Philosophy of Stewardship
GiveWell is an organization whose purpose is to promote a Biblical view of financial stewardship and to help donors give more to charity. Our Lord used several parables to teach that we should view our material possessions in the same way that a steward or manager views the assets he manages for his master [Luke 12:42-46]. A steward is to take care of the property so that it provides the greatest benefit for the master.
In the parable of the talents [Matthew 25:14-30], one servant was entrusted with five talents, a very large sum of money. He invested it wisely and eventually returned ten talents to his master Likewise, another servant was given two talents and he returned four. The master blessed them for their diligence and promised them greater responsibilities. The master cursed a third steward who did not take his responsibility seriously.
In another parable, a rich farmer [Luke 12:16-21] viewed a great harvest as his own without regard to his role as God's steward. He decided to build bigger barns to contain it, but instead of having many years of ease and selfish pleasure, God called him a fool and took his life.
We apply this stewardship concept to our lives today by remembering that all things ultimately belong to God. He has entrusted money and other possessions to us while we live in this world, and some day we will give an account of what we accomplished for the Kingdom [1 Corinthians 3:10-15], including how we managed the resources entrusted to us.
The most extensive passage in the New Testament on the subject of financial giving is Paul's instructions for a relief offering in 2 Corinthians 8-9. He encourages the Corinthian believers to imitate the rich generosity of the Christians in Macedonia. The passage does not say how much the Macedonians gave, but it was “beyond their ability.” [ 2Corinthians 8:1-4] This implies that they cut deeply into their own lifestyles.
Paul continued by telling the Corinthians to gauge their giving, not by how much they gave away but by how much they kept for themselves, so that there would be equality with those they were helping [2 Corinthians 8:13-15]. Paul reassured the Corinthians that God would meet all their needs if they gave away such large portions of their incomes. [2 Corinthians 9:8]
Today we use the term “sacrificial giving” when we give generously like this. In practical terms, if God is the ultimate owner of our money and we are his stewards, then we should keep a very modest standard of living so that we can give away as much as possible. We should not be comfortable with spending so much on ourselves while others (e.g., missionaries, pastors, believers in third world countries) struggle to make ends meet each day. Because of our selfish, fallen nature, it is difficult to keep the Lord's priorities first. Also, our American culture is highly materialistic, and we must be diligent to keep our culture's attitude from taking root in our hearts.
We need to keep asking ourselves questions like:
Do I spend too much money buying things just to make me happy?
How can I live less expensively so that I can give away more of my income to the Lord?
If I am financially better off than my pastor or missionaries, why don't I give more for their support?
Paul told the Corinthians to give with an attitude of cheerfulness, not with a grudging attitude. [2 Corinthians 9:6-7] How could this be? How can we give away 10 percent, 20 percent or more of our incomes and be cheerful about it? Those who give sacrificially learn that there is a deep-rooted joy in giving that far exceeds the shallow happiness of buying things for themselves. They look forward to be greeted one day with the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
Operating Name
The GiveWell Foundation also operates as the GiveWell Charitable Gift Fund or simply as "GiveWell."GiveWell ® is a registered trademark of GiveWell Foundation Inc. with all rights reserved. For information on licensing our trademark, please email us.