Sermons Preached In Moody Texas

Moody-Leon United Methodist Church

Acts 20:32-35

“Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing. You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions. In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

“One thing a man’s got to do. A man has to commit his life to Jesus Christ.” Those words were spoken to a young marine in VietNam by a Navy Chaplin. That young man was Levi Price, and for over 3 decades now Levi has been sharing that advice with local church members and seminary students.

One thing – commit your life to Jesus Christ. Commit, that is a strong word, commit. As Levi shared his story, I was struck by that word commit. The Chaplin didn’t say give your life or accept Jesus as Lord. He said, “commit your life.” To be committed is to turn yourself over 100% to another, to a idea, to a plan. To commit oneself is serious business.

When people join the United Methodist Church we ask them if they will support the church with their prayers, their presence, their gifts and their service. We ask “will you,” and people answer “I will.” When a couple stand before the church to be married we ask them, “Will you,” and they answer “I will.” We ask them “Do you,” and they answer “I do.” When you listen to those wedding vows, there is no doubt that the couple are asked to commit themselves to one another. To commit oneself is serious business.

To commit is serious business. Maybe that is the reason we prefer the sound of “Estimate of giving card” as opposed to “Commitment Card.” That promise to support your church with your prayers, your presence, your gifts and your service we call stewardship.

Stewardship is not just giving money. We are called to also give our time, our talent and our prayers. But today I want to talk about money. Yes, I know you don’t want to hear about money, but the New Testament reveals a Jesus who placed a high priority on the use of our money. Stewardship is about using our money, time, talents and prayers for the benefit of other people.

Where does stewardship begin? It begins with the beginning. Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning, God created…” Stewardship begins with the understanding that everything–everything we have comes to us from God.

John’s gospel tells us, “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” John 1:3 All we have, all we are, everything starts with our Creator. Stewardship begins God.

I want you to think about three questions. Why should I give? How much should I give? To whom should I give? These are three basic questions we need to be clear on. Why should I give? How much should I give? To whom should I give?

Why? Why should I give? Christian stewardship is a way we express our love for Jesus and what he did for us. It is an outward expression of an inward feeling. Martin Luther once said, “You can’t express love unless you start with your neighbor.” Jesus said, “A new commandment I give you that you should love one another as I have loved you.” Jesus said there are two commandments that are most important, love God and love your neighbor. It is in our giving that we develop these relationships of love with our God and our neighbor.

Why should I give? Our giving is a measure of our spiritual growth. It is through our giving that we grow in our spirituality. That is why our bulletins do not read “Offering” rather they read “Spiritual Growth Thru Giving.” Giving is a very physical means of performing a spiritual act. It is in the rituals of the church that the physical and spiritual worlds intersect. We use things that we can touch, smell, taste and hear to bring reality to the spiritual realm. The sacrificial system of the Hebrew people was a physical means of expressing their love for our God. Today the financial sacrifice that we make expresses our love for our God.

A mother was trying to read a serious book, and her young son wanted her attention. He touched her arm and said, “Mommy, I love you.” She acknowledged him by saying rather absently, “Mommy, loves you too, son.” Not to be deterred, he came back a second time, leaned against her knee, and said, “Mommy, I love you.” She gently patted his head and replied, “Um, hum, I love you too. Now go play and let Mommy read her book.”

But this didn’t satisfy the boy. Still determined to get her attention, he went to the back of the room, ran as fast as his little legs would carry him, leaped into her lap on top of the book, threw his arms around her neck, and said joyfully and excitedly, Mommy, I love you and I just have to DO something about it!”

It is in our giving that we say, “Oh, I love you and I just had to do something about it.” It is in our giving that we say, “Oh, God I love you and I just had to Do something about it!”

How much? How much should I give? That is an important question. A good starting place for how much is the fact that our giving is not based on any need of the church for our money. I have heard that from others, I believe that, and I have preached that, but…I have felt for years that there was something missing in the idea that the church does not need my money. Maybe a better way to think about it is a spiritually healthy church does not need your money.

What is a spiritually healthy church? For one thing it is a group of people who love the Lord and give of themselves and God’s money out of that love. It is a group of people who take seriously our Lord’s command to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. It is a group of people who take seriously our Lord’s new commandment to love our neighbor as he has loved us. You cannot get around the fact that a symptom of that love is how much we give of ourselves AND God’s money entrusted to us.

There are two scriptural standards for giving. One standard comes from the Hebrew scriptures, our Old Testament. That standard is the tithe, 1/10th of what we receive. It was the law. In the 27th chapter of Leviticus, the 30th verse we find the first use of the tithe. The book of Leviticus ends 4 verses later with these words: “These are the commands the Lord gave Moses on Mount Sinai for the Israelites.” The Christian tradition has been to accept this standard as a way of measuring our faithfulness.

Jesus had a couple of things to say about giving. First of all he said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” Matthew 5:17 As Jesus brought us the concept of grace, he did not eliminate the law. I see following the law as a way of using our heads. The scriptures give us this law. We use our heads, reason, to determine what is required to follow the law. We choose to continue the centuries long tradition of the church. From our experience we know the joy that comes with obedience and the satisfaction of reaching out to others in our giving.

Jesus underscored the value of the law, but he also introduced a new standard. Jesus sat across from the temple treasury watching the rich bring their generous offering. Then he watched the lonely widow drop into the treasury two small copper coins. [Then] calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything–all she had to live on.” Mark 12:43-44

What was this new standard that Jesus brought? I want to suggest to you today that Jesus asks us to not only use our heads to decide what to give for others, Jesus wants us to use our hearts. In discerning what to give we are not only to use our heads, we are to use our hearts. The law (our heads) is important. Our compassion, sensitivity and love (our hearts) are equally important.

You have heard it said, “give ‘til it hurts.” I think Jesus wants us to “give ‘til it feels good–‘til it feels right.

Helen Bell sometime back, on her way to work, saw a young couple on the roadside carrying a cardboard sign that read, “Homeless and Hungry, Please Help!” She reached for her wallet with the intention of giving them several dollars and discovered that the smallest bill she had was a twenty. Her initial reaction was that she couldn’t give them the twenty; it was too much.

She struggled mentally, debating the pros and cons of such a gift. She prayerfully sought the Lord’s direction. She finally remembered all that she had been given by God–the awesome beauty of God’s creation, the blessings of health, home, job, family, friends, financial resources, spiritual gifts, and the opportunity to be in ministry. Most importantly, she remembered Jesus’ gift of himself. That gift requires a response. Jesus said that what you do “for the least of these,” you do for him (Mat 25:45). She thought, “I love you, God, and I just have to DO something about it!”

She gave the couple the twenty dollar bill. The young woman accepted the bill with thanks. When she noticed that amount, her mouth dropped open. As Helen drove away, she saw them in her rear view mirror, pointing in her direction with looks of surprise on their faces. Helen laughed all the way to work. She had experienced once more the joy of giving.

To whom? To whom should I give? That is a valid and important question that we should ask ourselves. Should my church receive all of my tithe? How should I divide my giving between my church and other worthy institutions? To answer that question, I think we need to ask another question. What is the purpose of the local church? Why is my church here? Is my church here for my personal edification, spiritual growth, and pleasure? Is it important for the church to reach beyond the walls of the building to make a difference in the lives of people. Does the church have something to do with the notion that there is one thing a person must do, commit his or her life to Jesus Christ?

Before we answer the question of how much of our giving (time, talent and money) should go to our church, we must ask another question. Does my church exist for the glory of God, God’s mission, ministry and purpose, or does my church exist for my personal benefit? I believe a spiritually healthy church exists for God’s purposes. I have said it before, I believe that the church is a machine that turns money into ministry and mission. The ministry and mission are limited only by what we are willing to give of ourselves and God’s money.

Why? How much? To whom? How do we answer those questions? The bottom line? It’s between you and God. Use the scriptures, your reason, your experience, and the church’s tradition to discern God’s will for you. But remember, you might be able to fool yourself, but you cannot fool God.

Oh, God we love you, and we “just have to DO something about it!”

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