Sermon Delivered on Mission Rally Sunday, March 9, 2003
GIVING MAKES YOU RICHER
"Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver... you will be enriched in every way for your great generosity..." 2 Cor 9:7
Let's face it! We live in a culture that defines success
pretty much in terms of the size of what we can accumulate. How big is my
income? How big is my job? How big is my achievement? How big is my house and
how much stuff and toys have I crammed into it? How big is the vacation that I
take or the financial security that I have attained? How big are the
opportunities that I have worked hard to create for myself and my family? I
think it's pretty much a safe bet to say that we generally equate success with
"How much?" and "How big? or
with "More."
But that's not the only model for
success that there is in this world. The years I spent in Alaska I became
acquainted with the Native American Cultures that live in that place. One of the
things you notice very quickly living there is that the indigenous Native
American Cultures and the white Anglo-Saxon culture do not mix and mesh very
well - a tension and clash exists between the two. There are a host of reasons
for this cultural tension, none more significant that what is really a clash of
cultural values.
The major Alaska Native Cultures (6) hold certain values to
be paramount to their cultures. These values often conflict with the values of
the dominant culture. It can be very difficult for a native Alaskan person to
make the transition from their native village environment into the dominant
urban white culture smoothly because of this value clash. Representatives of the
native cultures have deliberately articulated the values
that they elevate above all other values as a culture.
They have identified ten paramount values common to them. I do not know if the number ten was coincidence or not as the number ten calls to mind the core values of the Judeo-Christian ethic.
1) Each person has a special gift to give.
2) Share what you have; Giving makes you richer.
3) You are a reflection of your family.
4) You cannot control many things.
5) Have patience, some things cannot be rushed.
6) What you do will come back to you.
7) Take care of others.
8) Honor your elders, they show you the way of life.
9) Pray for guidance.
10) All things in creation are related.
As I reflect on the principles we are holding up in our
stewardship emphasis, it seems to me that by the time we are done we will have
affirmed no less than at least five of these ten values
directly and perhaps the other five more indirectly.
Some of the tension and conflict between the cultures of
Alaska can be explained by a clash of values, none bigger than #2 on the native
list, "Share what you have; giving makes you richer."
In Alaska native cultures the competition is often
not to see how many blankets and goodies one can accumulate, but
rather how much one can give away. In many native economies, the highest status
is not accorded to those who garner the most kill and eat the most, but those
who bring back the greatest amount to share with others
in their community.
If I had to pick but one out of their list of ten values that
is a distinctively Christian value that applies to us it
would have to be "Share what you have; giving makes you richer."
This morning we hear the apostle Paul say to us,
"Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under
compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver... you will be enriched in every way
for your great generosity..." 2 Cor 9:7
That is the distinctively Christian value and
truth that, as Christians, we are called to live by. It is also a
value and a truth that I believe conflicts with the working values
of our culture. We are bombarded every day with dozens of messages that urge us
to think only in terms of self, personal ownership and self-indulgence.
It is also true that most of us would
consider and see ourselves to be generous and giving people, and I would most
certainly affirm that. However, if generally speaking, it is true that we are
generous then I have some questions for which I seek answers.
If generally speaking it is true that we are
generous then, generally speaking, why is it that we do not put
more deliberate energy and effort into teaching our
children how to be givers from the time they are very small. Instead we put so
much energy into lavishing them with material things and most of them have a
great redundancy of toys and clothes and the material things of life. I'll never
forget a stewardship children's sermon I did some years ago. I gave ten apples
in a small box to a little boy and I asked, "If I asked you for one
of your ten apples how many would you have left?" He thought for a
moment and he said, "Ten!" Thinking he didn't
understand the illustration, I asked him again and his answer was the same,
"Ten!" I asked him, "Won't you share just
one with me." He said, "No!"
If generally speaking it is true that we are
generous, then, generally speaking, why is it that much
of our giving is the giving of scraps left over from our abundance or what we
can spare? A young writer and pastor named Ronald Patterson tells of growing up
in a very poor family in the 80's when there was a nationwide scare that a toxic
pesticide got into the cranberry crop. It actually did not, but there was still
considerable panic over and distrust of canned cranberries around Thanksgiving
of that year. His family was always the recipient of a Thanksgiving basket from
a local charity. That particular year when they opened their Thanksgiving gift
they discovered 57 cans of cranberry sauce! We are givers, no doubt, but often
it is what we can spare, what we do not want, or cannot use. I believe that is
not the kind of giving that our Lord models for us in
his life or expects from his disciples, but rather it is more of a
tokenism that salves and soothes something or other in the human
conscience.
If generally speaking it is true that we are
generous, then why is it, generally speaking in my experience over
the years, that I often hear the cry in the church, "All we ever
talk about is money," when reality is
we're lucky if we talk about it but only one Sunday a year!
I believe it has more to do with the naked truth that as
Christians we find ourselves caught right smack in the middle of a powerful
conflict; a monstrous tug-of-war and quite frankly that
is not a comfortable place to be. But you know what,
sometimes being a Christian means being made uncomfortable for the sake of
others and for the sake of Jesus Christ. I pray that we do feel
the pressure of being pulled in two directions. If we don't like this conflict
and don't want to experience the tension, and don't want to "make up
our minds" about this, as the apostle Paul challenges us to so do,
then perhaps being a practicing, confessing Christian is simply too hard a thing
to do and be.
On the one side are the predominant values of our culture
which come together in a thunderous chorus and shout in our ears,
"Accumulation, more, security, self-indulgence is what makes you richer."
On the other side is the Lord Jesus, the one who gave us as
much and any one can ever give calls, invites and sings a song of love that
urges us to trust the Gospel truth that "giving is what makes you
richer and richest of all."
Let me tell you a simple little thing I employ in terms of my
giving of time, talent and treasure. Like we do symbolically in worship every
Sunday, I always think of my offerings as being placed at the foot of the cross.
People have said to me over the years that "My giving is between me
and God so get out of my face pastor!" The thing is I basically
agree with that. However, the question you have to ask of yourself before God is
just this: "Is my gift worthy of the costly gift that the Lord Jesus
has given to me in the blood that flows from his cross?" That's
the question.
As I watched the power-point presentation this morning I
wanted to jump up and say "Thanks" to all of those
pictured on the slides, and so many others who were not pictured, who gave of
themselves in such ways that it has brought us to this moment in our history. I
want to say thanks to all of you who are currently giving in such a way that
this ministry has grown and matured and lives are being touched and through whom
God's Spirit is alive in this fellowship.
1991 was the year of the Oakland-Berkeley Hills wildfire
where many families lost their homes and everything in them including precious
personal that could simply not be replaced. A number of the victims were members
of the same book club. Sometime after the fire author Sue Bender was invited to
appear and speak at this book club, and they ended up talking about their losses
with her.
One victim told her sometime before the fire she had given a very precious object as a gift to a very dear friend. It was a valuable and treasured piece of expensive china, and she almost hadn't given it because of its significance, but decided it was a worthy gift that reflected their deep friendship. After the fire her friend came to her and gave back to her the very precious object that the woman had first given to her. A different woman also told that she also had given some things away to friends before the fire, and she also received them back, but they were things that she really didn't like and really didn't want. What was it that Paul said, you will be enriched in every way for your great generosity..."
I don't presume to know how that "enrichment"
might take shape in your life, but I believe with my whole being it does and it
will.
Today we've taken a brief look backward
to give God thanks and praise for the ministry that has happened here. We also
give God thanks for the ministry that is currently happening here all because
people have placed and continue to place their gifts of time, talent and
treasure at the foot of the cross of Jesus Christ.
We also have heard a challenge for the future. That challenge
is not to simply maintain the status quo or try to hold our own. The challenge
is always to follow where the Lord is leading, even if it means taking a risky
step out of the boat into what appears to be dangerous waters, trusting only
God's promise ad invitation. If there is one thing I know that the Lord never
says it is, "Get comfortable and stay where you are."
The first step on this journey is the gifts we "make up our minds" to lay at the foot of the Lord's cross. Amen.