By David E. Wells
Years ago when I was studying for the bar exam, my review materials included a section on the law of Agency. Agency is a legal concept that can apply to business dealings, financial transactions and any other situation where a person is authorized to act on the behalf of another. A financial power of attorney designates a spouse, a child or trusted friend to act as an agent for financial purposes. A health care power of attorney does the same in the area of medical decisions. As a side note, it is a good idea for anyone over the age of 18 to have these type of documents. In the absence of having named someone as your agent for making financial or health care decisions if you became incapacitated, the state’s default “agency” is known as guardianship, which is a cumbersome, expensive and often frustrating probate court process.
The Bible also includes the concept of agency, but it is most often referred to as “stewardship.” The first example of this in Scripture is in the very first chapter of Genesis where God told Adam and Eve to “be fruitful and increase in number; fill the Earth and subdue it.”
Even though mankind’s ability to carry out this directive was severely compromised by the fall, the mandate was never withdrawn. Rather, God has maintained the pattern of managing creation through the human race, ...
