BE WISE ABOUT CHRISTIAN STEWARDSHIPIt is to the credit of the believers at Corinth that, when they wrote their questions to Paul, they asked him about the collection he was taking for the poorsaints in Jerusalem. Paul answered their question and then closed the letter by informing the church of his personal travel plans and also the plans for his associ- ates in the ministry.This chapter may seem unrelated to our needs today, but actually it deals in a very helpful way with three areas of stewardship: money (1 Cor. 16:1–4), opportunities (1 Cor. 16:5–9), and people (1 Cor. 16:10–24). These are probably the greatest resources the church has today, and they must not be wasted.Money (16:1–4)One of the most important ministries Paul had duringhis third journey was the gathering of a special “relief offering” for the poor believers in Jerusalem. He wanted to achieve several purposes in this offering. For one thing, the Gentiles owed material help to the Jews in return for the spiritual blessings the Jews had given them (Rom. 15:25–27). At the Jerusalem Conference years before, Paul had agreed to “remember the poor,” so he was keeping his pledge (Gal. 2:10). Paul not only preached the gospel, but he also tried to assist those who had physical and material needs.Why was there such a great need in the Jerusalem church? It is likely that many of the believers had been visiting Jerusalem at Pentecost when they heard the Word and were saved. This meant that they were strangers, without employment, and the church would have to care for them. In the early days of the church, the members had gladly shared with each other (Acts 2:41–47; 4:33–37); but even their resources were lim- ited. There had also been a famine (Acts 11:27–30), and the relief sent at that time could not last for too long a time.