Westminster Sermons

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Hiding Abundant Talent

WESTMINSTER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
November 13, 2011
Rev. Mark R. Miller
Stewardship Commitment Sunday
Matthew 25:14-30
“Hiding Abundant Talent”

Is anyone else disturbed by his passage? If we heard what was read, we ought to be taken back by the judgment language. A man is terrified by his master and it turns out he was right. His fear leads to greater judgment and exile. And then there is the language which sounds a lot like the prosperity gospel. “For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away.” It is as if Jesus is saying, we should take from the poor and give to the rich. Unfortunately there are many Christians who believe this to be true. Fortunately, it is a gross interpretive mistake.

The most obvious challenge to this interpretation is the very next passage. It is the only place in the gospel where Jesus uses explicit language about who faces punishment. And that punishment is reserved for those who do not care for the sick, the poor, the prisoners, and the vulnerable. The Jesus who tells this parable read for us this morning is the same one who says:

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

And, this is the same Jesus who has compassion on crowds of people and feeds them when they have no money. This is also the same Jesus who says that the greatest in the kingdom of God are those that society has rejected. So, any interpretation of our passage must reject any use of this passage that looks like the reverse of the work of Robin Hood. The prosperity gospel is not the gospel of Jesus Christ.

However, it is never enough to simply reject this theology. If this passage is not God’s stamp of approval of exploitive economics, then what is Jesus teaching about? As with all parables, Jesus is taking what people know and using it to help explain the ways of God. On the surface, Jesus is talking about money, which means this passage is not about money at all. Jesus is preparing the disciples for his impending death. Jesus is leaving and going to entrust them with the kingdom work.

The talents being given are not money, wealth, and a life of ease. The talents are responsibility for feeding the hungry, giving a drink to the thirsty, welcoming the stranger, caring for the sick, clothing the naked, visiting those in prison, and telling people about the good news of God’s kingdom. This is the talents in the story. The talents are not about financial resources. Multiplying the talents is about doing this work not because it is our work but because it has been given as a gift. This is the calling for all disciples. The multiplying of talents is not an increase in social standing or economic wellbeing but a growth of kingdom work of compassion. (Calling and Discipleship…politicians using God’s name…)

Understanding that this passage is not about reinforcing economic inequality is good news. However, what are we to make of the judgment language at the end? If anything is most difficult to hear, it is probably those words. There are really two ways to go with this language. One is that it is a passage directed toward the religious leadership. Jesus always reserves his harshest language for religious people who do not live their faith. At this point in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus has entered the temple on Palm Sunday, turned over the tables of the money changers and openly challenged hypocrisy. In other words, this passage becomes a warning to those who give lip service to their faith but do not put actions behind those words.

While I believe that is a more faithful interpretation, it, too, is open to abuse, particularly on this stewardship commitment Sunday. It would be easy to use guilt and fear to increase giving and involvement in the church’s ministry. However, I do not believe that is a faithful interpretation. Let’s take a closer look at this third servant. His actions were rooted in fear. The servant’s fear led him to close in on himself and worry about self preservation. If God is out to get us, the right response is to make sure that we are saved, keep our head down, and simply wait until after death.

The passage is not a warning about punishment for this type of action. Instead it is descriptive of what a life rooted in fear and a belief in an angry vengeful God will look like. When disciples’ actions are rooted in fear they cease to focus on the kingdom work. When communities of faith are struggling with institutional survival the first thing they cut from the budget is often mission. The work of feeding, welcoming, care for the sick, and visiting the prisoners become easy ways to balance a budget. A life rooted in fear leads to alienation or in the language of the passage, weeping and gnashing of teeth. Communities rooted in fear spend their energy on struggling over everything but kingdom work. A life rooted in fear of God is a life diminished, a life lacking in joy, and a life of which no one really wants to be a part. This passage is not about the punishment to come but about the horrors of a life of discipleship based on fear.

So what do we make of this for a stewardship commitment Sunday? It really is fairly simple. The calling from this passage is not a call to foolishness or risk without planning. It is not a call to give all your money and time to the church because God’s out to get you. It is a calling for each one of us, and for us collectively as a community, to give up a life rooted in fear. God is not out to get us and giving to the church does not minimize an angry vengeful God. Our calling is to risk going into the deep waters. Our calling is to live our lives with joy. Our calling is to serve others. Our calling is to live without fear. As we plan – corporately and individually for the coming year, our calling is to plan around those priorities and not from a place of fear.

The really good news in this passage is that the only true failure in discipleship is to act out of fear and the belief that God is out to get us. Notice that there is no disciple who is punished for risking and then losing the talents. No actions done for the kingdom, feeding the hungry, welcoming the stranger, caring for the sick, and visiting the prisoners, are ever lost. So let us follow, let us know it all makes a difference. And remember, there is no failure but inaction rooted in fear. Amen!

WESTMINSTER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

November 13, 2011

Rev. Mark R. Miller

Stewardship Commitment Sunday

Matthew 25:14-30

“Hiding Abundant Talent”

Monday, November 07, 2011

Sent to Serve

WESTMINSTER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
November 7,2011
Rev. Mark R. Miller
Third Sunday in Stewardship
Communion Mediation
Luke 22:24-27
“Sent to Serve”

This week I read an article which pointed out the simple fact that Jesus never says, “Worship me!” Compare that with the seventeen times that Jesus says, “Follow me” in the four gospels. This is rather odd since the history of the church is really a struggle over the “right way” to worship. Our modern conversations around contemporary, traditional and everything in between has created quite an industry. Denominations and individual churches are judged and categorized based on their style of worship. Worship is the central act in the church of Jesus Christ, but Jesus had nothing to say about it. I do not mean to suggest that worship is unnecessary or important. Worship is a vital part of our life of faith. However, vibrant worship without a vibrant servant mentality is not worship of the God we know in Jesus Christ. Worship should feed our life of service. The role of the church is to create disciples who create more disciples. Vibrant worship can attract people and bring people into the community, but if they are not told that the life of faith is about service, we are providing entertainment and not the gospel. Our passage for this morning is another one of the hard sayings of Jesus. It is easy for most people to see the trouble with the disciples’ conversation. There is an all out competition to see who the super disciple is. It is easy to beat up on the disciples because those of us who have grown up in the church know how to hide those kinds of impulses. We may not always do it, but we know better than to seek to be first. What is powerful about this passage is not that Jesus challenges their misdirected impulses. How Jesus responses is instructive. Jesus makes it clear that the calling of a disciple is to serve other people. The calling is service. But, the way he says this is pretty radical. The use of the term benefactor is important. It is a call to serve with a twist. The disciples are not really arguing about power and authority. They are arguing about who is the greatest at serving others and preaching the kingdom. Jesus says that the call to serve is not about helping those less fortunate. It is about changing social arrangements. The greater person in the kingdom of God is the person who serves at the table. Those at the bottom of the ladder in a service economy are the ones who God sees as great. When the one who we worship as king comes to serve the calling is not to worship but to follow. And that is the difficulty in the teaching. The trouble with worshiping Jesus is that it can lead us to forget to follow the pattern set for us to follow. When the disciples focus on the power and greatness of Jesus they fall into the trap of believing they should receive recognition as well. Jesus has to help the disciples remember to follow this servant who we worship. On our third Sunday of stewardship this has some important implications. Notice that Jesus uses the word benefactor. It was believed that only those people who had power because of position or wealth could take care of others. The social arrangement was such that the wealthy were give glory because of their generosity. And Jesus says that the glory ought to go to the nameless people who pick produce, wash dishes, and bring meals to those who can afford to go out to eat. So what does this mean? It means that the followers of Jesus are not called to help the less fortunate but to serve. So what is the difference? When the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation works to eradicate malaria we can give thanks. But, if they were to do so as followers of Jesus they would probably do it with less fanfare and distance from the people they are helping. The followers of Jesus are not called to be benefactors but servants and this is why the teaching of Jesus is so offensive. Being called to serve is not a call to help out those less fortunate, but a call to give up privilege, to walk arm in arm. In God’s kingdom, those with privileged position and status are at a disadvantage. In God’s kingdom it is those who clean houses, farm workers, wait staff, and those at the lowest end of the service economy will have the expertise needed to be faithful in the life of discipleship. The most important role of the church, particularly in the season of stewardship, is to help emphasis and grasp this fundamental shift. Stewardship is not about giving a little back or giving so we might have greater riches or even because it will give us pleasure. Stewardship is about learning to become a serving people. The distinctions of class no longer matter. The distinctions of expertise no longer matter. When Paul writes that there is no longer Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female, he is reminding the followers that being a disciple is the breakdown of social divisions. There is no job below your social status because in the household of God there is no social status that keeps you from cleaning toilets. How will you serve this year? How are you already serving? Where is God calling you to give up the baggage of the outside world in this place? This is not a call to make people more busy or guilt them into giving more money. It is a calling to grow deeper in our life of faith, to wade out into the deep waters, even if we do not know for sure what it will bring. It is a calling to give of our whole selves, not because of guilt or expectation, but out of joy. And, it is calling to move from religious consumer to co-servant in a community where we serve one another and are served by one another. This is the calling! Amen.

Sunday, October 30, 2011

Challenged to Grow

WESTMINSTER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
October 30, 2011
Rev. Mark R. Miller
Second Sunday in Stewardship
Luke 7:36-8:3
“Challenged to Grow”

If you walk from the village of Nazareth to the Sea of Galilee you have to walk down a valley passageway. This valley is known as the valley of the doves. At the base of the valley of the doves is a town with a synagogue that would have seated about 200 people. Also at the base of the town there has been found a treasure trove of jars for ointment for what is now thought to be an ancient spa. That town is known as Magdala.

Why is geographical and archeological information important? It is important because, in the two thousand years since the time of Jesus, his followers have been perpetuating some half truths and even outright lies. What do I mean? Well, if you look at the heading to our scripture passage, in most bibles it says something about, “the harlot.” And, if you ask most people about Mary Magdala’s profession before following Jesus the answer is, prostitute. It is simply assumed those are correct interpretations. If you believe that to be true, I only ask one thing. Please find that in the scriptures. And the headings do not count because in the original language there are no headings. They are added later.

There is no mention that the woman’s sin in this passage has anything to do with sex. And nowhere in the bible is Mary Magdalene said to be a prostitute. In fact, she was probably a woman of industry who ran a business at the base of the valley of the doves. And, it is by her generosity and financial support that Jesus and the male disciples are able to do ministry without having to find another job. Why do these interpretations continue to thrive? Historian Justo Gonzales says in his commentary on Luke that, “This may well be the result of a history of interpretation dominated by men – and by men who tended to see women almost exclusively as sexual objects, and their sins as mostly sexual in nature.” But the problem with this interpretation goes deeper.

As long as these passages are about sinful women of ill repute or sinners in general, religious people can stand at a distance and feel secretly self-righteous. After all, we are not as bad as someone who would do that! And when the passage focuses on this we miss that these women are the model for discipleship. What this woman and others find out is that God has not divided the world into sinners and saved. In Jesus they found out God is not out to get them and as a result they are willing to commit their whole lives to God.

When we sexualize the women in this passage we miss out that it is the religious community which comes under condemnation. The Pharisee who invited Jesus into his home believes he is doing him a favor. In fact, he feels so self-righteous he does not bother to offer Jesus the standard hospitality. The religious community is the barrier to God’s love. The religious person is the one who knows more than Jesus. But before we beat up on the Pharisee too much I think it is important to remember they are really an important warning to the modern church. We are the Pharisees who want to follow the rules and make sure others do the same.

The hardest thing for the Pharisee to see is not that this woman is welcomed and is responding to the love of God. The hardest thing to see is his worldview being turned upside down. If God will accept these sinners why bother? If God is not going to punish and reward then what is the point? The number of sermons on stewardship and giving affirm this theology. If you tithe, God will reward you in amazing ways! If you give, God will give back to you! It is a very simple business transaction. You give something in order to get something in return. But in this encounter, and many others, Jesus blows up the notion of insider and outsider as well as the notion that God can be bought off.

That is a hard notion with which to wrestle. What if by giving you get nothing in return? What if the time and energy you put into something does not yield the results you expect. Faith in Jesus Christ is not about trying to stay out of hell after death. It is not about living your best life right now and it is not about enlarging the territory of your bank account. The woman in this story knows and understands this and the Pharisee does not.

Because she truly understands the power of Jesus’ message, this woman gives Jesus a spa treatment out of the depth of her joy. She uses what she has, the finest of what she has, to give thanks, not to gain favor with Jesus. She does not do this out of guilt either. Instead it is a witness to a gift given in joy without strings, without guilt, and without expectation. That is a radical message.

That is the message of stewardship. The focus is helping us grow our own sense of gratitude. While the use of guilt, fear and even hope of reward is a successful strategy for raising funds, it is not the way of Jesus Christ. Jesus preached the kingdom of God. And it was a kingdom that did not act like the kingdoms of the world. The values of God’s kingdom were based on generosity without reciprocity, the breakdown of hierarchy and the expectation that women would lead the community just like the men. The values of God’s kingdom mean the poor; the widow and the orphan would not just be helped but have a place in the decision making of the community. Stewardship is about asking ourselves about how we will respond to the gifts of God’s grace, not how we might court God’s favor. When the Pharisee saw the transformative power of Jesus’ message he had two choices. He too could have praised God and given his whole life to the message of a new world. But it was simply too much.

In this season of Stewardship we are invited to think where we stand. Where in our hearts do we desire the kind of acceptance offered by Jesus? Where are we so hungry to give of our finest gifts and abilities so that others might know that sort of love? And, because we are complex people, we must also ask where we are holding back? Or, where are we hiding behind our religious practice or certainties? Where do the places of judgment in our hearts hold us back? We are being invited to, and challenged to grow deeper. This is not an invitation based on guilt or manipulation but on love for us to live more authentic and loving lives. The challenge is really to accept that God’s love actually includes everyone. And when we do, we will follow, like the women, in sharing the message. Amen? Amen!

Monday, October 24, 2011

Called to Follow

WESTMINSTER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
October 23, 2011
Rev. Mark R. Miller
First Sunday in Stewardship
Luke 5:1-11
“Called to Follow”

            This is a sermon on stewardship that is not about money. Stewardship is not about money. It is about commitment. All the money in the world cannot replicate the power of Jesus’ followers when they heed the call to move into deep waters. So, that is the last I will say about money. This is a sermon, this sermon on stewardship, is about commitment.
            Jesus is quite a preacher, though not always popular. In the beginning of Luke’s gospel Jesus begins his ministry with these words:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.
And these words of good news are met with a desire to throw him off a cliff. The good news is that when Jesus leaves his hometown, this message is well received. Around the Sea of Galilee or as Luke calls it, the lake of Gennesaret, there are so many people hungry for what Jesus is teaching he has to get out on to a boat to get away from the pressing crowds.
            It is clear that people are interested and even hungry for the message of Jesus. As he began his ministry in the Galilee region he has been living with Peter. In fact, Peter seems pretty committed to following Jesus already. However, it also appears that Peter has not realized the depth of commitment Jesus desires. But note that Jesus only invites deep commitment, he never coerces or demands.
            While Jesus is busy preaching and healing, Peter and the others were busy doing real world work all night. As Jesus is teaching, they are cleaning the nets and the boats, after a full night’s shift. And along comes this teacher and starts telling them how to fish. It must have been maddening. After all, he may have healed and preached, but what does this carpenter know about fishing. They did not say this but they had to be thinking it.
Peter speaks for the group. He says, “Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.” This is not a statement of faith. It is a statement of resignation. Peter is not committed to what he believes is a failed enterprise. Notice that he is not willing to commit to this work. If you say so, I will let down the nets. Peter will not commit his whole fleet, his whole workforce, or even his whole person to the work. Peter is being polite while expecting failure. Peter is an interested follower but not committed.
            But the good news is that Peter does not have to have faith. He is not expected to commit himself. All Peter has to do is make a half hearted attempt and show up. And the unexpected happens. More fish than he can handle and he finally has to commit himself fully. All his fishermen, all his boats and all his nets are needed for this surprise lurking in the deep waters. It is a joyful and terrifying moment.
               When Peter sees what happens he is overtaken by fear. What he says to Jesus is not feigned humility. Peter is not basking in some strange self hatred or pious humility. What Peter actually says is GO AWAY. Get out of my neighborhood, is what it says in the Greek. Peter does not like the implications of what has happened. Peter is faced with a choice now that he has seen this first hand. He can either commit himself fully or he can walk away, but half hearted discipleship is no longer an option.
                 Will Willamon tells a story of a time he heard a lecture by Jim Wallis on “The Renewal of the Inner City Church.” He says,
"Wallis told a group of pastors true stories of declining inner-city churches that had, by the grace of God, rediscovered their mission and begun to thrive. I was inspired, but in the conversation afterwards one pastor after another criticized Wallis’s speech. They accused him of looking at the church through rose-colored glasses. One even implied that he had lied. That evening I told Wallis that I was appalled by the group’s reaction. "I wasn’t," he said. "That’s the reaction I always get from mainline, liberal pastors. They are amazed when God wins and scared to death that Easter just might, after all, be true."
           The power of our scripture in Luke is lost on those of us who are good at deconstruction. We are good at taking things apart. We are good at doubting the factual reality of these stories. We have spent so much time doing this we have squeezed the hope out of them and reduced our Easter faith to only what can be quantified and verified. In doing so, we take the edge of stories which call for the full commitment of our lives.
            Over the last few years some pretty amazing things have happed at Westminster. We have experienced growth and change in our church with very little effort or risk. When once we saw no life, new life began to show up in surprising ways. But the truth is that we have experienced growth by remaining in the shallow water. And now it is time to move out of the shallow water and into the depths. We are being called to follow Jesus into the deep waters where there are a lot of uncertainties. And deep down we each probably harbor the desire to repeat Peter’s words, GET OUT OF HERE JESUS! WE ARE NOT READY FOR THAT.
            When Peter tells Jesus he is not the person for this work Jesus’ response is not to say you are forgiven or that you have special gifts and enough money to make it happen. What Jesus says is, stop being afraid, stop being afraid. Just when we want to say, we have been fishing for forty years, or thirty years, or twenty years, or ten years, or two years, Jesus says it is time to go deeper. It is time to move into that place, that deep water which means we might just end up facing the same decision as Peter: become fully committed or walk away.
            I think those mainline liberal pastors who got defensive and angry about stories of resurrection are a lot like Peter. When faced with stories we cannot deconstruct it reveals our human desire that prefer the death and fear we know than come to terms with what our resurrection faith is teaching us right now. We are being called to follow Jesus by casting our nets into the deep water. And I am convinced we do not fully know what or where the deep water is located. But I am sure that now is the time to start looking. Or maybe we do and simply cannot name it yet. The only way for us to find out is to show up, to be willing to cast the nest one more time into deep water not knowing what will happen. But, when we do there will come a day when we will be compelled to, commit our whole selves, our whole hearts and finally stop hedging our bets. That is the calling for each one of us, and for our church. Anyone wish now that I had just preached about money instead? Amen.