The Faith of Giving

The Faith of Giving
Sermon 3 in Series on Stewardship
Matthew 6:24-34, 1 Kings 17

We continue our series on Stewardship. Over the past couple of weeks we have looked at the fact that as a steward of all that God has entrusted to us we use our time, our energy, our finances, our everything to serve and honor God. Today we look at another aspect of stewardship: faith. Our passages today deal with faith, or trusting God fully and as we begin I want you to ask yourself, “Do I really trust God or do I place my trust in other things?”



Hmmmmm, Why did Jesus say this about the conflict of serving God and wealth then immediately talk about worry and faith? Could it be that when we try to serve two masters, or wealth instead of money, we find that our trust in God is shaken and we begin to worry about all the things that we don't have control over?
I think it's the same reason we have something printed on our currency and coins. I challenge you to find current US coinage or paper currency that does not contain the words “In God We Trust”. Even the government sees the danger in placing our trust in mammon, wealth, money. Yet, is that not what so many of us have done?
Let me ask you a question, Why do you work? Have you ever wondered if you work just for money, just to get wealthy, just to get more? Now I know that we all need to work to pay the bills or prepare for retirement. I know some of you here today are living off the retirement you prepared for so I'm not belittling that aspect of working and financial planning. I know that in order to plan for the future, take care of your family and your own needs, support charities such as our church, and give to the needy we must earn money, But what would be your answer if I asked you, “Would you still work if you didn't get paid?” “Would you still do what you do if money was not involved?” or are some of us miserable just to get wealthy? Who are we serving? Who is our master?
You see, when we start asking ourselves questions like this; When we start looking at what and how we spend and use what God has entrusted to us; When we start looking at how we hoard for ourselves vs. give for the needs of others; we begin to see who our master is. We begin to see who we serve. We begin to see where our faith lies.

But doesn't Jesus have a beautiful way to tell us not to worry about anything? I can just see Jesus sitting there on the hillside, surrounded by people that had followed him hoping to understand the meaning of life and faith. Here Jesus is surrounded by a sea of humanity looking out over his creation. The birds flying above them on a backdrop of blue. A bird sitting above them in a tree singing. The lilies of the field with their brilliant colors dotting the hillside. I can just see Jesus pointing the the people toward the beauty around them and reminding them how God cares even for these little seemingly insignificant things and how much more he care for them.
Once again, it is a question of faith. Where do we place our faith? Do we place our faith in ourselves - the ME and the WE? Thinking that we have all the answers and can do it all? Do we place our faith in money thinking we can buy our answers?

Let me tell you a story of one example of well placed faith. It comes from 1 Kings 17. It is the story of an unnamed widow in Zarephath of Sidon and happend during the reign of King Ahab of Israel. It was said that Ahab “did more evil in the sight of the Lord than any of the kings before him.” Ahab had married a Sidonian named Jezabel, daughter of Ethbaal, king of Sidon, and built an altar to Baal in Samaria. When the prophet Elijah heard this he proclaimed God's word to Ahab and his kingdom, “There shall be neither dew nor rain for the years until I proclaim the drought has ended.” And then Elijah went into hiding with God providing for all of his needs. He lived in the wilderness by a creek and the ravens brought him food. When the creek finally dried Elijah went into the region of Sidon as directed by God. There he found a widow, the mother of a son. When he asked for help she quickly replied to bring him water but when he asked for a bite to eat we find just how bad things were for the widow. She says, “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a jug; I am now gathering a couple of sticks, so that I may eat it, and die.” An image of what may have been happening all over Israel, Samaria, and even into Sidon, the cost of King Ahab's sins was being felt far and wide.
But Elijah knew that God wasn't ready for this widow and her son to leave the earth. This man that had been fed by the ravens, had been protected from the wrath of Ahab and Jezabel, had been given drink by God from a drying creek, this man of God knew about placing your faith in God and he told this mother, cook for yourself and your son, but first cook for me then you will not go hungry.
She does as she is told and it is as Elijah said, the bowl of meal never ran out- the oil never ran dry. God provided for her and because of it she was able to provide for her son and for Elijah.

The plot thickens when her son dies before the drought ends and Elijah leaves. She blames Elijah, but Elijah calls upon God and through the power of God the young man is revived. Finally, this lady from the very land of Jezabel says, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is true.”

This woman had no money in which to place her faith. This woman had nothing left, yet when she placed her faith in God she saw results. She didn't get wealthy. She didn't seem blessed to those around her. She didn't look like she was anything different than anyone else. But through her faith her needs were met. Through her faith she was truly blessed.
Doesn't this sound like what Jesus was talking about in his Sermon on the Mount? Don't worry, believe, have faith.

What we do with our faith, how we live out our faith in God has a direct impact on how we express our stewardship. When we don't trust God we trust ourselves, we trust our money, we trust our health, we trust... something other than God and we wonder by we don't feel blessed, we wonder why we don't feel happy, we wonder why we feel we always need more. Yet, when we finally place our faith in God and live that faith out the blessings will come and they will show up in all we do. They will show up in our worship. They will show up in our service. they will show up in our prayers. They will show up in our finances. They will show up in our witness. And once again we are back to where we were just a few weeks ago, realizing that the vows of membership as Methodists are not about just being United Methodist, they are about being disciples of Jesus Christ. That is what our stewardship is about. That is what our faith is about.

Today, I want you to close your eyes during the hymn of invitation. I want you to take a moment and reflect on where you have been placing your faith. I want you to ask yourself if you have been holding back from God because of a lack of faith, a lack of trust. I want you to ask yourself if you have what your work, your spending, your everything says about your faith in God.
Today, I want you to look within yourself and decide this day which master you will serve. Choose wisely.

Gifts

Gifts
The Final Sermon in a series on the Vows of UMC
and the First in a series on Stewardship.

Today, we conclude the series on our vows of membership in the United Methodist Church, that is to support the Church with our Prayers, Presence, Gifts, Service, and Witness. In this series we have seen that these vows go beyond what it means to be Methodist. We find that these 5 statements are in fact statements of what it means to be Christian. They are rules by which we shape our life and align ourselves with Christ.
In this we have looked at how our Prayers aren't something that we start and stop, but they are a part of who we are. Our prayers are our connection to the source of our very power in God.
We have looked at how our Presence is more than just showing up on Sunday morning when it is convenient. Rather it is a part of living our lives in such a way that we are present with God and bring the very presence of God, Jesus in the flesh, into the lives of those around us.
We have looked at how our Witness is not just something that Paid-Professionals do, it is what we all do because we understand what God has done for us and we want to offer the abundant life offered in Christ to all who will receive it.
Last week we looked at Service and how we are to serve God in all aspects of our life and through all of us serving God, great things are accomplished. Our service isn't about us as individuals, it is what the people of God do collectively, thus doing more good. As an example we saw how the “Souper Bowl of Caring” started out as a few students taking a prayer seriously but now have raised some $80,000,000 since 1990, all of which has gone to local charities. That is the result of people saying yes to “justice, loving kindness, and walking humbly with God.”

Now, today we come to the conclusion of this series and the start of the next. Today we talk about the 5th element of the vow of support. The vow to support the church with our Gifts. And yes, that is money. Let us read together a familiar scripture about giving, one that is read and rehashed over and over again as church after church enters building campaigns and capital campaigns, and anything for which they need to raise money. I hope that today we will see this passage, and another New Testament passage in a new light when we are done.


With it being Boy Scout Sunday and having our Webelos and Tiger Cub Scouts present, I find it fitting that we start today's sermon with a story of a young boy. So...
Once upon a time, in a land far far away... isn't that the way a story always to begin?
So, once their was this young boy, maybe 10 years old, let's call him Juan. One night Juan asked his mother for permission to take a long hike the next day through the countryside by the lake near their home. While Juan's mother was concerned about him being out on his own for the day, she trusted him and knew many of the people in the community, people that would be able to keep an eye on him as he traveled through the day. He got up the next morning and packed a lunch. It could have been any type of a lunch. Maybe it was a Lunchable. Maybe it was a tube of chicken and rice like what a child in Asia may carry. Maybe it was tortillas and tamales wrapped in foil like we would find in South Texas or Mexico. Maybe it is a pupusa revuelta like we would find in El Salvador. Maybe it's Kibbie wrapped in Grape Leaves like we would find in Syria and parts of the Meditaranian. Maybe it was fish and bread wrapped in reeds like we would find in the Middle East. Maybe it's just a PB&J.
Whatever it was, he packed just enough for himself and maybe a friend if he ran across someone, and he set out on his adventure for the day. Little did he know that his adventure would cost him his lunch.
As Juan wandered by the sea he began to hear a crowd. It wasn't an angry crowd – like what we have been hearing and seeing from the reports in Egypt. It wasn't even a jubilant crowd like we heard about Friday when the Egyptian President resigned. No, it was a crowd of thousands but it moved quietly, as though they were all following someone, trying to hear what was said.
People were whispering through the crowd, relating what those in the back had missed.
The crowd continued to follow a dozen or so who were at the front of these thousands of people until they were on a verdent green slope overlooking the sea.
Juan followed this crowd up onto the hillside and as he looked out from the top of the hill he was astonished at the beauty of what lay before him. Thousands of people, a literal sea of people with colors and textures sitting on this hillside as though the entire mass of them would ripple into the turquoise blue sea below them in the distance.
Juan couldn't hear what was being said so he began to make his way through this assembly of humanity, this sea of people from all places. As he approached the front he could hear what was happening, there was one at the front teaching. Once he could understand what was being said he found a patch of grass and sat to hear what could be so important that thousands of people would gather like this.
Juan had almost forgotten his lunch when he began to hear the grumblings of hungry stomachs around him. Others thought of it too because he overheard some of the men at the front discussing how they were to feed all these people. Hearing that, Juan decided he could share his food, maybe get a couple of bites of bread and give the rest away. The teacher looked at Juan and smiled as the helper, we'll call him a Andrew, took the little lunch packet to the teacher, maybe we could call him Jesus. Jesus took the fish and the loaves, the meager lunch of a young boy - all he had to offer, and with a prayer began to pass the offering of the boy out to the multitudes. Yet, the end of the time of sharing and eating, the Disciples gathered more scraps of food than the boy had even started with, 12 times as much as the boy had offered. Somehow, Jesus had taken what the boy offered and blessed it in such a way that all were filled and there was an abundance left over.

Now, you may ask what this story has to do with money. You may ask, “what does this story have to do with the Malachi passage on tithes and the storehouses? Well, I say they have everything to do with one another. You see, Jesus has all that the boy has to offer. He took the gift of the boy that others may eat and be filled with an abundance left. What is the tithe for in Malachi? That the storehouses may be filled and that there may be an abundance to care for the needs of the priests who worshiped God, lead others in the worship of God, and cared for the widows and orphans. When this was done there was blessing. Malachi states this by saying that God will “open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you an overflowing blessing.” We find the same promises in Proverbs 22:9 - “Those who are generous are blessed, for they share their bread with the poor.” or 28:27, “Whoever gives to the poor will lack nothing...”
So, What am I saying by juxtaposing the story of the boy offering his one basket of food and Jesus feeding the 5000 with the tithe passage from Malachi?
First, I am not saying that if you place 10% of your income in the offering plate each week you will get 12 times that amount back in financial blessing. Your tithe is not some financial investment scheme that you can compare to a Bernie Madoff scam. You do not give a tithe or an offering (which are different) because of what you are to get out of it. You do not feed the poor expecting them to give you something in return. No, you give out of generosity for what has already been done.



So, if I'm not trying to sell you on a spiritual monetary investment scheme what am I saying? That you, that we, will not be blessed unless we are obedient. Our blessing may or may not come financially, but when our gift is given with a generous heart, as was the gift of the boy in John's retelling of the feeding of the 5000, then God's blessings can flow.
We are to give to God what is God's, not just because we are told to. We are to give to God what is God's, not because we expect a blessing in return. We are to give to God what is God's because of our gratitude for what God has already done for us.
Gratitude that we are a forgiven people – though what we have done before God is unforgivable.
Gratitude that we are an accepted people – though we are unacceptable before a holy God.
Gratitude that we are a loved people – though we have failed to love as we were taught.
We give because of what Jesus has done for us on the Cross.
We give because we recognize that all we have and all we are is because of Jesus.
We give because we know that all we have and all we are belongs to God already.

That is why we as United Methodist specifically and we as Christians in general vow to support the Church – that is the Body of Christ – with our Prayers, Presence, Gifts, Service, and Witness. That is who we are in response to what Christ has already done for us.

Service

Sermon 4 in the Series on Membership Vows to Uphold the UMC
SERVICE
Isaiah 58:1-10, Matthew 5:13-16, Micah 6:8

What is service? We vow to support the United Methodist Church with our Prayers, Presence, Gifts, Service, and Witness. But what is service? It all depends on how you look at it.

Service from the root- To Serve...
-(sports) a stroke that puts the ball in - like in tennis or volleyball
-serve a purpose, role, or function – Like, This podium serves to hold my Bible and notes
-do duty or hold offices; serve in a specific function – Like some of you serve on committees -and councils here in the community.
-be used by; as of a utility – our electric service
-help with food or drink – Food service, some of you will be served by a waiter or waitress later today.
-devote (part of) one's life or efforts to, as of countries, institutions, or ideas - some of you served in the military.
-I could even get into animal husbandry if we get real deep into the definitions of service.

We could go on and on and on. In fact, I found 69 definitions for Serve or Service. I know some of them overlap but still, is there any wonder why we have questions about what our vow of service means?
We turn it into all these other things. In the end, we make our vow of service about showing up at church once or twice a week if it's not inconvenient. We make it about writing a check and placing it in the offering plate. We make it about being seen in the right place doing the right thing so others will know what we have done. So often it seems that our service becomes about us.
That's what God was telling the people of Israel through Isaiah. Their fasting had become about themselves. Little changed through the years. Micah tells of the problems with sacrifices rather than fasting. The people had pulled so far from God that they didn't even know how to get back to him. They fasted, they sacrifices, not an animal for the nation as was called for, but thousands of animals. There even seemed to be talk of sacrifices that included children. Not a pretty picture for God's People. Their sacrifices had become an abomination to the very God the people said they served.
But God does not leave them without an answer. Instead, God give the answer in both places...
Isaiah 6:10 - “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin?
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly; your vindicator shall go before you, the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am. If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil, if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday.”
And in Micah 6:8 - “He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

Just as the people in those days of old, we too have the answers of what God calls us to do. We too have the answers of what it means to serve and, it really hasn't changed any. We are still called to free the oppressed, to share bread with the hungry, bring the homeless poor in out of the cold, clothe the naked, we are still called to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with our God. None of this has changed.
We see it all through the Gospels of Jesus.
You see, Jesus had a vision for what it would mean for his followers to be who he called them
to be. Matthew 5:13-16 shows us that image:
“You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot.“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

We are a set apart people. We are a people called to be within this world but not of this world. We are a people that call ourselves Methodists, and that needs to mean something.

I have looked for some other words than my own to explain what it means to uphold the UMC with our Service. A statement from the Website of Nimmo UMC, Virginia Beach, VA explains it like this...
Jesus called disciples to follow him, and he sent them out in his name. The pledge to uphold the church by our service recognizes that we are a sent people; that we have a purpose which goes beyond weekly gathering for spiritual growth.
"But what can I do?" This is the question for many who feel they do not have the gifts or talents to be of service. Remember, though, that God has called you into the church because God wants YOU for who you are and for what you have to offer. By becoming involved in avenues of service, you may discover gifts and talents you did not know you had.
How you serve depends upon your interests, your gifts and abilities, the time you have available, the needs of the church, etc. … Beyond that, it means adhering to a life style in which the welfare of others is a primary goal.
This is a ministry which exceeds the capacity of any single person or congregation. Membership in the United Methodist Church is a membership in a world-wide community of faith. We can, and do, make a difference in the world -- all over the world -- as we uphold the church by our service.

We have a varied group here. We have children, youth, young adults, middle age adults, adults nearing retirement, and those in various stages of retirement. We are a congregation made up of business people, ranchers, educators, laborers, supervisors, entrepreneurs, and everything in between. There is no limit to what we could accomplish as a church if we were to all begin serving God as we were created. We would be in service in this community feeding the hungry and clothing the naked. We would be in service around the state as we work with the Conference in building and repairing homes for those in need. We would be in service around the world as we bring medical supplies and clean water to refugees in other parts of the world. There is no end to what we could do.
To close I want to show you a video about what can happen when a few kids take the words of a prayer seriously and begin to serve. In 1988, Brad Smith, a Seminary Intern at Spring Valley Presbyterian Church in Columbia, SC delivered the words "Lord, even as we enjoy the Super Bowl football game, help us be mindful of those who are without a bowl of soup to eat" as a part of the pastoral prayer that Super Bowl Sunday. Little did he know what would happen from it.

Since that prayer was the spark that ignited the fire we now call Souper Bowl of Caring over $73,000,000.00 has been raised for local food banks and charities.
My question for us today is, What will we happen if just the few of us took seriously our vow to SERVE? How many lives would be changed?