“Joyful Generosity"

I begin with apologies. We have a lot happening here this Sunday–Holy Communion, Consecration Sunday commitment, the celebration luncheon, youth group and so on. So this sermon is going to be even more brief than usual. I apologize. I’ll owe you some additional sermon time. And I promise to preach a longer sermon one Sunday in the future.

As one of my friends puts it, this is “the sermon on the amount.” I’ve been looking forward to talking with you about this subject, because giving is such a tremendous opportunity and joy for Christians. And generous giving is a central theme in the Bible and in our faith. As one professor says, “There are over six hundred references and declarations in Scripture pertaining to our use of money.” (Tony Campolo, 20 Hot Potatoes Christians Are Afraid To Touch, 100.)

Why is there so much focus on money in the Bible? At least four reasons. First, Scripture and our faith remind us that you and I don’t really own anything at all. Each one of us is just passing through this world. We’re only going to live on this earth a little while. So we’re not really owners of anything. We’re stewards, caretakers of the time, abilities, and money God has entrusted to us. As the Psalmist proclaimed, “The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it.” (Psalm 24:1)

Second, because God owns everything, and because God places everything into our stewardship, God actually expects us to do something great with what’s been lent to us. We’re responsible. Remember the parable of the talents in Matthew 25? The master went away and left three servants with incredible amounts of wealth. Two of the servants invested and made a return on the wealth and were commended by the master when he returned. But a third servant buried his wealth in the ground, made nothing of it, and then claimed that the master was harsh. Give me a break! The master was not amused. (Matthew 25:14-30) We’re expected to do wonderful things with the money and the lives lent to us by God. We’re accountable.

Third, when we give generously, we experience spiritual growth. As Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” We know about that, right? We invest money and time in family, friends, homes, cars, vacations, church, and God. The more we invest in something or someone, the more important that thing or one becomes to us. Jesus said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth . . . but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven . . .” The more we invest in God and God’s church, the more we grow spiritually.

Fourth, in his letter to the Corinthian church, Paul reminds us not only why we give but why we give generously. Paul talks about some poor and persecuted churches in Macedonia. As one scholar puts it, “Paul, aware of their poverty, had apparently not at first asked them to participate, but when they heard of the collection, they had begged him to be allowed to participate  . . . they gave not merely what might have been reasonably expected but beyond their means.” (Ernest Best, Second Corinthians in the Interpretation Series, 77-78.) As Paul explains, the Macedonia Christians gave because there was human need and they gave because God was working in their lives empowering and encouraging their generosity. And giving back to God is itself a privilege.

So what about you and me? Why do we give? We give, first of all, because we are grateful to God. We are grateful to God for the goodness of life. We are thankful for God’s grace in Jesus Christ. We give to show our gratitude to God.

I remember a Christmas morning when I was a little boy, elementary school age. The doorbell rang. I was wearing those dumb-looking pajamas with feet in them. Remember those? At any rate, I ran/slid to answer the door. And there stood my best friend Patrick. “Merry Christmas!” and handed me a gift-wrapped present. “Thank you,” I said. “Um. Wow. I didn’t know we were doing this. Um. I don’t have anything for you.” “That’s okay,” he said. But I have never forgotten the disappointment of having nothing to give back to my friend. Generous stewardship allows us to respond to God with our gratitude. That’s the best reason we give.

So how much do we give? One of you told me that you started giving a tithe, 10% of your income, during the building campaign. And you haven’t stopped since. As you said, “I haven’t missed it.” You see, generous giving becomes a habit after a while.

How much do we give? Not everybody can or should give a tithe, 10%. If you have serious financial problems, please don’t do it. But most of us can work our way toward a tithe by increasing the percentage of our income that we give each year until we reach our goal. If you’re giving 1% move to 2%. If you’re giving 5% move to 6% and so on. My wife Beth and I are hoping to give a tithe of our after-tax income this year, but our real goal is to give a tithe of our before-tax income. We want to grow as stewards. And I know most of this congregation wants to do the same thing.

In these tough economic times does that sound crazy? Well, here are some figures from an article written a few years ago, “Research shows that in 1933, the depth of the Great Depression, Protestants were giving 3.3% of their income to the church. Sixty years later when Americans were over 200% richer (after taxes and inflation), Protestants were giving only 2.5% of their income.” (Douglas W. Oldenburg, “Thoughts on Stewardship” Vantage, Winter 1995-1996.) I think Protestants probably average giving about 2% of their income now. So, the good news is that we have room to grow. And we can grow, as we examine how much we spend on entertainment, for example, and how much we spend on God and God’s church. Little by little, step by step we can grow and become more mature and glad disciples of Christ.

Of course, it takes courage and it takes faith to grow. But then again, First Presbyterian knows about courage and faith. Just look at the beautiful addition you built. Just talk to the retired missionaries who keep us honest when we start saying, “Oh, that’s too hard. I can’t do it.” One of those retired missionaries, Don Beane, has offered a challenge to the session and church. To paraphrase him he says, “Well, we raised more three million dollars for building. What if we raised one million for mission?” A million for mission.

Sound crazy? At the church history event on Sunday night, we remembered that First Presbyterian’s main structure was built in 1929–the beginning of the Great Depression. And every pledge for the building was fulfilled. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough money for the bell tower. So the Presbyterian Women got fired up and raised $17,000 to build it. Can you imagine that, in the Depression? How much money would that be today? A lot. But they were committed to Christ and they were joyful, generous stewards.

Friends, it’s not about guilt. We give generously because we’re so grateful to our great God for life, for love, for grace. We give generously because we want to share in the good that God is doing in the world. And we give generously because we want to grow spiritually, day by day, step by step experiencing a deeper relationship with God as revealed in Christ. That’s what joyful generosity is all about. Praise God for this blessed opportunity. Amen.