The sermon seemed to work ok. Not sure why the numbering is off in the text below.
“Giving Gifts: Time” SAPC, Denton; January 16, 2022; I Corinthians 16: 5-9; Colossians 4: 2-6 gift giving series
Colossians 4: 2-6
2 Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving. 3 At the same time pray for us as well that God will open to us a door for the word, that we may declare the mystery of Christ, for which I am in prison, 4 so that I may reveal it clearly, as I should.
5 Conduct yourselves wisely toward outsiders, making the most of the time.[a] 6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer everyone.
Introduction: We continue our preaching series on the gifts we give, which grows out of the story of the wise men bringing gifts to Christ.
In his discussion of story of the wise men, NT scholar Raymond Brown notes that there have been many embellishments to the story of wise men, particularly as seen in all the Christmas pageants! But, Brown writes, these embellishments fit with what Matthew is trying to do in his telling of the story. Matthew wants the Gentile-Christians in his time see the wise men and understand that they too have a place in the story.
likewise, we remember the wise men and know that we have a place in the story.
This morning, we reflect on giving back to God the gift of time.
the wise men did not open their chests and pull out the gift of time, like some giant stop watch or Apple watch full of apps. But, perhaps the greatest gift they gave was the time they devoted to following the star to come and meet the Christ-child and give him gifts.
How much time did they give? the answer varies, depending on how you calculate it. Last week, Dr. Patterson gave us the 2-yr answer, which is the traditional answer, based on clues from the text about how old Jesus was when the wise men finally found him.
Other scholars calculate how many miles the wise men traveled and divide it by the expected miles they could travel in a day and come up with a variety of answers ranging from three months to six months.
Can you imagine committing three months, or six months, or two years to one task?
The exact amount of time does not matter, but the commitment of time does.
A few thoughts on giving our time in service to Christ.
Move 1: The wise men’s gift of their time calls on us to order our lives so we can give time to do God’s work.
a. when Paul writes to the Corinthians about the time he is currently spending in Ephesus, he notes that a “wide door for effective work” has been opened for him.”
1. Reminder to the Corinthians and to us about Paul’s intentional effort to be part of something more than himself.
2. He looks around and sees how God can use him, so he is planning his time accordingly.
3. too often, we focus on giving our time in pursuit of what we want.
4. Decide what to do based on what’s next on our bucket list.
5. Giving our all to accomplish one more thing that meets our needs.
6. Paul reminds us of the need to order our time based on what God calls us to do.
b. In his letter to the Colossians - Paul urges the Colossians to make “the most of the time.
1. The Greek word for “time” could also be “opportunity” (Study notes)
1. In other words, time is an opportunity for ministry.
2. But we have to be intentional about giving our time to serve in those opportunities.
3. As you examine how you spend your time, are there opportunities for more Bible study?
or prayer time?
Or, maybe you want to go out and do something like volunteer with Habitat for Humanity? or Our Daily Bread?; or mentoring a young adult?
4. As in most gifts, we have the gift of time because God has given it to us. The question the wise men ask us is - how are we ordering our time to give it back to God?
Move 2: Paul also reminds us of the importance of giving our time to develop deeper relationships.
a. We hear Paul tell the Corinthians that he wants to spend some time with them.
1 He does not want to just see them in passing.
2. he wants to come and stay awhile, spend time with them, and grow in their relationship together.
3. Paul, of course, remembers how important it was for him to have someone invest time in his life and help him grow.
3. Remember back when he was Saul. When all he knew about followers of Christ was what he needed to know to persecute them?
4. When he suddenly changes after his Damascus road experience, how can he learn what it means to follow Christ?
5. he learns a lot through the presence of Ananias, another Christian. No one else wants to get near Saul, but Ananias spends time with him, travels with him, helps shape Saul into Paul.
6. Paul knew how important the gift of Ananias’ time was to him, and he wants to do the same with the Corinthians.
7. Spend time. Grow together.
c. study of 2K student texters (A Pew Internet and American Life Project study of 2K students says Lee Rainie , director of the Pew Internet and American Life Project) found that they liked texting because it allowed them to pass on information in as little time as possible with as little small talk as possible.
1. We know that truth don’t we?
- We like texting because you can just send info and never engage.
- With emoji and GIPHs, you do not even have to use words!
- Think about the implications of that.
- Superficial relationships that allow for the sharing of more and more information, but not the development of deep, abiding relationships where love can grow, where we can
6. one of the challenges of Covid has been the difficulty in maintaining and growing relationships
b. Over the years I have had numerous conversations with people who were reflecting on their lives.
- Not the dramatic death bed stories, but stories people tell as they see death looming and look back over their lives.
- I have heard some great stories; I have heard some deep regrets. Mostly I have heard people reflect on what they might have done differently as they look back over their lives.
- I can think of no instance when anyone has told me that they wish they had spent less time with their families; or that they had spent too much time developing friendships.
- usually, they talk about wishing they had spent less time at work; or less time on that hobby; or less time obsessing over this or that.
- And they wish they had spent more time with building meaningful relationships.
c. Give the gift of your time to deepen relationships and help others grow in their faithfulness.
move 3: Final thought - sometimes we give the gift of time to allow ourselves and others to discover new possibilities.
a. The county in OH where I used to live had a strong Mennonite presence.
1. some of them served on Christian Peacemaking Teams that went to conflict parts of the world as observers, basically a neutral presence watching what was happening.
2. Rick Pohlhamus, One of the team members, met with our local clergy group to talk about what they do.
3. He told us about a story that had taken place on one of his trip to Israel.
he described how he would drive around to try and be present in moments of crisis. Not that he could force anything to change, but he could be present.
he told us the story of finding himself one morning at a Palestinian elementary school. Students from the school had thrown rocks at Israeli soldiers to the day before, so the soldiers showed to punish the Palestinian students.
The soldiers put chains on all the exits except the main entrance, where the soldier in charge stood to keep no one from leaving. Then, the Israeli soldiers shot tear gas into the school. Soon students were hanging out the windows begging for help and sucking in the fresh air.
An Israeli soldier in charge had the principal at gunpoint near a narrow exit blocking them from leaving.
Polhamus describes seeing the danger of what might happen if the principal makes the wrong move or if the gun goes off accidentally. He feared it would set off all the soldiers surrounding the school and many kids would be killed.
Polhamus moves in between the gun barrel and the principal.
As he is trying to figure out what to do next, his cell phone rings. He answers (it's a friend calling), and then he says to the soldier, 'it's your mother.” “no, it's not.” 'yes, it is.” “no, it's not.” “if it were your mother, what would you tell her you were doing?” “It's not my mother.” “I know, but if it were, what would you tell her you were doing right now?” The soldier abruptly turns and calls the soldiers off and they leave.
Polhamus describes how he tries to give space in the violence for something else to happen. To give time for the participants to consider the new possibilities that they could have.
Later, he learns that the soldier leaves the army and joins a group of former soldiers working for peace.
Giving Intentional time, or maybe we might call it a time out from the normal that gives space for God's grace to work.
b. We can give the gift of time to invite others, invite ourselves to step away from the rush of our lives and re-envision what we are doing.
- To intentionally break away from our routines to and take time to envision new possibilities for what God is doing with our lives.
- Or remember the Israelites – 40 years in the wilderness.
- Some scholars suggest that the significance of the forty years was not because 40 was a special number (although it was), but because it took 40 years for Israel to imagine what it would be like as they move from slavery in Egypt to the Promised Land;
- it took 40 years to grow into the possibilities that await them where they will find themselves in a land of milk and honey.
Conclusion: the wise men gave the gift of time to go and find the Christ-child. it changed their lives forever.
Give the gift of time. it might change your life forever.
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