On Squandering or Spending the Inheritance

Recently I read an anecdote about Pablo Picasso, the famous Spanish (abstract) artist of the 20^th century. You may be familiar with not only his name but his rather bizarre art that you can almost tell what it is.  My favorites include the guitarist who looks like he has a broken neck and his legs on backwards; his depiction of the Spanish Civil War called Guernica, where the cow comes out of the steak, and the woman comes out of the cow, and various other bizarre images of suffering; and finally his self-portrait where his face is split in two, misaligned and grotesquely misshapen.  One evening Picasso came home and caught a man burglarizing his house.  The intruder took off and Picasso called the police. The police came to interview him and excitedly Picasso said, "I saw him! I saw him! I can draw you a sketch of what he looks like."  On the basis of that sketch, the police arrested a nun, a washing machine, and the Eiffel Tower, all in one sweep!

When asked to introduce yourself, how do you verbally “sketch” yourself? I've always found introductions to be an interesting experience.  There's no telling what people will say about self, or how much time they will take in doing it.

I remember once at a conference we were instructed to "briefly" introduce ourselves. Things were moving along pretty well until one person took it as an opportunity to tell her life-story, including a rather emotional commentary on two previous marriages, as well as a detailed discourse on the itinerary of a recent trip to Africa.

In contrast, I was at another gathering where our introductions were limited by two things.  First, we were to answer the question, “Tell two important things about yourself.”  Second, we had this amount of time to share (strike a stick match and hold it).  Needless to say things moved right along!

One of the things that determines, to a greater or lesser degree, who we are, are those things we have inherited.  We all carry in our souls, for better or for worse, some of the characteristics of our parents and ancestors; characteristics we either inherited genetically, or characteristics we acquired by growing up in a specific family system.  For example I “inherited” some of mother’s compassion and some of my father’s obsessive/compulsive tendencies.  I know that a few times lately Marcia and I have commented, after reflecting on something one of us did or said, “Oh my goodness, we are turning into our parents!”    

In Ephesians Paul speaks of another inheritance, the inheritance we have received in Jesus Christ.   “In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance….”   Paul reminded his Ephesian brothers and sisters they had received the inheritance of the gospel, the good news of God’s astounding love and being marked by the Holy Spirit; that is promised the unfailing faithfulness of God. 

And to this inheritance, I believe, you can apply all the same principles of parental inheritances.   How do you resemble Jesus?  How do you look and sound and behave and think like Jesus in what you do, what you say, how you relate to others, especially those that the community shuns or rejects as outsiders?

There is something else about an inheritance. You cannot help but, in some way, put it to work.  You can squander it on foolishness or self-indulgence, or you can apply principles of good stewardship and use the inheritance in a more responsible way that pays tribute to the giver.  If you have ever received a financial inheritance you know what I am saying.   Marcia and I have faced that in our family, and the most important question we finally considered was, “How can we use the inheritance to bring honor to the giver.”

Paul was quick to pay tribute to and praise the Ephesians, for they were “spending” their inheritance in expressions of faith and love.  “I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints.”  The Ephesians were honoring Christ and the inheritance of Christ in expressions of faith and love.  What a beautiful description of a person’s identity or community identity:  “faith in the Lord Jesus and love toward all the saints.” 

Today we are recognizing and giving thanks for those past and present “saints” who have touched our lives at a deep place in our souls and are partly responsible for the faith that lives and breathes within us.  In your baptism and through the witness of the saints, those who have mentored you, you have received the inheritance of the gospel; the inheritance of the love and forgiveness of God in Jesus Christ. God’s grace has been lavished upon your soul.  What have you done with your inheritance?  Have you kept it only for yourself?  Have you spent any of that inheritance upon others?  Unlike the inheritance of money which eventually runs out, this inheritance never can; the well of this inheritance never runs dry; it keeps coming and coming and coming!  In your daily life do you consciously seek ways to honor the “Giver” of your gospel inheritance?  Do you allow it to shape you to the point that someone might even say, “She reminds me of Jesus?”   “They remind me of Jesus?”

The book of Revelation, the last book in the bible, was written to seven congregations in Asia Minor to inspire them to faithfulness.  One of those seven congregations was the same Ephesian congregation (Rev 2:1-7) to which Paul wrote.  I find it extraordinary what John, the author of Revelation, had to say to the Ephesians in contrast to Paul.  Listen closely to this, “But I have this against you, that you abandon the love you had at first.”

Somewhere along the line between Paul’s letter to the Ephesians where he commended them for their faith and love, and John’s letter to the Ephesians in Revelation (about two decades later), the Ephesians had “abandon the love they had at first.”  In other words, they were squandering their gospel inheritance.  What a tragedy!  They had faith!  It is possible to have faith and live with faith and even push your faith into the faces of others.  Lack of faith wasn't the issue; lack of love was!

How is it with us?  Have we squandered our inheritance by abandoning the love?   It is possible, you know, to live as if we have a lot of faith, but still abandon the love of the Lord Jesus Christ – a love most fully expressed for the whole stressed-out and rebellious world on the cross.  We squander our inheritance when we speak more words of judgment and condemnation than forgiveness and grace?  We squander our inheritance when we do not welcome the stranger that comes into our midst, do not work for justice and peace, do not advocate for the powerless, define our friends by narrow boundaries, exploit others for our advantage or look more like the Pharisees Jesus sternly admonished than disciples of grace and compassion?  We squander our gospel inheritance when we trade in doing the right thing in love and allow our decisions to be determined and shaped by fear?   

I began this sermon speaking of Pablo Picasso.  Some would argue Picasso was the greatest artist of the 20^th century.  Not being an expert of the arts I could not say.  But I do know this.  When I look at Picasso’s art I sense that he truly was a genius among geniuses, but quite frankly I cannot always see just what his art is about or what he is trying to say.  It is too abstract and too undefined for my eye to see. 

I pray with all my soul that when people look at your life and mine, when people look at the community of Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church that they would not have to scratch their heads and wonder who we are or what we are about.  I pray that they might say something like Paul said of the Ephesians, “I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints…”

I also pray that we would not only continue to keep the faith but we would never abandon the love.