The Rev'd Kenneth H. Saunders III
Christ Church – Cleveland, NC
RCL Year B (Proper 27) – November 8, 2009
Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17
Psalm 127
Hebrews 9:24-28
Mark 12:38-44
(transcribed from the audio - sermon preached without notes or manuscript)
Christ Church – Cleveland, NC
RCL Year B (Proper 27) – November 8, 2009
Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17
Psalm 127
Hebrews 9:24-28
Mark 12:38-44
(transcribed from the audio - sermon preached without notes or manuscript)
We have to do some thinking about these readings. We have to do some serious, serious introspective evaluation of who we are. Not only who we are in society and community, but who we are as children of God.
Why is it, regardless of how much we have in this world, it’s never enough. It’s never enough. Why do we feel that way? It’s never enough. Regardless of how much we make, or how much we think we make or think we need, it’s never enough.
It reminded me of a story that I heard when I was very young. It’s a story about a great king, a great and RICH king, King Midas, you probably have heard it before. The king was so scared that he would never have enough, never had enough of what he needed in this world, so he made a wish that everything he touched would turn to gold. King Midas made a wish and was granted that wish, so EVERYTHING that he went around and touched was instantly turned to gold. But the problem was, when his daughter ran to embrace him, and jumped up in his arms to hug him, she too in fact was turned to gold. Tragic story… Tragic story… Do we have enough? Is there enough??
Jesus tells us that it’s the scribes who walk around in fine robes at the temple, dumping there money into the treasury as they walk into the temple, “look how great I am, look how much money I give” But they are giving out of their abundance – they have a gospel of scarcity, because they want to hold on to what they have in order to control others, in order to use their money as a weapon and their checkbook as a sword. “I will only give when it benefits me! – when I get something out of it! - I will write that check and put if forth to do whatever damage it will do!” A gospel of scarcity, and fear that there is not enough… so they store it up in grain silos where “moth consume and thief break in and steal.”
But Jesus, on the other hand points out, as he and his caravan are parked over across from the treasury – you can get the picture… as he’s kicked up against the wall, observing what’s going on… as people are walking by – and he sees this poor widow, one of the least of society. Widows and orphans have no worth in the society of the ancient world. This widow comes up, and everything she has in this world are two small copper coins - how Jesus knew they were copper, I have no idea – but translated to modern day worth it is about a penny.
Two small copper coins, not worth a whole lot, not used like the modern day penny that the government can round off to a number and collect tax, but it represented everything that she had. And they were putting the offerings in these big fluked jars that people would come by to dump there money into, put their tithes and offerings in as they entered the temple. This is how they contributed to the economy to make it go, to make the temple grow, and further the spread of the kingdom of God that cared for others.
This woman comes by and gives everything she had in faith and puts it in the treasury not knowing where her next meal was going to come from, but trusting in God and in the goodness of the community that she belongs to, she contributed to the commonwealth of the community.
A gospel of abundance! The idea that the Lord God blesses my life and gives me everything that I have, and makes me everything that I am is a gospel of abundance. I am not afraid to give and contribute because I know that the Lord will return to me 10, 20, 1000, 100,000 times than I could ever contribute.
A gospel of abundance vs. a gospel of scarcity… do we live in this community, in this life, in this world thanking God for everything that God gives us – and everything that we have, and everything that we rejoice in? Do we live practicing a gospel of abundance, or do we live this life afraid to take the next step or walk the next mile or go to the next phase, or be something out of the box because there is a little bit of risk involved? Or fear that we are not going to be “open” next year or the year after that? Do we live out of a gospel of scarcity?
This is wonderful time to have this reading and this text as we gather for the Annual Parish Meeting after the service. I have reviewed the Annual Meeting notes minutes from the last 20 years, and I am convinced that one year we live out of gospel of scarcity, and then one year we live out of a gospel of abundance, then the next year it starts over – we live out of a gospel of scarcity, then we live out of a gospel of abundance.
I have made it a point in my presentation at the Annual Meeting, and in my ministry to help you and nurture you to live out of a gospel of abundance – to be thankful for everything that God has given us and everything that we have to be viewed as a gift from God.
There are many readings through the latter part of this liturgical year, back to back readings that have built up to this point… I want you to think back to last week and the week before, to the gospel story of blind Bartimaeus.
Blind Bartimaeus got up from his roadside vocation of begging, where he had his cloak spread out to receive the alms that were pitched his way. That was the only way he had any money to live on. The only way he survived and was able to eat was by begging. He had his cloak spread out, sitting there, and he heard Jesus passing though the town and he abandoned everything he had, and everything that he felt secure about in order to follow Jesus. He through off his cloak and left it there, as the scripture says, and he ran to Jesus. And Jesus healed him and made him see… and made him see.
Sometimes we walk around with our eyes shut, groping along the wall… Do you remember that imagery from the sermon? How often do we let Jesus and the gospel open our eyes to see the positive around us? … to see the energy in everything that we are engaged in and involved in, and how many times do we let our hearts and our souls rejoice in that?
And how often do we come to that table, knowing that Jesus is ALWAYS there, and it’s Jesus that continues to give to us in ways that we can neither understand nor imagine, but our souls continue to be fed and filled. And then we take that gospel of abundance in ourselves, and some of us go out into the world around us and spread the excitement of everything this community has going on.
That is what the Church is! It is a thanksgiving and gathering of the community. That is what the word “Eucharist” means - Thanksgiving! It is NOT a sacrifice of Jesus over and over again like the letter to the Hebrews reminds us, but it is our continuous act of thanksgiving and praise to God for everything that God has given us and done for us in the person of Jesus Christ.
And it’s everything that we are drawn to, to fill that void and emptiness in our lives – to keep coming to the table day after day, week after week, month after month, and year after year to keep being fed in ways that we don’t always understand, but its more than we can ask for or imagine.
So this morning is a morning of self evaluation, of something to think about, deep down inside whether we live out of gospel of scarcity where we are afraid – or whether we trust the abundance of Christ and His presence in this community.
So come to the table, let yourself be fed, let your souls be nourished – there is always enough. And then carry that abundance with you and go out to rejoice in, and glorify God in the world around you. Amen!
Why is it, regardless of how much we have in this world, it’s never enough. It’s never enough. Why do we feel that way? It’s never enough. Regardless of how much we make, or how much we think we make or think we need, it’s never enough.
It reminded me of a story that I heard when I was very young. It’s a story about a great king, a great and RICH king, King Midas, you probably have heard it before. The king was so scared that he would never have enough, never had enough of what he needed in this world, so he made a wish that everything he touched would turn to gold. King Midas made a wish and was granted that wish, so EVERYTHING that he went around and touched was instantly turned to gold. But the problem was, when his daughter ran to embrace him, and jumped up in his arms to hug him, she too in fact was turned to gold. Tragic story… Tragic story… Do we have enough? Is there enough??
Jesus tells us that it’s the scribes who walk around in fine robes at the temple, dumping there money into the treasury as they walk into the temple, “look how great I am, look how much money I give” But they are giving out of their abundance – they have a gospel of scarcity, because they want to hold on to what they have in order to control others, in order to use their money as a weapon and their checkbook as a sword. “I will only give when it benefits me! – when I get something out of it! - I will write that check and put if forth to do whatever damage it will do!” A gospel of scarcity, and fear that there is not enough… so they store it up in grain silos where “moth consume and thief break in and steal.”
But Jesus, on the other hand points out, as he and his caravan are parked over across from the treasury – you can get the picture… as he’s kicked up against the wall, observing what’s going on… as people are walking by – and he sees this poor widow, one of the least of society. Widows and orphans have no worth in the society of the ancient world. This widow comes up, and everything she has in this world are two small copper coins - how Jesus knew they were copper, I have no idea – but translated to modern day worth it is about a penny.
Two small copper coins, not worth a whole lot, not used like the modern day penny that the government can round off to a number and collect tax, but it represented everything that she had. And they were putting the offerings in these big fluked jars that people would come by to dump there money into, put their tithes and offerings in as they entered the temple. This is how they contributed to the economy to make it go, to make the temple grow, and further the spread of the kingdom of God that cared for others.
This woman comes by and gives everything she had in faith and puts it in the treasury not knowing where her next meal was going to come from, but trusting in God and in the goodness of the community that she belongs to, she contributed to the commonwealth of the community.
A gospel of abundance! The idea that the Lord God blesses my life and gives me everything that I have, and makes me everything that I am is a gospel of abundance. I am not afraid to give and contribute because I know that the Lord will return to me 10, 20, 1000, 100,000 times than I could ever contribute.
A gospel of abundance vs. a gospel of scarcity… do we live in this community, in this life, in this world thanking God for everything that God gives us – and everything that we have, and everything that we rejoice in? Do we live practicing a gospel of abundance, or do we live this life afraid to take the next step or walk the next mile or go to the next phase, or be something out of the box because there is a little bit of risk involved? Or fear that we are not going to be “open” next year or the year after that? Do we live out of a gospel of scarcity?
This is wonderful time to have this reading and this text as we gather for the Annual Parish Meeting after the service. I have reviewed the Annual Meeting notes minutes from the last 20 years, and I am convinced that one year we live out of gospel of scarcity, and then one year we live out of a gospel of abundance, then the next year it starts over – we live out of a gospel of scarcity, then we live out of a gospel of abundance.
I have made it a point in my presentation at the Annual Meeting, and in my ministry to help you and nurture you to live out of a gospel of abundance – to be thankful for everything that God has given us and everything that we have to be viewed as a gift from God.
There are many readings through the latter part of this liturgical year, back to back readings that have built up to this point… I want you to think back to last week and the week before, to the gospel story of blind Bartimaeus.
Blind Bartimaeus got up from his roadside vocation of begging, where he had his cloak spread out to receive the alms that were pitched his way. That was the only way he had any money to live on. The only way he survived and was able to eat was by begging. He had his cloak spread out, sitting there, and he heard Jesus passing though the town and he abandoned everything he had, and everything that he felt secure about in order to follow Jesus. He through off his cloak and left it there, as the scripture says, and he ran to Jesus. And Jesus healed him and made him see… and made him see.
Sometimes we walk around with our eyes shut, groping along the wall… Do you remember that imagery from the sermon? How often do we let Jesus and the gospel open our eyes to see the positive around us? … to see the energy in everything that we are engaged in and involved in, and how many times do we let our hearts and our souls rejoice in that?
And how often do we come to that table, knowing that Jesus is ALWAYS there, and it’s Jesus that continues to give to us in ways that we can neither understand nor imagine, but our souls continue to be fed and filled. And then we take that gospel of abundance in ourselves, and some of us go out into the world around us and spread the excitement of everything this community has going on.
That is what the Church is! It is a thanksgiving and gathering of the community. That is what the word “Eucharist” means - Thanksgiving! It is NOT a sacrifice of Jesus over and over again like the letter to the Hebrews reminds us, but it is our continuous act of thanksgiving and praise to God for everything that God has given us and done for us in the person of Jesus Christ.
And it’s everything that we are drawn to, to fill that void and emptiness in our lives – to keep coming to the table day after day, week after week, month after month, and year after year to keep being fed in ways that we don’t always understand, but its more than we can ask for or imagine.
So this morning is a morning of self evaluation, of something to think about, deep down inside whether we live out of gospel of scarcity where we are afraid – or whether we trust the abundance of Christ and His presence in this community.
So come to the table, let yourself be fed, let your souls be nourished – there is always enough. And then carry that abundance with you and go out to rejoice in, and glorify God in the world around you. Amen!
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