EGW Books
〉 Counsels on Stewardship
〈 〉
   Foreword ( 5 )
Section 1—Heaven’s Law of Benevolence and Its Purpose ( 13 )
   Chapter 1—Coworkers With God ( 13 )
   Chapter 2—Our Bountiful Benefactor ( 17 )
     Continual Recipients to Give Continually ( 17 )
     Only Way to Manifest Gratitude ( 18 )
     Paul’s Argument Against Selfishness ( 19 )
   Chapter 3—Why God Employs Men as His Almoners ( 20 )
     The Fruit of Seeking Gain ( 20 )
     Our Greatest Conflict With Self ( 21 )
     A Foul Blot ( 22 )
     Our Possessions Ony in Trust ( 22 )
     To Awaken Attributes of Christ’s Character ( 23 )
     The Highest Honor, the Greatest Joy ( 23 )
   Chapter 4—The Conflicting Principles of Christ and Satan ( 24 )
     An Unequal Contest ( 25 )
     The Keynote of Christ’s Teaching ( 25 )
     The Fruits of Selfishness ( 26 )
     Death to All Piety ( 26 )
   Chapter 5—Beneficence Where Christ Abides ( 27 )
     When Christ Is Enthroned in the Heart ( 27 )
     Covetousness and Avarice Overcome ( 28 )
   Chapter 6—Preaching Practical Sermons ( 29 )
     The Most Difficult Sermon ( 29 )
     Expands the Heart, Unites With Christ ( 30 )
     Giving With Cheerful Alacrity ( 30 )
   For Further Study ( 31 )
Section 2—God’s Work and Its Support ( 35 )
   Chapter 7—The Lord’s Work to Be Maintained ( 35 )
     A Privilege and a Responsibility ( 38 )
     Support Foreign Missions ( 38 )
     The Work Must Not Stop ( 39 )
   Chapter 8—Wholehearted Attachment to the Church ( 42 )
     The Baptismal Vow ( 43 )
     The Task Before Us ( 43 )
     Wait Not for Appeals ( 44 )
   Chapter 9—The Voice of Consecration ( 46 )
     Answering Christ’s Prayer for Unity ( 47 )
     Empty the Heart of Selfishness ( 48 )
   Chapter 10—A Call to Greater Earnestness ( 51 )
     Latter Rain Postponed ( 52 )
     Subordinate Every Earthly Interest ( 52 )
     The Spirit of Sacrifice ( 54 )
     A Call for Consecrated Families ( 55 )
   Chapter 11—Selling Homes and Property ( 58 )
     Possessions to Decrease Rather Than Increase ( 59 )
     Preparation for Time of Trouble ( 59 )
     No Cord to Bind to Earth ( 60 )
   For Further Study ( 61 )
Section 3—God’s Reserves—the Tithe ( 65 )
   Chapter 12—A Test of Loyalty ( 65 )
     God’s Reserves of Time and Means ( 66 )
     Possessions as Well as Income to Be Tithed ( 66 )
     For Every Dispensation ( 67 )
     Designed as a Great Blessing ( 67 )
     Nine Tenths Worth More Than the Ten ( 68 )
     A Marked Change From Jewish Days ( 68 )
   Chapter 13—Founded Upon Eternal Principles ( 69 )
     Paul’s Recognition of the System ( 69 )
     God’s Claim Upon Us ( 71 )
   Chapter 14—A Plan Beautiful in Simplicity ( 73 )
     For Rich and Poor ( 73 )
     Bound by Covenant Relations ( 74 )
     Not a Rigorous Law ( 75 )
     No Burden Save to the Disobedient ( 75 )
     A Meager Pittance ( 76 )
   Chapter 15—A Question of Honesty ( 77 )
     Forfeiting Peace of Conscience ( 78 )
     No Better Than Sacrilege ( 79 )
   Chapter 16—Regularity and System ( 80 )
     First the Tithe—Then Offerings ( 80 )
     Meeting God’s Claims First ( 81 )
   Chapter 17—The Message of Malachi ( 82 )
     A Daring Repudiation ( 83 )
     Robbing God ( 84 )
     A Serious Matter ( 86 )
     Every Dollar Charged ( 86 )
     Why the Blessing is Withheld from Some ( 87 )
     Darkness Brought Into the Churches ( 87 )
     Selfish Withholding Recorded ( 87 )
     Great Loss to the Unfaithful Steward ( 88 )
   Chapter 18—Let Us Prove the Lord ( 89 )
     A Reason for Adversity ( 90 )
     Promises With God’s Commands ( 90 )
   Chapter 19—Appropriating God’s Reserve Funds ( 92 )
     The True Reason for Withholding ( 93 )
     Withheld Tithes Because of Lack of Confidence ( 93 )
     The First Duty to God ( 94 )
   Chapter 20—The Response of an Aroused Conscience ( 95 )
     The Back Tithe is God’s Property ( 96 )
     The Careless and Indifferent to Redeem Their Honor ( 96 )
     Payment by Note ( 96 )
     Pale at Thought of Withheld Tithe ( 97 )
     Facing the New Year ( 97 )
     Restitution With Contrition ( 98 )
     Jacob’s Fidelity ( 98 )
     Prayer Not a Substitute for Tithing ( 99 )
     Before It Is Too Late ( 99 )
   Chapter 21—The Use of the Tithe ( 101 )
     Other Lines to Be Sustained, but Not From Tithes ( 102 )
     Includes Bible Teachers ( 103 )
     Not a Poor Fund ( 103 )
     Not for Church Expense ( 103 )
   Chapter 22—Education by Ministers and Church Officers ( 104 )
     Instructing New Converts ( 104 )
     The Pastor’s Duty ( 106 )
     The Responsibility of Church Officers ( 106 )
     Teaching the Poor to be Liberal ( 107 )
   For Further Study ( 108 )
Section 4—To Every Man According to His Ability ( 111 )
   Chapter 23—The Principles of Stewardship ( 111 )
     How God Proves His Stewards ( 112 )
     A Practical Question ( 112 )
     In the Master’s Stead ( 113 )
   Chapter 24—Our Talents ( 114 )
     To Every Man His Work ( 117 )
     Why Talents Are Bestowed ( 117 )
   Chapter 25—Responsibilities of the Man With One Talent ( 118 )
     Entrusted Talents to Be Used ( 120 )
     Unimproved Talents ( 120 )
     Accountability for Physical Strength ( 121 )
     Indolence Not to Be Encouraged ( 122 )
   Chapter 26—Robbing God of Rightful Service ( 123 )
     The Great Sin of Professed Christians ( 124 )
     The Sin of Neglect ( 124 )
   Chapter 27—Facing the Judgment Day ( 127 )
     Startling Revelations ( 128 )
     Not Professing but Doing ( 129 )
     Promise to the Faithful Steward ( 129 )
   For Further Study ( 130 )
Section 5—Stewards of Wealth ( 133 )
   Chapter 28—Wealth an Entrusted Talent ( 133 )
     The Acquisition of Wealth Not a Sin ( 138 )
     Financial Talent Needed ( 139 )
   Chapter 29—Methods of Acquiring Wealth ( 141 )
     Integrity in Business ( 142 )
     Intelligence and Purity in Every Transaction ( 143 )
     Temptation Resisted ( 143 )
     The Registry in Heaven’s Ledger ( 144 )
     A Sacrifice of Principle ( 145 )
     Close and Selfish Dealing ( 145 )
   Chapter 30—Danger in Prosperity ( 147 )
     In the Valley of Humiliation ( 148 )
     A Perversion of an Original Faculty ( 148 )
     The Handicap of Riches ( 150 )
     A Question of Following Jesus ( 151 )
     Faith Rare Among the Wealthy ( 152 )
     Riches Not a Ransom for the Transgressor ( 153 )
     The Greatest Danger ( 153 )
   Chapter 31—Satan’s Wiles ( 154 )
     Worse Than Earthly Loss ( 155 )
     A Dwarfed Religious Experience ( 155 )
   Chapter 32—Wealth Misused ( 157 )
     Transformed Through Love ( 157 )
     Property to Be Prized but Not Hoarded ( 158 )
   Chapter 33—Sympathy for the Poor ( 160 )
     No Caste in God’s Sight ( 162 )
     Claims of the Widow and Fatherless ( 163 )
     Not to Be Supported in Idleness ( 165 )
     Diverting Means From the Mission Treasury ( 166 )
     Self-Denial—Self-Sacrifice ( 166 )
   For Further Study ( 167 )
Section 6—Liberality Abounding in Poverty ( 171 )
   Chapter 34—Liberality Commended ( 171 )
     Liberality Rewarded ( 173 )
     The Widow’s Two Mites ( 174 )
     Mary’s Acceptable Offering ( 176 )
   Chapter 35—Precious in God’s Sight ( 177 )
     As Fragrant Incense ( 177 )
     The Givers Rewarded Though Gifts Are Misappropriated ( 179 )
     As Estimated in the Heavenly Balances ( 180 )
   For Further Study ( 180 )
Section 7—The Wealth of the Gentiles ( 183 )
   Chapter 36—Favors to Be Received as Well as Imparted ( 183 )
     Example of Nehemiah ( 184 )
     Receiving Gifts From Outside ( 185 )
   Chapter 37—God Preparing the Way ( 186 )
     Impressed by the Spirit to Give ( 186 )
     Calling Upon Rich Men ( 187 )
     God Will Open the Way ( 187 )
     A Means of Conversion ( 188 )
   Chapter 38—The Harvest Ingathering Work ( 189 )
     Fruit of This Twofold Effort ( 190 )
   For Further Study ( 191 )
Section 8—The True Motives for Acceptable Giving ( 195 )
   Chapter 39—The True Motive in All Service ( 195 )
     Motive for Giving Is Chronicled ( 196 )
     Higher Motives Than Sympathy ( 196 )
     Love the Principle of Action ( 197 )
   Chapter 40—Freewill Offerings ( 198 )
     Thank and Trespass Offerings ( 198 )
     Grudging Gift a Mockery to God ( 198 )
     The Cheerful Giver Accepted ( 199 )
   Chapter 41—Popular Methods of Appeal ( 201 )
     Giving for Selfish Considerations ( 202 )
     Repeating the Sin of Nadab and Abihu ( 204 )
     Liberality With No Depth of Principle ( 205 )
   For Further Study ( 206 )
Section 9—The Pursuit of Earthly Treasure ( 209 )
   Chapter 42—The Peril of Covetousness ( 209 )
     The Bewitching Power of Satan ( 213 )
     Departure From the Self-Sacrifice of the Pioneers ( 215 )
     Everyone Tested ( 216 )
   Chapter 43—Trying to Serve God and Mammon ( 217 )
     Enduring Substance or Passing Shadow ( 218 )
     Engrossed in Pursuit of Wealth ( 218 )
     A Lesson From Judas ( 219 )
     Blinded by Love of the World ( 220 )
     True Generosity Destroyed ( 221 )
   Chapter 44—Vain Professors ( 223 )
     A Title to the Heavenly Possessions ( 224 )
     Eternal Riches Slighted ( 225 )
     How Inconsistent! How Worthless! ( 227 )
     God Will Provide ( 227 )
   For Further Study ( 228 )
Section 10—The Lure of Speculation ( 231 )
   Chapter 45—Grasping for Riches ( 231 )
     The Infatuation of New Enterprises ( 232 )
     More Attractive Than Persevering Labor ( 233 )
     A Snare of Satan ( 235 )
   Chapter 46—The Temptation to Speculate ( 236 )
     Deceiving Enchantments and Bribes ( 237 )
     Misleading Prospects ( 238 )
     Speculation by Ministers ( 238 )
     Speculating in Land Near Our Institutions ( 240 )
     The Lure of Lotteries ( 241 )
   Chapter 47—Unwise Investments ( 242 )
   For Further Study ( 245 )
Section 11—The Tyranny of Debt ( 249 )
   Chapter 48—Living Within the Income ( 249 )
     Industry and Economy in the Family ( 249 )
     Economy From Principle ( 251 )
     The First Lesson—Self-Denial ( 251 )
   Chapter 49—Bringing Reproach Upon God’s Cause ( 253 )
     What the Eighth Commandment Requires ( 254 )
     One of Satan’s Nets for Souls ( 254 )
     Weakens Faith, Tends to Discouragement ( 254 )
     A Demoralizing Practice ( 255 )
   Chapter 50—A Call to Prayer or Change of Occupation ( 256 )
     Counsel to a Colporteur ( 256 )
     Freedom Through Self-Denial ( 257 )
     Personal Debt Not to Hinder Liberality ( 258 )
   Chapter 51—Lifting Debts on Church Buildings ( 259 )
     Church Debts Dishonoring to God ( 261 )
     Need for Counsel and Cooperation ( 262 )
     An Inexcusable Laxness ( 263 )
     Building the Church and School at Avondale ( 263 )
   Chapter 52—Avoiding Institutional Debts ( 266 )
     Saving Expense Through Careful Sanitarium Management ( 267 )
     Economy in School Management ( 270 )
     Guarding School Finance ( 271 )
     Shun Debt as Leprosy ( 272 )
   Chapter 53—Failing to Count the Cost ( 273 )
     Debt Through Overbuilding ( 274 )
     Entrapped Through Miscalculation ( 275 )
     Counting on Money Only in Prospect ( 275 )
     Premature Enterprises Without Wide Counsel ( 276 )
   Chapter 54—Moving Forward in Faith ( 277 )
     Danger in Extreme Position ( 278 )
     Guard Against Mistakes on Both Sides ( 279 )
     A Brake on Wheels of Progress ( 279 )
     Loss Through Lack of Faith ( 279 )
   Chapter 55—Words From a Divine Counselor ( 281 )
     Let Not Mistakes of the Past Be Repeated ( 282 )
     Lift the Debts ( 283 )
     In Time of Reformation Means Will Come ( 283 )
   For Further Study ( 284 )
Section 12—Saving to Give ( 287 )
   Chapter 56—Left to the Honor of Men ( 287 )
     The Dollar That Might Save a Soul ( 290 )
   Chapter 57—Words to the Youth ( 292 )
     Children May Learn Self-Denial ( 293 )
     Keep Account of Income and Outgoes ( 294 )
     Following Satan’s Suggestions ( 294 )
     Birthdays and Holidays ( 295 )
   Chapter 58—A Plea for Economy ( 298 )
     A Partner in God’s Firm ( 299 )
     The Care of the Mites ( 300 )
     Then the Message Will Go With Power ( 300 )
     Progress Despite Poverty ( 303 )
   For Further Study ( 305 )
Section 13—The Sacredness of Vows and Pledges ( 309 )
   Chapter 59—Promises to God Binding ( 309 )
     A Reason for Adversity ( 310 )
   Chapter 60—The Sin of Ananias ( 312 )
   Chapter 61—A Contract With God ( 315 )
     Conditions for Receiving God’s Promises ( 317 )
     Satan’s Protest ( 318 )
     Need for an Aroused Conscience ( 318 )
   For Further Study ( 319 )
Section 14—Wills and Legacies ( 323 )
   Chapter 62—Preparation for Death ( 323 )
     How to Make Your Property Secure ( 329 )
   Chapter 63—Stewardship a Personal Responsibility ( 330 )
   Chapter 64—Shifting Responsibility to Others ( 333 )
   For Further Study ( 335 )
Section 15—The Reward of Faithful Stewardship ( 339 )
   Chapter 65—The Place of Reward as a Motive in Service ( 339 )
     As a Gift, Not as a Right ( 340 )
   Chapter 66—Treasure in Heaven ( 342 )
     Strengthening the Bonds of Unity ( 343 )
     Engraven on Christ’s Hands ( 344 )
   Chapter 67—Temporal Blessings to the Benevolent ( 345 )
     A Healing Blessing ( 345 )
     The Work of Benevolence Twice Blessed ( 346 )
     The Power of Earth Broken ( 346 )
     The Earthly Life Enriched ( 346 )
     The Heart of the Giver Expanded ( 347 )
     God’s Standing Promise ( 347 )
   Chapter 68—Sharing in the Joys of the Redeemed ( 348 )
     Realization Greater Than Expectation ( 349 )
     The Promise Sure ( 349 )
     Only a Little While Now ( 350 )
   For Further Study ( 351 )