Dear church,

“… then I coveted them and took them.” – Joshua 7:21

Achan saw the things that were devoted to God, and he coveted and took them. Do you know which things in your life belong to God and which things are yours? If you really figure out the difference, you’ll go far and fast in your efforts to become more like Christ. 

Every good thing belongs to God, and this includes you – “a kind of firstfruits of his creatures” (James 1:17-18). God’s ownership goes even further than that, however. “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers” (Psalm 24:1-2).

Everything belongs to God, and he is entitled to do with it as he pleases. So what belongs to you? The answer to this is fairly simple. Your sin belongs to you. In God, there is no “variation or shadow due to change” (James 1:17). He is pure light and goodness. Your sin is your own.

A disciple of Christ understands his life is to be lived for God. The money in our bank accounts and the children in our homes do not really belong to us. Our bodies don’t even belong to us. They are God’s. And we are to be good stewards of the things of God that are within our care. This should change how we respond to every object or person we encounter today.

Chris