He Owns It All
Psalm 50:10-12
In our culture we are tempted to as 1 Timothy 6:17 says, “trust in uncertain riches”. John Wendel and his sisters were some of the most miserly people of all time. Although they had received a huge inheritance from their parents, they spent very little of it and did all they could to keep their wealth for themselves. John was able to influence five of his six sisters never to marry, and they lived in the same house in New York City for 50 years. When the last sister died in 1931, her estate was valued at more than $100 million. Her only dress was one that she had made herself, and she had worn it for 25 years. The Wendels had such a compulsion to hold on to their possessions that they lived like paupers. They failed to realize the truth that I would have each of us to see today. We do not own anything: He, God, owns it all. How much happier God’s people would be if they would embrace this truth: God owns it all; He has all of the rights to what He owns. Anything and everything you and I have belongs to Him.
I. God’s Ownership is Universal
A. The Bible makes it abundantly clear that Gods ownership is universal. He owns 100% of everything.
B. 1 Chronicles 29:11 “Yours, O LORD, is the greatness, the power and the glory, the victory and the majesty; for all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours; Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and You are exalted as head over all.”
C. Psalm 24:1 “The earth is the LORD'S, and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein.”
D. All living creatures belong to God.
• Psalm 50:10-11 “For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the mountains,
And the wild beasts of the field are Mine.”
E. All the world’s wealth belongs to God
• Haggai 2:8 “‘The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,’ says the LORD of hosts.”
• Deuteronomy 9:18 “And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day”
F. All of Heaven’s host belongs to God
• Deuteronomy 10:14 “Indeed heaven and the highest heavens belong to the LORD your God, also the earth with all that is in it.”
G. All Nations belong to God
• Proverbs 21:1 “The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes.”
H. All the souls of men belong to God
• Ezekiel 18:4 “Behold, all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine.”
I. God owns everything. There is nothing that God does not own. The song says “He owns the cattle on a thousand hills, the wealth in every mine, He owns the rivers and the rocks and rills, the sun and stars that shine…”
J. Job 41:11 “...whatsoever is under the whole heaven is mine.”
II. God’s Ownership is Absolute
A. God’s ownership is absolute because He is the Creator of everything
• God created everything and therefore owns everything.
• Psalm 24:1-2 (NET) “The Lord owns the earth and all it contains, the world and all who live in it. For he set its foundation upon the seas, and established it upon the ocean currents.”
• John 1:1-3 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.
B. God’s ownership is absolute because not only is He the Creator but also He is the Sustainer of everything
• Colossians 1:16, 17 “For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”
• Job 34:14-15 “If He put His mind to it and withdrew the spirit and breath He gave, every living thing would perish together and mankind would return to the dust.”
• There is a Protein molecule called laminin. Laminin is one of the multiplied thousands of protein molecules found in the body. It is a unique molecule called a cell-adhesion molecule. It has the assignment of holding everything together in the human body so it doesn’t fall apart. It seems that cells organize in the body into specific structures and that organization determines what protein they are and what they do. There are upwards of 60 thousand of these in the body. The structure of the cell tells the cell what its job is in the body. – a cell adhesion molecule – it holds everything together. What is amazing is that it’s in the shape of a cross. The stuff that holds our body together is in the shape of a cross. – copied
• It’s the cross that holds our lives together. It’s the cross that holds marriages together. It’s the cross that holds families together. It’s the cross that holds our church together. It’s the cross that will hold your world together. It’s the cross.
C. God’s ownership is Absolute because He alone is Sovereign.
• The sovereignty of God is the absolute authority, rule, and government of God in the whole of that reality that exists distinct from Himself
• Deuteronomy 4:35, 39 “…the LORD he is God; there is none else beside him.” “Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the LORD he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else.”
• Isaiah 44: 24 Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, and He who formed you from the womb: ‘I am the LORD, who makes all things, Who stretches out the heavens all alone, Who spreads abroad the earth by Myself”
• In 1715 King Louis XIV of France died after a reign of 72 years. He had called himself "the Great," and was the monarch who made the famous statement, "I am the state!" His court was the most magnificent in Europe, and his funeral was equally spectacular. As his body lay in state in a golden coffin, orders were given that the cathedral should be very dimly lit with only a special candle set above his coffin, to dramatize his greatness. At the memorial, thousands waited in hushed silence. Then Bishop Massilon began to speak; slowly reaching down, he snuffed out the candle and said, "Only God is great." - Today in the Word, April, 1989, p. 24.
D. God’s ownership is absolute because He of the price He paid.
• 1 Corinthians 6:19b-20a “...ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price...”
• Acts 20:28 “Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood”
• The Lord Who created us has bought us with the greatest of all prices in the death of Jesus Christ on the cross as our sin bearer; therefore, we and all that we have belong to Him forever. He has absolute divine ownership of and authority over our lives. By both creation and redemption, God has divine ownership over every one who is saved.
III. God’s ownership is Absolute and we are merely managers of His property.
A. We are the purchased property of Jesus Christ, bought altogether for His ends. We are bought to be His eternal possession. In New Testament times when a man bought a slave that slave belonged to him. We are redeemed for the Redeemer. We belong to Christ, and we are obligated to devote ourselves unreservedly to Him.
B. John Wesley put it this way, “When the Possessor of heaven and earth brought you into being, and placed you in this world, he placed you here not as a proprietor, but a steward.” Because God owns everything we need to relinquish our claims to everything to Him realizing that we are His stewards.
C. I cannot stress this enough. A steward is someone who has been entrusted with the resources of another... A steward stands in stark contrast to the consumer or user... The basis of stewardship is the recognition that God owns everything and we own nothing.” (Purses with Holes)
D. 1 Corinthians 4:2 “Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.”
E. Ken Hemphill commenting on the use of the name Adonai wrote, “Many of us struggle with this issue of ownership, don't we? From the very first time we understand what mine means, we want to cling to and claim ownership. Take for example two children who are playing together with a toy someone has given to one of them. The children did nothing to deserve the toy. They did not pay for it. Yet as soon as one of the children attempts to play alone with the toy, what happens? The "owner" of the toy snatches it back with a screeching protest, "Mine!" Somehow, all of us have the mistaken notion that we are owners. We claim that we own a house or a piece of land. We also are aware that ownership brings with it frustrations. Ownership rarely proves to be all we expect it to be. We buy a home only to find that we desire a bigger home or another home in a different location. We also discover that ownership is fraught with the constant demand of repair and maintenance. The roof leaks the week before the plumbing backs up. We can be so frustrated with ownership that we are tempted to say that we were much happier when we owned nothing. I've got news for you. You can get out of the business of ownership. Truth is, you're not an owner; you're simply a steward. The Lord is owner of all that exists. I have a practical suggestion that will help you acknowledge this. Sit down during your devotional time, take out a piece of paper and make up a deed signing everything over to God, the rightful owner. Say Lord, this has never been mine. Somehow I just took over what is yours by creation. I am excited to acknowledge that I am a steward and that you are owner of all the possessions represented on this deed One of my deacons in Norfolk shared with me his personal testimony of the freedom he found when he finally understood that the Lord was the owner of everything. A few weeks after he had signed everything over to the Lord, the Lord's washing machine quit working. He told me that in the past such an event would have created frustration and despair. In this instance, he and his wife simply knelt down in front of the washing machine and said Lord, Your washing machine has broken down. What do You want to do about it? After praying and consulting with a repairman, they determined the Lord needed a new washing machine. They could then thank the Lord that He had provided the resources for them to have a washing machine when so many had less. The understanding that the Lord and Master owns everything helps us to keep life in perspective. Folks, this really is good news. It is a joy to be a steward for the sovereign God of the universe, who has revealed Himself to be holy and righteous. We can rest in the assurance that He is trustworthy and able to provide for our every need. Like Abraham, we will discover that He who has brought us from Ur of the Chaldeans can fulfill His promises in our life. In these days of unprecedented anxiety and fear, we need to discover that God is Adonai.” (The Names of God Ken Hemphill- Excellent, Pragmatic Study - Highly Recommended!)
F. I have held many things in my hand, and have lost them all; but whatever I have placed in God’s hands that I still possess. - Martin Luther
G. God demands absolute obedience from us as His people because we live in the midst of His creation. We are responsible as stewards of God’s order. We cannot claim independent sovereignty or independent ownership. All that we are belongs to Him.
H. Have we recognized His lordship, His ownership, His rightful claim to every corner and crevice of our lives.
Conclusion: One day all creation will acknowledge His ownership. God Words says one day that “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord (Kurios, Adonai, Divine Owner), to the glory of God the Father. Have you recognized His divine ownership in your life?
