Sermon for November 23rd

Last week I told you about the abundance of God’s gifts. The Christian life is not about giving, it’s about receiving. Receiving God’s gifts. God is giving you everything. Your money, your time, your life. Even your daily bread doesn’t just show up in your pantry at the beginning of the week, it comes in the hands of your neighbor who runs the grocery store who received it from the hands of the bread maker who received it from the hands of the farmer who received it through the efforts of the sun, rain and seeds received from God.

But, still this is hard for us to imagine, especially in America where we have the mindset not of receivers but more like, well, takers. There are many reasons for this, but just think for a moment about a grocery store. When I go grocery shopping I can take anything with the right amount of money. In fact, when I go and they are out of the brand of chicken-apple sausage I get, I get frustrated. I can’t get what I want and that’s not right! Last week, they were out of our kind of bread. What did Kristy say when she opened up the new kind? “This bread smells funny!” We’ve got an attitude of takers—I can’t get what I want and that’s not right!

Now, think about something just a little bit different—like a farmer’s market. You want to buy butternut squash in June? Tough luck. Gotta wait. Strawberries in October? Sorry, but probably not. At the farmer’s market, you have to accept what is there and receive what is given. At the farmer’s market, it’s just easier to see that food is a gift and not just something else to buy.

Now, I’m not implying that farmer’s markets are more moral than supermarkets. That’s not the point. It’s an illustration of what life looks like when you realize God is giving you everything. A pastor friend of mine described a grocery trip he went on with a man who had just arrived from Ethiopia. My friend had gone into the grocery store to pick up a few things and thought this Ethiopian man might like to see what grocery stores looked like in the United States. But after the pastor had walked through the aisles picking things up he realized that his friend hadn’t said a word since they came into the store—he realized his companion had been crying, silently, the entire time. “What’s wrong?” the pastor asked? “I’ve never seen so much food in my life.” His friend said. “Just a small portion of this would feed my entire village. And here it all is. Just sitting here on the shelves for the taking. While people in my country are starving.” That’s a grocery store through the eyes of a receiver—seeing all that food as a gift and imagining the possibilities of how to use it.

What would you do if all your money, your time and your life were gifts? The Bible says that they are. “All look to you to give them their food in due season; when you give to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are filled with good things. When you hide your face, they are dismayed; when you take away their breath, they die and return to the dust. When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground.” God is giving you everything. But how might you live your life with God’s gifts? That’s the focus of today’s sermon—the second part of the parable of the talents.

What is the difference between the three servants in the parable? The first two doubled their money, the third gave back exactly what he was given. Could it be that the first two were both financial wizards while the third guy was simply average? Is Jesus making a statement about how we should get better at growing our money and investing in order to make a profit? Does Jesus prefer rich people? Is stewardship simply about getting rich?

The Bible talks about money a lot. But it doesn’t seem to care so much what people buy or how they invest. In other words, you’ve got a lot of freedom in how you use your money. I don’t even see anything that would create the impression that God thinks you to should rich rather than poor. However, God seems to care a lot about whether you are using your money or being used by your money. This is the most important question you need to answer today: Are you using your money or are you being used by your money?

Money, in the Bible, is often talked about surrounding two themes: giving and borrowing. God likes giving but he never talks very nicely about borrowing. But can’t you see why? When you are giving money, you are its master. Just like the kids this week, they were free to choose anything to do with their gift as long as it made a difference in the world, in their community or in the life of someone. It didn’t matter how much they had to give; the point was they gave.

On the other extreme is borrowing money. I’m not saying that you are a sinner because you borrow money (you are a sinner for a lot of other reasons besides that!); what I am saying is that God doesn’t like it when you make money your master. And that is exactly what happens when you have to borrow money all the time and get deeply into debt. It’s hard to think of anything else when everything you earn is already earmarked for a loan or credit card. Instead of seeing money as a gift to be used, money becomes something you’d rather not think about.

But hear this good news: God is giving you everything. Money isn’t scary. It isn’t evil. It is simply a means to an end. Money is only a gift, to be used and nothing more. Money is not to be worshipped. Money is not to be hoarded and never used. It’s only a gift. A MEANS to an END. It’s not that important! And money is also not to be spent frivolously—it is a GIFT FROM GOD! It is a means to an end. It can be USED! It has importance. This is the joy of budgeting down to every last cent. You see both the importance of money and realize that you are its master—not the other way around.

“To all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away.” You might have nothing. You might be out there in the outer darkness weeping and gnashing your teeth crying out to God for help. You might feel like everything you have is being taken away from you. Through foreclosure. Through bankruptcy. Through credit card debt. Through car accidents. But even in these difficult times, God keeps giving you everything. No matter where you are financially, nothing will separate you from God’s love and God’s gifts.

Jesus suffered for you. Jesus died for you. Jesus went to hell for you. Jesus loves you completely and will find you even if you are in the deepest darkness of financial poverty. The prophet Samuel says, “The Lord kills and makes alive, he brings down to the grave and he raises up. The Lord makes poor and makes rich; he brings low and he also exalts. He raises up the poor from the dust; he lifts the needy from the ash heap, to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor.” It is true that God makes the rich richer. He likes to give and keep on giving until you have an abundance. But Jesus was born to give you all the riches of salvation that surpass any monetary amount. And no matter how far you have fallen into debt, he has already paid the ransom for you. He will not abandon you nor will he give you up. Whether you are rich or poor you may trust in Jesus Christ to give you everything he has.

How might you live your life with God’s gifts? Use them and remember who gave them to you. God is giving you everything. Money is a gift, but it is only a gift. The Bible does has money advice: it encourages you to give and it discourages you from borrowing, but all these rules are simply to help you live a happier life and to love your neighbor more fully. Following these rules won’t save you. Following this advice might not even make you rich! A huge pile of money is not finally God’s goal for your life—though God promises to give you what you need. God wants your love and he wants you to love your neighbor. So he gives you his love. He gives you his gifts. And then he gives you the greatest gift of all—Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior. He gives you your money, your time, your life and your salvation. God is giving you everything.