Value of Possessions-There is an old saying that “He who dies with the most toys wins.” If you don’t believe that there is a god and we are just the product of a series of fortunate accidents, then there is no purpose to life. One day, we were born and one day we will die. That will be the end. However, many feel that if you can accumulate enough money, enough possessions, or enough fame, you can live on in the things you leave behind. The problem is that when you die, the money and possessions go to someone else and people eventually forget you unless you make a really big dent in history.
We often feel that once we own something, it belongs to us, and we can do what we want with it subject to local laws. According to civil law in America, possession is nine tenths of the law. Whoever possesses something is responsible for it. How you got it determines what your responsibility is. If you made or manufactured it, it belongs to you until you sell it or give it to someone and you will be responsible if it causes damage to something or injures someone. You may own a race car but if you drag race it on the city streets, you can be arrested. If you give it away or sell it, it becomes the legal possession of the person who receives it and they are free to do with it what they want, subject to local laws, and they will be responsible if it causes damages to something or injures someone. If you loan it to someone, they are responsible for it and anything that happens to it until they return it to you, though you will retain some liability as the owner (the other one tenth of the law). If someone has an accident with it, you may be held partially responsible for the damages. If you did not get it legally, you are guilty of theft if you stole it or at least possession of stolen goods if someone else stole it and gave it to you. Some become so obsessed with obtaining possessions that they bury themselves in work and often neglect their health and their family,
God does not view possessions in that way. Those who know God will see possessions in a whole different way than those who do not. Since God made everything, it belongs to Him. When He made man, He gave man the task of subduing the earth and exercising dominion over everything that He had created. God did not give man ownership of everything. He merely appointed man as a steward over it to tame it and to manage it. God reminds man that everything belongs to Him. God illustrated that when He established the Sabbatical and the day of Jubilee (see the lessons on Christian Celebrations).