The biblical word “steward” refers to one who manages the affairs of his master (Gen. 15:2; 39:4-5; 44:1, 4) and gradually comes to be known as “any person in a position of trust, accountable to someone” (Fee, First Corinthians, p. 159, n. 7).When Paul refers to himself as “steward of the mysteries of God,” he presents himself in terms of his ministry of explaining the unfolding revelation of God’s gospel entrusted to him and the other apostles to preach (Fee, p. 160). While not every Christian is called to preach, he or she is called to love God and to love others. Clearly Jesus taught this:

Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law? And [ Jesus] said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbour as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.'Matt. 22:36-40

To love God and to love others are twin graces. Our giving to God in the service of others and our giving to others in the service of God are so closely tied together that they sometimes can barely be distinguished, like the generosity and thanksgiving of 2 Corinthians 9:11-12. The privilege of giving to the needs of others is itself both an act of worship and a gift of God. “Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!” (2 Cor. 9:15).

Giving of ourselves for others in Jesus’ name is heart work – a sacrifice that is not a burden (2 Cor. 9:7; see also 1 John 5:3). It is not a burden because our union with Christ gives us both the will and the ability to give as we have received (Phil. 2:13; Matt. 10:8). This is the apostle’s theme in 1 Corinthians 13. Jonathan Edwards wrote:

Such was the love of Christ to us, that he did, as it were, spend himself for our sakes. His love did not rest in mere feeling, nor in light efforts and small sacrifices, but though we were enemies, yet he so loved us that he had a heart to deny himself… And not only so, but he shed his own blood for us, and offered himself a sacrifice to God’s justice, that we might be forgiven, accepted, and saved! Charity and Its Fruits [Banner of Truth edition], p. 179

Therefore, it may be said that Jesus loved his neighbor as himself in the service and love of his Father. A key principle of loving others in this way is self-denial, about which John Calvin wrote:

There cannot be imagined a more certain rule, or a more powerful exhortation to the observance of it, than when we are taught, all the blessings we enjoy are Divine deposits, committed to our trust on this condition, that they should be dispensed for the benefit of our neighbors.

We should remember, that we must not reflect on the wickedness of men, but contemplate the Divine image in them; which, concealing and obliterating their faults, by its beauty and dignity allures us to embrace them in the arms of our love. Hugh Kerr, ed., A Compendium of the Institutes … by John Calvin, pp. 101-20

This love toward others will be no burden if its obedience is rooted in the love of Christ.