Text: 1 Corinthians 4:1-2
“Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful.” —1 Corinthians 4:2
Cal Ripken, Jr. is a baseball legend. He was also one of my childhood heroes growing up in Baltimore. I remember being in the left field bleachers when he hit a grand slam against the New York Yankees. That baseball looked more like a volleyball in my 11-year-old eyes as it flew over and landed about twelve rows behind us. Everything looks bigger through the eyes of a child!
Ripken won the American League Rookie of the Year Award in 1982, and the AL Most Valuable Player Award in 1983, while leading Baltimore to the World Series title. The 19-time All-Star and Hall of Famer is one of only twelve players to get 400 home runs and 3,000 hits. But when he passed Lou Gehrig’s long-standing record for consecutive games played, the ovation for baseball’s new “Iron Man” delayed the game for 22 minutes and 15 seconds. One sportswriter noted, “This wasn’t Joe DiMaggio hitting in 56 straight games or Hank Aaron’s clubbing 755 homers. This was a record that required a talent all mere mortals could display—faithfully showing up for work every day.”
Faithfulness is about showing up consistently. It’s about putting in the work day after day, week after week, year after year. Faithfulness isn’t about controlling outcomes, or manufacturing results, but doing what God expects of you and trusting Him with the rest. That’s not a portrait of some lame or mediocre existence, but one where small gains matter. Jesus said, “Whoever is faithful with very little will also be faithful with much.” Or in the words of Vince Lombardi, “inches make champions.”
In 1 Corinthians 4:2, Paul says “Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful.” Being a “steward of God” means you act as a responsible manager or caretaker of everything God has entrusted to you, including your time, talents, and possessions. It means you use them wisely and responsibly to honor God and serve others. Stewardship is rooted in the biblical truth that everything ultimately belongs to God, and you are entrusted with managing your God-calling faithfully. That means you keep showing up for God. You keep showing up for people. You keep showing up for His mission in your life.
Not many of us can club a baseball 400 feet, slam dunk a basketball, record a song that goes platinum, or break the Guinness World Record for eating the most hot dogs in 10 minutes. (It stands at 83 just in case you were wondering and want to take a stab at it.) We can’t run someone else’s race, but we can be God’s “Iron Man” in our own personal lane. And that’s what He is expecting of you—Faithfulness to your calling. The results aren’t up to you, but the effort is.
Keep showing up for others. Keep being there for your kids. Keep demonstrating kindness to your neighbors. Keep doing the gritty work of relationships—developing your people skills, getting better at communication, exercising forgiveness, seeking peace, looking out for the interests of others. Put in the work. Put in the effort. Keep serving the less fortunate, seeking out the lost, and showing up for the marginalized.
Keep swinging away at that work God gave you to do, even if you strike out sometimes. It’s going to happen. Keep showing up for community with others, growing in grace, and “stirring up one another to love and good works” (Hebrews 10:24). And when you round those bases for the last time, you can expect to be greeted at home plate by Jesus Himself saying, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” Think about that as you seek to abide in Him this week.
PRAYER
God, you are the ultimate portrait of faithfulness. You have never failed me. Thank you for the love and sacrifice you demonstrated toward a sinner like me when you sent your Son to die on the cross in my place. Thank you for saving me. Thank you for your faithfulness in never giving up on me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Questions for Personal Reflection or Group Discussion:
- How many hot dogs do you think you could eat in 10 minutes?
- When you hear the word “faithfulness,” what other attributes come to mind?
- In what ways have you practiced stewardship in your life? In what areas or seasons have you failed to be a good steward of time, talents, or possessions?
- What is the greatest resistance to your faithfulness to God right now?
- Has there been an incident or pattern of unfaithfulness you need to confess to God?