Jesus
gives us a parable about the kingdom of heaven. I wonder if this is what we
hope for. The ruler or rich and powerful boss treats his slaves pretty harshly.
Two invest and make a profit and they are rewarded with more responsibility.
The timid slave returns what he was given, but since he made no profit he is
shown the door. This picture of God’s kingdom doesn’t give us comfort or any
kind of a certain path. This story touches all our fears about scarcity
and our uncertainty about our
adequacy. Will God judge us this harshly? Will there be no room for error?
One
of the ways we approach this story is through the language of stewardship. The
word “steward” comes from an old English term meaning the ward of the sty –or
the keeper of the pigs. Since the animals were valuable it was a very
responsible position. The servant owns nothing and is responsible for the
health and safety of the lord’s possessions. We have this in mind when we think
of ourselves as stewards. We are using something that is not ours. What we have
is given to us from God and meant to be used in the name of God. We know this
and believe it. How hard it is to live as if it is true! We act as if what we
have is ours. We plan our own plans. We seek our own ends. We give what we
think we can spare.
The
other trouble with this parable is the double meaning of the word “talent.” For
us, a talent is a gift or ability that is unique and special to us. The word in
the parable means simply a sum of money – an ingot of silver worth many years’
wages. It is difficult for us to separate ourselves from what we do or who we
are – as if my ability to sing or to tell a story is a discreet thing I could
cut off and use apart from myself. In the story, the “talent” is simply a sum
of money that can be used to invest in some other enterprise.
We
are not called to surrender ourselves blindly. We are being urged to risk what
we have to seek God’s kingdom. There is an important distinction. The first is
a kind of passive surrender to whatever we think God may wish of us. The second
is more of an intentional offering of ourselves to seek the way of God. The two
commended slaves actively sought to achieve a purpose for their master’s money.
The sought a profit. What do we seek in the name of God? I don’t think we fail
to show courage only because we are afraid. I believe we fail to act because we
lack something more compelling than the possible result of failure.
Today
is the end of our stewardship appeal for the year. We are seeking to grow in
the total amount pledged and the total number of households who pledge. This is
always a difficult process. We are uncomfortable talking about money. Given our
anxiety about the economy, it is always difficult to get a commitment for the
next year ahead. The question goes beyond our fear. The true question is to ask,
“What compelling purpose will help us to commit to supporting this community
that we love?” The truth is that despite our fears we manage to find the money
for the things that are important to us. So why do we always find it difficult
to gather the resources we need for this community of faith?
I
could offer as a compelling purpose, simply our relationship to God. God gives
us all that we need and far more than we deserve. What we give back is our
expression of thanks. Are we not thankful? Are we not joyful for being loved
and forgiven? Do we not have hope of eternal life? I think this purpose may
fail to compel us because we remember that God has given love freely, without
cost, without asking anything from us. It is hard to believe that God will stop
loving us after first giving us everything. It’s not that we are ungrateful. We
simply hope for more of the same. We’ll try our best. We’ll be good. God will
still love us no matter how weakly we limp along.
I
could offer as a compelling purpose the reward of spiritual discipline. If we
begin with an intention and slowly work towards a goal, let’s say a tithe, then
we gain the reward of losing our dependence on things. We gain freedom from our
possessions. We can trust that God will provide even as we see how God gives us
all that we need even as we live with less. This is a compelling purpose
because I believe that we could all use a little freedom from our money. We
worry and we hoard and then we splurge on things we don’t need. God would have
us control our money and not be controlled by it.
I
third compelling purpose to pledge is this community. We treasure this place
and these people. If it is important to us, then why wouldn’t we want to
support it? If we wait for someone else or expect others to make sacrifices for
community that we aren’t willing to make, then what does that say about our
commitment to community? On the other hand, if we have made a conscious
decision to promise a regular and intentional financial offering to this church
then we are participating in what we build together. This is true no matter how
much we have or how gifted we think we are. If we offer the best we can offer –
if we risk creating something together – then we truly belong to something
bigger than ourselves.
I
could tell you all about how important it is to work together to create a
community of faithful people, trying to walk together towards the way of God.
The proof is in what we do together. As we help each other, as we work
together, as we share our faith – we see for ourselves how important we are to
one another. We are challenged by Jesus’ parable to think about what we are
willing to risk. It’s not that we are afraid of some stern master to judge our
mistakes. God is ready to reward our risk. What are we willing to risk to
create something new? What are we willing to risk to become a new people
together?
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