The Money Pit
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Series Review
Series Review
Our December sermon series follows the December Sunday School lessons the children are learning this month. The Big Give, is about celebrating and imitating God’s generosity. God is a generous God – He gave us His own son, Jesus! And because God gave us Jesus and Jesus gave His life, we can be generous. And that’s how we demonstrate our love towards God: how can we say we love God and not be generous?
This month our children are learning a verse from Scripture: It comes from . Let’s read it together:
Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.
Command whom? Paul is a bishop here. In the UMC we pastors (elders) often receive instructions from our bishop - ours is Bishop Easterling. Paul is writing instructions to Timothy, and Timothy is then supposed to give these same instructions to his congregation. Do Good. Be rich…in good deeds. Be generous. Share. There are usually 2 reasons why pastor’s - in the ancient or modern world - make statements in the imperative: 1) They can do more if it, and 2) They don’t realize the significance of it. Perhaps #3 would be a combination of the 2.
Timothy’s church was a wealthy congregation. As their pastor, Timothy is to say to them: “Yes, you are rich. Now be rich in good deeds. Be generous with what God has given you.”
Sermon Introduction
Sermon Introduction
The sermon titles this month are based off the Sunday School lesson titles. When I first read today’s title, The Money Pit, I immediately thought of the 1980’s Tom Hanks movie of the same title. It’s about a couple that purchase an old mansion, with the plan to fix it up. From the moment they purchase the house, it quickly begins to fall apart. The entire front door frame rips out of the wall, the main staircase collapses, the plumbing is full of gunk, the electrical system catches fire, the bathtub crashes through the floor, the chimney collapses, and a raccoon is living in the freight elevator.
From the moment they purchase the house, it quickly begins to fall apart. Amongst other problems, the entire front door frame rips out of the wall, the main staircase collapses, the plumbing is full of gunk, the electrical system catches fire, the bathtub crashes through the floor, the chimney collapses, and a raccoon is living in the dumbwaiter.
So, what started out as a romantic dream, became a financial nightmare. They kept putting what seemed to be an endless amount of money into this house. We establish our own money pits. A car or a boat that needs constant repair can be a money pit. An expensive hobby or past time are others. There’s another money pit: the unholy trinity of me, myself and I. We can spend an endless amount money on our own desires and still not be satisfied. Money can accomplish great things, but it can also be our worst enemy. As Paul said in this same letter to Timothy, the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. .
Today’s sermon we have 2 passages I want us to consider: 1) Mary’s song - The Magnificat - which we have just heard, and 2) which the children are learning about in Sunday School right now. Both passages have one thing in common: they both deliver bad news to people who have the wrong kind of relationship to money. Let’s read the second passage:
Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ’ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”
If Jesus’ parable does anything, it demonstrate how difficult it is to make ourselves secure. It’s hard to to satisfy our wants or perceived needs. We can become our own money pit. We can become our own financial nightmare.
There's another thing these 2 passages - Mary’s song and the story of the rich fool - have in common: at some point in history they have been banned from churches. China has banned the Song of Mary from being read in churches; In British India and British South Africa, churches were forbidden from reading Mary’s song. They have been seen as a threat to the existing social order. The Bible was a threat in Nicaragua to those in power during the Contras. Ancient Rome considered the teachings of the early church to be a threat. Passages like Mary’s song are threats to those with power and wealth.
Even though our social and political climate isn’t the same as Communist china, British India or Ancient Rome, we all have a status quo. According to Mary, Jesus, by his very birth into this world, is a direct challenge to the status quo - this is why he was executed. This is why people reject him. This is why many Christians reshape Jesus so that he reflects the status quo rather than challenge it.
Ancient Rome
This passage is a threat to the established order.
Even though our political climate isn’t the same as communist china, british India or ancient rome, we will have a status quo. And Jesus, by his very birth into this world, is a direct challenge to the status quo - this is why he was executed. This is why people reject him. This is why many Christians reshape Jesus so that he reflects the status quo rather than challenge it.
It’s easy to over-sentimentalized the Christmas story. We imagine Mary, Joseph, and Jesus lying a manger, with a few shepherds and a few astrologers dropping in for a visit. But what was life outside the inn? The Roman empire was oppressive, and was the ultimate power in the world. They taxed their conquered nations into poverty. Even will nations starved to death, there was always the wealthy elite who maintained their standard of living at the expense of the common person. That’s the social / political climate outside of the inn. And Jesus, Mary sings, is a direct challenge to that social order.
There is that side of the Christmas story that warms our hearts: God is now residing with us in human flesh. God’s plan for our salvation is being worked out in the person of an infant. In the manger, God demonstrates HIs love towards us. There’s hope for us. There ‘s peace for the world.
But there’s that other side of the Christmas story. What is good news for some is not so good news for others.
I’ve introduced the sermon series with Paul’s command to Timothy: Be good. Be generous.
Now I’m going to spend the rest of the sermon looking at warnings. Mary, Meek and Mild (as the carol goes) issues 3 warnings in her song. The birth of Christ, the mother of God, is a revolution in 3 ways: 1) Christ is a threat to the proud. 2) Christ is a threat to the powerful. 3) Christ is a threat to the rich.
Revolution #1: Jesus’ birth threatens pride.
Revolution #1: Jesus’ birth threatens pride.
He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
Luke 1:
Who are the proud in their inmost thoughts? What are they proud of? They are proud of what they have accomplished. They are proud of what they have accumulated, rather than give glory to God. So much so that they cling to their possessions. They place their security in their own efforts.
The word “scattered” is not a gentle scattering of seed into the garden. The word is catastrophic. That same word is used when describing a nation being destroyed by war, or a city wall being broken down. Things that once seemed indestructible are now seen for what they are: weak, vulnerable.
Just hear the words of the rich young fool:
And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ’
Luke
s
The rich young fool took pride in his success and the wealth that came with it. He placed his security in his own abilities. We don’t have to be rich to be the fool. We don’t have to be rich to be full of pride in our accomplishments. "Give God the glory and give others the credit” - that was written on my job description when I was hired as a youth pastor. How easy it is to accept compliments for a job well done. How easy it is to be proud of what we have accomplished. Christ’s birth is a comfort for many, but a threat to the proud.
Looking at his disciples, he said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.
Revolution #2: Jesus’ birth threatens power.
Revolution #2: Jesus’ birth threatens power.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble.
Some scholars call this the revolutionary song. They have been used to justify political liberation movements. This is confusing or even disturbing for Christians who are free, comfortable and and are content with their current standard of living. We may want to look at phrases like “He has brought the rulers from their thrones” and spiritualize it. But for oppressed people who feel that the only solution to their suffering is the overthrow of the current political system. Mary is singing of the downfall of the powerful.
We see an example of this in the parable of the foolish rich man. His wealth gave him a sense of power, protection. He rested in his wealth. But this was overthrown.
“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
Luke 1:52
What about us? We don’t have to be in positions of political power to crave power. We don’t have to have status to crave it. Status, labels.
What about us? We don’t have to be in positions of political power to crave power. We don’t have to have status to crave it. Status, labels.
Revolution #3: Jesus’ birth threatens wealth.
Revolution #3: Jesus’ birth threatens wealth.
He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty.
Baptize my wallet
“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
Luke 12:20
We don’t have to possess money to crave it. We don’t have to be wealthy in order to be constantly pursuing wealth. Money is a powerful thing. People go into debt in the pursuit of things they don’t need. We all need to examine and reexamine our relationship with money, whether we think we are rich or poor.
I like this quote from William Barclay, a British scholar and pastor who wrote in the 1970’s. He says this about 1:53:
The Gospel of Luke A Wondrous Hymn (Luke 1:46–56)
That is an economic revolution. A non-Christian society is an acquisitive society where people are out for as much as they can get. A Christian society is a society where no one dares to have too much while others have too little, where everyone must get only to give away.
Do we dare to have too much while others have too little? Do we obtain wealth to improve our lives, or do we use our wealth for the kingdom of God?
Money itself is not evil. It is not wealth per se that is sinful, but the “desire to be rich