Generosity Beyond the Bounds of Reciprocity

Good morning. Thank you, Sean. Sorry I'm disentangling from my microphone here.

If you would turn in your Bibles to Luke chapter 14.

Luke 14 · chapter mention

And while you're turning there, I will briefly just bring you greetings from your brothers and sisters at Covenant Fellowship Church out in the Philly suburbs.

Sean described it well. I serve on the pastoral team of Covenant Fellowship.

And by God's grace, through the years, we've had the ability at Covenant Fellowship to set different guys apart for different areas of ministry.

So I've been set apart as part of the pastoral team to lead a separate nonprofit we established almost 20 years ago called Covenant Mercies,

which exists to serve alongside our brothers and sisters in the developing world to care for orphans living in their communities.

And so I will tell you more about Covenant Mercies and our programs on the other side of the sermon this morning.

But it is good to be with you. I enjoyed spending time with Sean yesterday.

We did a little Fenway tour and got a little taste of Boston.

And just really love coming to different places and experiencing the fellowship of the Spirit together.

Immediately, we're brothers and sisters.

I know that I'm among family and it is wonderful to be with you this morning.

So if you're with me in Luke chapter 14, I want to begin reading in verse 12.

Luke 14 · chapter mention

And just to set the scene, Jesus has been invited to a dinner party.

He's at the table of a Pharisee as we arrive at our text this morning.

So beginning in verse 12,

He, being Jesus, also said to the man who had invited him,

When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or your rich neighbors,

lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid.

But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind,

and you will be blessed because they cannot repay you.

For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.

May the Lord bless the preaching of his word.

We all know what it feels like to be on the receiving end of a kindness that seems to have strings attached.

A kindness that seems a little more motivated by self-interest than by a true spirit of generosity.

The classic example of this for me is what some guys I'll refer to as the squeegee guys in Philadelphia.

I don't know if you've ever had this phenomenon in Boston as well,

but there used to be these intersections in Philadelphia.

I think they must have made this illegal now because I don't see it anymore.

But you'd pull up to a red light,

and immediately the guys would be on top of you with their windshield washers,

and they'd start putting the windshield washer on your windshield.

And, you know, if you were from out of town, you might say,

Oh, wow, city of brother love.

It's really true.

The welcoming committee is here,

and, you know, these guys are washing my window.

Wow.

Well, you would learn very quickly that that wasn't the case,

that there was an expectation there as well.

And by the way, I don't blame the squeegee guys.

They're doing the best they can,

and there's something that's commendable about that as well.

But you'd learn very quickly,

and some of them got very good at kind of halfway doing the job

and then finding out whether you had anything for them

to determine whether they would finish.

My point is, from the perspective of the recipient of such a gesture,

you can almost feel like there are certain types of generosity

you need to be on your guard against

because they're really no more than a thinly-veiled attempt

to obligate you to do something in return.

Well, this reciprocity ethic,

the idea that I'll scratch your back if you scratch mine,

was very common in the Greco-Roman world that Jesus lived in,

very pervasive in Jewish society of that time as well.

And so as Jesus sits at the table of this Pharisee,

he knows well the mindset that he's addressing.

One would act in a generous way toward others

in order to elicit a similar generosity in return.

And conversely, if someone extended a kindness to you,

you'd feel an obligation,

even an ethical obligation, to return the favor.

So this reciprocity ethic,

it's maybe not quite so pronounced in our modern Western societies,

in our modern way of thinking,

but it's undeniably present in our world today

and in our interactions with one another.

If we're honest, we really have to admit

that there's very little we do in life

that isn't somehow motivated by our own self-interest

or influenced by our own self-interest.

And on certain levels, that's perfectly okay.

Think about the business context, right?

I mean, in the business context,

if you provide a product or a service for X number of dollars,

and I'm happy to part with X number of dollars

in exchange for that product or service,

that really defines the ideal business transaction.

And by the way,

if that sounds like an endorsement of free market economic principles,

it is.

But that's not my point.

My point is simply to say

that it's not inherently wrong or evil

to reciprocate in such a way.

However, as Jesus so often does,

he goes down beneath the surface here.

He comes to us with questions

that probe into the depths of our hearts

and our motivations

and push us beyond these natural human tendencies.

See, Jesus calls us here to a selfless love

that expends itself for others

regardless of what they can give us in return.

And I probably don't need to tell you

that this doesn't come naturally to us.

In our sinful nature,

we are bent toward doing things

that are in our own self-interest

and toward neglecting things

that really don't offer any personal benefit to us at all.

And so against the grain of his own ancient culture,

against the grain of our cultures of today,

against the grain of our natural human tendencies

and sinful nature,

Jesus teaches us here

that true Christian generosity

goes beyond the bounds of reciprocity.

In fact, one of the defining characteristics

of generosity that is truly Christian,

uniquely Christian,

and by that I mean not just human generosity,

but generosity that is uniquely driven by our faith,

is its intentional focus

on those who can do nothing to repay it.

Jesus says,

you want to know whether your love

is truly Christian love?

Love those who have no capacity

to love you in return.

You want to know whether your generosity

is like that of your Father in heaven?

Give toward those who can do nothing to repay you.

This is generosity in its purest form,

and Jesus wants to be sure

that it's a present and visible trait

in the life of his disciples.

And so in the balance of our time in the word,

I just want to make two observations

about this generosity that Jesus commends to us.

Just two points.

Number one,

it takes selfless, Christ-like initiative.

This generosity that Jesus commends to us

takes selfless, Christ-like initiative.

Now, contrary to the way that Jesus' words

may sound to us on face value,

he's not forbidding us from having our friends over,

from being generous toward our families

and our loved ones,

those we might enjoy hanging out with.

In fact, if he was commending that to us,

he would be commanding us to violate other scriptures.

So he's certainly not saying that.

Remember, Jesus is at the table of a Pharisee here.

He knows what their practices are.

He knows what our human tendencies are,

as we've just been reflecting on.

And so he's using some hyperbole here.

He's using some intentionally strong language

to jar us out of our complacency,

to jar us out of our comfort zones,

and to make a point.

And so what point is Jesus making?

Well, he's saying that as God's people,

our generosity shouldn't be limited

to that which is normal.

It's normal to be generous toward those

who can return the favor to us somehow.

As disciples of Christ,

we're called to take generous initiative

toward those who can't repay us,

and listen, I love this,

precisely because they can't repay us.

I just love the way Jesus explains the reason

why we shouldn't invite our friends,

our family, the rich,

who we might want to hang out with

to our little dinner party.

He almost as if it should be intuitive to us.

He says, no, don't do that.

Don't invite them,

lest they also invite you and you be repaid.

I just want to say, oh yeah,

what a tragedy that would be, right?

I mean, let's say I invite Elon Musk

and his wife to my home,

and we have a nice dinner together,

and then I get invited to their

presumably palatial estate,

and maybe Elon says,

hey, let's go up in SpaceX.

This one's on me.

Jesus is not suggesting

that that would be a tragedy.

What he's saying is,

that's the way the world thinks.

That's the way the world operates.

If your generosity remains only within those bounds,

what difference really has the grace of God made?

Read with me again in verses 13 and 14.

But when you give a feast,

invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind,

and you will be blessed.

Why will you be blessed?

Because they cannot repay you.

Notice that.

He doesn't say you'll be blessed

even though they can't repay you,

or despite the fact that they can't repay you.

No, you will be blessed

because they cannot repay you.

There's a cause-effect relationship here.

The blessing for you

is the direct result of the fact

that you have selected,

as the object of your generosity,

those who cannot return the favor.

And as you take initiative

toward those who can't repay you,

fully aware that they can't repay you,

God promises that he will repay you

for that very same reason.

And this, Jesus says,

is one of the things

that ought to characterize us

as Christians

and distinguish us from the world.

This is a characteristic

that differentiates Christian love

from love that we might think of

as natural and normal

even apart from Christ.

Earlier in Luke's gospel,

Jesus spoke in similar terms

when calling us to love

even our enemies.

I think we have a slide

of the verses in Luke 6,

so you don't have to turn back there

in your Bibles,

but beginning in Luke 6,

Luke 6:32

verse 32,

Jesus says,

if you love those who love you,

what benefit is that to you?

For even sinners love

those who love them.

And if you do good

to those who do good to you,

what benefit is that to you?

For even sinners do the same.

And if you lend to those

from whom you expect to receive,

what credit is that to you?

Even sinners lend to sinners

to get back the same amount.

But love your enemies

and do good

and lend expecting nothing

in return

and your reward will be great

and you will be sons

of the Most High.

For He is kind

to the ungrateful

and the evil.

Be merciful

even as your Father

is merciful.

Now did you note

the similar logic there?

How do we demonstrate

that we are sons and daughters

of the Most High?

Well it's not by merely

doing the same things

that are possible

and even normal

apart from faith.

As Jesus might say,

what credit is that to you?

How does that distinguish you

from the world?

The world

neglects to show kindness

toward those

who can do nothing

to repay that kindness.

But Jesus says,

not so with you.

It shall not be so for us

as His disciples.

We demonstrate

that we are children

of the Most High

and disciples

of His Son Jesus

by taking initiative

toward where it wouldn't

be natural,

where it wouldn't be normal

for us to do so.

By loving even our enemies.

I think sometimes

we get so familiar

with those words

rolling off of Jesus' tongue

that it doesn't jar us

the way that it should.

Loving our enemies.

These are the people

that we would naturally hate.

and in a similar way

by intentionally ensuring

that our generosity

extends to those

who can do nothing

to repay it.

Now let's bring the scene

back to our Pharisees' table

because a most profound accent

is placed on Jesus' exhortation

to us here

in this simple fact.

And it's a simple fact

that goes right over the head

of His original hearers

as they sit around this table.

We should see

that it doesn't go over our heads

this morning.

It's even a rich reflection

for this Advent season.

That simple fact is this.

The one who is sitting there

with them at this table

is Himself God incarnate.

He's sitting there with Him

because He didn't consider

equality with God

a thing to be grasped

but humbled Himself,

made Himself nothing,

took the very nature

of a servant

and took initiative

toward those

who could do nothing

to repay Him.

Soon He'll turn His attention

toward Calvary.

He will move toward the cross

and He will endure death

on a cross

for those who could do nothing

to repay Him

for His sacrifice.

We sang about it this morning.

Mild He lays His glory by,

born that man no more may die.

He left the glory

and riches of heaven

to seek and save

lost sinners

like you and me.

Who could do nothing

to repay Him?

Now if you're here today

and you're not a Christian

or maybe you're exploring

what the claims

of the Christian faith

are all about,

I want to be abundantly clear

about one thing

right here.

There is nothing you can do

to repay God.

You don't come to Jesus

as a way of repaying God

for the wrongs

that you've done

or repaying Him

for the kindness

that He's shown you.

You come to Jesus

as an act of faith,

believing that His death

and resurrection

are sufficient

to cover the penalty

for your sins

and restore your relationship

to God.

So we need to see

that we don't get this backwards.

But for those of us

who are already

in a position of faith

this morning,

I trust you see

the rich gospel truth

that's bound up

in Jesus' calling

to us here.

Be merciful

as your heavenly Father

is merciful.

Take initiative

toward those

who can do nothing

to repay you.

Lavish them with love

and generosity

and kindness.

Why?

Because that's exactly

what Jesus did

when He left behind

the riches of heaven

to come to earth

and seek and save

lost sinners

like you and me.

The generosity

that Jesus commends

to us here

takes selfless

Christ-like initiative

toward those

who can do nothing

to repay it.

Well, second observation

about this generosity

is simply that

it's driven by faith.

This generosity

is driven by faith.

Even as Jesus calls us

to a generosity

that's not self-interested,

He simultaneously

lifts our eyes

to a reward

that can only be seen

through the eyes

of faith.

Again, reading verses

13 and 14.

But when you give a feast,

invite the poor,

the crippled,

the lame,

the blind,

and you will be blessed

because they cannot

repay you.

For you will be repaid

at the resurrection

of the just.

Amazingly,

as we put off

this normal human tendency

to be motivated

by the things

of this world

and take initiative

instead toward those

who can do nothing

to repay us

in this world's terms,

Jesus promises us

that we will be

repaid in eternity.

Now, we embrace

this reward

by faith,

by simply trusting,

by believing

that what Jesus says

to us here

is rock-solid truth

even though we can't

see it and grasp it

in the here and now.

that what we sacrifice

in this life

will accrue

to our credit

in eternity.

And this,

brothers and sisters,

is the great paradox

of giving

in the kingdom

of God.

It is a sacrifice

to give

toward those

who can do nothing

to repay us.

We shouldn't pretend

that it's not a sacrifice.

It is.

It will cost you something.

It will cost you

the ability

to use those same funds

toward some other purpose

that might benefit you

more in the here and now.

But,

when we consider

that sacrifice

in light of the

eternal reward

Jesus promises us here,

it really is

no sacrifice at all.

It's better thought of

as an investment.

And this is about

the most secure investment

that you could possibly make.

If you think about it,

there are many sacrifices

that we make in life

in the short term

for a result

that we expect

to receive

in the long term, right?

I happen to be someone

who loves gardening.

Sean was asking me yesterday,

what do you enjoy doing?

Well, I love

getting out on my day off,

especially in the springtime,

get some dirt

under my fingernails,

and I love planting

those vegetables

in the spring

and just enjoying

the fruit of it

all summer long.

A few years ago,

I began to really get

into planting

and cultivating

perennial fruit-bearing bushes,

especially blueberries.

And so when I,

we've got about an acre,

sorry, I know

that's a little weird

for city dwellers, I guess,

but we've got a whole acre

and I love,

I got 11 blueberry bushes

of different varieties

and got them spread around

different places

in our yard.

And I just love

getting out there

and cultivating these bushes

and you've got to do

a little research

to do blueberries right.

So I did my research up front.

I had to amend our soil.

The blueberries like

a more acidic soil,

so I had to put the right

kind of components

into the soil

so that they would thrive.

They have very shallow

root systems,

so you want to, you know,

mulch heavily around them

and keep them kind of wet.

But the third thing

that I learned,

and this is what I want

to focus on here,

is that when you plant

baby blueberry bushes,

you need to pinch the blossoms

for the first three seasons.

That's the advice

that you're given.

So plant it from a little baby,

little stick, basically.

It takes root.

It begins to leaf out

in the spring

and blossoms come out.

And then they tell you,

pinch the blossoms

those first three seasons

because what you're doing

is you're telling the plant,

don't focus any of your energies

on producing fruit.

Those blossoms,

I'm guessing you know,

are what become the berries

after the bees

do their miraculous work.

So you pinch the blossoms

and you're saying,

don't spend your energy

producing fruit.

Spend your energy

developing a strong root system.

And then if you get

a good solid blueberry bush,

it might produce fruit

for you for 75 years.

So I followed that advice.

I remember the first two seasons,

it wasn't too difficult.

There's only a few blossoms.

That third season,

it was a little harder

because, all right,

we've been at this

for a while now.

I'd like to taste

the fruit of my labors.

And the blossoms

are a little more plentiful.

But I remember

being very intentional

and saying,

no, I could taste

these blueberries now,

but I'm going to do

what I've been told.

I'm going to pinch

these blossoms

and I will trust

that that will produce

more fruit for me

in the long run.

Well, last year,

we got 72 pints

of blueberries, by the way.

So it's working out

pretty well so far,

although I think

we're only scratching

the surface.

But my point is,

what Jesus is saying

to us here is,

do you want to be satisfied

with a couple of handfuls

of blueberries now?

Or will you believe me

that by sacrificing

that small pleasure now,

you will receive

an abundant harvest

that you cannot even fathom

in this moment?

Well, this is a reward

that can only be seen

by faith.

And I believe God is glorified,

even uniquely glorified

in a way,

when we simply take him

at his word.

Even though we can't

grasp it right now,

we take him at his word.

We say, yes, Jesus,

I'm going to live my life

in light of that reality.

When we fix our eyes,

not on the things

that are seen,

but on the things

that are unseen.

Because the things

that are seen

are transient,

but the things

that are unseen

are eternal.

So Jesus is lifting

our eyes

to that unseen reward,

which,

though unseen,

is every bit as real

as the tangible sacrifice,

only far more lasting.

Several years ago,

I became aware

of a couple

in my home church

who were sponsoring

seven children

through our

orphan sponsorship program.

In a few minutes,

I'll tell you more

about our orphan

sponsorship program.

But this couple

was sponsoring

seven children.

And by the way,

I don't look

through our database

to find out

how many children

my friends are sponsoring.

I just stumbled

upon this information.

And it was notable to me,

not just by the number seven,

which is very nice,

but frankly,

we have people

who are sponsoring more.

What was notable to me

is that I know

this couple very well,

and I know

their standard of living.

They're just a very normal,

I would even say,

solidly middle class,

working class family.

And it was notable to me

that they were sponsoring

seven children.

So once I became aware of that,

I just said,

I got to drop them

a note in the mail,

let them know

how much I'm,

how grateful I am

that they're giving

sacrificially like that

toward our children.

So I dropped a note

in the mail.

Sometime later,

we bumped into each other,

and they referenced the note,

so we had a little

conversation about it.

And I came to learn

that this couple,

just like most of us,

when we launched

the sponsorship program

way back in 2003,

they started by sponsoring

one or maybe two children.

And then each year,

as the husband,

as the breadwinner

of that home,

would receive a raise,

they would just add

one more sponsored child.

Just kind of based

on the premise

that the Lord provided

well for us last year

with the income

that we had.

Now he's given us

an increase.

Let's share a little bit

of that increase

with a child in need.

And I was just

blown away by this.

In fact,

because I was bringing

this message again,

I checked in our database again,

and sure enough,

this couple's up to 13

sponsored children now.

So they're investing

in a major way

in our ministry,

even though they're

just living a very normal

American lifestyle.

My point in bringing

up their example

is not to say

that we should all

be sponsoring 13 kids,

or we should all

follow that practice

of adding one new child

each year.

My point is simply

to say this is a family

not of significant means.

The sacrifice

they're making is real.

They could be using

those funds

for some other purpose

to enhance

their own standard of living.

And you know what?

None of us

would even take notice.

None of us would say,

wow,

they're living high on the hog,

or that's self-indulgent.

We would never know

the difference.

But this couple

is not living

in accordance

with the things

of this world.

This is a couple

whose eyes are fixed

not on the things

that are unseen,

but on the things,

not on the things

that are seen,

but on the things

that are unseen.

They are sacrificing

in the here and now

for a reward

that's being kept

in heaven for them

where moth and rust

will not destroy,

and where thieves

will not break in

and steal.

Well, I don't know

about you,

but I want to live

my life in light

of that reality

as well.

And when I think

of our,

when I think

of Jesus' exhortation

here in Luke 14

to be generous

toward those

who can do nothing

to repay us,

I really can't help

but think of the children

who are growing up

sponsored in our

orphan sponsorship program.

If you are sponsoring

children through

our program,

it is virtually impossible

that they will ever

be able to give back

to you,

to do anything

to repay you

for your sacrifice.

Well, that is exactly

the kind of giving

that Jesus is commending

to us in this passage.

It's precisely this kind

of generosity

that he promises

to repay

at the resurrection

of the just.

And his use of that phrase,

the resurrection

of the just,

immediately puts me

in mind of Matthew 25

where Jesus talks

about the final day

and he talks about

saying to us

that enter into

your reward

for when I was hungry

you fed me,

when I was thirsty

you gave me something

to drink,

when I was in prison

you visited me,

and we'll say,

Jesus, when did we do

all these things?

And he'll say,

even as you've done

it to the least of these,

my brethren,

you've done it unto me.

Now, I just imagine,

this is my imagination now,

we're outside of Matthew 25,

but I just imagine

that Jesus might

in that moment

pull up a young lady

by his side

and say,

this is Kalkidan.

I want you to know Kalkidan.

She was born with HIV

in Ethiopia,

both of her parents

had lost their lives

to AIDS,

she was on a trajectory

to die of AIDS as well,

but because you gave

to her

when there was nothing

she could give you

in return,

she was restored

to good health.

And this also brought

a lady named Helena

into her life,

and Helena shared

the gospel with her

and led her to faith.

Kalkidan is here today

because you gave

when there was nothing

she could give you

in return.

Or maybe he'll pull up

a young man by his side

and say,

this is Charles,

you should know Charles.

Charles was born in Zambia,

he was able to go to school

because you invested

in Lighthouse Christian School,

he was able to get

a quality education,

he even gave his life

to Jesus as a young boy

because of a VBS

they did on a school break

at Lighthouse Christian School.

Later he was able

to access a scholarship program

and go off to university,

he became a teacher

and he was able

to influence the lives

of so many others

because you gave to him

when there was nothing

he could give you

in return.

My mind can just get going

when I think about

the ripple effects

of the investments

we're making

into these children's lives now.

Think of the ripple effects,

think of the future children

and grandchildren,

of the children

that we're giving toward now

who will know

the love of Jesus

because their mother

or their grandfather

received Christ

when he was just

a little child

running around the community

with insufficient care

but somebody invested

into him.

Well I believe

part of our reward

in eternity

will be the joy of seeing

with the eyes of eternity

the full glorious impact

that our acts of kindness

and generosity

we're able to achieve

in this life.

It takes the eyes of faith

to see that

in the here and now

and I couldn't be more grateful

for the faith

that God has given

to so many

who have invested generously

in the work of Covenant Mercies

for 19 years now.

So I'm going to turn the corner now

and just start to introduce you

to the ministry

of Covenant Mercies

which will turn 20 next year.

We're about to

become young adults I guess.

The main centerpiece

of Covenant Mercies

ministry

has always been

what we call

our orphan sponsorship program

and it's through this program

that sponsors are able

to invest

into the life

of a fatherless child.

So for the purposes

of our program

we define an orphan

as a fatherless child.

Sometimes the mother

is still alive

other times

they've lost both parents

and grandparents

have taken the children in

or an aunt or an uncle

has taken the children in

and then through the teams

we build on the ground

with our indigenous

church partners

we're able to go out

into the community

and to deliver

some basic nutritional,

medical,

and educational care

into the lives

of the children.

Well it is an exciting time

for us

after 19 years

of ministry

you might imagine

a lot of the children

that we started with

when we were young

as a ministry

they were very young children

and now they're

beginning to graduate

from our programs

and take their place

in society

as young adults.

So some of them

are able to express

in their own words

the impact that

the program has had

in their lives

so I want to introduce you

to a young lady

named Masai

from our program

in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

she's now a graduate

of that program.

I'm told there might be

a little bit of a delay

in the audio

of the video

but hopefully

you'll catch it.

My name is Masai Ayyeli

I was born in Addis Ababa

I'm 17 years old

the reason we came

to Covenant Mercies

is because

we were in trouble

my dad died

and then my mom

couldn't find a job

we didn't have

anything in the house

so we left

and went to the street

that's when

Covenant Mercies

found us

they helped me

attend school

they got us

to where we are now

Masai had a little

fight with her mom

it was very

like minor thing

and then

she said

bad things

about her mom

and then

she was cursing her

she was feeling

really bad

and then she

left the house

when I got

on the street

I couldn't find

a place

to spend the night

I stayed

three weeks

on the street

and then I found

some girls

and they befriended me

and we begged

people to give us

money to pay

for bed

each night

Helena kept

calling my mom

and she couldn't

find me

for a long time

so my mom

came

and she found

me where I used

to be

she told me

Helena been

looking for you

she wants

to talk to you

so in our

meeting

Masai was

she was

she was so

stubborn

she said

she doesn't

want to

there is no

need for her

to talk to us

but she just

simply came here

to tell us

that she doesn't

want to be

part of the program

I told her

I want to get

out of this

sponsorship

delete my name

I was going

to leave

and she said

ok let's pray

before we leave

but then

I asked her

if it's ok

for us to pray

and then we

prayed

and

surprisingly

after the prayer

she was a

different person

and then when

I asked her

to write

her goals

the goals

she was writing

was completely

different

like she was

saying she

wants to

go back to

school

make peace

with her

mother

and then

start old

friendships

with healthy

friends

and then

start studying

hair styling

which is her

dream

since I

returned to

the Lord

he has

done a

lot of

great

things

in my

life

I read

my Bible

I go to

church

and I

obtained

some of

the Bible

classes

those are

great times

the Lord

has done

great things

in my

life

now my

relationship

with my

family is

so much

better than

it was

before

it's

joyful

before

we didn't

have peace

in the

house

but now

we all

love each

other

and live

together

in peace

after I

finish school

I want

to help

people

who are

like I

used to

be

what I

want to

say to

my

sponsors

I run

out of

words

when I

think

about

them

may

God

retay

them

may

God

give

them

all

kinds

of

good

gifts

the

Lord

is

great

and

will

do

great

things

in my

life

I

know

that

there's

so many

reasons I

love to

show that

video as an

introduction

of our

ministry

and I

don't

I

won't take

long to

highlight

them

but just

briefly

obviously

Messiah's

deep

appreciation

for the

difference

that her

sponsor has

made in

her life

by persevering

with her

and giving

even through

those kind

of challenges

the emphasis

on the

family

we work

with the

family

and we

see it

as a

provision

of God's

common

grace

that family

ties are

very strong

in all the

African

nations

where we're

working

and so

rather than

removing the

children from

that context

in an

institutional

setting

we just

come alongside

the family

and it's a

beautiful story

there of the

restoration of

that family

and then

I just love

the opportunity

to introduce

you to some

of the

godly

competent

indigenous

leaders that

the Lord

has provided

for us

so you get

to know

Helena a

little bit

there

we are

blessed

with such

competent

and godly

brothers and

sisters that

we are

working with

and they are

integral to

our ministry

in covenant

mercy

so a few

of our

core values

come out

in that

way

even just

in telling

Messiah's

story

well through

19 years

of ministry

in sub-Saharan

Africa

we have

learned that

effectively

breaking cycles

of poverty

and making

a significant

difference in

the life

of our

children

requires an

intentional

and increasingly

direct investment

in the education

of our children

from day one

in our program

education has

always been

important and

we've always

recognized

it's going

to be critical

to help these

children break

out of cycles

of poverty

and yet

simply putting

a child in

a school

uniform

paying their

school fees

providing them

with the basic

necessities of

going to school

isn't enough

in many cases

when a hundred

other students

may be in the

classroom with

them depending

on which program

area we're talking

about and maybe

there's one teacher

and a few textbooks

to share among

those hundred

students

if our goal

and this is the

way we define

our goal in the

life of each

individual child

if our goal

is to restore

them to everything

God has created

them to be

as his image

bearers

then an investment

into their

education will be

critically important

for us

and a hundred

students in a

single classroom

will be a major

obstacle

that's why 15

years ago now

we began

collaborating with

our partners at

Lighthouse Christian

School in

Zambia

in 2006

we sponsored

just one classroom

of kindergarten

students

and then we

just grew the

school by adding

one new grade

each year to

the point that

today we have

children in grades

pre-k through

grade 7 at

Lighthouse serving

more than 300

students each and

every year to

receive quality

Christian education

there

we also partnered

with our partners

there to buy

land and develop

the campus through

the years as the

school has grown

so I think you're

looking at some

of the pictures of

the campus that we

have developed

over the years

we've been so

pleased with our

investment into the

students there at

Lighthouse that a

couple of years ago

in March 2019 we

broke ground on

Hope Community

Primary School in

western Uganda

where we have about

500 of our

sponsored children

and this was after

spending much of

oh first you're

looking at the

groundbreaking photo

that man with the

big smile on his

face on the far

right is Moses

Nkwatsibwe he's the

pastor of our

partner church there

and we have had

so much joy in

developing this

school project with

them I think you've

got a slide of our

this is the site plan

that Lord willing we

will phase in over a

period of years and

by God's grace we

were we've been able

to complete phase one

very quickly and so

you can get an

overhead view by the

way you can rent a

drone in western

Africa or western

Uganda so the next

photo will show you

the progress we've

made on that campus

thus far and we

had the joy of

opening that school

in February 2020

for about 90

students in grades

pre-k through grade

one and we plan to

add a new grade each

each year just as

we've done at

lighthouse in Zambia

and continue to grow

that school so that

by 2026 Lord willing

we'll be doing the

same thing grades

pre-k through grade

seven we'll have

hundreds of students

that will were able

to serve in this

severely underserved

region of Uganda by

that year now our

sponsorship program

carries the children

through grade 12 or

the basic vocational

school equivalent but

in recent years we

have also established

what we call the

Mapalo Scholarship

Fund for Higher

Education this is for

graduates of our

sponsorship program so

if they're able to

graduate from grade 12

and they are eligible to

continue on for

university studies

they're also eligible to

apply for a scholarship

through our Mapalo

Fund Mapalo means

blessing and it sort

of provides the blessing

of continuing studies for

those students who are

eligible well one of our

current Mapalo scholars is

a young man named Michael

Nkata and I think we got a

photo of Michael circa

2008 when he was first

enrolled in our program

lost both of his parents

raised by his aunt near the

school and from the time he

was enrolled at Lighthouse

Christian school he was

just a standout student

the teachers were keeping

their eye on him through

the years well fast forward

to today he's now a

pre-med student at the

University of Zambia on a

combined government and

Mapalo scholarship so he

earned a 75% scholarship

through a government

scholarship program and

then we were just topping

up the final 25% to send

him on a full scholarship to

the University of Zambia in

his Mapalo application

Michael described his desire

to become a doctor and his

desire to serve the

underserved as a doctor in

the following way he said

quote being an orphan and

being raised in a community

of people with low social

status has made me want to

study hard and be one person

who came from such a

background and still made it

in life and be able to give

hope to people where hope has

died and I just remember when

I was have the pleasure of

reading these Mapalo

applications as they come in

and just being part of the

decision process and I

remember reading that

statement in Michael's

application and just being

struck with the fact that

you know Michael is able to

pursue that dream today

because somebody gave him

hope where his hope might

have died because someone

gave to him when there was

nothing he could do to repay

them and all of this in

response to Christ who came

to us when there was

nothing we could do to pay

him back well there are

many ways that we can

respond to this this

exhortation from Jesus in

Luke chapter 14 and I'm

Luke 14 · chapter mention

certainly not here this

morning to say that

covenant mercies is the

only way to respond but I

do want to invite you to

consider whether you might

want to join hands with us in

a few different ways first of

all your sponsorship of

children is what enables our

partners on the ground like

pastor Moses there like Helena

and others to you mobilize

them as a sponsor to go and

and serve in our children's

lives and to build that

bridge for the gospel into

their lives and even the

lives of their families so we

have a table in the reception

area over here where we'll be

hanging out afterwards and

there are profiles of children

who are awaiting sponsors if

you'd want to consider

sponsoring children I'd be happy

to answer any questions that

you may have about that the

schools that we're developing

are we raise funds separately

for those schools so we don't

utilize the sponsorship funds

sponsors give $39 a month and

that's a direct investment into

the life of that child but we

raise funds in other ways to

develop those schools and then

Lord willing years down the

road we will have more of those

students who are eligible to

continue on for higher higher

education studies and so we are

building them Apollo fund today

with that future day in mind in

the end we trust that these

young people will become

influencers in their home

communities influencers in

their families in their

churches in their communities

and those ripple effects that

we were kind of dreaming out loud

about earlier will take shape

through their lives well again I

hope you'll stop by the table and

consider perhaps sponsoring

children we are I didn't even

mention we're up to almost 1600

sponsored children in those three

different countries in fact you'd

send me home a very happy man if

the 16 kids in there were

sponsored and that would push us

over 1600 but those are just

numbers please we also have some

as I mentioned you know we raise

funds in other ways for those

school projects and different

things that we invest funds in

outside of sponsorship so we have

some merchandise I've got these

beautiful do justice love mercy

Micah 6 8 t-shirts that that we

sell for all the extra small

through extra large people on your

Christmas list also have these

beautiful true Africa photo books

dear friend of mine traveled with

me several times to all the

African nations where we serve and

he's just you can we've got one

there you can leave through it's a

little pricier but you could

consider that as well as a gift for

someone perhaps and also a gift for

us as a ministry regardless of

whether you decide to join hands

with covenant mercies specifically

today may we all grow even this

Advent season may we all grow in

this generosity that Jesus commends

to us may we grow to be disciples

who take selfless Christ-like

initiative toward those who could do

nothing to repay us knowing knowing

with the confidence of faith that we

will be repaid at the resurrection of

the just amen