Sermons for the Month
Giving: A Family Affair for this Faith Family
DATE: October 2nd, 2005
SERVICE: 20th Sunday After Pentecost
TEXT: Philippians 4:1-9“To all of you Saints here this morning, grace and peace to you from God our Father, from His Son, Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit. AMEN
Some of you may remember a TV show that dates clear back to 1966 in which a carefree bachelor named Bill Davis and his English gentleman's gentleman Mr. French become the surrogate parents of three children. Suddenly Buffy and Jody, age 6, and Cissy, age 15 show up on the doorstep of Uncle Bill's elegant Manhattan apartment and his life is turned into a Family Affair. As is often the case in TV land - especially in the 1960's - any challenges created by this new living arrangement are overcome by a loving, family-spirit. I suppose that is what made it a successful show that ran until 1971.
But we all know that in real world families love does not always triumph over difficulty, and that's also true in the church family. That spirit of love, unity, the single-minded striving for a goal and the willingness to make sacrifices is not necessarily a "given", which is why it's good for us to be reminded - as we are doing for a few weeks - that Giving is a Family Affair for this faith family.
That's true now, and it has been true of the Family of Faith throughout the ages. We often miss the verses that begin Chapter 4 of Paul's letter to the Philippians because what follows is so beautiful and memorable. But the first three verses remind us that for Paul, who is in prison as her writes this letter, the Family of Faith in Philippi is a source of joy to him because the people there have accepted the Gospel and lived according to it.
He encourages them to continue in that Christ-centered life, that is to stand firm in it. And, in order for that to happen, the believers must be in harmony with one another. He mentions two women who need to get back on the same track, and encourages another believer to help them because they - along with others - have struggled (notice that word) in the work of the Gospel.
The gist of those three verses is that the Christians in Philippi must find a common bond and nurture it. They must develop that loving, family-spirit that overcomes differences and difficulties not for the sake of calm but the sake of expanding the ministry of Jesus Christ. They must be united in their mission of introducing people to Jesus and transforming lives.
Then, we come to the part of this text that we know so well. "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
We usually apply those beautiful words to our lives on a personal level, but actually they are directed toward the faith community as a unit. We might think of them, as well as verses 8 and 9, as "Advice for the Faith Family". Paul is telling the church what to do so that they can acquire the frame of mind that is necessary to accomplish their ministries.
Here are some steps to take, he is saying, that will make giving for the sake of the Gospel a family affair. First, the people who are the church must realize that it's possible to always rejoice, or to be glad, because their contentment is found in their relationship with the Lord, not in their circumstances. Second, they should understand that an openness to God in prayer will keep them centered. Prayer will bring peace - not peace that is a state of having answers to all one's problems - but a sense of the presence of God and of oneness with the One who is bigger that our imaginations and our solutions.
The Family of Faith is to fill its mind with what Paul sees as signs of life - that which is true, honorable, pure, pleasing, commendable, excellent and worthy of praise - because this is another way of filling oneself with God's life and allowing it to flow through us into the world. (1)
The combination of these things at work in the Faith Family will create the right atmosphere for ministry to thrive.
It's always amazing to me how transferable these words are that were written in a letter thousands of years ago. Here we are, a Family of Faith, that can only be effective in our ministry if - as was true in the first century - our corporate life is marked by a spirit of love, unity, single-minded striving for a goal and the willingness to make sacrifices.
And, the way to accomplish those things is still what Paul recommended. To find our contentment in the Lord, not in our circumstances, to be centered in prayer, to find peace in the knowledge that One who is far beyond us is in control and to fill ourselves with the ways of God.
It seems to me that if we were doing these things as a Faith Family then giving would become very much a matter-of-fact, way of life, family affair. Sharing our time, our talents, our money - and teaching our children to do so - would not be a source of agitation or discomfort but what comes with the territory when one is part of the family of Jesus that is striving to transform lives by sharing his love.
I wonder if the reason people get uncomfortable with being ask to give is that it brings to light the reality that they are finding contentment somewhere other than in the Lord, and that worry has replaced prayer and anxiety trumps peace and their minds and hearts are filled with all kinds of junk.
And, amazingly, there is little joy in all of that. It reminds me of something I read about a large wood-frame hotel that was made out of Florida pine and had the potential of becoming the largest pile of pine ashes in the world with the strike of one match. So, the engineers designed and installed a very expensive and elaborate sprinkler system to protect the place. A few years later when an addition was being planned they discovered that the sprinkler system had never been hooked up. So, a source of protection was available, but had never been tapped into. (2)
Perhaps that's the idea Paul is attempting to convey to believers - the source that provides peace and protection and that makes a difference in your life and in the world is available to you; connect to it! Then, it will be possible to stand-firm in a Christ-centered life, to be a unified body of believers held together by a spirit of love and a common purpose for whom giving is a way of life, a family affair.
Writer Erma Bombeck had some sense of what that meant. She once said, "When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, 'I used everything you gave me.'" (3) She used her resources and her abilities to make God's world a better place, yet, she never felt used up! May that be our experience too as a part of this Faith family.
So listen again to these words, "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." And remember … they are not just for individual people, but to strengthen the community of faith so that we might be intent on expanding the ministry of Jesus in the world. (1) First Thoughts on Year A, Epistle Passages from the Lectionary, Pentecost 21", William Loader, www.textweek.com
(2) Overcoming Setbacks, Steve Brown, NavPress, 1992, pg. 145
(3) My Almost for His Highest, Martha Bolton, Lillenas Publishing Company, 2002, pg. 11
AMEN