praying for His kingdom to come.
Presently, churches, ministries, and charities are not doing much better than the government, and may be doing even worse in some cases because they have even less accountability. However, let us keep in mind just who the righteous and wicked are. According to the Lord's own Parable of the Talents, many Christians and many churches would end up on the wicked side of this, if we were judged right now. So how do we change this? We do need to start with ourselves and the church. We should have a vision for every Christian family and every church to be the best managed and most efficient on the planet.
This will require a bit more to it than just learning basic management principles, though that could go a long way in resolving this very serious issue, and that is a good place to start. My goal is for every one of the readers of this Word for the Week to be financially independent. This does not mean that you have to have a lot, but that you never have to base a decision on whether you have enough money or not, but on whether it is the will of God or not, period. This should be the place that every Christian lives—where money does not rule them, but they rule over it. This, too, is obedience, and the basic righteousness we are called to live by. Do not settle for anything else in your life. When you are free, then determine you are going to set many others free. This is our calling.