“What Does God Want From Me?” 2 Corinthians 8:1-15
We have had a stewardship emphasis for the past 2 weeks:
First we found that our relationship with God must be good before we can be good stewards.
Second learned that we need to define our relationship with stuff (in our heart)
In this third installment we look at our giving.
I like the old story about the guy who came to church with his family. As they were driving home afterwards he was complaining about everything. He said, “The music was too loud. I didn’t know any of the songs. The sermon was too long. The announcements were unclear. The building was hot. The people were unfriendly.” He went on and on, complaining about virtually everything.
Finally, his very observant son said, “Dad, you’ve got to admit it wasn’t a bad show for just a dollar.”
LEARNING ABOUT GIVING AND RECEIVING
I learned about giving from the poor.
I didn’t expect that.
I expected (as a North American missionary) to give to them, and teach them about giving.
You see, the general understanding is: Those who have it, give to those who don’t.
I found out I was sorely wrong.
It bothered me. These people, who had next to nothing, were giving to me (chickens, potatoes, bus fare, taking time from their underpaid work to help me with menial tasks). They invited me to dinner – gave me chicken, when I knew that their children were only eating potatoes and rice.
It bothered me.
At first, I offered to pay; that really insulted them.
I had to learn to receive before I could learn how to give.
All of us need to do that.
I came to work with a group of pastors who are giving of their lives to the Lord’s service (a group of 18). They barely live on the few $ the church pays them, sometimes living in unfinished quarters on the church property. Many rejected by their families for following God (protestant) – and for being pastors. I needed to raise $30,000 for lots for retirement homes for them. It’s the least I can do for these servants of God. I would never have attempted this, if I had not first seen their giving. The next challenge is building materials.
I’ll tell you about each of them and their stories if you ask me.
THE APOSTLE PAUL’S EXPERIENCE
The apostle Paul traveled around, starting churches, preaching, making tents, spreading the good news of Jesus. His travels took him through the region of Macedonia, during his second and third missionary trips (Acts 16-21).
Macedonia was a Roman Province. It included the cities of Berea, Thessalonica, Apolonia, Philippi, Amphipolis, and Neapolis, which Paul visited. There were people like Lydia, a roman jailor, probably Luke, etc.
In today’s Scripture Paul writes to the believers in Corinth. This was a church with everything – all the gifts needed for a good church, material wealth, a well established church, diverse. But they had problems (some I wouldn’t want to face as a pastor).
One of the difficulties was a lack of love; in spite of many wondrous gifts of the Spirit, they were short on love. Furthermore, their love did not overflow into generosity, but rather ended in pride.
Paul talked to them about the believers in the poor, remote region of Macedonia.
It’s hard to receive advice from those we consider inferior to us. Sort of like the USA receiving advice from the 3rd world. That shouldn’t happen.
As I read this scripture, I ask, “What did God want from the Believers in Corinth?”
It makes me ask, “What does God want from me?”
LIVING BEYOND YOUR MEANS
The Macedonians were known for hardships and extreme poverty.
Verse 3 – “they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability.” (NIV)
The Message puts it this way, “They gave what they could, even far more than they could afford.”
I’ve heard of people charging credit cards more than they could afford.
I’ve heard of people spending beyond their means.
I’ve heard of people getting buried in a load of debt because they spend beyond their ability to pay.
I’ve heard of people living beyond their means.
But I’ve never heard of people giving to God and God’s church more than they could afford.
You just can’t out-give God.
"Whose French Fries Are They?"
A man took his son to a fast food restaurant. He buys his little boy some french fries.
Then the father does what all fathers do, he reaches over and takes one french fry to taste it.
The little boy slaps his father’s hand and says, "Don’t touch my french fries."
The father thinks that his son is selfish. The father knows that he bought the french fries and they belong to him. The father knows that his son belongs to him.
The father could get angry and never buy his son another french fry again to teach his son a lesson, or the father could "bury" his son in french fries. The father thinks, "Why is my son selfish, I have given him a whole package of french fries; I just want one french fry."
Of course the point of the story has to do with us.
God has given us money (and all we have), we belong to God. When God asks for a tithe or a portion back, people figuratively slap His hand and say, "Keep Your hands off my money."
Whose French fries are they anyway?
OUR GOD WILL PROVIDE FOR ALL YOUR NEEDS
Tony Campolo tells of being invited to speak at a ladies meeting. There were 300 women there. Before he spoke the president of the organization read a letter from a missionary. It was a very moving letter. In the letter the missionary expressed a need for $4,000 to take care of an emergency that had cropped up. So the president of the organization said, "We need to pray that God will provide the resources to meet the need of this missionary. Bro. Campolo will you please pray for us?"
Tony Campolo, who is very outspoken said, "No." Startled, she said, "I beg your pardon." He said, "No, I won’t pray for that." He said, "I believe that God has already provided the resources & that all we need to do is give. Tell you what I’m going to do. I’m going to step up to this table & give every bit of cash I have in my pocket. And if all of you will do the same thing, I think God has already provided the resources." The president of the organization chuckled a little bit & said, "Well, I guess we get the point. He is trying to teach us that we all need to give sacrificially."
He said, "No, that is not what I am trying to teach you. I’m trying to teach you that God has already provided for this missionary. All we need to do is give it. Here, I’m going to put down all of my money I have with me." He wrote, "I only had $15 in my pocket so I wasn’t too worried about that." So he put down his $15 & then looked at the president of the organization. Reluctantly, she opened her purse & took out all of her money, which was about $40, & put it on the table. One by one the rest of the ladies filed by & put their money on the table, too. When the money was counted they had collected more than $4,000."
Tony Campolo said, "Now, here’s the lesson. God always supplies for our needs, & he supplied for this missionary, too. The only problem was we were keeping it for ourselves. Now let’s pray & thank God for His provision."
God knows we have limited resources.
Can it be that our limited resources are more than we think?
WHAT DO YOU HAVE FOR LUNCH
I showed the children the lunch I packed: two small cans of tuna and five rolls.
I asked if I had enough to share with everyone. They didn’t think so. One boy thought that, maybe, everyone could have a very small bite.
I told them that it reminds me of a story (See John 6:1-13)
A little boy gave Jesus his lunch. Not 10%, not half, not even 90%, he gave his whole lunch.
Did the boy go hungry? No, everyone (more than 5000 people), ate until they were full. There were even 12 baskets of bread left over.
I don’t know how Jesus did it. But I know it wouldn’t have happened if a little boy didn’t offer his lunch to Jesus.
What about your lunch? What do you have, that, in the hands of Jesus, could be used to minister to everyone around you?
5 loaves and 2 fish seem entirely inadequate for feeding 5000 people.
Jesus told his disciples, “With men it is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Mt. 19:26)
What does Jesus want to do in your neighborhood?
What’s in your lunchbox?
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Monday, April 28, 2008
Sermon Synopsis for April 20, 2008
“Hunting for Treasure” Matthew 6:19-24
Today we continue looking at Stewardship …
Last week we learned from Jeremiah (18:1-6) that God is the potter, we are the clay.
- Everything belongs to God, even the clay.
- We can’t make ourselves.
- We need to let God form us and make us into what God wants us to be.
1. Before we think about our relationship with things, we need to think about our relationship with God.
2. If we don’t have a good relationship with God, it will be difficult to have a good relationship with things.
Today we hear from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, a sermon full of spiritual truths with practical applications.
Jesus admonishes the people – “store up treasure in heaven.”
IT’S NATURAL TO WANT THINGS
I showed the children a statue of the Ekkeko god that is popular in the Andean region of South America. Ekkeko is the god of wealth and prosperity. He has a lot of stuff hung around his neck; each item represents some form of material wealth.
• The little sacks of pasta and dry goods represent food.• The copy of money represents monetary wealth.
• A little house represents a wish for a real house.• The miniature car represents a wish for a real automobile.Every year, (usually before noon on January 24th) people all over Bolivia, and in other countries in South America, tie what they wish for onto the Ekkeko figures. Once given to Ekkeko, the wishes or miniature items are never removed – to do so is considered bad luck. A well-used statue will be loaded down with desires or miniatures that represent many hopes. According to the ancient legend, when you place a miniature object on Ekkeko, you will receive what you wish for the following year.
Does it work? Sometimes.
What would you put on the Ekkeko? Jesus knows what we want (desire).
But Jesus told us (in the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 6:25-34), don’t worry about food, clothing, or other things – at least as the first thing you do. “Seek God first and everything else will fall into place.” (Mt. 6:33, RSV, Really Steve’s Version)
IT’S BEEN SAID, “YOU CAN’T TAKE IT WITH YOU”
For centuries (even millennia) people have been trying to get their wealth into heaven. The tombs of the Pharaohs are a good example.
Trying to disprove the saying "You can't take it with you," a stingy old lawyer, diagnosed with a terminal illness, finally figured out how to take at least some of his fortune with him when he died. He instructed his wife to go to the bank and withdraw enough money to fill two pillowcases. He then told her to take the bags of money to the attic and leave them directly above his bed. When he passed away, he planned to reach out and grab the bags on his way to heaven. Several weeks after the funeral, his wife, up in the attic cleaning came upon the two forgotten pillow cases stuffed with cash.
"Oh, that old fool!" she exclaimed. "I knew I should have put the money in the basement."
JESUS TELLS US, “WE CAN TAKE IT WITH US”
Yes, Jesus tells us we can take it with us. But … it may not be the things we think, or the things we want.
Hunting for Treasure is a passion. Many people have invested all of their lives looking for treasure.
Hunting for Treasure: Where are you going to look?
Russell Conwell gave the speech, Acres of Diamonds, which let’s us know we may find it right in our own backyard. (http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/rconwellacresofdiamonds.htm)
Ali Hafed was a well-to-do Persian farmer. An old Buddhist priest told him about diamonds. He got diamond fever – wanted to be extremely wealthy. He was discontented with life, not because he was poor, but because he was not satisfied.
The following are excerpts from the text:
"Will you tell me where I find diamonds?”
"Diamonds! What do you want with diamonds?”
“Why, I wish to be immensely rich.”
“Well, then, go along and find them. That is all you have to do; go and find them, and then you have them.”
“But I don’t know where to go.”
“Well, if you will find a river that runs through white sands, between high mountains, in those white sands you will always find diamonds.”
“I don’t believe there is any such river.”
“Oh yes, there are plenty of them. All you have to do is to go and find them, and then you have them.”
Said Ali Hafed, “I will go.”
Ali Hafed sold his farm, and traveled around the world looking for diamonds, and spent all he had looking for diamonds. He died a poor man, in a far country, with no friends or family around him.
The man who purchased his farm dug up a shiny stone and put it on his mantle. The priest came by for a visit. When he saw the shiny stone he asked, “Has Ali Hafed returned?” Here is a diamond. The man told him he dug it out of his garden.
Desire and craving and yearning took control of his life, and eventually took his life.
WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR MAY NOT BE TRUE TREASURE
To talk about stewardship, we don’t first talk about “things” and “possessions” and money and wealth. All of these things are secondary.
First we look at our own relationship with God.
Last Sunday we emphasized our need to start with a good relationship with God. Matthew 6:33 (not far after today’s scripture passage) “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and all these things will be added unto you.”
If your relationship with God is not solid and firm, you need to work on that first.
Next we need to look at our lives. What is important to us? What do we dedicate our lives to? What are our priorities?
When Jesus exhorts us not to lay up for ourselves treasures upon earth, He uses an interesting play upon words in the Greek. Lay up translates the Greek word thesaurizo. Treasures translates the Greek word thesauros. These two words come from a common term from which we get our English word thesaurus. A thesaurus is a treasury of words. So we might translate this phrase as, "do not treasure up treasures for yourselves on earth."
The idea here is that we give our time and energy for the purpose of amassing things. Our lives are spent to purchase material stuff. And, of course, the reason why we spend our lives in this endeavor is because our desire is for these things. Material things hold our allegiance. Somehow we believe that if we have enough stuff we will be happy.
But does money and social position really satisfy the human heart?
Several years ago Christina Onassis died at the young age of thirty-seven. People magazine carried the comment of her step-sister Henrietta Gelber. She said of Christina, "She was one of those people who would never be happy. She would become impatient. It had all come too easily - all the money, houses all over the world, few real responsibilities. She lacked a sense of achievement. What she was striving for was virtually impossible in her situation. She had houses all over the world, but she never really had a home."
So you think if you were a billionaire that you would be happy? Well, maybe you would. If you were, however, it would probably not be because you had a pile of money.
Woody Allen agrees, albeit with a twist: “Money can't buy happiness,” he said, “it just lets you look for it in better places.”
IT’S A MATTER OF PRIORITIES
Apparently, Jesus wasn’t a wealthy man. (In terms of material possessions)
But does Jesus prohibit the accumulation of wealth and possessions? No. It’s deeper than that. Jesus tells us that there is something wrong with the priorities of his day.
In Matthew 19:16 a rich young man came to Jesus and asked, “What must I do to get eternal life?”
Jesus told him to obey the law (Love God, Love Others)
The rich young man replied that he had done all that.
Jesus told him to sell all he had and give it to the poor, and then he will have treasure in heaven.
The story ends by telling us that the young man went away sad, because he had great wealth.
This story prompts Jesus’ saying, “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
CONSIDER YOUR OWN HEART
1. Draw a heart. It’s your own.
2. What are the things you treasure?
Write them in your heart.
3. Ask Jesus to come into your heart.
Does Jesus like what he sees? Does something have to go for Jesus to stay? Is something missing?
4. What will it take to get your heart (and everything in it) into heaven?
Ask God to help you do whatever is necessary to get your heart into heaven.
YOU CAN TAKE IT WITH YOU
To get our treasures to heaven we need to get them into the same heart where Jesus lives. Some items may be eliminated; some may need to be added.
Then we must give our heart (and all its possessions) to Jesus.
God is hunting for treasure – true treasure – God wants to find it in our lives. That’s the only way we can get our treasures to heaven.
Today we continue looking at Stewardship …
Last week we learned from Jeremiah (18:1-6) that God is the potter, we are the clay.
- Everything belongs to God, even the clay.
- We can’t make ourselves.
- We need to let God form us and make us into what God wants us to be.
1. Before we think about our relationship with things, we need to think about our relationship with God.
2. If we don’t have a good relationship with God, it will be difficult to have a good relationship with things.
Today we hear from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, a sermon full of spiritual truths with practical applications.
Jesus admonishes the people – “store up treasure in heaven.”
IT’S NATURAL TO WANT THINGS
I showed the children a statue of the Ekkeko god that is popular in the Andean region of South America. Ekkeko is the god of wealth and prosperity. He has a lot of stuff hung around his neck; each item represents some form of material wealth.
• The little sacks of pasta and dry goods represent food.• The copy of money represents monetary wealth.
• A little house represents a wish for a real house.• The miniature car represents a wish for a real automobile.Every year, (usually before noon on January 24th) people all over Bolivia, and in other countries in South America, tie what they wish for onto the Ekkeko figures. Once given to Ekkeko, the wishes or miniature items are never removed – to do so is considered bad luck. A well-used statue will be loaded down with desires or miniatures that represent many hopes. According to the ancient legend, when you place a miniature object on Ekkeko, you will receive what you wish for the following year.
Does it work? Sometimes.
What would you put on the Ekkeko? Jesus knows what we want (desire).
But Jesus told us (in the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 6:25-34), don’t worry about food, clothing, or other things – at least as the first thing you do. “Seek God first and everything else will fall into place.” (Mt. 6:33, RSV, Really Steve’s Version)
IT’S BEEN SAID, “YOU CAN’T TAKE IT WITH YOU”
For centuries (even millennia) people have been trying to get their wealth into heaven. The tombs of the Pharaohs are a good example.
Trying to disprove the saying "You can't take it with you," a stingy old lawyer, diagnosed with a terminal illness, finally figured out how to take at least some of his fortune with him when he died. He instructed his wife to go to the bank and withdraw enough money to fill two pillowcases. He then told her to take the bags of money to the attic and leave them directly above his bed. When he passed away, he planned to reach out and grab the bags on his way to heaven. Several weeks after the funeral, his wife, up in the attic cleaning came upon the two forgotten pillow cases stuffed with cash.
"Oh, that old fool!" she exclaimed. "I knew I should have put the money in the basement."
JESUS TELLS US, “WE CAN TAKE IT WITH US”
Yes, Jesus tells us we can take it with us. But … it may not be the things we think, or the things we want.
Hunting for Treasure is a passion. Many people have invested all of their lives looking for treasure.
Hunting for Treasure: Where are you going to look?
Russell Conwell gave the speech, Acres of Diamonds, which let’s us know we may find it right in our own backyard. (http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/rconwellacresofdiamonds.htm)
Ali Hafed was a well-to-do Persian farmer. An old Buddhist priest told him about diamonds. He got diamond fever – wanted to be extremely wealthy. He was discontented with life, not because he was poor, but because he was not satisfied.
The following are excerpts from the text:
"Will you tell me where I find diamonds?”
"Diamonds! What do you want with diamonds?”
“Why, I wish to be immensely rich.”
“Well, then, go along and find them. That is all you have to do; go and find them, and then you have them.”
“But I don’t know where to go.”
“Well, if you will find a river that runs through white sands, between high mountains, in those white sands you will always find diamonds.”
“I don’t believe there is any such river.”
“Oh yes, there are plenty of them. All you have to do is to go and find them, and then you have them.”
Said Ali Hafed, “I will go.”
Ali Hafed sold his farm, and traveled around the world looking for diamonds, and spent all he had looking for diamonds. He died a poor man, in a far country, with no friends or family around him.
The man who purchased his farm dug up a shiny stone and put it on his mantle. The priest came by for a visit. When he saw the shiny stone he asked, “Has Ali Hafed returned?” Here is a diamond. The man told him he dug it out of his garden.
Desire and craving and yearning took control of his life, and eventually took his life.
WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR MAY NOT BE TRUE TREASURE
To talk about stewardship, we don’t first talk about “things” and “possessions” and money and wealth. All of these things are secondary.
First we look at our own relationship with God.
Last Sunday we emphasized our need to start with a good relationship with God. Matthew 6:33 (not far after today’s scripture passage) “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and all these things will be added unto you.”
If your relationship with God is not solid and firm, you need to work on that first.
Next we need to look at our lives. What is important to us? What do we dedicate our lives to? What are our priorities?
When Jesus exhorts us not to lay up for ourselves treasures upon earth, He uses an interesting play upon words in the Greek. Lay up translates the Greek word thesaurizo. Treasures translates the Greek word thesauros. These two words come from a common term from which we get our English word thesaurus. A thesaurus is a treasury of words. So we might translate this phrase as, "do not treasure up treasures for yourselves on earth."
The idea here is that we give our time and energy for the purpose of amassing things. Our lives are spent to purchase material stuff. And, of course, the reason why we spend our lives in this endeavor is because our desire is for these things. Material things hold our allegiance. Somehow we believe that if we have enough stuff we will be happy.
But does money and social position really satisfy the human heart?
Several years ago Christina Onassis died at the young age of thirty-seven. People magazine carried the comment of her step-sister Henrietta Gelber. She said of Christina, "She was one of those people who would never be happy. She would become impatient. It had all come too easily - all the money, houses all over the world, few real responsibilities. She lacked a sense of achievement. What she was striving for was virtually impossible in her situation. She had houses all over the world, but she never really had a home."
So you think if you were a billionaire that you would be happy? Well, maybe you would. If you were, however, it would probably not be because you had a pile of money.
Woody Allen agrees, albeit with a twist: “Money can't buy happiness,” he said, “it just lets you look for it in better places.”
IT’S A MATTER OF PRIORITIES
Apparently, Jesus wasn’t a wealthy man. (In terms of material possessions)
But does Jesus prohibit the accumulation of wealth and possessions? No. It’s deeper than that. Jesus tells us that there is something wrong with the priorities of his day.
In Matthew 19:16 a rich young man came to Jesus and asked, “What must I do to get eternal life?”
Jesus told him to obey the law (Love God, Love Others)
The rich young man replied that he had done all that.
Jesus told him to sell all he had and give it to the poor, and then he will have treasure in heaven.
The story ends by telling us that the young man went away sad, because he had great wealth.
This story prompts Jesus’ saying, “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
CONSIDER YOUR OWN HEART
1. Draw a heart. It’s your own.
2. What are the things you treasure?
Write them in your heart.
3. Ask Jesus to come into your heart.
Does Jesus like what he sees? Does something have to go for Jesus to stay? Is something missing?
4. What will it take to get your heart (and everything in it) into heaven?
Ask God to help you do whatever is necessary to get your heart into heaven.
YOU CAN TAKE IT WITH YOU
To get our treasures to heaven we need to get them into the same heart where Jesus lives. Some items may be eliminated; some may need to be added.
Then we must give our heart (and all its possessions) to Jesus.
God is hunting for treasure – true treasure – God wants to find it in our lives. That’s the only way we can get our treasures to heaven.
Sermon Synopsis for April 13, 2008
“A Worthy Vessel” Jeremiah 18:1-6
This is the first part of a three part series about stewardship.
STEWARDSHIP
(Miriam-Webster definition): 1. The duties and obligations of a steward (employed to manage the affairs and concerns of another). 2. The careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one's care.
A steward is more a position of responsibility, not a position of pride and social standing.
IRS – donations to churches are deductible on federal taxes.
Maybe you’ve heard the story about a man who claimed a deduction for a $10K donation to his church. The IRS Calls the church to verify the deduction, “Did he make this donation.” The Church Treasurer tells him – “I’m sure (after I check) he will have made the donation.”
Our scripture passage is from Jeremiah. He’s known as “the sad prophet.” He had a lot to be sad about.
Jeremiah’s world was a mess. War and violence were all around. There were two super powers in the area: Babylonia (Nebuchadnezzar) and Egypt (Neco II); everyone else had a relative peace while these two big ones were fighting. You just had to be careful whose side you took. In 605 BC, at the Battle of Carchemish, Babylonia defeated Egypt and became the sole super power. Babylonia looked to take control of all the smaller kingdoms. Judah, unfortunately, thought Egypt was going to win, and sided with them.
Judah was a mess. Despite reforms from Young King Josiah, his children and grandchildren went against God. They made alliances with other kingdoms instead of trusting God.
Ultimately, according to Jeremiah, Judah was a spiritual mess. They accepted the gods of the other kingdoms, made graven images, had lax morality (no sin stardards), and sacrifices became cultural traditions.
Before they could become what God wanted them to be, they had to go through a transformation – they couldn’t be useful people to God in the condition they were in. They didn’t have a good value system in place, especially a system for self-worth.
WHAT ARE THINGS WORTH?
Three boys are in the schoolyard bragging about their fathers. The first boy says, "My Dad scribbles a few words on a piece of paper, he calls it a poem, they give him $50."
The second boy says, "That's nothing. My Dad scribbles a few words on a piece of paper, he calls it a song, they give him $100."
The third boy says, "I got you both beat. My Dad scribbles a few words on a piece of paper, he calls it a sermon and it takes four people to collect all the money!"
It is tax time.
Maybe you heard about a little boy, who wanted $100.00 very badly, prayed for two weeks but nothing happened. Then he decided to write GOD a letter requesting $100.00. When the postal authorities received the letter to GOD, U.S.A., they decided to send it to the President. The President was so impressed, touched, and amused that he instructed his secretary to send the boy $5.00. Mr. President thought that this would appear to be a lot of money to the little boy. The little boy was delighted with the $5.00 and immediately sat down to write a thank you note to GOD that read: "Dear God, Thank you very much for sending me the money. However, I noticed that for some reason you had to send it through Washington, D.C., and, as usual, those devils deducted $95.00.
If a financial counselor asked you, “what’s your net worth?”
Most think of bank accounts, annual income, investments.
If the IRS asked you, “what’s your net worth?”
You might have a different answer.
If God asked you, “what’s your net worth?”
How would you respond?
Martin Luther, the protestant reformer, is quoted as saying, “People go through 3 conversions: their head, their heart and their pocketbook. Unfortunately, not all at the same time.”
WHAT IS OUR HUMAN LIFE WORTH?
There are different aspects of our lives to take into account.
Physical worth:
- Chemical components of human body = 3 to 4 dollars, depending on the market (but you have to lose your life to redeem this amount).
- We could sell our organs at a better price (same result, lose our life).
- Use our bodies to work (value per hour or per monthly salary)
- Sell our bodies (prostitution)
Social worth:
- Position in society.
- Riches, power
- Friends, colleagues, family
- Education
Spiritual worth:
- Religion, ecclesiastical structure, belief system.
- Ethics, moral
- Concept of god
What part of our lives does God want? (Rhetorical question)
I showed the children an old roughly made clay bowl and asked them what they thought it was worth. They didn’t appreciate it very much. When they learned that the bowl was from the formative period of pre-Columbian history in central South America, that changed everything. The fact that someone took some clay and formed this bowl as much as 2400 years ago made a big difference.
Isaiah wrote (64:8), “Yet, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.”
Our value comes from being formed by God!
Jeremiah went to the potter’s house.
In Israel (as in much of the world) pottery is the common stuff of everyday life.
The archaeological periods are (in some part) defined by the pottery style and form.
Pottery was a vital part of the economic structure in Old Testament times. It was a major industry. If you had gone down to the potter's house in those days you would have seen one or more men making this pottery using what we would call crude machinery. He would probably be sitting on a wooden seat with a small table in front of him. Under that table and fastened to it would be a large round rock about the size of a large automobile tire. He would turn the table by placing his feet on top of the large round stone and turning it by using his feet.
What did Jeremiah see? (Verses 3-4) He saw a potter making a vessel, decide it wasn’t very good, and use the same clay to make a new pot. (A Makeover) This was nothing out of the ordinary.
Jeremiah had a gift. He could see spiritual things in everyday objects and events. This ability is truly a gift from God.
God says to Jeremiah, “that’s a lot like you and me.” (v.6) An analogy.
God = potter
Clay = us, humans
Most of us would rather see ourselves in the role of the potter of our own lives (our destinies). That’s not the way God wants us to see it.
The clay is the work of the potter.
God has the authority (and ownership)
God has the power and ability
What can the clay do? Not much.
Can the clay reject what the potter has made?
Can the clay make itself?
Romans 9:20-21 “But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, ‘Why did you make me like this?’ Does not the potter have the right to make out of the clay what he wants?
God wants to form us – according to Genesis 2:26-27 – in His image.
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over “the things I made, that are mine.”
God made us – God made us good – God made us to take care of his stuff.
The psalmist wrote “The Earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.” (Psalm 24:1)
Jeremiah talks about a makeover:
God doesn’t want any “self-made men;” God wants men (and women) who submit to God’s forming in t heir lives.
Check out Jonathan Edwards’s 1741 sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” (http://www.ccel.org/ccel/edwards/sermons.sinners.html). Those hands can form you, or destroy you. It’s best to be forgiven when those hands are forming you!
Psalm 119:73 “Your hands made me and formed me …”
A Study was made (you can do a scientific investigation of anything these days) relating the mood of the potter to the work that is produced. This is not a production line with quality control, but an artist working with the clay. By looking at the pot (or whatever is being made) they could tell what mood the potter was in when it was made.
Can we push the analogy here? What mood was God in when you were made?
Why does the potter bother to make the pot?
- He likes to do it.
- He receives something for doing it.
- He’s good at it.
What about the pot?
- it must be useful
- it should be appealing to look at.
- It reflects the nature, person, and ability of the potter.
- Its value depends on these things.
Christian Stewardship doesn’t begin by talking about our relationship with money or things … it begins by talking about our relationship with God, our creator.
Searching for the true value of material possessions and for the value of people depends on the relationship with God
God wants to change our lives, a makeover, re-create us, so that we can be stewards, in God’s world.
Colossians 2:13 “When you were dead in your sins … and your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins.”
What are you worth? Did you ever watch Antiques Roadshow?
If I took you to the heavenly Antiques Roadshow, what would God say you are worth?
Our worth comes from being molded and shaped by God’s hands. It is God who gives us true worth. – Priceless.
Put your lives into God’s hands!
We closed with the hymn, HAVE THINE OWN WAY, LORD
Adelaide Pollard, who wrote "Have Thine Own Way Lord" knew something about the relationship between God and humanity, and the potter and the clay.
She didn’t like her life: changed her name (from Sarah), moved from Iowa to Boston, to Chicago, back to New England, etc. At a church meeting (1902) she heard a woman pray. The woman didn’t ask God for material blessings or things or liberation from problems; instead she prayed “It doesn’t matter what you bring into our lives, Lord. Just have your own way with us.” She decided to let God lead. That night Pollard wrote the words to this hymn.
"Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way! Thou art the potter, I am the clay! Mold me and make me after Thy will, while I am waiting, yielded and still." (First verse of "Have Thine Own Way")
This is the first part of a three part series about stewardship.
STEWARDSHIP
(Miriam-Webster definition): 1. The duties and obligations of a steward (employed to manage the affairs and concerns of another). 2. The careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one's care.
A steward is more a position of responsibility, not a position of pride and social standing.
IRS – donations to churches are deductible on federal taxes.
Maybe you’ve heard the story about a man who claimed a deduction for a $10K donation to his church. The IRS Calls the church to verify the deduction, “Did he make this donation.” The Church Treasurer tells him – “I’m sure (after I check) he will have made the donation.”
Our scripture passage is from Jeremiah. He’s known as “the sad prophet.” He had a lot to be sad about.
Jeremiah’s world was a mess. War and violence were all around. There were two super powers in the area: Babylonia (Nebuchadnezzar) and Egypt (Neco II); everyone else had a relative peace while these two big ones were fighting. You just had to be careful whose side you took. In 605 BC, at the Battle of Carchemish, Babylonia defeated Egypt and became the sole super power. Babylonia looked to take control of all the smaller kingdoms. Judah, unfortunately, thought Egypt was going to win, and sided with them.
Judah was a mess. Despite reforms from Young King Josiah, his children and grandchildren went against God. They made alliances with other kingdoms instead of trusting God.
Ultimately, according to Jeremiah, Judah was a spiritual mess. They accepted the gods of the other kingdoms, made graven images, had lax morality (no sin stardards), and sacrifices became cultural traditions.
Before they could become what God wanted them to be, they had to go through a transformation – they couldn’t be useful people to God in the condition they were in. They didn’t have a good value system in place, especially a system for self-worth.
WHAT ARE THINGS WORTH?
Three boys are in the schoolyard bragging about their fathers. The first boy says, "My Dad scribbles a few words on a piece of paper, he calls it a poem, they give him $50."
The second boy says, "That's nothing. My Dad scribbles a few words on a piece of paper, he calls it a song, they give him $100."
The third boy says, "I got you both beat. My Dad scribbles a few words on a piece of paper, he calls it a sermon and it takes four people to collect all the money!"
It is tax time.
Maybe you heard about a little boy, who wanted $100.00 very badly, prayed for two weeks but nothing happened. Then he decided to write GOD a letter requesting $100.00. When the postal authorities received the letter to GOD, U.S.A., they decided to send it to the President. The President was so impressed, touched, and amused that he instructed his secretary to send the boy $5.00. Mr. President thought that this would appear to be a lot of money to the little boy. The little boy was delighted with the $5.00 and immediately sat down to write a thank you note to GOD that read: "Dear God, Thank you very much for sending me the money. However, I noticed that for some reason you had to send it through Washington, D.C., and, as usual, those devils deducted $95.00.
If a financial counselor asked you, “what’s your net worth?”
Most think of bank accounts, annual income, investments.
If the IRS asked you, “what’s your net worth?”
You might have a different answer.
If God asked you, “what’s your net worth?”
How would you respond?
Martin Luther, the protestant reformer, is quoted as saying, “People go through 3 conversions: their head, their heart and their pocketbook. Unfortunately, not all at the same time.”
WHAT IS OUR HUMAN LIFE WORTH?
There are different aspects of our lives to take into account.
Physical worth:
- Chemical components of human body = 3 to 4 dollars, depending on the market (but you have to lose your life to redeem this amount).
- We could sell our organs at a better price (same result, lose our life).
- Use our bodies to work (value per hour or per monthly salary)
- Sell our bodies (prostitution)
Social worth:
- Position in society.
- Riches, power
- Friends, colleagues, family
- Education
Spiritual worth:
- Religion, ecclesiastical structure, belief system.
- Ethics, moral
- Concept of god
What part of our lives does God want? (Rhetorical question)
I showed the children an old roughly made clay bowl and asked them what they thought it was worth. They didn’t appreciate it very much. When they learned that the bowl was from the formative period of pre-Columbian history in central South America, that changed everything. The fact that someone took some clay and formed this bowl as much as 2400 years ago made a big difference.
Isaiah wrote (64:8), “Yet, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.”
Our value comes from being formed by God!
Jeremiah went to the potter’s house.
In Israel (as in much of the world) pottery is the common stuff of everyday life.
The archaeological periods are (in some part) defined by the pottery style and form.
Pottery was a vital part of the economic structure in Old Testament times. It was a major industry. If you had gone down to the potter's house in those days you would have seen one or more men making this pottery using what we would call crude machinery. He would probably be sitting on a wooden seat with a small table in front of him. Under that table and fastened to it would be a large round rock about the size of a large automobile tire. He would turn the table by placing his feet on top of the large round stone and turning it by using his feet.
What did Jeremiah see? (Verses 3-4) He saw a potter making a vessel, decide it wasn’t very good, and use the same clay to make a new pot. (A Makeover) This was nothing out of the ordinary.
Jeremiah had a gift. He could see spiritual things in everyday objects and events. This ability is truly a gift from God.
God says to Jeremiah, “that’s a lot like you and me.” (v.6) An analogy.
God = potter
Clay = us, humans
Most of us would rather see ourselves in the role of the potter of our own lives (our destinies). That’s not the way God wants us to see it.
The clay is the work of the potter.
God has the authority (and ownership)
God has the power and ability
What can the clay do? Not much.
Can the clay reject what the potter has made?
Can the clay make itself?
Romans 9:20-21 “But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, ‘Why did you make me like this?’ Does not the potter have the right to make out of the clay what he wants?
God wants to form us – according to Genesis 2:26-27 – in His image.
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over “the things I made, that are mine.”
God made us – God made us good – God made us to take care of his stuff.
The psalmist wrote “The Earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.” (Psalm 24:1)
Jeremiah talks about a makeover:
God doesn’t want any “self-made men;” God wants men (and women) who submit to God’s forming in t heir lives.
Check out Jonathan Edwards’s 1741 sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” (http://www.ccel.org/ccel/edwards/sermons.sinners.html). Those hands can form you, or destroy you. It’s best to be forgiven when those hands are forming you!
Psalm 119:73 “Your hands made me and formed me …”
A Study was made (you can do a scientific investigation of anything these days) relating the mood of the potter to the work that is produced. This is not a production line with quality control, but an artist working with the clay. By looking at the pot (or whatever is being made) they could tell what mood the potter was in when it was made.
Can we push the analogy here? What mood was God in when you were made?
Why does the potter bother to make the pot?
- He likes to do it.
- He receives something for doing it.
- He’s good at it.
What about the pot?
- it must be useful
- it should be appealing to look at.
- It reflects the nature, person, and ability of the potter.
- Its value depends on these things.
Christian Stewardship doesn’t begin by talking about our relationship with money or things … it begins by talking about our relationship with God, our creator.
Searching for the true value of material possessions and for the value of people depends on the relationship with God
God wants to change our lives, a makeover, re-create us, so that we can be stewards, in God’s world.
Colossians 2:13 “When you were dead in your sins … and your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins.”
What are you worth? Did you ever watch Antiques Roadshow?
If I took you to the heavenly Antiques Roadshow, what would God say you are worth?
Our worth comes from being molded and shaped by God’s hands. It is God who gives us true worth. – Priceless.
Put your lives into God’s hands!
We closed with the hymn, HAVE THINE OWN WAY, LORD
Adelaide Pollard, who wrote "Have Thine Own Way Lord" knew something about the relationship between God and humanity, and the potter and the clay.
She didn’t like her life: changed her name (from Sarah), moved from Iowa to Boston, to Chicago, back to New England, etc. At a church meeting (1902) she heard a woman pray. The woman didn’t ask God for material blessings or things or liberation from problems; instead she prayed “It doesn’t matter what you bring into our lives, Lord. Just have your own way with us.” She decided to let God lead. That night Pollard wrote the words to this hymn.
"Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way! Thou art the potter, I am the clay! Mold me and make me after Thy will, while I am waiting, yielded and still." (First verse of "Have Thine Own Way")
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