Day 2 Gifted to Build: Stewarding the Grace God Gave

Morning Manna | Wednesday, October 28, 2026 Series: Gifted to Build | Day 2 of 12: Stewarding the Grace God Gave Text: 1 Peter 4:10–11 (NIV) Word count: 1025 spoken words, including the Scripture reading | About 8 minutes

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OPENING Good morning, Cornerstone family, and welcome to Morning Manna.

Yesterday we started our new series, Gifted to Build. We learned from First Corinthians twelve, verse seven, that every believer has a gift from the Spirit, and every gift is given for the common good. Gifted for the good of all.

This morning we ask a simple question. If God gave you a gift, whose gift is it?

Turn with me to First Peter, chapter four. We'll read verses ten and eleven.

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SCRIPTURE READING Hear the Word of the Lord from 1 Peter 4, verses 10 and 11.

"Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen."

This is the Word of the Lord.

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TEACHING Peter gives us one word to hold this morning. Steward.

A steward manages what belongs to someone else. The house is not his. The money is not his. The land is not his. He holds the keys, he makes decisions, and one day he gives an account to the owner.

Peter says you are a steward of God's grace. Your gift is grace in a form you can use.

The New Testament word for a spiritual gift is charisma. Inside that word sits another one, charis, the word for grace. A gift of the Spirit is grace you can put your hands on. You did not earn it. You did not buy it. You received it.

Look at the first verb in verse ten. Received. Paul asked the Corinthians the same thing in First Corinthians four, verse seven. "What do you have that you did not receive?"

Think about that question for your own life. Your voice. Your patience with children. Your eye for numbers. Your gift for making a stranger feel at home. Where did any of it come from? Every one of those came from God's open hand.

Scripture shows us what a faithful steward looks like. Go back to Genesis thirty-nine. Joseph was a slave in Potiphar's house. Potiphar put Joseph in charge of everything he owned. The Bible says Potiphar did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate. And the Lord blessed that household because of Joseph.

Joseph held the keys to a house he did not own. He managed it well. And when temptation came, Joseph said, "How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?" Joseph knew who the real Owner was.

Now look back at the end of verse ten. God's grace "in its various forms." The word Peter uses there describes something many-colored. Picture a quilt your grandmother made, with every square a different fabric. God's grace shows up in the church the same way. A teacher's patience. A deacon's faithfulness. A mother's prayers. A young man's strong back on moving day. Different colors, one Quilt Maker.

Your square in that quilt looks different from mine. Both squares belong there.

Peter tells us two things about how a steward handles God's grace.

First, a steward serves others. Verse ten says use your gift "to serve others." A gift kept on the shelf is a gift wasted. Jesus told His disciples in Matthew ten, verse eight, "Freely you have received. Freely give."

Second, a steward depends on God. Verse eleven gives two examples. If you speak, speak as one who speaks the very words of God. If you serve, serve with the strength God provides. Speaking gifts and serving gifts. We'll look at both next week. For now, notice the source. God supplies the words. God supplies the strength. The steward never runs on his own supply.

Then Peter tells us why. "So that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ."

Here is the purpose behind every gift. Grace comes down from God. Service goes out to others. Praise goes back up to God.

When a steward forgets the Owner, two problems show up. Some people get proud. They treat the gift like a trophy. Other people get passive. They treat the gift like it doesn't matter. Pride and passivity both forget the same truth. The gift belongs to God.

Paul said it plainly in First Corinthians four, verse two. "It is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful."

God is not asking you to be the most gifted person in the room. He is asking you to be faithful with what He placed in your hands.

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TODAY'S STEP: Surrender It, Then Serve With It Here is your step for today.

Think of one ability you have treated as your own. Maybe you're a good cook. Maybe you're organized. Maybe you're good with words or good with tools.

First, surrender it. Say out loud, "Lord, this belongs to You."

Then serve with it. Before the day ends, use that ability to help one specific person. Cook a plate for a neighbor. Help someone sort out a problem. Write a note to someone who needs encouragement.

Surrender it. Then serve with it. That is what a faithful steward does.

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CLOSING PRAYER Father, everything we have came from Your hand.

We confess that we have treated Your gifts as our own. Some of us have been proud of them. Some of us have ignored them. Forgive us, Lord.

This morning we hand them back to You. Our voices, our hands, our time, our skills. They belong to You.

Make us faithful stewards of Your grace. When we speak, give us Your words. When we serve, give us Your strength. And in all things, let Your name be praised through Jesus Christ.

Show each one of us the person we can serve today. Open our eyes and open our hands.

To You be the glory and the power for ever and ever. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

Have a blessed Wednesday, church. I'll talk with you tomorrow.

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