October 5, 2008

 

Five Practices: Extravagant Generosity

Giving Yourself Away

2 Corinthians 8:1-5

 

Opening Words:   East Ohio Resident Bishop John Hopkins has asked each congregation within the Annual Conference to look at Robert Schnase’s book, Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations. Schnase, who is the Resident Bishop of the Missouri Annual Conference, says there are five critical practices that every church must practice. Their presence demonstrates congregational health, vitality and fruitfulness. In the past four weeks we have looked at radical hospitality, passionate worship, intentional faith development and risk-taking mission and service. Today, we look at the fifth and final practice, extravagant generosity.

 

The text for the day comes from Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians. We are in the eighth chapter, verses one through five. Paul wrote this letter about the year 55AD. The city of Corinth was massive for that time. The population was approximately 250,000 free persons, plus another 400,000 slaves. It was the major city o f Greece, dominating the nation in commerce, culture, religion and immorality. The entire world knew of Corinth’s temple of Aphrodite and its 1,000 sacred prostitutes, which served the temple. Paul writes two letters to thi s congregation to battle the immorality and to affirm his apostleship. With this understanding let us hear this morning’s scripture lesson. Let me call this message, Giving Yourself Away.

 

2 Corinthians 8:1-5       ¹And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. ²Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. ³For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, ⁴they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints. ⁵And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God's will.

 

I love the story of the wise woman who found a precious stone in a stream while travelling in the mountains. The next day she met another traveler who was hungry. The wise woman opened her bag to share her food. The hungry traveler saw the precious stone and asked the woman to give it to him. She did so without hesitation. The traveler left rejoicing in his good fortune. He knew the stone was worth enough to give him security for a lifetime. But, a few days later, he came back to return the stone to the wise woman. "I've been thinking," he said. "I know how valuable this stone is, but I give it back in the hope that you can give me something even more precious. Give me what you have within you that enabled you to give me this stone." Today on this World Communion Sunday I we are going to look at extravagant generosity. 

We find ourselves the eighth chapter of Second Corinthians. I hate to say in the aftermath of a $700 billion bailout but the=2 0topic is money. Historically speaking the church has never been comfortable with the topic of money. I have never met a person, lay or clergy, who looked forward to the annual stewardship drive. I have never stood in the pulpit and proclaimed, “Stop giving! We have enough.” Why have I never said it? Because there is always a human need that must be met. That is the story in this morning’s scripture lesson. Paul is taking an offering. He is passionate about this offering because the money will be going to the church in Jerusalem. Paul does not want to see this church struggle for historical reasons. For it was in Jerusalem just twenty years earlier the winds of Pentecost first blown. How can we let this church fail? How will it look to the none believing world?

 

As a way to rally some support for this offering he mentions the church in Macedonia. Competition has always been a motivationa l tool. Paul says the Macedonians insisted to make a contribution to the Jerusalem church. Do they have extra money to give away? No! They are suffering too! But they insisted on giving and refused to be left out. In other words, he says, “If they can do it; you ca n do it.” Paul is telling them and us to give extravagantly. Do the people in your life see you as a generous person? Or do the people in your life see you as a little thrifty?

 

Listen to what I am about to say. You are not going to answer that question completely simply by looking at your financial statements. How you handle your money is only part of the equation. However, it is not the complete equation.  Extravagant generosity is not just about money. Extravagant generosity is about attitude. Do you give freely of yourself or are you guarded? This morning I want to talk about three dimensions of extravagant generosity. None of them have to do with money. They all have to do with attitude. I am going to do this by asking you three questions. The first is, are you generous with your time? The second is you generous with your faith? The thir d is, are you generous with your heart? I know these questions are important because I have seen them demonstrated in my life. It was the generous people I have known in my past that influenced my life the most. These stories are not new. Some of you have heard these stories in the p ast. But I tell these stories again because they are best illustrations I have to illustrate each point. So if you generous people are ready to begin say, “Amen!”

 

Are you generous with your time?

My first question is, are you generous with your time? At Annual Conference this year thirty-three pastors within East Ohio retired. I read the list of names. I seem to know more retirees each year. One name on the list jumped out at me. His name was John. I had served with John in the St. Clairsville area years ago. He will always have a special place in my heart. I don’t know how else to say it=2 0but my life was complicated in those days. I was suddenly alone and I didn’t do alone well. I craved to be with people but my three tiny churches were empty most of the week. In many ways the ministry is lonely. John knew I was struggling being so he invited me to come to his church anytime for no reason. There was always someone in his church. I jump at the opportunity. I worked in his office. I played with his children. I talked to his wife and spent the days in his church. We talked about nothing. He went to the hospital with me when none of his people were in the hospital. When John retired no one really cared. He would be easy to replace. He was not a great leader. He was not a great preacher. He was not a super model of anything. I have never used a single idea of his in ministry but I consider him one of the finest pastor’s this Annual Conference has ever had. Why? Because he gave me time. There never seems to be enough time. How much time are you giving the people in your life? And all of God’s people said, “Amen!” Are you generous with your time?

 

Are you generous with your faith?

Are you generous with your faith? When I was seventeen years old I was struggling with my faith. My parents were always involved in the life of the church. They were wonderful church members. They did it all. They never missed worship. They served on every committee. They worked in the kitchen. It was for this reason I grew comfortable within the institutional church. I knew the function of ever committee. I knew everyone’s name. I knew the history of the church. I could recite all the pastor’s from the past and express an opinion on any church topic. I knew everything but the most important thing. I didn’t know Jesus Christ as my Lord and my Savior. I was seventeen years old and I was struggling with my faith. There had to be more to the church then organizational system? I remember praying to God for help. On December 16, 1974 God spoke to me through a young woman by the name of Susan. I had known her for years. We had been raised together in the church. When I was seventeen I had a secret crush on her. On that day we were selling Christmas trees to raise money to go on a mission trip. I was trying to get up enough nerve to ask her out on a date. Instead, she asked me, “Would you like to li ve for eternity?” I would have said yes to anything she said. In her teenage voice she told me about Jesus and led me to salvation. She generously shared her faith and changed my life. When was the last time you shared your faith? I am not talking about your church. I am not talking about preacher. I am not talking about20your church’s membership roll or treasurer’s report. I am talking about your faith. When was the last time you told someone what Jesus means to you? When was the last time you told someone what Jesus has done for you? And all of God’s people said, “Amen!” Are you generous with your time? Are you generous with your faith?

 

Are you generous with your heart?

Are you generous with your heart? When I was in seminary I didn’t get any financial support from home. My parents didn’t hear my calling into the ministry. I survived on student loans and part time jobs. I preached at a small church near Danville, Kentucky and worked on my parishioner’s tobacco farm. Those were hard days. There was never enough money. There was never enough time. There was never enough sleep and there was illness at home. It was the most difficult time in my life. One day was really bad. I was so low I20decided to drop out of school. There didn’t seem to be any other option. I didn’t know where to go so I went to a church member’s home. During my seminary years Glen and Norma Marcum adopted me in many ways. They had no money but they did have a big heart. I walked into the house and Mrs. Marcum saw me. She knew something was wrong. I sat down and she gave me a cup of coffee. With all the courage I could muster I told her I was poor, tired and broken. I told her I was going to quick school and go home. I told her it was my only option. We sat there in silence for several minutes and then she said something that I will never forget. Her words changed my life. She asked me to hold her hands and look into her eyes. Norma Marcum said, “Russ, someday you are going to be a great man. Don’t quit! Promise me you are going to go home and try.” I had never heard those words before. I had heard harsh and critical words but I had never heard those words. The words she spoke were the words I needed to hear that day. There are days I still need to hear them. No, I don t consider myself to be a great man. But, I do consider Norma Marcum one of the greatest people I have ever known because she shared her heart with me. When was the last time you shared your heart? And all of God’s generous people said, “Amen!” Are you generous with your time? Are you generous with20your faith? Are you generous with your heart?

 

There are six billion people in the world today. Only third of the world’s population call themselves Christian. We can disagree on many things and we usually do but there is one thing in which there can be no disagreement. We have all benefited from Jesus’ extravagant generosity. He gave himself away! He gave it all to us so we could live life abundantly. You know the Gospel story. Jesus was born in the ordinary way but he lived an extraordinary life. He never committed a single sin. He loved everyone but that was more than the world could handle. He knew from the very beginning what was going to happen. He was executed like a common criminal at the age of thirty-three on a Friday afternoon. Those that were closest to him mourned the rest on=2 0that day and the next. On Sunday a handful of women showed up to pay their final respects and made a discovery that changed the world. The once dead Jesus had come back to life. I do not know how you resurrect someone but I do know the resurrection of Jesus is the very heart of our faith. Once you accept the resurrection of Jesus everything changes, your life changes. The sins in your past are forgiven. Your present days have meaning and purpose. The fear of the future is gone. When you leave this world you are going to heaven.  All you have to do is accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior. How can we hoard what you have, when you have been given so much?

 

The story is told that one day a beggar by the roadside asked for alms from Alexander the Great as he passed by. The man was poor and wretched and had no claim upon the ruler, no right even to lift a solicitous hand. Yet the Emperor threw him several gold coins. A courtier was astonished at his generosity and commented, "Sir, copper coins would adequately meet a beggar's need. Why give him gold?" Alexander responded in royal fashion, "Cooper coins would suit the beggar's need, but gold coins20suit Alexander's giving." You are a disciple of Jesus Christ. Your extravagant generosity should suit your giving. And all of God’s generous people said, “Amen!