Sermon
preached by the Rector on 18 September 2005Bible
Readings: 2 Corinthians 8:1-15 and Luke 8:27-38
This
is the second of two talks about giving. Last week we looked at the
phrase Paul uses in 1 Corinthians 8:5: 'they gave themselves first to
the Lord'. We thought a bit about the opportunities to give money to
the church as part of how we worship God. Financial giving is simply
one of the ways in which God enables us to say 'thank you' to him. It's
an aspect of what it means to put him first in our lives. And I talked
about the particular opportunity we'll have to review how we do this
together on October 9th.
This week we're going to
look at the second half of verse 5: '...they gave themselves first to
the Lord and then to us in keeping with God's will'. First to the Lord.
And then to us.
At this point in his letter to the
Christians at Corinth, the main thing on Paul's agenda is the giving of
money. He's urging the Corinthians to imitate the generosity shown by
their brothers and sisters in Macedonia. You're really good at so many
things, just add one more to the list, he tells them. Verse 7: '...just
as you excel in everything - in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in
complete earnestness and in your love for us - see that you also excel
in this grace of giving'.
But as we zoom out from
the immediate context of 2 Corinthians 8, we find that what the New
Testament has to say about the 'grace of giving' isn't limited just to
money. Money is an important part of it. But it's by no means the only
part...
Let me take you to another of Paul's
letters, the one to the Ephesians, a little bit further on from where
we've started this morning, on page 1174. Paul's theme is the grace and
goodness of a wonderful God. We pick it up in chapter 2, verse 10: 'For
we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works,
which God prepared in advance for us to do.' If we ask God the Great
Artist what he is working on at the moment, we discover that it's us.
We are his current project, we are his poem, his work of art, we are
what God is working on. The idea is that we receive God's grace and
turn it into good works. Like a factory, taking in the raw material of
God's goodness and coming up with the end product of good and positive
things happening in the world.
I mentioned our
twins, Timothy and Alastair, last week. At the moment, they're obsessed
with the Fire Service and so, for their fourth birthday at the end of
last month, we gave them each an identical toy fire engine. So we've
got two of these in the house, one labelled 'T' and the other labelled
'A', each of which makes an equally hideous noise! But one of the
things about having twins is that it becomes either impossible or
impracticable for there to be two of absolutely everything. So, for
example, although we have these two big fire engines, we only have one
yellow fire helmet for them to wear. Which both boys are keen on. Often
at the same time. And so they have to learn to share. Which is really
good. Because, among other things, it reflects something important
about life in the family of God.
The thing is this.
We don't all have an identical set of the different gifts and talents
that are needed to maintain and grow the life of a healthy church. It
might be easier if we did. It might be more straightforward if everyone
could do everything. But no. God has arranged things so that it's only
as we share our different gifts that things work properly. Indeed, one
of the things about God's grace is that it can only really be fully
enjoyed when it is fully shared.
Let's turn on to
Ephesians 3 to see how this works out in Paul's experience. In verse 2
he writes about the shape of the grace that God has given him: 'Surely
you have heard about the administration of God's grace that was given
to me for you...' Paul's particular gift is the ability to communicate
the good news of Jesus. He explains it in verses 7-8: 'I became a
servant of this gospel by the gift of God's grace given me through the
working of his power. Although I am less than the least of all God's
people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the
unsearchable riches of Christ...'
Well now, that's
great, Paul, we might say. Good for you. But then we turn over and
notice Ephesians 4:7. '...to each one of us grace has been given as
Christ apportioned it...'. It's not just Paul. This applies to us all.
No-one is left out.
Paul continues in verse 11 with
a list of some of the different gifts he has in mind: 'It was he who
gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists,
and some to be pastors and teachers...' There's another list in Romans
12:6-8: 'We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a
man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith.
If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if
it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the
needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him
govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully'.
The theme recurs in 1 Peter 4:10-11: 'Each one should use whatever gift
he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace
in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking
the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the
strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through
Jesus Christ...'
It's a bit like feeding ducks. Do
you remember being very little and taken to feed the ducks? We often do
this with our boys. At first, they just watched while we got on with
it. But when they got a bit older, they were given a slice or two so
that they could have the fun of feeding the ducks too. To start with,
they were more interested in feeding themselves with the duck bread and
rather resented having to give it away. But then they began to cotton
on and now they each feed ducks like an old pro.
This
is what God does with us. He doesn't keep the joy of giving to himself
but is eager to share it with us. He invites us to be his partners. He
makes it possible for us to work together with him. This is what his
gifts are for.
Which is where part two of giving
comes in. As you came in today you should have been given a yellow
leaflet headed 'Gifts and Opportunities'. Why? Because, every now and
then, it's good for us to have a bit of a think and pray about the way
we are sharing God's grace in the way that we use the different gifts
he has given us. This leaflet is intended to stimulate the process by
setting out some of the opportunities we have identified in the life of
St Nicolas. Here are some of the areas where just a few more people
could make all the difference.
Let me just say a few
words about how to use this...
First, it's not
intended to be an exhaustive list of absolutely everything. I've just
put down some of the areas of ministry that we're currently aware of.
And even then, the process of getting the list printed has resulted in
the loss of something major that was in the draft but then subsequently
disappeared in the mists of cyberspace. That's the whole area of
hospitality and catering... Things like the catering team, helping with
coffee after services and being available to offer practical help when
people are going through a tough time. If these are gifts and talents
you know you have and would like to offer, or if there are other things
which occur to you but aren't set out here, just use the space on the
form at the back to let us know.
Secondly, I haven't
given much by way of detail about what each of these involves, the time
they might take and so on. That's because I wanted to keep it simple
rather than hand everyone a volume the size of a telephone directory!
So this exercise is more about exploring possibilities than making
definite commitments.
Thirdly, I'm very keen that
we should get out of the habit of assuming that people take on jobs for
life. For example, you may already be involved up to the hilt in
something but keen to let it go and move to something else. That's
fine. Be bold! Let's work out strategies for exiting old things as well
as for beginning new ones. I firmly believe that God can be relied upon
to give us all the people we need for the things he wants us to do. The
glorious mix of people we have here at St Nicolas is his idea. Time and
time again, both here and in other churches I've been involved in, I've
seen the way God sends us new people or inspires those who are already
members to offer themselves for areas of ministry that need
strengthening. But each of us needs to do our bit by identifying and
exercising the gifts he has given us. We can't fulfil what God wants
for us unless each of us is fully on board.
So
what does God want for us? I believe that it's right for us to hold on
to the way we've been expressing it in recent years through the word
'LIFE'. 'L' is for 'Loving God', the chief purpose for which we were
made and the motivation for all that we are and all that we do. 'I' is
for 'Involving Everyone', the idea that the church is called to be a
battleship rather than a cruise liner. We're here, not as passengers on
the sun-deck but as crew-members in the engine room. 'F' is for
'Finding Faith', our commitment to help those who do not yet know and
love Jesus to do so. And 'E' is for 'Enabling Growth', the conviction
that the continued health of a church needs growth, both in numbers and
in depth.
Earlier this year I said this: "One of the
biggest temptations we face as a church here at St Nicolas is to rest
on our laurels. To sit back and enjoy the life, the health and the
growth that have taken place here over the last few years. How easy it
would be to stop moving forwards and so allow the tide to carry us
backwards! Instead of truly loving God, we could decide just to turn up
and go through the motions. Instead of involving everyone, we could
make do with just a few of us doing it all ourselves. Instead of
finding faith, we could just try and hang on to those who have already
begun the journey with us and forget about everyone else. Instead of
enabling growth, we could just stay as we are and to leave the
risk-taking to someone else. Or we could go for LIFE - Loving God,
Involving Everyone, Finding Faith and Enabling Growth."
If
that sounds good to you, please continue to help to make it happen!
Like
most people, I don't find it easy to remember much about all the
sermons I've heard over the years. But there's one that sticks in my
mind from ages ago. The preacher was talking about what it means to
follow Jesus. He had three points. Following Jesus, he said, is about
cost not convenience. It's about priorities not preferences. And it's
about concentration not compromise. Following Jesus is like that
because that's the way that Jesus went about things. It's how he
achieved all that he won for us, all that we celebrate again today in
our worship of him as our Lord and Saviour. The path he took is the
path for us to follow too. Cost not convenience. Priorities not
preferences. Concentration not compromise.
Yesterday
I received a birthday card from my wife. On the front it says this:
'Happy Birthday to a Husband who is God's Gift' and then, inside, 'to
Me!' How thoughtful, I thought. Birthday greetings and a sermon
illustration all in one! Because, of course, that is what each of us is
to one another. Each of us, in one way or another, is God's gift. So
let's unwrap ourselves and get going - as we give ourselves, first to
the Lord and then to one another. Amen.
©
2005 David
Stone |