Day 2 Advent Reading: Luke 3: 23-38

1.  Today's reading is the genealogy of Jesus as found in the Gospel of Luke.  Feel free to skim through the names, although it might be interesting to see if you recognize any of the names.

2.  If we were to compare the genealogy of Jesus as found in Luke with the genealogy in the Gospel of Matthew, we would find that they are different.

     a. the genealogy is designed for theological purposes.
     b.   Matthew begins with Abraham and works his way back to Joseph; Luke begins with Joseph and work his way back to Adam, son of God.
     c.  Matthew is writing to primarily Jewish-Christians, so it makes sense that he would trace the genealogy to Abraham, who would be considered the patriarch of Israel and the Jewish tradition.  His audience would appreciate the link to Abraham.
     d.  Luke is writing primarily to Gentile-Christians, so it makes sense that he would trace the genealogy to Adam, who was the first human.  His audience would appreciate the link to the more generic Adam than to Abraham, who was linked to Judaism.

3.  The genealogy also connects Jesus to what has come before him.  Jesus did not just arrive on the scene with no family history.

4. Does it matter to you that Jesus has a family history?

Day 1 Advent Reading: Luke 3: 1-22

Why read the Gospel of Luke during Advent this year?  Because what better way to prepare to welcome the Christ-child into the world than to read one of the four gospels that tells the story of Christ.  Gospel literally means "good news," add what better good news to read than the story of Christ?

But why Luke?  Because it is one of the two gospels (the other is Matthew) that includes the birth story of Christ.  Luke is also the Gospel that the confirmation class reads in its entirety each year, so we will be experiencing a bit of what they go through as they prepare to profess Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

If this is the first day, why are we starting with Chapter 3?  We are leaving the first two chapters of Luke, which tell the story of Christ's birth, until the few days immediately before Christmas.

How is this going to work each day?  Each day on the blog there will be comments and questions about the reading for the day.  You may find other things that interest you about the reading, so be sure and add your questions and comments so that everyone can benefit from what the reading brought to your mind.    The daily notes will certainly not cover everything about the readings.

Notes from today's readings:

1.  Notice that Chapter 3 begins with specific historical data giving a specific time frame in history in which Jesus will arrive and engage in ministry.  This reminds the reader that God is acting in the realm of human history.  Christ's story is not a fairy tale of science fiction that is played out in another world, but takes place in the real annals of human history.

2.  The Gospel of Luke gives more attention to John the Baptist (including events leading up to his birth that are found in Chapter 1 of Luke) than any of the other gospels.

3. John preaches a baptism of repentance, which signals a new understanding of how one connects with God.  Previously, the goal was to show how one was connected to Abraham; now being connected with God occurs through repentance and submission to God's will.

4.  Notice that John offends King Herod and will suffer the consequences (3:19), which serves as a precursor to what will happen to Christ when he offends those in authority.

5. John is clear that he is not the Messiah (3:15).

6. When Christ is baptized, the voice from heaven confirms that he is God's son (3:22).

How do you connect repentance with your preparation for the coming of Christ?

"Bit Players" Matthew 1: 1-17

We are spending Advent reflecting on some of the less known characters, or some known by name but who play a bit part in the Christmas story. 

We begin by reading through the genealogy of Matthew.  I would ask if anyone has ever heard a sermon preached on this text, except I know that some of the people in Troy have because I preached this text a few years ago.  I suppose if I adjusted the question to "does anyone remember a sermon on this text" everyone might be able to answer "No!"

One of the interesting things in the Matthew genealogy is the inclusion of women as the names are traced back.  Of all the names listed in the genealogy (approximately 3 sets of 14 names) only five are women. 

Here is the summary of the women as provide by Rev. Nanette Sawyer on her blog "Question the Text," http://www.questionthetext.org/2013/12/15/when-is-righteousness-scandalous/ Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus names 5 women in it: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba (wife of Uriah), and Mary. (Luke’s account names no women.) Each of these women acted boldly and against convention in order to bring about some kind of justice. And their actions maintained the royal lineage of Jesus. Tamar, whose husband died, was denied the protection of levirate marriage, and so tricked her father-in-law into giving her children, one of whom was Perez, an ancestor of King David. Rahab, a prostitute, was the mother of Boaz, an ancestor of King David. Ruth lay “at the feet” of Boaz and became the mother of Obed, an ancestor of King David. See a pattern here?

Bathsheba was taken from her husband Uriah by King David and became the mother of King Solomon, the next king in David’s lineage. (And why, we might ask, was Deut 22:22 not applied in the case of Bathsheba and David? But that is another topic.)

And that brings us to Mary, pregnant when she shouldn’t be, appearing to be un-righteous by conventional standards, and yet she is doing the right thing.

As I reflect on this text and the theme of bit players, I am working on the basic idea that the Christmas story has room for all of us, even the bit players playing small parts.  I keep coming back to this question (or series of questions):  "if Rahab (sub in another bit player) is part of the story of Christ's birth, who else does that invite into the story?"

Do you see a place for yourself in the Christmas story?

Reflections on""the Good Shepherd" John 10:1-18; Luke 15: 1-10

I had fun with this sermon.  Interestingly, one of the resources I consulted for the sermon began by noting that ministers have preached about sheep and shepherds so often that they have trouble finding new material.  as I reflected on my preaching patterns, I don't think I've preached on sheep and shepherds much, except for mentioning the shepherd image when reading Psalm 23 at funerals.  In fact, the last time I can remember preaching the John text was when I served a church in KY, which was over 15 years ago.  Maybe I've been missing a good opportunity, or that might be why I enjoyed the last two sermons so much.

I am fascinated the Jesus himself seems to scrambling a bit for images in the John passage.  he starts out by giving the image of himself as the gate, which apparently the listeners did not quite get. then he shifts to the good shepherd image.  Jeremias' comment about shepherds being in ill repute at the time Jesus is telling this story really adds to the meaning of the comparison.

During the Time with Young Disciples, I had the kids crawl around and try to be cute little lambs.  Then, I had them bleat rudely as adult sheep do (I'm not sure they're trying to be rude, but it certainly is not cute!).  That helped set the stage for the sermon.  

one area I left out due to already having enough material is the celebration aspect.  The shepherd celebrates when he returns with the lost sheep; the woman celebrates when she finds her coin (admittedly, I probably did not need to read this far in the Luke text); bot of which connect with the parable of the prodigal son that follows the story of the lost coin.  In the sermon when I speak of the outrageous grace of God, the idea of celebrating the return of one lost sheep would fit into that thought.

one of the members of the church shared with me their sheep story.  They bought a lamb for their kids to have on the farm (they didn't work it) and the lamb got diarrhea and was a pain to take care of in other ways.  They had a pond with an island on it, so they put the lam on the island with all it needed to survive.  Shortly thereafter, the father hears loud bleating coming from outside.  he rushes out to discover the lamb is about to drown as it tries to swim to the "mainland."  the father has to rush to get out his boat and go save the lamb. So much for cute little lamb for the kids!  I imagine the good shepherd would go to that much trouble and more to save us.

“The Good Shepherd”  November 23, 2014; FPC, Troy, John 10: 1-18; Luke 15: 

Today is Christ the King Sunday, the last Sunday of the liturgical calendar when we think about who Christ just before we go back to the beginning and start over with Advent, and begin looking forward to the coming of Christ.

Today we have the image of the good shepherd.

Move 1: But before getting to the shepherd, let's think for a minute about sheep.

            a. I don't know much about sheep (except for the time I was a sheep in a play and crawled around the stage in white long johns with cotton sewed on them), but here's what I've read about them from other people.

1.    Baby sheep, that is lambs are pretty cute.  Lambs bleat a gentle "bahhh" and are nice and cuddly. But they grow into adult sheep that have a disturbing, somewhat distressing bleat.

                        2.  .Sheep are filthy animals, generally covered in mud and their own waste. Their wool can tangle around all sorts of nastiness and hold onto it until the shepherd shows up to get it clean. It's a good thing that Woolite works on wool whether it's in a sweater or still on the sheep. The best shepherds use it before shearing.

3.    Sheep like to follow.  They will follow the sheep in front of them, even if it leads to their demise.  The old adage, “if the person next to you jumped off a cliff, would you?” would be answered with a “yes” by sheep.

4.    As one modern day shepherd puts it:  "Sheep are just born looking for a way to die." He can recall countless stories that involve sheep putting themselves in unnecessary peril, much of which could usually be avoided by doing something simple like turning around.  http://www.patheos.com/Progressive-Christian/Dirty-Sheep-Mike-Baughman-05-06-2014.html#ixzz3Jpo3kj1h

                        5.  Sheep hang out in groups.  It protects them from predators, but also gives them a group mentality.  If a sheep ends up off by itself, it can become highly agitated.
http://www.sheep101.info/flocking.html

6.    Sheep do know the voice of the shepherd, but will only sometimes follow him or her. They follow other sheep far better than they follow a shepherd. Sometimes, however, sheep will follow a stranger—especially sheep who do not yet know the shepherd well. It takes time for a shepherd to know sheep well enough to tell them apart. Sheep apparently see us the same way.
Read more: http://www.patheos.com/Progressive-Christian/Dirty-Sheep-Mike-Baughman-05-06-2014.html#ixzz3Jpo3kj1h

7.    In summary – sheep are cute as babies, but grow up into adults who deal with messy details in life.  They have a tendency to listen to others and follow, regardless of the consequences.  They listen for the right voice to guide them, but sometimes follow the wrong voice.

            b.  It occurs to me that the image of Jesus as the good shepherd fits well because we fit the image of the sheep so well.

1.    We need a shepherd to guide us.

2.    we need to follow the good shepherd.

Move 2:  Maybe it's about the gate

            a. In the Gospel of John before getting to the image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd, Jesus calls himself the gate.

                        1. remember that sheep have poor depth-perception and have a hard time distinguishing a partially open gate along a fence line.

2.    If they can find the gate, the gate opens and welcomes them to pasture land or the safety of the pen.

b.  Jesus is the gate.

1.  That image, of course, has a salvation theme that is found throughout the gospel of John.

2. to move to that place beyond our earthly existence means going through Christ.

3. but it also have daily implications – who you want to be, where you want to go, passes by and through Christ.

4. you cannot become that new creation God has in mind for you unless you connect with Christ.

Jesus is the gate.

Move 3:  Sheep, gate, but also the good shepherd

            a.  By 1^st Century times, shepherds were not really considered good guys.

1.    Shepherds have a bad reputation for being shiftless, thieving, trespassing people for hire.

2.    Rabbis listed shepherds as one of the despised jobs, right up there with gamblers, sailors, and tax collectors. The New Interpreter's Bible: Luke and John, Volume IX, 296 quoting Joachim Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus

3.    In a way, the Pharisees listening must have been thinking, “you've got to be kidding.  A shepherd?”

                                               

4.    Or, “you got that right.  You're nothing but one of those low-life shepherds.”

            b. But there stands Jesus redefining what they think they know.

1.    they think they know shepherds are not a good image to link oneself to, but Jesus says otherwise.

2.    They think they know that if you have 99 of the 100 sheep safe and sound, you write off the 1 that is lost.

3.    When Jesus asks, “who among you. would not go after the one lost sheep?” the answer is “none of them.”

4.    In fairness, if we are asked that question, our answer is “none of us.” 

5.    We all know that a 99% success rate is good enough.    Forget the lost one.

6.    The Pharisees think they know that they are part of the 99.  They are the worthy ones. Maybe they are.

                                                7. Likewise, most of us would be considered part of the 99, right?  We're here.  We're serving God.

c.    But what they do not yet understand is that even as God loves the 99,  God also loves the 1.

1.    the choice is not God loves the 99 or God loves the 1.

2.    god loves all 100.

3.    The Good shepherd comes to save all 100.

4.    The Pharisees are seeing, we are seeing the generous, ridiculous, over the top grace of God.

5.    the Good shepherd will even lay down his life for the one lost sheep.

Conclusion:  Perhaps you've heard the story about the president of a big company who runs into a computer glitch. 

He calls down head computer person, but she has left for the day.  The president calls her cell number, but she does not answer. 

So he calls her home phone number.  The phone is answered and a young child's voice whispers, "Hello?"

"Is your Mom home?"

 "Yes", whispered the small voice.

 "May I talk with her?"  "No."

 Wanting to talk with an adult, the boss asked, "Is your
 Father there?"

 "Yes", came the answer.

 "May I talk with him?" Again the small voice whispered,  "no".

“Why are you whispering? Where are you?”

“In the closet”

"Is there any one there besides you?"

 "Yes" whispered the child, "A policeman".

 Wondering what a cop would be doing at his employee's home, the boss asked, "May I speak with the policeman"?

 "No, he's busy", whispered the child.

 "Busy doing what?, asked the boss.

 "Talking to Daddy and Mommy and the Fireman", came the
 whispered answer.

 Growing concerned and even worried as he heard what
 sounded like a helicopter through the ear piece on the
 phone the boss asked, "What is that noise?"

 "A hello-copper", answered the whispering voice. "What
 is going on there?", asked the boss, now alarmed. In
 an awed whispering voice the child answered, "The search
 team just landed the hello-copper"

 Alarmed,concerned and more than just a little frustrated
 the boss asked, "Why are they there"?

 Still whispering, the young voice replied along with a muffled giggle:

 "They're looking for me"

Whether you are hiding, or have lost your way, or are following the wrong voice, or have a big mess in your life – regardless, the Good shepherd is coming for you.  Amen.

"Good Shepherd, Bad Shepherd" Ezekiel 34: 1-10;Psalm 23

I am spending two weeks on shepherds.  When I mapped out the two weeks, I had miscounted the weeks and thought I had three weeks on shepherds, so part of my preparation was figuring out how to take three weeks worth of themes and consolidate into two.

This was a week when the Sanctuary sermon was much better than the Chapel sermon.  The content changed a little -- I added the Gospel of John reference (in italics) to the Sanctuary service.  That point was actually in my original notes for the sermon, but somehow got missed until I was done in the Chapel and went, "Wait a second, what happened to the Gospel of John part of the sermon?"

I think the first story about the butcher and the shepherd is hilarious, but it received a lukewarm response in both services.  Not sure if it was my delivery, or if I think it's funny and no one else does.

I hadn't really thought about the plethora (that's for my daughter Caitlin, who thinks plethora is the best word ever written) of shepherd/sheep images in the Bible.  I could spend many weeks on the different images of shepherd.

It's always hard to preach a really familiar text (i.e. Psalm 23) because everyone knows it so well, so I was particularly grateful for Mays' insight about the personal nature of Psalm 23 being very unique.  As I read his commentary, I was reminded of what a great resource his commentary is for the study of the Psalms.


"good Shepherd, Bad Shepherd” November 16, 2014; FPC, Troy; Psalm 23; Ezekiel 34: 1-10

Introduction: It is not even worthy of being called a series, but in the two weeks between the end of our Stewardship series and the beginning of Advent – yes advent begins in two weeks – we will be reflecting on shepherds, and of course if we talk about shepherds, we will be talking about sheep.

Why shepherds? No particular reason, except we keep running into them in the biblical text. Shepherding goes back to the first job mentioned in the Bible – Abel was a keeper of sheep.

Sheep are mentioned in the Bible more than 500 times, more than any other animal (http://www.sheep101.info/sheepbible.html)

When I mention shepherd, most of us immediately call to mind King David who was found in the fields tending sheep; or Psalm 23; or the shepherds in the fields who heard about Christ's birth; or Jesus, who is called the Good Shepherd.

Move 1: Good shepherds and bad shepherds

a. Perhaps you have heard the story about the Presbyterian minister who took some of his church members on a tour of Israel and Palestine.

In preparing for the trip, they had studied about shepherds, and he had taught them that although we often have images of shepherds driving the flock from behind, in the Middle East shepherds lead the sheep. That's why the comment about sheep knowing the voice of their shepherd is important because the sheep follow the voice.

On the day they were going to be out in the countryside, he reminded them to look for shepherds leading their sheep.

They soon ran into a flock of sheep. But instead of having a shepherd lead the sheep, there was the shepherd chasing the sheep.

The minister was surprised by this and quickly ran over and stopped the man. “why are you driving the sheep. I have been told that in the Middle East shepherds lead the sheep..”

“You are correct,” replied the man. "The shepherd does lead his sheep. But I'm not the shepherd, I'm the butcher!"

Good shepherds and bad shepherds!

b. The Psalmist offers a metaphor of a good Shepherd..

      1. Maybe not the best metaphor for us, unless you are someone who has sheep.

       2. Notice how the Psalmist describes the shepherd.

      3.  “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” Sounds like a stewardship sermon, but the point is made that God will provide whatever the sheep needs.

      4.  The Shepherd leads the sheep to a place of safety and rest.

     5.  The shepherd restores the soul of the sheep.

     7. Even in the face of death, the shepherd is there with the sheep to protect the sheep.

c. Even as the Psalmist offers this image of the Lord as the shepherd, those listening to the psalm connect those images with the stories of what God has already done.

     1. When the Psalmist describes how the shepherd provides for the needs of the sheep, the Israelites remember how God provided manna for them in wilderness.

     2.  When the Psalmist describes the place of safety and rest, the listeners remember that God brought out of slavery in Egypt and took them to the Promised Land, the land of milk and honey.

      3.  when the Psalmist mentions that that shepherd is with the sheep in the the face of death, the Israelites remember that God was with them when they did battle with the Canaanites.

      4.  As Psalm 23 describes the role of the shepherd, it is not just a idyllic vision, but a vision rooted in the reality of what God's people have experienced in the past.

Psalm 23 shows us what the good shepherd, the Lord, has done and will for us.

Move 2: Then there is the bad shepherd.

a. The prophet Ezekiel offers us the image of a bad shepherd.

     1. Israel's leaders who are only concerned for themselves and their own needs.

     2. They have not fed the hungry.

     3. they have not healed the sick.

     4. they have not clothes those who go without.

     5. they have not brought back the sheep who have strayed.

     6.  Israel's leaders have not acted as good shepherds, but as bad shepherds.

b. Ezekiel reminds us that the image of the shepherd is two-fold – it reminds us of how God cares for us, but it also calls us into that role for others in the world.

      1. Not enough to remember what God has done.

       2.  No surprise that in the Gospel of John the resurrected Christ has the following exchange with Peter, the disciple who betrayed him.

“Peter,” Jesus asks, “do you love me?”

“Yes, Lord, you know that I do.”

“Then feed my sheep.”

Three times this exchange takes place.

4. Knowing how God has shepherd us compels us to act.

Move 3: Personal nature of Psalm 23

a. James Mays, one of the foremost scholars on the Psalms, notes that the use of the image of shepherd is not unique, but the use of it in the first person is unparalleled (James L. Mays, Psalms, Interpretation: A Biblical Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, 119)

    1.  “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want”

    2.  This is why Psalm 23 is so revered – it speaks about God's personal concern for each of us.

    3. The Psalm was sung in corporate worship; it is a word for all of God's people, but it de3scribes the kind of relationship God desires to have with each of us.

    4.  . It touches us personally.

b. That also has implications for us as we serve God in the world.

     1. Randall Balmer, in his book The Redeemer, tells the story of former President Jimmy Carter from the lens of how Carter's faith as an evangelical Christian influenced him as a person and as a politician

      2. in it Balmer shares the story of what Carter describes as one of his most influential moments in his faith life.

      3. he went on a mission trip to Springfield, MA and was teamed up with a man named Eloy Cruz. Carter noticed that Cruz seemed to impact in an amazing way each person with whom they interacted.

       4. When he asked Cruz how he managed to do that, Cruz told him that it was important to have two loves in your heart – “one for Jesus Christ and the other one for whatever person happens to be in front of you at any particular time (Redeemer: The Life of Jimmy Carter, Randall Balmer, 40).

     5.  We are reminded that as we feed breakfast in the breakfast club, or as our youth engage in mission projects in Lexington, KY, this week-end, or as we send gifts from the giving tree to students, as we gather food next week for the Harvest Table, those are not just programs that we run – we are connecting and serving people.

      6.  It is personal.

c. Act of community

     1.  Shepherds would normally work in groups either looking after one large flock, or each bringing their own and merging their responsibilities. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shepherd)

    2.  That image speaks to our work as the body of Christ.

    3.  We work together in mission, sharing our gifts and talents and responsibilities as we serve God's people.

Move 3: Finally, Ezekiel reminds us God will make it right.

a. The shepherds of Israel have failed to care for the sheep, but God will not fail.

      1. God will go to find the scattered sheep and bring them back into the fold.

      2. God will provide for the sick and the hungry.

       3.  God will bring hope to the hopeless.

b. There is no question that God will take care of the sheep.

     1.  That is a promise for us who are God's sheep.

     2.  But it is also a question for us as we seek to serve God in the world – are we going to join with the Good Shepherd.

Conclusion: Jack was an old farmer in the church I served in KY. You've heard stories about him before because I learned a lot about faith and God from him.

He was also a modern day shepherd, I suppose, because he raised sheep. I'm not sure he made money doing it, but he told me he loved raising sheep.

“Why?” I asked.

“Come with me, and I'll show you.”

Off we went to his farm. We were driving his old, beat-up Sentra. When we got to the field where the sheep were, he instructed me to go and open the gate to the field, then close it, and then hop back in the car.

I did. Then we drove to the middle of the field. I suppose I was a shepherd!

The sheep came running from all directions and surrounded us. Some were even trying to get on top of the car.

I'm not much of a shepherd because to tell you the truth it seemed a little scary to be surrounded by a flock of sheep.

But not Jack. He had a great big smile on his face. We got out and stood there with the sheep, and he told me, “see these sheep come running to me no matter what. You gotta like that, don't you?”

The sheep were hoping to find a good shepherd.

There are lots of sheep in our world desperately looking for a good shepherd.

We have found one.

Who will help them find one?

Reflections on "But I Do Give...." 2 Corinthians 9:6-8; Mark 4: 21-29

This finished the stewardship preaching series. I intentionally made it several stories with not much commentary to them. I wanted to let the stories speak to the congregation and allow the stories to take on meaning for the listeners at the place where they were as we brought our pledges back.

It was also a sermon of repetition!  The monk story at the end I used in a sermon 8 or 9 years ago.  The story about Clara has been told in various ways, or at least alluded to in years past.  This is the third time in the series that I have used a portion of Chapter 9 of Paul's letter to the Corinthians.  No one complained; not sure if anyone noticed!

I have been contemplating recently (now that I am into my 16th year preaching to this congregation) whether I can used stories I have told in previous sermons.  And, if so, how far back is acceptable -- must the story have been told 5 yrs ago? or 10 years?  As someone who rereads books, I am not opposed to hearing the same story more than once, but it sort of feels like recycling the sermon.


"But I Do Give” November 9, 2014; FPC, Troy; Stewardship series; 2014; 2 Corinthians 9: 6-8; mark 4: 21-29

Introduction: After several weeks of asking the question: "What if I didn't give.....?" we finish the stewardship series with the affirmation, "But I Do Give..." and the dedication of our pledges in worship today.

three stories

Move 1: I have mentioned Clara in a previous sermon. She was the spinster school teacher in the church I served in KY who left close to $1 million dollars in her estate.

It was a surprising gift because she live in an old house on which she did few repairs (there was always a roof leak and the house was tilted); her favorite days were the Saturdays after she had received her retirement check when she would race from garage sale to garage sale with her bank envelope of cash to spend.

I did not know it at the time, but later she would explain to me that she had inherited stock from her brother when he died about 20+ years earlier. she had never touched it, just left it invested, because she didn't feel right spending his money.

Ironically, when she died and left the large sum of money to the church, most of it was the money her brother, who had never gone to church, had left her.

But several years before she died; several years before her will revealed that she was quite wealthy; several years earlier the church was involved in a capital campaign.

You know the drill. Visiting stewards went out with pledge cards for the members, much like happened here last Sunday.

Clara had been in the nursing home on that Sunday, so no visiting stewards went by to see her, which meant that she did not receive a pledge card for the capital campaign or the regular pledge card.

After she was back home, I was visiting her. She asked me why she never got a pledge card, and I told her she had been in the nursing home for rehab so we had not wanted to bother her.

She seemed a little offended that no one had visited her. “How was she going to give her gift?”She told me that she still wanted to make a pledge, and she asked me if I would take her check back to the church for her. I agreed.

She filled out the check and gave it to me. It was not a huge amount, but it seemed okay for the spinster school teacher that she was (Later I realized that she had no concept of how wealthy she had become because of her brother's inheritance).

As she gave me the check, she had tears in her eyes, and she told me that she was so sorry she didn't have more money to give.

When I think of Clara, my first thought is not the money she left to the church, but a person who wanted to give back to God. – not as the person who left a large sum of money to her church, but as someone who so wanted to give back to God.

As you bring your pledges today, my hope is not that it is a teary endeavor.

But I do hope you will feel the joy of giving back to God.

Move 2: We turn to Jesus for our second story.

He tells about someone who goes out and scatters seed.

Then somehow the seed grows. The person who threw out the seed does not really understand how, but soon there will be a harvest from the seed.

I confess that this parable made more sense to me when I lived in KY and could throw grass seed on the ground, or plant a flower, and then never touch it again, and it grew wonderfully in the rich soil.

Here in OH, it takes a lot to make things grow!

When we give our gifts, we are like the sower in Mark. We trust that God will take out gifts and use them for a bountiful harvest of ministry.

I would also add that maybe we should also learn from my OH experience and expect to work with these gifts as we put them to use.

When we make our pledge today, we make the bold statement that God is going to continue to be at work, that God is not done with us or with our world.

We give our gifts and scatter the seed.

Move 3: Third story:

A monk traveling alone had reached the outskirts of a village and sat down to make his camp for the night.

Soon a villager came running out to him shouting, "Give me the stone!"

"What stone?" asked the monk.

"Last night an angel appeared to me in dream," said the villager, "And told me that if I went to the outskirts of town at dusk I would find a holy man who would give me a precious stone that would make me rich forever."

"Oh," said the monk as he pulled out a beautiful diamond the size of a prune, "the angel must have meant this one." He then handed the stone to the villager who took it and ran joyfully back into town to show everyone his great good fortune.

The next day, though, the villager again sought out the monk and handed him back the diamond. "Now I beseech you, give me the wealth that allowed you to give away this diamond so easily."

Paul writes to the Corinthians about the opportunity they have to give back to God.

He reminds them that God has given to them abundantly. So they, so can give abundantly.

Conclusion: OK, a fourth story (never believe a minister when he or she tells you how short the sermon will be!)

Your story as you offer your pledges back to God.

You who have known God's love;

You who have known God's blessings;

you whose life shows forth the many talents and gifts God has given to you.

You who have chosen to give back to God.

Amen.

"But I Do Give Back to God" Mark 4:21-24; 2 Corinthians 9:6-8

After several weeks of asking the question:  "What if I didn't give.....?" we finish the stewardship series with the affirmation, "But I Do Give..."

In part, our giving affirms our faith in God, who will use those gifts for good.  We give our gifts like the sower in Mark who casts out the seed, trusting that our gifts will find fertile ground and grow. We have some control over how our gifts are used, but they are a gift for the future, a act of trust in the God who has a plan for the future.

Our Call to Worship is adapted from Psalm 24, which reminds us that all the earth is the Lord's.  That affirmation also provides a foundation for our returning gifts to God.

We return again to Paul's second letter to the Corinthians to hear the reminder that we give out of our abundance. God gives extravagently to us ; we respond by giving our gifts back to God.

Reflections on "What If I Didn't Give to the General Budget?" Matthew 25: 14-30; Psalm 76

This is the last sermon based on the question:  "what if I didn't give..." This sermon series has forced me to reflect in some new ways about stewardship. It has given me new insights.

 Perhaps the newest insight for me is the link between giving to the church and the church's role as the body of Christ.   I am indebted to my colleague Rev. Karl Travis for making that connection in a conversation we had earlier in the fall.  I find it easy to make the argument that we should give back to God because God has given so much to us.  But, it gets complicated when we start to dig into the particulars about how and to whom we should give back.   I am fascinated by the assertion that we need to support the church because it has been called into being by Christ and tasked with the role of being the body of Christ in the world.

"What If I Didn't Give to the General Budget” November 2, 2014; FPC, Troy; Stewardship series; 2014; Matthew 25: 14-30; Psalm 76

Introduction: Next week, we dedicate our gifts to God and celebrate that we are in fact people who give back to God.

This week, we ask for the last time, “What if I didn't give...” with the focus on the the church budget – “What if I didn't give to the church budget?

Of course, this week has the obvious trump card. If we did not give to the church budget, we would not have the church programs – no ministries; no utilities to keep the building running; no Christian education

Likewise, we also have the trump, trump, card – if we ceased to exist, God would find other people to do the vital things this congregation does. We might not be a part of what God is doing, but that does not mean God is going to quit being at work in this community and our world.

I am not going to play either trump card this morning, but I do have three reflections for us.

Move 1: First of all, If I didn't give to the church budget, I would not affirm the church as the body of Christ.

a. I sometimes hear explicitly, and often feel it implicitly, a challenge to giving to the church.

1. it goes something like this: how can the church make the claim to be the place where I should give my money if I want to give it back to God?

Or, like this: I am going to give back to God, but why does that have anything to do with giving to the church?

2. For some, those questions might just be a rationalization for not giving, but they also provide an important an important challenge for the congregation and its leadership.

4. As a church, we are held accountable to using the funds given to the church to engage and support what God is doing in the world?

b. But something more is also at stake – the affirmation of the body of Christ in the world.

1. If we believe that Christ did in fact call the church into being as his body, then we must support the church in its role and work as the body of Christ.

2. we have to be careful not to believe that anything and everything the church might do is automatically representative of the body of Christ – we know that the church, like each of , fall short of what God desires of us.

3. But, we have been called into being by God.

4. We have a critical role to play in the world.

5. WE have been given the task of being the body of Christ in the world.

6. When we give to the church, we proclaim that the body of Christ is alive and present in our midst.

Move 2: If I did not give to the church budget, I would be hiding my treasure.

a. In the passage we read from the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus tells a story about the owner leaving money with three servants.

1. Reminder – talent was a measure of money. Eugene Peterson in his translation The Message tells the story with the first servant being given $5K; the second being given $2K; and the third being given $1K.

2. The one to whom he gives the most money, risks it and doubles it. Not sure how the economy was working then, but I suspect doubling the money took quite a it of effort and some risk. No hedge funds – had to literally put the money to work. When the owner returns he rewards the servant by giving him more money.

2. the one to whom he gives a little bit less, invests it and doubles it as well. Not as much gained, but percentage wise still a remarkable gain. He too is rewarded by the owner.

3. The servant who is given the least is worried about losing the money, so he buries the money in the ground.

4. He proves true the adage, “nothing ventured, nothing gained” to be true.

5. but he did not lose anything.

6. at some level I see myself in him. He has this gift from the owner that he values so he does not want anything to happen to it.

7. How does the owner respond to his safe storage of the funds? With anger – he wanted to the servant to put the money to work; he wanted him to risk; he

b. Likewise, God gives us resources.

1. Think about your own life. How many blessing you have.

2. We have a tendency to look at others and notice that they have more. Maybe that's what the servant in the Jesus' parable did – he saw that he had less, so he decided he didn't have enough to do anything with so he buried it.

3. My point – don't look at others, but lay claim to the many blessings you have.

4. Blessings not be buried in the sand.
5. Blessings that are not be hoarded.

6. Blessings not to be spent all on yourself.

7. Blessings God wants us to put to work.

8. To give away so that ministry can multiply..

The church's mission as the body of Christ makes it the place where we invest our treasure in God's work.

Move 3: what if I didn't give to the church budget – stop there – don't give to the church budget. Give to God.

a. The church budget is just a vehicle to put our gifts given to God to work serving God's purposes.

1. God has a claim on your gifts; the church budget does not.

2. Three kinds of churches: churches that just take up offerings have people on average give the least; churches that ask people to write down pledges to the budget do better; churches that ask people to give the percentage of their income that they believe God is calling them to give do the best. And its' not really close. herb Miller, Consecration Sunday(5,6), taken from Money Matters

b. Did you notice the words of the psalmist in Psalm 76?

1. the Psalmist suggests that we give gifts to God because God is awesome.

2. Indeed, God is. Amen.