JESUS ON GREED

Father, we confess before you that we do not like it when your word talks about something

that we don't want it to talk about.

And Father, we confess before you that we see money as something very deeply personal.

And so part of us resents it, Father, when your son talks about money or possessions at all.

We ask, Father, that your Holy Spirit would gently but deeply work upon our will and our mind.

But most of all, Father, we ask that your Holy Spirit would touch us at our heart,

the center of who we truly are.

We ask, Father, that your Spirit would touch our heart

so that we might be receptive to the wisdom of your word.

And this we ask in the name of Jesus, your Son and our Savior. Amen.

Please be seated.

So some of you might be saying, actually, this is going to be one of those interesting days.

The lights mean that I can see virtually none of you.

So don't play a trick on me and all get up and leave me standing near the end of the service without realizing.

So here's what I'd like to say to you folks,

and I say it every time we have a passage on money and some other times as well,

is that if you're here this morning as our guest and you haven't given your life to Jesus,

to trust him as your Savior and follow him as your Lord,

then we would actually prefer if you don't put any money in the plate

or give money online or send us a donation later,

we would actually prefer it if you didn't do that.

Because we're not interested in your money.

Jesus isn't ultimately interested in your money.

He's interested in you.

And so that's the first thing.

So whatever it is that I'm going to say,

and really all I'm going to do is just try to bring out what Jesus is teaching us about money.

I just want you to be aware of the fact that you don't have to put money on the plate.

Okay?

So here's the thing.

If you just heard me read the Gospel text a few moments ago,

Jesus talks about money,

and he talks about covetousness or greed.

And here's sort of two things that some of you are probably thinking,

and even if you aren't thinking, I'm going to remind you of them

because it's really important for us to keep this in mind when we talk,

when we try to understand the words of Jesus.

We're just right next door to the province of Quebec,

and the perception of many of our Quebecois friends

is that for many, many decades, in fact, for centuries,

the church used text like that to keep the people poor.

That the church used text like that to stop people from having ambition,

starting businesses, getting educated,

and getting advanced.

And many of our Irish brothers and sisters would probably say the same thing,

and probably in other parts of the world.

So is what Jesus is saying something that if we take it seriously,

it means that we should be content with being poor and uneducated?

A second thing, just to sort of bring it home at a more personal level,

is the other day I was in a Starbucks,

no surprise to those of you who are regular,

and there's a fellow that I've gotten to know over the last few years,

and he's sort of an interest.

He's a really nice guy, working-class guy, salt-of-the-earth type.

He sees that I have the Bible there.

He shows no interest whatsoever, but he's friendly.

He shows no interest in the fact that I have a Bible open.

But he's very friendly.

He's living with his girlfriend.

They have a kid.

And I saw him the other day for the first time in a couple of months.

And he said that he'd gotten, he'd changed jobs,

that he'd got to work.

He's now working for another company,

and it was a promotion,

and he was making more money,

and I congratulated him on that.

So would Jesus say,

would the Bible say that I sinned

by congratulating him

on switching to another company

and getting a promotion and making more money?

Is Jesus saying that,

George, when the confession comes up later in the service,

you've got to repent of that.

You shouldn't have congratulated him.

Is that what Jesus is saying?

Well, let's listen.

Let's listen with fresh ears

to what it is that Jesus has to say

about possessions and about money

and about greed.

So if you have your Bibles,

if not, I'll read the text.

You know, we'll go through it a bit slowly,

but it's Luke chapter 12,

Luke 12 · chapter mention

and it begins in verse 13.

Luke 12, 13.

And okay, there you go.

So it goes like this.

Someone in the crowd said to Jesus,

teacher, tell my brother

to divide the inheritance with me.

But Jesus said to him,

man, who made me a judge

or arbitrator over you?

I just sort of want to pause there for a second.

In the original language,

Jesus is angry at him,

and the word man is sort of rude.

Or not rude.

He's putting the man in his place.

It's not a gentle response.

And from the context,

it's obvious that it isn't so much

that the man is looking for a disinterested judge

to come and help sort out a problem.

The man wants Jesus to come and be on his side

against his brother's side

so that he'll get more money and more possessions.

And so here, mindful of what I just said earlier,

here we see something which is very, very important

for us religious and spiritual types to hear.

The first point,

Jesus rejects being used as a tool

to further someone's plans.

Jesus rejects in the strongest possible language

being used as a tool

to further someone's plans.

So, you know, obviously,

if in fact our Quebecois friends'

understanding of their past is correct,

there's lots of different priests and nuns.

They all probably had different motives.

But if any of them, in fact,

were saying what they were saying

to actually either maintain their own position

or to help wealthy English or Quebecois

keep their position,

then these words of Jesus

are a very, very stark rebuke to them.

To the religious or spiritual person who,

you know, to the politician

who, when he's in trouble,

comes to church

to try to use the church to distract people

and make them look like he's good

when he's just been caught doing something very bad.

This is a very strong rebuke.

That's using Jesus as a tool

for your own advantage or benefit.

A person who comes to a church

so that he can sell

or she can sell real estate

or Amway

or some other type of product,

and they primarily see

Christians or a church

as a means by which they can prosper

or their son or their daughter

or their husband or their wife

or their cousin to prosper.

This is a very, very, very strong rebuke.

Jesus rejects being used as a tool

to further someone's plans.

Now, Jesus goes to the heart now.

Is this mic still working?

Sometimes it seems like it's working

and sometimes it doesn't.

It's fine?

Okay, good.

I'm not used to not hearing

any type of a feedback.

So a few years ago,

I had a guy who,

he was somebody I knew

through another Christian ministry,

so you don't have to wonder

who it was here in the congregation.

But he very, very, very seriously

said that he had a plan

for us to get a building.

And the plan for us to get a building

was that he was going to buy lottery tickets

and I was going to pray for him.

And as I prayed for him

to buy the lottery tickets,

when the lottery ticket won,

half of the money would go

to the church building fund.

And so, you know,

at the time,

I think the lottery

was like $10 million.

He said,

George, that'll get us

a really, really nice building

and a really nice location,

$5 million.

And so first of all,

I told him whatever anybody tells me

when they ask me to pray,

I tell them that I'm in sales,

not management.

And so my prayers

don't actually work any better

than anybody else's.

But then I had a variety

of hopefully nice and gentle ways

to tell him I wasn't going to do it.

But what was going on with that man?

What would Jesus say

about something like that?

Well, if we continue to read,

we see what Jesus has to say about it.

Verse 15.

And so Jesus is just rejected

that he's going to be used

as a tool by this fellow

against the man's brother

so that the fellow

could become richer.

And in verse 15,

Jesus says,

and he said to them,

take care and be on your guard

against all covetousness

for one's life

does not consist

in the abundance

of his possessions.

And some of your versions

of the Bible

might not say covetousness,

it might say greed.

Sort of the same word

in the original language

can be translated either way.

Coveting means that sort of

I see what somebody else has

and I want it.

They have that nice house

and I'd like that house.

And in fact,

often in older days like that,

it meant quite literally

you wanted that house,

not one like it,

but you wanted that house.

And you just wanted

more and more of things.

And so covetousness and greed

in the original language

is sort of the same idea,

but you use two different words

in English to translate it.

And listen to it again.

It's very, very stark.

In fact,

there's a sermon

from the time

of the English Reformation

by a fellow

by the name of Latimer

who was one of the

English reformers

who died a martyr's death.

And when he preached

on this text,

all his sermon was,

take care and be on your guard

against all covetousness

for one's life

does not consist

in the abundance of possessions.

And he'd read it

three, four, five times in a row.

And then he paused and said,

what if for the sermon this morning

all we did was read this text

over and over and over again?

It's an important warning

from Jesus.

And to put it up

on the screen

as the second point,

Jesus warns me,

beware of greed

and covetousness.

Jesus warns me,

beware of greed

and covetousness.

Now here's the problem.

We never think

that greed and covetousness

applies to us.

Or at least we rarely

think about it.

Now if you're a guest

here this morning

and you don't know much

about the evangelical world,

let me just tell you

something about

what goes on

often in the minds

and hearts

of young men.

That many young men

spend many anxious hours

worrying about lust.

And don't take anything

I'm about to say

to tell you that

lust is all right.

I'm not saying

that lust is all right.

But they worry about

impure thoughts

about women.

And yet many of these

same young men

in the churches

they are,

they're in,

they maybe desire

to have the Mercedes,

to have the Beamer,

to make lots of money,

and nobody at all

ever warns them

that what they're desiring

might be dangerous

for them.

That in fact

in many churches

a preoccupation

with sex

allows us

to be fully devoted

followers of mammon

with not even

the least shred

of conscience

or doubt.

And this isn't

just a Christian problem,

it's a human problem.

So for instance,

I've noticed lately,

occasionally when I'm

procrastinating,

I read the obituaries

in the paper.

So, you know,

you know I'm really

procrastinating

when I start with interest

to read the obituary.

It means I don't,

I should be going

into work

or doing something else,

but there I am

reading the obituaries.

But here's the very

interesting thing

about obituaries

in the newspaper.

The newspaper

as a whole,

when it's not

talking about news,

is telling you

about how to live

the good life.

And the good life

involves

having lots

of experiences

and getting promotions

and being successful

and being powerful

and being popular

and being able

to get the girl

or the guy

that you want

and that's what

the newspaper

gives you advice in.

But when it comes time

for the obituary,

they want you

to be known

as a good person.

I'll give you

an illustration.

Imagine for a moment

that you're coming

to a,

you know,

maybe it's your mother,

maybe it's your aunt,

you know,

your grandmother,

whatever,

and you come

to visit them

and they know

and you know

that they only

have a month

left to live

but they're still

compass mentis.

Their mind still works.

So on her deathbed,

she says to you,

by the way,

what are you going

to write in my obituary?

And so you say,

gosh,

I'm so looking forward

to writing your,

I mean,

I'm not looking forward

to you dying

but I'm so looking forward

to your obituary.

I mean,

you're amazing.

Like my husband

and I were debating

whether you have,

I think you only have

a hundred pairs

of designer shoes

in your closets.

He thinks it's 200.

We're going to count it

and put it in the thing.

And you have 300 designer dress

and gosh,

I think you must have

at least 125 designer purses

and we're going to put

all of that

in your obituary.

And the woman would look

with a steely glint

in her eye

and she'd say,

if you do that,

I will haunt you.

I want you to write

that I'm generous.

You see,

the paper tells you

how to get the best

designer things

and how to make the money.

But when it comes

to our obituaries,

we don't want to be known

as a person

who owned 300 pieces

of expensive clothing,

150 expensive shoes,

75 expensive

or 125 handbags.

We want it to be known

as being generous.

We want it to be known

as being good.

It's a human problem.

So Jesus says,

beware of greed

and covetousness.

We all agree.

We all think it applies

to somebody else.

But what if it applies

to us?

And so Jesus tells

a parable

to try to start

to unpack

or get us to see

an aspect of the issue.

And it begins

in verse 16.

And he told them

the parable.

The land of a rich man

produced plentifully.

And he thought to himself,

what shall I do?

For I have nowhere

to store my crops.

And he said,

I will do this.

I will tear down

my barns

and build larger ones.

And there I will store

all my grain

and my goods.

And just pause

before you hear

the rest of the parable.

There's something

very important

to note in this parable,

the beginning

of this parable.

Jesus isn't telling us

that the man

should be world-denying.

He's not going

to tell us

that the man

should feel bad

because his farm

produces lots of crops.

Jesus is not a Buddhist.

He's not going to say

that all desire

in and of itself

is our fundamental problem.

And Jesus is not going

to say that godly people

let the crops

rot in the field.

That that's a sign

of godliness.

There's nothing wrong

and all the rest

of the story,

there's nothing wrong

at all

with the fellow

being thankful

or pleased

that his field

has produced

lots of crop

and there's never

any hint

that his idea

to build more barns

is wrong

in and of itself.

Jesus isn't telling

the fellow

to be impractical

or to be wasteful

or to be told

that possessions

in and of themselves

are evil.

Nothing that happens

is going to say

anything at all

about that whatsoever.

Jesus goes to the heart,

to the man's response

to what has happened

to him

and what's actually

motivating

at a deeper level

his plans.

Beneath his prudence,

there in computer language

there's another program

running

deeper than his prudence

and it's revealed

in the words

that begin

on verse 19.

And I will say

to my soul,

I will say

to my soul,

soul,

you have ample goods

laid up for many years,

relax,

eat,

drink,

and be merry.

All the way

through this entire

parable,

if you go back,

it's always

I,

me,

my.

And even as he speaks

to his soul,

he speaks to his soul

as if he is God

speaking to himself,

to his subject.

And in verse 20,

God said to him,

fool,

this night your soul

is required of you

and the things

you have prepared,

whose will they be?

So is the one

who lays up treasure

for himself

and is not rich

toward God.

One second after death,

Bill Gates

and the poorest person

in Ottawa

who also dies,

if they die

at the exact same moment,

a second after death,

they have the same possessions

in their possession.

None.

You can't be poorer

than dead.

That's what Jesus is saying.

It's also the name

of a Flannery O'Connor

short story.

You can't be poorer

than dead.

So,

here's the thing.

Is,

is Jesus

going to now give us

sort of a bit of a

radical hippie,

socialist,

left wing,

walled and pond

type of take

on money

and possessions?

I have a,

another friend

who,

he and I have

very,

we have,

we have public

discussions

about the Christian faith

in Starbucks.

And,

just recently

we had one.

He,

he doesn't know anything

at all.

I don't think he's ever

even read the New Testament,

but he likes to tell me

all about what Jesus

actually thinks and believes.

And,

and so he,

he told me,

because he'd just read a book

by a popular guy,

he said it had to be true

because he heard it

on television.

And,

and it's funny,

he said that,

I said to him,

you know,

in his job,

he has,

I said,

you actually think that

just because it's said

on television

it must be true?

I mean,

you don't believe that

in the rest of your life.

Why do you believe it

about,

about somebody saying

something about Jesus?

Anyway,

he told me,

it's a very,

very common idea

that Jesus was sort of

like a radical

and he was always

going against

the,

the,

the rich and the powerful

and helping the poor.

He didn't use this,

but I've heard many people,

even,

even evangelicals

and charismatics

and,

and very,

very orthodox people

say that the point

of the Bible

is to afflict

the comfortable

and comfort

the afflicted.

You know,

afflict the comfortable

and comfort the afflicted.

Is that what Jesus

is going to do?

Is he going to afflict

the comfortable?

Is he going to say,

is he going to now say,

you know,

come on,

smell the roses,

smell the flowers,

you know,

chill out,

be more relaxed,

less type A,

you know,

don't work so hard.

Is that what Jesus

is going to say?

Well,

that's what many people,

that's how many people

read this.

Just,

just listen to what

then goes on to,

what goes on to be,

to be said.

It was a text like this

that my,

my friend was really

referring to.

Verse 22,

therefore,

Jesus said,

I tell you,

do not be anxious

about your life,

what you will eat,

nor about your body,

what you will put on.

For life is more than food

and the body is more

than clothing.

Consider the ravens,

they neither sow nor reap.

They have neither storehouse

nor barn,

and yet God feeds them.

Of how much more value

are you than the birds?

Can't you just sort of

hear this,

that Jesus is saying,

like,

why are you so concerned

about making money?

Why are you so concerned

about working hard?

You got to take time

and smell the roses.

Like,

it's all just going

to work out.

Just chill out,

you know?

Like,

be more calm.

Get more centered.

Turn off the cell phone.

Get more in touch

with yourself.

Spend time.

Have long meals.

It sort of almost

sounds like it.

And then he continues,

and which of you

by being anxious

can add a single hour

of a span

to a span of life?

If then you are not able

to do as small a thing

as that,

why are you anxious

about the rest?

I mean,

at first,

at first glance,

it's so easy for us

in our culture

to hear this

as a message

just to become

more laid back,

to become more hip,

to spend the time

to make your own craft beer,

to make your own clothing,

make your own art.

Like,

just forget all

of that rat race stuff.

Is that what Jesus

is saying?

It sounds like it.

Verse 28,

Or verse 27,

Consider the lilies,

how they grow.

They neither toil

nor spin.

Yet I tell you,

even Solomon

in all his glory

was not arrayed

like one of these.

But if God

so clothed the grass

which is alive

in the field today

and tomorrow

is thrown into the oven,

how much more

will he clothe you,

O you of little faith?

And do not seek

what you are to eat

and what you are to drink,

nor be worried.

For all the nations

of the world

seek after these things,

and your Father

knows that you need them.

Instead,

seek his kingdom,

and these things

will be added to you.

Vote for Olivia Chow

and not for the Fords.

Is that what he's saying here?

But then all of a sudden,

there's a sixth sense moment.

If you've seen the movie,

there's something that happens

at the end of the movie

that makes you wonder

if you've understood

anything that's taken place

throughout the entire movie.

I won't tell you what it is

in case you haven't seen it,

but that's a sixth sense moment.

Verse 32.

Fear not, little flock,

for it is your Father's

good pleasure

to give you the kingdom.

One moment.

It's your Father

gives you the kingdom.

Your Father gives you the kingdom.

Like,

what happens is

Jesus does have

some stern words

about the person

who dies

leaving behind

300-plus designer dresses

and 150 pairs of shoes

and 125 designer purses

and has really,

in effect,

lived an entirely

self-centered life.

but when they die,

they want to be known

as generous.

Less than 19%

of the Canadian population

gives enough money

to charity

that they can file

an income tax return

asking for a charitable receipt.

And the median amount

of money given to charity

out of that 19%

is,

I think it's only

something like $100.

and yet Canadians,

we,

humanly speaking,

like to be known

as generous people.

And I'm just,

if you're making

$80,000 a year

and you give no money

to charity,

not enough money

to charity

to actually ask

for any type

of income tax receipt

at all,

I don't know.

Should we put

generous down

in your obituary?

I don't know.

But,

while it,

it,

it hammers away

at us

about that type

of a preoccupation

with money

and prestige

and all being

completely and utterly

self-centered,

there,

there's a way

for those of us

who are called

about being,

chilling out

and getting more centered

that in fact

that whole language

is in fact

actually profoundly

self-centered as well.

I need to get,

I need to get

in touch

with myself.

I need to smell

the roses.

I need to smell

the lilies.

I need to not

worry about things

because it's all

going to work out

all right for me

and I need to spend

time taking my

long time to do this

or whatever it is

because you see,

in effect,

when Jesus says

that the Father

has to give

the kingdom,

what he's saying

is that it's true

that when Bill Gates,

if Bill Gates

and the poorest person

and Ottawa die

at the exact same

instant,

they both take

the same amount

of possessions

with them,

which is none.

The text here says

that we don't take

hipness with us,

coolness,

centeredness,

relaxedness,

valor,

honor,

none of that

goes with us.

Everything we possess

is left behind.

In fact,

what he's saying,

if you could put up

the third point,

Jesus is not

coming down here

as part of an

anti-capitalist rant

and it's easy

for us to fool

ourselves that this

text applies to

somebody else

and thinks that

he's talking about

other ways

that merely leaves

us being self-centered,

only self-centered

in a different way.

What Jesus is

talking about

is this,

that there are

two ways to live.

One is to have

me and my idols

on the throne

of my heart

or the throne

of my life

and the other

is to have

the living God,

my creator,

on the throne

of my heart

or the throne

of my life.

That what Jesus

is doing

is he's addressing

the heart.

He's addressing

the motivations

that go underneath

our prudence

and our other

types of concerns

that reveal

that we still

want to be

at the center

and rule our

hearts and rule

our lives

and that we

make idols

of things.

Idols of money,

idols of being

cool,

idols of being

religious,

idols of being

spiritual,

idols of being

artistic,

idols of being

communal,

idols of being

a high

accomplishing

individual,

idols of sex,

idols of control,

that underneath

it all,

we are still

self-centered

and we make

idols.

And at the

very, very

center of who

we are,

there is a

throne.

And God,

because God

created us,

he created us

to have a throne

at the very,

very center

of who we are.

and part

of our

rebellion

against God

is that we

decided that we

wanted to sit

on the throne

of our lives

and when we

sit on the throne

of our lives,

we never leave

ourselves alone

there because

we put our

heart on many

things.

We have many,

many things

which we

treasure,

none of which

will come to

the other

side of the

grave.

In fact,

if you just

go reading

past verse

32,

listen to how

Jesus goes,

fear not,

little flock,

for it is

your father's

good pleasure

to give you

the kingdom.

Sell your

possessions

and give to

the needy.

Provide yourselves

with money bags

that do not

grow old,

with a treasure

in the heavens

that does not

fail,

where no thief

approaches and

no moth

destroys.

For where

your treasure

is,

there will

your heart

be also.

It's the memory

verse for the

week.

For where

your treasure

is,

there will

your heart

be also.

And so

what Jesus

is doing

here is he's

setting before

us two ways

to live.

One is to

have me

and my

idols

on the

throne

of my

heart

or the

throne

of my

life

and the

others

to have

the

living

God

my

creator

on the

throne

of my

heart

and my

life.

So what

then if you

were to go

back and to

listen to what

Jesus is talking

about,

go back to

verse 21.

So is the

one who lays,

this is after

the little

comment about

the parable

about the

man who's

going to die,

my soul,

my this,

my this,

me this,

I this,

and Jesus'

comment,

so is the

one who lays

up treasure

for himself

and is not

rich toward

God.

The two

paths,

treasure for

myself or

the path of

rich toward

God.

And the

rich toward

God has

this great

conundrum,

and the

great conundrum

is that at

the heart of

being rich toward

God is to be

reconciled to

him, and

only God can

do that.

how is it

that Jesus

could ask us

to walk

down a

path that

actually you

can't accomplish

the path because

it has to be

given to you

freely and

completely.

Well, what

Jesus does is

he actually

asks us to

think about

things.

So we'll

just start,

one thing,

verse 22,

therefore I

tell you do

not be anxious

about your

life, what

you will eat,

nor about

your body,

what you

will put on,

for life is

more than

food and the

body more

than clothing.

So sort of

pause there.

Here's the

thing which

Jesus is

going to try

to get us

to understand.

The fourth

point, if you

could put it

up, having

money or

possessions as

an idol makes

me anxious.

Having money

or possessions

as an idol makes

me anxious.

And the thing

about an idol is

it could be an

idol for,

a million

dollars or a

hundred million

dollars or it

could be

walled in

pond.

It could be

an idol about

being as

popular as

the most

popular movie

star or it

could be an

idol of just

being popular

with that one

girl or that

one guy.

It could be

an idol of

being loved

by millions

or just being

loved by that

one person.

that what

Jesus is saying

is that where

our treasure

is, there

our heart

will be.

And that's

in effect

describing an

idol.

And idols

make us

anxious.

Idols

make us

anxious.

Part of being

anxious is

natural to

being a human

being.

We're frail.

Tiny little

microbes, tiny

little upsets in

the balance in

our body could

make us have

a mental

illness, could

make us have

cancer, could

profoundly affect

our lives in

all sorts of

ways.

We are inherently

fragile.

There's always

going to be a

certain degree of

anxiety to us.

But we go to

idols thinking

that they will

comfort us and

protect us.

But Jesus is

going to say, and

it's not just

here but all the

way through the

Gospels and all

the way through

the New Testament,

all the way

through the Old

Testament, is that

idols make me

anxious.

And part of

the power of

an idol in my

life is that my

anxiety drives me

to my idol rather

than make me

question my idol.

I'm anxious.

I buy the

expensive clothes.

And it

comforts for a

short while but I

get more anxious.

It's going out of

style.

There's a tiny

little fray.

It's not the

right color for my

eyes.

It's not what

the girl that I

love or the guy

that I love or

somebody or my

boss or somebody

else has a better

set of clothes.

And so our

anxiety returns and

we seek to put,

to get the net.

And before we

know it, we have

the 300 or the

75 or the

125.

And why?

It's because idols

make us anxious and

rather than doubting

the power of an

idol, we continue

to serve it.

And that's why

Jesus is talking

about.

Okay, just think

about it for a

second.

Do you really,

really actually

think that the

meaning of life is

possessions?

Like, if you

really think that

the meaning of

life is possessions,

does that mean

that rich people

have rich and

meaningful lives and

that everybody

else have

unmeaningful lives?

Like, why do the

rich commit suicide?

Why is it so common

for movie stars who

are rich and popular

to commit suicide?

So you really think

that possessions are

the meaning of life?

Do you really think

that anything on

this side of the

grave will completely

and utterly encapsulate

the meaning of life?

And Jesus goes

through a series of

thought experiments to

ask us, why is it

that these things that

we make idols, why is

it that we think that

these things consist in

the meaning of life?

Like, why do we do

that?

And then in verse 32,

he sort of throws the

zinger in it.

Those of us who think

that we can take our

money, you know, if the

meaning of our life,

you know, if everything

that makes life

meaningful ends at

death, there's a long

tradition of philosophy

that goes right back

to the Greeks, that's

response is, and

therefore, nothing in

life is meaningful.

And so Jesus says

something about how

only God, there's

another path of living

that does not involve

me and my idols,

that involves God

being at the center

of my life, who

cares for my needs

on both sides of the

grave, and yet that

caring can only be,

only God can do that.

I can't spend my way

into his favor, I

can't manipulate my

way into his favor, I

can't do anything.

It's something that all

of a sudden I have to

put everything down

because it's something

that only God can

grant or bestow.

If you could put up

the fifth point, only

the living God can

bestow citizenship and

life in his kingdom.

I cannot create

citizenship or earn

citizenship or demand

citizenship as my

right.

Harder for me to say

citizenship than I

thought it was going

to be.

Only the living God can

bestow citizenship and

life in his kingdom.

That's what the text

says, that's what 32

says, fear not,

little flock, for it

is your father's good

pleasure to give you

the kingdom.

It's his pleasure to

do something that only

he can do that we

cannot possibly do.

I can't create it, I

can't earn it, and I

can't demand it as a

right.

See, this is how,

remember, everything

that happens in the

gospel, in this case,

if you're a guest this

morning, you haven't

heard this before, but

in Luke chapter 9,

Luke 9 · chapter mention

Jesus tells his

disciples he's going to

Jerusalem to die.

And everything that

takes place is all in

the context of Jesus

is constantly reminding

his disciples that he's

going to Jerusalem to

die.

And Paul, in 2

Corinthians, has a

very, very powerful

analogy for what Jesus

does.

The analogy is that

Jesus, God, the Son of

God, sets aside his

glory and divine

prerogatives and

splendor and majesty and

adulation and all of

that.

He sets all of that

aside while remaining

God.

He takes into himself

our human nature.

He lives a simple

working class human

life.

And then he dies upon

the cross and you

can't be any poorer

than dead.

He became poor that we

might become rich.

That's how Paul puts it

in 2 Corinthians.

That by God's grace,

Jesus becomes poor that

we might become rich.

Because he dies for you

and for me on the cross.

And that death upon the

cross, when we put our

faith and trust in

something that only God

can give us to reconcile

us to himself, we have

this profound, asymmetric,

unfair, in a sense,

exchange.

But it's not unfair

because it's motivated and

comes from love.

That God gives us, who put

our faith and trust in

Jesus who died for us, he

gives us citizenship in his

kingdom.

freedom and we bring

nothing into it but

ourselves because he loves

you and he loves me.

Let's just sort of wrap

this up to allow us to

sort of, what does this

sort of mean?

Just very, very quickly.

If you could put up the

very next slide, Jeremy,

that would be great.

And that's this.

In a world of money and

possessions, the Bible has

a simple rule of life for

all who have received Jesus

Christ crucified, God's free

gift of grace.

Give 10% of the money I

receive to further the

gospel and bring glory to

God.

In a world of money and

possessions, money and

possessions which can become

idols, the Bible has a

simple rule of life for

all who have received

Jesus Christ crucified,

God's free gift of grace.

Give 10% of the money I

receive to further the

gospel and bring glory to

God.

How do you kick possessions

and money off the throne of

your life as an idol?

Give it away.

Give some of it away.

You see, the question is,

when you go back over this

text and it says, you know,

give to the poor and give to

this and give to that, the

question is, well, how much

does God want?

Like, how much does he want?

Like, how do I figure that

out?

And the Bible has this very,

very consistent, simple rule

of life, and the rule of

life is 10%.

And enjoy the other 90%.

Do things that make your

heart glad.

And that's a very, very big

step for my wife and I.

I was ordained for quite a

few years before my wife and

I started tithing.

And at the time I was getting

paid monthly and it was very,

very hard.

I started to get convicted

about it.

And because I'm not very

brave and courageous, what I

thought is, in obedience to

God, I'll give an extra $20 a

month.

And I did.

And my world didn't collapse.

And then after a couple of

months of that, we gave another

$20 a month.

And our world didn't collapse.

And then we had to give several

hundred dollars.

Oops.

Then we had to give several

hundred dollars.

I won't stop.

We had to give several hundred

dollars to sort of catch up to

the tithe and our life didn't

collapse.

Some of you can do things

quickly, some very slowly.

But here's the thing.

It's a very, very simple rule of

life.

And it's a rule of life for

those who have given their lives

to Jesus and are free and

receive God's free gift of

grace.

Some of you might say,

George, if you knew my

finances, if you knew how much

trouble I was in, like how on

earth could you possibly say

that?

What are you saying to the

single mom or the single dad

or the person at very, very low

income who's just overwhelmed

with financial trouble?

Here's the second thing that

this text is saying to us.

Jesus never tells me to ignore

reality.

He invites me to walk towards

reality with him as my Savior

and my Lord.

That point could go up.

Jesus never tells me to ignore

reality.

He invites me to walk towards

reality with him as my Savior

and my Lord.

Does Jesus know that you or I are

in profound financial trouble?

Yes, he does.

Yes, he does.

Does he want you to engage in some

some type of spiritual or other

type of practice that makes you

ignore it and deny it?

No, he doesn't.

Will following Jesus take you away

from the real world?

Truly following the real Jesus

will never take you away from the

real world.

In fact, the invitation of Jesus is

to actually live in the real world,

a real world where you die, a real

world where there is a life after

death where you have to give a count

for your life.

That a real world where the living

God actually does exist.

Jesus is inviting us to actually

live in the real world.

And he wants us to walk towards

reality with him as our Savior and

as our Lord.

To walk towards the source of our

indebtedness.

To walk towards the source of our

financial problems.

To deal with the bank or the credit

card.

Or the person from the debt

collection agency who is ruining

our lives by calling us at all

sorts of odd hours and threatening

us.

He wants to say to you and me,

be my child, be my disciple,

accept my offer of grace.

And with me beside you, let's walk

towards that problem and deal with

it.

And then the final sort of takeaway

from all of this on money, if you

could put it up, is invite Jesus

Christ crucified to throw out every

idol from the throne of your

life and ask him to sit on the throne

of your life as your Savior and your

Lord.

Invite Jesus Christ crucified to throw

out every idol from the throne of

your life and ask him to sit on the

throne of your life as your Savior and

your Lord.

This should really be the first point,

but I left it to the last as the one

you'll remember.

And if you write down these points,

you go on the webpage later on and find

them, you start with this point and you

move backwards.

Start with this point to invite Jesus

into your life and ask him to sit on

the throne of your life and to cast out

the idols that are there and then ask

him to walk towards your financial and

other problems, realizing that at some

point along that way, he's going to ask

you to give 10% of the money you receive.

I told you it one way, live it the other

way.

Please stand.

Jeremy, could you put the final prayer up

on the screen?

Here's a prayer.

For some of us, it's a prayer by which we

begin the Christian life, but it's also a

prayer that we have to pray for those of

us who are followers of Jesus, because even

those of us who are followers of Jesus, we

try to do the unimaginable, which is to

have Jesus on the throne of our lives and

all sorts of idols.

And part of our sanctification is to first

receive what only Jesus can give us for

free and God gives us for free, the power

of God for salvation.

But then we need to remember what Jesus

has done for us on the cross and ask him

to look inside of our lives to see the

idols which are there and confess before

him that we don't have the strength to

throw the idols off by ourselves and ask

him to cast off the idols from the throne

of our heart.

And so if this prayer is the whole, I think

the whole prayer is there.

Is it part of two?

Is it two screens?

It's three screens.

I'll read it to you.

And then if the Holy Spirit is convicting

you to pray it, you can join with me and

praying it out loud.

But here's what the prayer will say.

Jesus, I repent from trying to sit on the

throne of my heart.

I repent of every idol that is on the

throne of my heart.

I thank you that you left the glory of

heaven to die upon the cross for me.

I thank you that you became poor, that I

may become rich.

Please come into my life as my Savior and

my Lord.

Please take your rightful place on the

throne of my life.

Please remove all idols from the throne of

my heart so that you alone sit on the

throne.

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, make your

home in me and never leave.

In Jesus' name, amen.

If you would like to pray that prayer with

me, then let's do it now.

Jesus, I repent from trying to sit on the

throne of my heart.

I repent of every idol that is on the

throne of my heart.

I thank you that you left the glory of

heaven to die upon the cross for me.

I thank you that you became poor, that I

may become rich.

Please come into my life as my Savior and

my Lord.

Please take your rightful place on the

throne of my life.

Please remove all idols from the throne of

my heart so that you alone sit on the

throne.

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, make your

home in me and never leave me.

In Jesus' name, amen.