The Shepherd’s Voice

Trusting In God’s Promise

Readings for Sunday, August 8^th
Gen 15:1-6
Heb 11:1-3, 8-16
Lk 12:32-40

Trusting In God’s Promise from Good Shepherd Lutheran Church on Vimeo. Download this sermon.

There was a woman who is buried under 150-year-old live oak trees in the cemetery of an Episcopal church in rural Louisiana. In accordance with this woman’s instructions, only one word is carved on the tombstone: “Waiting.”

Our gospel text opens this morning with “32Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”

Are you waiting with anticipation or fear for God’s kingdom to be fully realized in this world? When God’s kingdom is finally implemented in all its glory will you be part of that implementation plan?

Jesus said we need to be ready, anticipating, making purses that do not wear out, meaning that we to build treasures in heaven where no thief can steal or no moth can destroy; anything less than this is foolishness. And yet, most often we don’t live this way, do we?

God has a message for us this morning, it’s a message of hope and not disaster. Part of God’s message is contained in the first verse of the text. God is telling us not to be afraid, but more importantly God is telling us that the kingdom of God is at hand and the Father, the God of all creation finds pleasure in offering us the kingdom.

In the beginning God created, God’s history, as we know it from Genesis the first book in the Bible, we see even before we come to know Abram as Abraham we hear God’s message – “Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield.” God wants the best for us, even we don’t know what that best may be.

Abram was fretting over God’s promise that God would give them (him and Sarah) a son, an heir. Abram said you have given me no offspring and I am old and Sarah, the text says, was barren and how could a son come “from one person, and this one as good as dead.”

Sometimes in our lives we are as good as dead before we are resurrected by God. I know of a man who felt as good as dead. His business was going no where, the funding and support were falling away, he was discouraged, as good as dead, and yet God called him into a different line of work and God blessed that person who was as good as dead.

I don’t know about you, but for me life seems so much easier when we are in church, when we are kneeling at the altar, everything seems clear, but when we leave the altar for the door everything seems to change. Yes, life can be full of fear, full of dead ends, especially if we are questioning whether or not we are on the right road, the right path, the right passageway into God’s kingdom.

God’s good pleasure is to give us the kingdom. We have one passage in our gospel text today that can help us see, help us analize what path we are on. Look at verse 34, “34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Last week we talked about snoring, no not snoring, but storing up for ourselves treasures in heaven. Remember the rich fool who missed out on life because he had the wrong focus on what life was really all about?

As a pastor I have found that many people don’t like to talk about money, especially how they spend their money, but in terms of God’s kingdom how we spend our money gives us a clue about our heart, where our heart may be. “34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Jesus said it. Are we on the right path or does that path lead to the abyss?

Some of you know the church council has been challenged this past year to read the book, “Giving to God” by Mark Allan Powell. This book is all about the Bible’s “Good News” in learning how to live a generous life. It’s about learning how to live into God’s kingdom here on earth. Sometimes we call this stewardship, but it’s more about being freed up to live as God intended us to live.

Historically, from the beginning of man we’ve heard stories about sacrifice, about showing God that we are thankful for what we are given in this life. In ancient Israel as a community gathered to celebrate they would pour out ‘drink offerings” on an altar. Some would bring sheaves of grain, others would bring small animals or birds and they were placed on the altar as a sacrifice.

Early sacrificial rules could be fairly complex, but the point is that people have given what they valued to God from the beginning of time. Obviously, that concept of giving has changed over thousands of years, but it doesn’t negate the inherent principle that giving to God is an act of worship.

Where am I going with this? Love is involved in giving. Love for God, being thankful to God drives our giving to God. “34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Giving to God, where we spend our time, talent and treasure is where our heart will end up also, it’s where it will be.

Our checkbook tells us what our first love in life is or will be in the future. I hate to break in down into such simple terms, but you see this formula over and over again in scripture.
Remember the poor woman who put a very small amount into the coin box at the temple. What did Jesus say? “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them; 4 for all of them have contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.” (Luke 21:2-4) She was building up her treasure in heaven.

Her love for God, her anticipation of wanting God’s kingdom to surround her, envelop her, encircle her, enfold her was so great she gave all she had to live on. The message is not the amount, but the message is about the sacrifice. She was ushering in God’s kingdom.

We saw this in the story of Zaccaeus the tax collector who sold half his wealth and gave it to the poor. It wasn’t the amount, we don’t even know what that was, but it was about the sacrifice, the love he was showing to God that paints this Rembrant for us.

Jesus said, ““34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Both of these examples show us where their hearts were, and where their lives were heading in the future. There’s no magic here, just look at your checkbook and you can see where you are going.

So this way of living, selling “your possessions,” and giving alms is good for some people. Making “purses for yourselves that do not wear out, and an unfailing treasure in heaven” that’s good for some people, maybe those Jesus freaks or disciples of Christ, but I don’t know if this message is for me. This sounds like radical Christianity, after all I’m a Lutheran.

If wasn’t in our text this morning, but look at the next verse in Luke 12:41. Impetus Peter, Peter the questioning one, look what he asks Jesus, “Lord, are you telling this parable for us or for everyone?”

Jesus of course responds with, those who are faithful understand what I am saying, in addition look at verse 48, “From everyone to who much has been given, much will be required; and from the one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded.”

These are bold, scary words for people who live in the most affluent society ever.

Follow the money, I’m sure you’ve heard that statement before. It’s used in detective shows, it’s used by senators or representatives when talking about scandal, it should also be used by most of us when we start looking at our own lives in a serious way.

Where are we and where are we going? Should we anticipate God’s kingdom or the reverse? Look at your checkbook, you’ll pretty much answer that question for yourself.

These summer texts can be tough for some of us. They really focus in on the Christian life, how we live it and what God expects of us. However, let me take you back to our opening passage, “32Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”

The point of almsgiving, is not to elevate poverty – circumstantial or chosen – but rather to extol generosity as a mark of Christian living. Similarly, the watchfulness Jesus commands is not an anxious anticipation of the end of the world, but rather an eager expectation of God’s consummation of history. What Jesus is commending is faith – faith that frees one to be generous; faith that enables one to leave anxiety behind; faith that creates in one confidence about a future secured not by human endeavor or achievement, but by God alone.

In our text, Jesus is just not holding out faith as a model and goal, or a standard by which to judge us. Rather, Jesus creates faith by announcing a promise: a promise we can trust. Like a parent who loves a children deeply and desperately and wants all good things for them, so it is our Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom, to pour out God’s love in your life.

Promises create a shared expectation about the future and bind together the giver and receiver of the promise in a sort of shared anticipation. Remember God and Abraham – Promises create relationship. Promises create hope. Promises create faith.

All of our instruction about the Christian life – whether about prayer, money, watchfulness, care of neighbor, and more – are therefore anchored in the gospel promise that it is, indeed, God’s good pleasure to give us the kingdom. Remembering – indeed, exalting in – this promise enables us not only to have faith, but to answer Peter’s question: is Jesus saying this to us or to everyone? Yes!

The essence of faith is worship and the essence of worship is sacrifice. Giving ourselves to God openly, completely, sacrificially is freeing, it’s inspirational, and it’s how God calls us to live even in this 21st century world. Yes we can, yes we can, yes we can trust in God’s promise.

Amen

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