Sermons for the Month

To Live is to Give
DATE: October 1st,2006
SERVICE: 17th Sunday After Pentecost
TEXT: Mark 8:11-21 and Philippians 1:1-11
“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

There an old story about a little girl who was much troubled by the fact that her older brother trapped rabbits. She had begged him to stop, but he refused to do so. One night her mother heard her praying, "Dear God, please stop Tommy from trapping rabbits. Please do not let them get trapped." Then, with boldness she proclaimed, "They can't. They won't. Amen."
Her mother was concerned and perplexed by her daughter's prayer. Gently she asked about the closing proclamations of faith, afraid that her daughter's young belief would be damaged if rabbits found their way into the traps. "Darling," she said, "How can you be so sure that God won't let the rabbits be trapped?" To her surprise this was the reply, "Because I jumped on the traps and sprung them!" (1)
That little girl may be onto something. As St. Thomas More once said, "The things, good Lord, which we pray for, give us the grace to labor for." Some scholars say that's what the Apostle Paul was hinting at in verse 6 of Philippians 1, "I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ."
It's widely believed that the "good work" to which Paul was referring was salvation, which means that as God's loved and forgiven children we are sustained by God's grace until our salvation is completed when Jesus returns. But, as is usually the case, there is another way to interpret this verse. It is that the "good work" Paul mentions is the people's partnership with him in advancing the Gospel, including their financial support of his ministry.
In other words, God has stirred up in them the desire to share the love of Jesus beyond themselves, and they have acted on what God began by supporting Paul. Their lives will be about GIVING, which will bear fruit, so that by the time Jesus returns the word about him will have been proclaimed far and wide.
The people in Philippi acted out today's theme which is this: for disciples of Jesus Christ, to live is to GIVE. That phrase sums up what we have been talking about for a couple weeks with the themes, "Jesus is your boss, so walk the way of the cross," and "Listen! It's a mission!" For disciples, to live is to give.
And, I would add, to live is to trust that God will take what we give and use it in surprising ways, that is bring it to completion in ways that we would have never expected.
Trusting, though, is not an easy thing to do. Just look at the disciples as they are described in today's Gospel lesson. On second thought, you may not want to do so because they look SO bad. Jesus has just faced another episode of being challenged to prove himself. Now, it's a bit ironic that this is the case because the request for a sign occurs immediately after Jesus fed thousands of people. Just as Moses provided sustenance for the Israelites in the wilderness by the power of God, Jesus had provided for his audience. But, this is lost on the Pharisees.
Surely, though, his disciples have not missed the point. They have witnessed everything Jesus has done, every astounding thing, and have been given explanations along the way. One would think that they are on the right page, that they trust in the power of God at work in their Lord. But, sadly, it seems that they give nothing and expect nothing.
They can't even focus on Jesus' warning about the hypocrisy of the Jewish leaders because they are worried about the fact that they only have one loaf of bread , and what is that among 13 grown men and probably a few women? Now, you would think that, having experienced Jesus feeding thousands of people with little bits of food, they would know that Jesus can provide for all their needs, not just the physical ones. But, no, they do not understand, a fact that Jesus laments as the story ends. "Do you not yet understand?" he says. "Do you not yet understand?"
Often their story is our story. We know the story of Jesus from scripture, including the multitude of ways the power of God was at work in him. We believe he was raised from the dead, and that he conquered the power of death in all of our lives. We have experienced the grace of God, or at least have heard others testify to the ways their lives have been touched and transformed. Yet, we struggle to understand that Jesus can provide for all our needs, and that the "good work" that is begun in us will be brought to completion, and that as disciples of Jesus to fully live is to give.
Instead we worry that there's only one loaf when in Jesus there is the potential for thousands of loaves. Let me focus these ideas in on what we are doing in worship today, although there are an unending number of ways to apply them.
As we fill out those Estimate of Giving cards this morning, what if everyone had the attitude that as we respond to the Holy Spirit's urging and commit ourselves to giving, God will respond by bringing that "good work" to completion, that is making it bear fruit in unexpected ways. What if every member here did one of these four things:

Those who have not been consistent in offering financial support commit themselves to doing so. In other words, get in the habit of giving something every week.

Those who are consistent, but have given the same amount for several years, increase their giving; push their comfort level just a bit.

Those who have thought about the Biblical command to tithe - that is to give at least 10 percent of our income to ministry - strive toward that 10 percent. After all, what that means is that we get to keep 90 percent, and God gets 10 percent.

Those who give more than a tithe continue to do so, but at the same time begin to pray about creative ways to offer a significant special gift that God can bring to completion.

Now, I believe that if every member of Faith Lutheran Church did one of those four things, intertwining their giving with trust, then the possibilities are endless of how God will complete the Good Work that we begin. Look at what happened to the Apostle Paul. The support he received, not just financially but in a variety of ways, led to the spread of the Good News of Jesus throughout the known world.
There certainly is truth in that rabbit trapping story with which I began today. The way our prayers are answered is often through what we do, that which has been initiated, encouraged and empowered by God. Perhaps we too should say, "The things, good Lord, which we pray for, give us the grace to labor for." But then we also trust that God will bring those efforts to completion in ways that we might have never imagined.
All that to say, sisters and brothers, Jesus is the boss, so we WALK the way of the cross. Open your ears and LISTEN because it's a mission! And, as disciples of Jesus, to live is to GIVE.
(1) "Petitonary Prayer Reconsidered" by Carroll E. Simcox, the Christian Century, March 4, 1987, p. 212, www.christiancentury.org
AMEN