Sermon: Stewarding Our Treasures

Let's take a moment and let's pray before we open God's word together this morning.

Father, we do come before you this morning with humble hearts and souls as we sit under your word, and yet we confess that we are not as humble in mind and heart and soul as we need to be as we sit under your word. So we pray that as you speak to us this morning that you would make our minds ready receptacles, our hearts ready vessels, our very souls ready soil for the planting of your word. Would you minister to each of us as we have need,

help us not to sit above the word, but to truly sit under it this morning to know that we have heard your voice. We pray all of this in the strong name of Christ, our Lord and our savior. Amen. Ians chapter eight verses one through nine. This is the holy er, sufficient word of God. We want you to know brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia for in a severe test of affliction.

Their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part for they gave according to their means as I can testify and beyond their means of their own accord, begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints. And this not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us. Accordingly, we urged Titus that as he had started.

So he should complete among you this act of grace, that as you excel in everything and faith and speech and knowledge and all earnestness and in our love for you, see that you excel in this act of grace. Also, I say this not as a command but to prove by the earnestness of others that your love also is genuine for you know, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, that for your sake he became poor so that you by his poverty

might become rich. And though the grass withers and the flower faiths, the word of God is forever. Thanks be to God. Amen.

Last week we looked at stewarding our time. This morning we're looking at stewarding our treasures. And I, and I know before we even begin today, I know that when many of you heard that stewardship was going to be our faith focus in January, that there was for many an inward groan, uh, for others of you, you say, well this is maybe some visitors among us today say, well this is, this confirms every thought I have about the church

that they're after my money and they're always asking for more money. And being a preacher, I can tell you that this is not what gets me up in the morning because I know that this is what people think about the church and think this is what we speak about. And yet I unapologetically will preach this morning about our finances and any pastors that we come to that demands it without apology. Why? Because we aren't preaching at URC this morning

so much concerned necessarily about your money, but we are necessarily concerned about your hearts. And what we hesitate to admit more readily than we want to is how much our hearts and how often our hearts are tied to our money.

It's no small part of the Christian life and it's no small part of your life or my life. We began our faith focus last week with noting that all that we have is a gift from the Lord. We're simply stewards of who we are and what the Lord has given to us, our lives and everything in them and has been given to us and has been given to us with a purpose. The Christian can truly say that I'm not my own, but we can say that doubly that we're not our own.

Not only were we created by God for God and so I'm not my own, but, but we've been recreated, reborn under Christ. And so we are doubly so not our own, what we are and what we have, what we are and what we have that has all been given to us for him. And when we talk about stewardship, I think what we often do is we compare it to managing and we say, well, this is the analogy. It's like managing something and and that's okay.

But I think it's just okay because when we're managing something, we're caring for someone else's possessions or someone else's income or someone else's property or someone else's business. And then we expect as a result of caring for it that we shall receive something in return, that we get compensated for it. That's managing but, but that's not the picture of biblical stewardship. I'm a steward of what I am and what I've been given by God who is Lord and king

and as Lord and as king. All things are his. I am his. He owns all things and I'm a steward in the sense that we are to manage what is his as if it was our own not to to do well, to manage it well so that I'm compensated but simply to give to, to manage it as if it is my own. But knowing it is not my own and it's all for him.

And I think understanding that is incredibly freeing. It frees you and I up in so many ways as we think about our possessions and our money and our treasure. We we're set free from them.

They're not ours. They're not ultimately for us.

What does Paul say in one Timothy six? He says, money is the root of all kinds of evil. No, that's not what he says. He says, the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. Money is simply a tool that the Lord has given. It's not to be our Lord. As Francis Bacon once said, money is a good servant but a bad master, it's just a tool. And when we approach money, it's helpful to understand it's dual nature as a tool

we're to fear it and we have a noble purpose for it.

When I was a cub scout, I remember the day that we first got our, our pocket knives, Swiss army knives and they got a little indent there that you put your thumb in and you pull out that blade and and that blade was sharp. And being young cub scouts, we, we pulled out that blade and then we were given also this block of wood and we were given instructions about this block of wood and how to carve that block of wood into an Indian head,

the slider that would go on our neckerchief that we would re, we would wear on our wonderfully distinguished blue dress uniforms. And I remember when we were sitting there, I remember the, the adults in the room every once in a while peppering and saying, be careful, be careful. There's a danger, have a healthy fear. And yet we, we also had a noble purpose with that blade. We carved an Indian head neckerchief slider and would put it on the front of our uniforms

and we looked good noble purpose, have a healthy fear for money. We don't want to be injured by it, we don't want to be ruled by it. There's so much temptation by it through it and because of it you have a healthy fear. But on the other side you have a noble purpose, a noble purposeful vision for your money. The scriptures are clear. You are to invest, you are to enjoy what the Lord has given to you. You are to save and pass on what the Lord has given to you

and we are to give it.

And ultimately that's where I want to be this morning. I wanna think about that last, the giving it, because I think out of all of them it tends to be the most noble of purpose for visions of the use of our money for the glory of God. This the Macedonians understood in our text and Paul is exhorting the Corinthians to understand it as well and I want to do it this morning through five exhortations from this text. First gives sacrificially,

give sacrificially. Paul says in verse two that these Macedonian churches are in quote, a severe test of affliction. They are apparently being persecuted. Some of them may even be martyred at this time for the sake of the faith and one would think that persecution would cause them to be consumed with themselves and with their own circumstances, but they're not. They're also marked. Paul says verse two by extreme poverty.

And one would think that extreme poverty would have them consumed with themselves and with their own circumstances but they're not. They're being destroyed and they're destitute and yet they're not consumed with self. Paul says quote, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity. Now that's striking. That's not what you would expect. You wouldn't expect that extreme poverty

overflows with generosity. You wouldn't expect that persecution should seemingly overflow with an abundance of joy, but it does In the Macedonians,

Paul was collecting money for the relief of brothers and sisters in Christ and Jerusalem and Judea and he is collecting this money in the Macedonian. Christians looked upon their brothers and their sisters in Jerusalem and Judea and they had compassion for them

all they were facing and they gave yet they had little that they faced extreme poverty but they gave generously sacrificially. So when we think of being generous, we will say, oh did you see it was amazing Last week Mark Cuban gave money to Indiana University. So generous. We don't know how much he gave. The quotes are, it was a big number. Uh, mark Cuban said something along the lines of, uh, I won't answer how much, I'll just say they're a lot happier

this year than they were last year in 2015. We know that he gave Indiana University 5 million for a sports media center and then he gave another 6 million to fund the school's rugby club. That's generous. 6 million for rugby that nobody watches because nobody understands

6 million but he's also worth 6 billion. That that's 0.1% of his net worth.

Maybe your net worth is a hundred thousand dollars. That's you giving a hundred dollars. Maybe you worth $10,000. That's you giving a dollar.

Was it more generous? You know in the economy of God it's not the amount that's given that ultimately matters post not so concern with quote whether they gave a big number. That's not what defined their generosity rather like the widow in the gospels, they gave as he says in verse three, according to their means, according to their means. What means the means that God had given to them that he had entrusted to them to be stewards of mine.

They were to be stewards of this money. And it's with that purpose in mind. Their generosity float. He goes on to say for they gave according to their means. As I can testify and beyond their means, they're commended because it costs them. This was sacrificial. Giving true generosity in the body of Christ is giving that hurts.

Some of you, I know you give a, you seek each year to give a a percentage more than you gave the previous year that that's giving that hurts. Some of you choose not to go on vacations or not to go out to eat or not to update that old car or not to move to a bigger house because you want to be able to give more you you're you're giving in a way that causes, that requires real sacrifice.

Again, it's not the amount you've all been given different means. It's not the amount that Jesus commends a widow for In Mark 12 he says they all contributed out of their abundance but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had. Hers was sacrificial

and it's easy or easier, maybe we should say, to give sacrificially. When you understand all that you have and all that you are has been given to you,

it just frees you up. I'm simply a steward of who I am and what I've been given and this money has a noble purpose. Now as we said, not all of our money is to be given away or we would all be destitute. It's not all to be given away there. There is biblical requirements and encouragement for you and I to save, to invest. We are not to give it all away, but we are all to give away sacrificially. That is true. Second, we give cheerfully, give cheerfully.

You'll notice it was the overflow of quote there, abundance of joy giving reluctantly is not Christian giving as we don't grant forgiveness reluctantly as we don't serve reluctantly. So we don't give our treasures reluctantly. The Lord loves the cheerful giver they gave as an overflow of their abundance of joy. You give with a smile on your face and plastered across your heart because it matters.

Let's say a husband decided that 25th anniversary of his wife is and his marriage is coming up. And so out comes the box. He's got this long thin box with a gift inside that he has wrapped up and he's put a bow on it and that long thin box he is ready to give his wife on their 25th anniversary and she sees that box and when she receives that box, she's going to receive it with joy 'cause what a gift is in that box.

But that's conditioned upon the demeanor of the man who is giving the gift. If he gives it grossly, if he gives it sourly, if he said, you know, our 25th anniversary is today, I did a quick Google search. What do you give your wife on 25th anniversary? And there were a number of sites that said, well you give her a diamond necklace. So I bought a rock with that's on a long chain of interconnected links and it costs a lot more than it should.

It's in there, I'm giving it to you now. We won't be able to eat out for the next six months. Uh, don't plan on any vacations for the next 10 years and until I tell you otherwise, we're on one ply toilet paper.

But here you go. She's not gonna receive it with joy. And yet that is how many of us approach giving to the Lord. 'cause I have to reluctantly

we give cheerfully. When you've received much you want, you want to give much and the more you and I reckon with all that we have received, the more and more that that's emblazoned upon our minds and it's truly in our heart of hearts, the more we will find that we want to give. When you realize, I mean really realize, not just say with your mouth but really realize that listen, the clothes that I'm wearing today, the food that I'm getting ready

to go eat after the service, the house that I live in, the car that I'm driving away, the friends I have in this room, the children I have, the grandchildren I have, the very breath I have is all a gift from the Lord, let alone the fact that I am forgiven and that I'm a child of God and I'm a coer with Christ. When you begin to realize all that you have been given and all that you are as a gift from him, you want to give more.

It's an overflow of our joy.

The previous church I served, there was a older man who had labored his entire life with his hands and he had these big, gnarly, rough hands and he would walk around and he would give handshakes and you had to be careful because man, he could give you a handshake and it would break your hand, but you also had to be careful for another reason and that's because he would do this almost without fail. Each Sunday there would be a widow

or there would be a single mom or there would be this young man or there would be this child and he is giving them a handshake and they walk away with a hundred dollars bill in their hand

and he did it with joy and people shook his hand with joy.

It's just an overflow.

He gives sacrificially, give cheerfully. Third, you give as a delightful privilege. It's a delightful privilege. He says in verse four that they quote begged Paul and his companions, quote, earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints. They didn't see it as a burden, not even a duty. But the favor of taking parties is they begged.

People beg to receive, not to give. You go downtown Lansing today or you go down to the the Meyer on South Pennsylvania and you will see someone standing out there with a sign and it doesn't say, I'm here to give you something they're begging to receive. And yet these Macedonians are begging to give something earnestly. He says, why? 'cause they counted a privilege. It's an honor. Paul says in verse eight that he's not giving this as a command.

No, you don't give this as a command. This, this isn't by compulsion. He says in chapter nine verse seven, that one must not give reluctantly or under compulsion. They truly gave from the heart. And one giving from the heart counts it as a delightful privilege. I'm getting to participate in things that are eternal

and I get to give what has been given to me and I'm giving what has been given to me and that accrues to my benefit. Figure out that economy. But that's the economy of God.

I was in seminary. I went to seminary full-time, worked full-time in an insurance company. Leah worked part-time as a nanny and we were barely making it. Dallas was expensive to live in, tuition was expensive. There were literal days where I would write the check for the utility bill or whatever it was. I would wait till the very last day, I could mail it out and I would mail it out knowing the money was not in the checking account and I was just going to pray

and hope that somehow some money would find its way into my account before they deposited the check. And it was during one of these periods that Lee and I were having dinner with the family, Christian family that she nannied for. They were both very wealthy and the Christian mother cornered me after the dinner and she said, Jason, how are you guys doing? And I, in my seminary pride said, we're fine.

And she said, no, Jason, how are you guys financially doing? And again, in pride and oh, we're fine. She then said a third time, Jason, no, I want to know how you guys are financially doing conviction. Maybe at that point I don't know or thought we'd be in this conversation for the next 20 years if I didn't answer. And I said, you know, it's been tight lately and it's not been the easiest. And she literally took me by the lapels of my shirt,

she dragged my face three inches from her face and she said, don't you ever take away my privilege again. And that proud seminary student ran into a ferocious Christian woman.

It's a delight, a delightful privilege to give. It was Jim Elliot, the famous missionary who was murdered 70 years ago this week who said he is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose. It's a delightful privilege to be about the noble tasks of supporting the work of God on earth, supporting his people, giving to his kingdom. It's a delightful privilege. It's an eternal privilege. Animals don't get this, the lost don't get

to participate in this. Not even angels get to participate in this. You and I do privilege.

Fourth, give us spiritual exercise. Give us spiritual exercise verse six and seven. Accordingly, we urge Titus that as he had started, so he should complete among you this act of grace. But as you excel in everything, in faith, in speech and knowledge and all earnestness and in our love for you, see that you excel and this act of grace Also, Paul now turns from the example of the Macedonians and he is turning to the Corinthians

and he's addressing them specifically. He's saying, look, you overflow in all these other graces. You overflow in the grace of speech and you overflow in the grace of knowledge and you overflow in the grace of earnestness and it's not good enough.

You, you can't be the Christians. He's saying that say, look, those Macedonians are those who excel in the grace of generosity, but we're the Christians that excel in the grace of knowledge and excel in the grace of speech and excel in the grace of earnestness. No C Paul, you need to excel in this grace as well. He uses the same word to speak about the abundance or overflowing joy the Macedonians. Verse two, to now encourage these Corinthians believers

to overflow in the grace of giving. Why? Because giving is so very important as a spiritual grace in our lives, maybe unlike anything besides trial, it most helps us to not clinging to this world to set our eyes on that which is above, to chase after Christ, to be oriented towards others.

Heart's not where I want it in Christ.

I'm not following through on kingdom things as I want to in Christ. And neither is your heart and neither are you. They're flabby

and it requires spiritual exercise. This is one of the great exercises of the Christian faith, which leads fifth, you give to test your own heart. You give to test your own heart. Paul says verse eight, that they quote, prove by the earnestness of others that your love also is genuine giving reveals that it lays bare our heart. It shows, okay, where I am, I actually at in kingdom perspective, where am I actually at in kingdom priorities?

Where am I actually at in thinking of things in a grander, bigger view than self? It just reveals like few other things.

Now you give again not to receive, not to merit something. Paul's not stating that here. This has so often been the heir of teaching in the church, both in the present day and in previous generations where people think that by doing, by giving Protestant reformation, Martin Luther will launch a pro Protestant reformation. In part because TALs going around central Europe and he's telling people that if they give money to the rebuilding of St.

Peter's basilica in Rome, that they will merit for themselves grace from God for themselves or for their loved ones. You give to get what you give you accordingly receive. It was not faith as saved but doing. It's the the Roman phrase, the Latin phrase, I xara it works in the working, in the doing one receive. No, that's not how the gospel works.

You've been saved by grace through faith. The apostle says even what we will often do in our circles, we, we say, ah, I'm giving this so that I'm storing a treasure in heaven. It's not transactional that that's meriting something. As if your work secures things. It's not a one for one. I give this amount and I've stored that amount of treasure. If I do, then I merit, I do, I give, I receive. No, again, we're stewards, we're not managers.

There's a market difference we give outta the abundance of our hearts. Hearts that have been changed, change that came not by our merit or our effort or our doing, but by the grace of God in giving does not merit salvation, nor does it merit God's favor, nor does it even merit eternal treasure. God is not transactional. He never owes us anything. We don't barter with him.

So what's Paul's point that rather we give to him and his kingdom out of love even as we have received love?

That's how Paul finishes our verses this morning for, you know, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake, he became poor so that you by his poverty might become rich. We give from the heart and that is giving that actually matters.

Our giving reveals what's there If we give from the heart, it is evidence of the fact that this is a heart that has received grace. This is a heart that has been made clean in the Lord. This is a heart that has been transformed. This is a heart that is yielding itself to its Lord and its king and its God because it is his kingdom and his person and his people that is in the forefront of the mind that sits upon the heart.

He's our Lord, he's our king. We be, we give because we love him

aimed at his glory.

Money for us as a noble purpose.

We're about stewards having received all in Christ and all what you've received in Christ. You're so truly rich.

Paul gets to the, the end of this entire section on giving in Second Corinthians, and he just kind of has a, an exclamation, he can't contain himself. He's been talking about giving, giving generously that we're stewards of these things that we're to give back to the Lord. And this is where he ends up saying, Corinthians nine 15, thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift. Thanks be to God. What an ex inexpressible gift.

I, I can't even put words to it, he's saying, I can't even describe it. He gave me his son. He gave me himself. He made me a co-heir with Christ, an inheritor with the saints in life. All things are mine in Christ, all things are yes and amen in him. He's given me everything. It's inexpressible.

Thanks be to him.

And Paul was saying, ah, you live that thanks being to him and generously giving of your treasures. What a noble purpose. Purpose. Let's pray.

Father, we confess that we

clinging too much to the things of this world,

that our hearts are not where we desire them to be, let alone where they should be. Help us to hold things more loosely in this life,

to have more you and the person of your son and his kingdom upon our minds and our hearts. So it even touches those things that often we treasure and hold most dearly.

We want to be yours more and more and becoming more and more that which we already are in your son, but you continue to work in us to your glory and to your praise in Christ name, amen.