Opening Video Illustration: Chairs clip – this clip reminds us how important our lives are to the Kingdom of Heaven and to each other sitting in this church this morning. ( from sermoncentral.com.)
Series: 12 in 2012
Sermon: $12 dollars a changed life!
Subject: Spiritual mile marker “Giving”
Review of the 2012 so far:
Our 5 rocks signify the following:
January 2012 – 12 meals, 12 minutes of prayer for our 21 day time of prayer and fasting.
February 2012 – 12 minutes of Bible reading a day and you can read the Bible through in a year.
March 2012 – 12 people, 12 ways to invite someone to church.
Re-highlight the pens and the cards to continue inviting people out to church.
April 2012 – 1 person - 1 time a month - 12 meetings this year for the purpose of discipleship and or make 12 new connections with unsaved people this year for the purpose of future discipleship.
The new rock symbolizes another spiritual mile marker: “Giving”
May 2012 – This month’s spiritual mile marker challenge is to be wise Stewards of the resources God has given us in our life – we do this financially by tithing, and by giving offerings. We also do it by using our gifts – our talents and our time for the Kingdom of Heaven.
The parable of the talents which we will look at in a moment reminds us, instructs us to make sure that we do not forget that we are placed here on this earth to manage the resources God places into our hands.
Introduction:
Story from Kirk Nowery: “The Stewardship of Life.”
At 12:55 pm the mayday call crackled through the speakers at the Flight Service Station on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula. The desperate pilot of a Piper A22, a small single-engine plane, was reporting that he had run out of fuel and was preparing to ditch the aircraft in the waters of Cook Inlet. On board were four people, two adults and two young girls, ages 11 and 12. They had departed two hours earlier from Port Alsworth, a small community on the south shore of Lake Clark, bound for Soldotna, a distance of about 150 miles. Under normal conditions it would been a routine flight; however, the combination of fierce headwinds and a failure to top off the fuel tank had created a lethal situation. Upon hearing the plane’s tail number, the air traffic controller realized that his own daughter was one of the young passengers aboard the plane. In desperation himself, he did everything possible to assist the pilot; but suddenly the transmission was cut off. The plane had crashed into the icy waters. Four helicopters operating nearby began searching the area within minutes of the emergency call; but they found no evidence of the plane, and no survivors. The aircraft had been traveling without water survival gear, leaving its four passengers with even less of a chance to make it through the ordeal. Fiercely cold Cook Inlet, with its unpredictable glacial currents, is considered among the most dangerous waters in the world. It can claim a life in minutes, and that day it claimed four.
Kirk adds these thoughts to the story: For reasons we will never know, the pilot of that doomed aircraft chose not to use the resources that were at his disposal. He did not have enough fuel. He did not have the proper survival equipment. Perhaps he had not taken the time to get the day’s weather report. Whatever the case, he did not use the resources that were available; and in this instance the consequences were fatal.
I wonder how many other people have died needlessly like these 4 people did? Why, because someone did not manage and or use the resources they had at their disposal. – I also wonder how many have died without Jesus -- spiritually speaking from others being poor stewards of the resources God has placed them in charge of.
Nowery states, “The stewardship of resources is a serious business; and God’s will is that we give it serious attention. This demands that we have the right perspective on our resources, and that is possible only if we have the right focus on our source (Page 118).
T.S. - Let’s read our parable from Jesus today and learn just how important Stewardship of our life and resources is to God.
The parable of the talents:
Matthew 25: 14-30:
The Parable of the Talents
14“Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his property to them.
15To one he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey.
16The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more.
17So also, the one with the two talents gained two more.
18But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.
19“After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them.
20The man who had received the five talents brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.’
21“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
22“The man with the two talents also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two talents; see, I have gained two more.’
23“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
24“Then the man who had received the one talent came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed.
25So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’
26“His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed?
27Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.
28“‘Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents.
29For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.
30And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
T.S. – Jesus shared this teaching for those of his day, his followers and for us here this morning. This parable teaches us a few major life lessons about Stewardship. Jesus shared this concept to give the people who follow His a few reality checks to be applied to life.
I. The first reality check of life is God owns everything and he gives it to us to manage for Him:
a. I want to lay down a premise that the Bible makes very clear in our parable and in the Bible: God owns everything – we only manage what he gives us in this life.
i. Psalm 24:1-6: 1The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; 2for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters.3Who may ascend the hill of the LORD? Who may stand in his holy place? 4He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. 5He will receive blessing from the LORD and vindication from God his Savior. 6Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, O God of Jacob. Selah
ii. 1 Corinthians 2:12: “We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.”
b. The parable teaches us that God hands all of us all that we have – he is the owner of this world – the Creator of this world and of us.
i. Quote: Our responsibility before God is underscored by one biblical metaphor after another: we are clay, we are branches, we are vessels, we are ambassadors, we are soldiers, we are watchmen, we are servants. Notice that every one of these implies responsibility to yield fully to Christ and to live in absolute obedience to Him (Nowery, page 83).
ii. Lockyer states, “The parable teaches the promise of the traveler that when he returns he will deal with his servants according to the use they have made of the money entrusted to them-a reward for the faithful, a punishment for the negligent.’ (All the Parables of the Bible, page 242.)
c. God owns it all and he gives it to us:
i. The Donut Illustration--- have a dozen donuts – give them to John then ask for 2 back to take to the boys. John says no way you gave them to me and I need them! They belong to me I deserve to have all 12 donuts.
1. The Donuts were made by human hands but most of the ingredients were created and grown for us by God’s water, seeds and Sun.
ii. “If you want something you’ve never had, you’ll have to do something you’ve never done.” Dave Ramsey
1. Do you want the blessings of God? Do you want Him to multiply your finances and resources?
2. Do you want peace in this life – then give to God what is God’s!
d. Rick Stacy states, “Stewardship is about the right use of our life. Money is a part of that life. Money is simply a representation to time, talent, and sweat - poured into a piece of paper or a checking account. It ALL belongs to the master. All of it! The Principle of the tithe is the returning of 1/10 of what is his to honor him as God - remember - Abraham - Moses - Jesus all upheld the tithe - certainly it belongs to God” (sermoncentral.com).
T.S. – The reality check of life this morning is everything we own or possess is given to us by God because he created it all, and he provides it all.
II. The second reality check I see is that what I possess is not given to me to fulfill my selfish wants and desires.
a. Therefore I need to use it wisely and for the glory of the Kingdom of Heaven.
i. Dave Ramsey “The Great Misunderstanding – Giving – Generous Giving - Giving to God! Giving as an instrument of God is one of the greatest blessings one can experience. You cannot lose by Giving!”
1. The person who loses out in life is the selfish person who never gives to benefit others!
2. We have all seen movies of people like this and read the books.
ii. America has become a selfish nation – we are riches nation to have ever arisen in the history of the world but we give only about 2% of our riches to others in need.
1. The result is we have a selfish nation that has now become one of the most indebted nations in the world.
2. Dave Ramsey states, “This is not a game… Debt has become a part of who we are. It’s become that spoiled child in the grocery store with their lip stuck out: ‘I want it. I want it. I deserve it because I breathe air.’ And, well, that’s an uphill climb in our culture right now, to go against that and say, ‘Hey, let’s be grownups here. Let’s be mature, learn to delay pleasure, save up and pay for things.”
b. We have to learn the lesson Jesus is teaching here – give to God what is his and in the end he will bless you.
i. Quote: Giving with a glad and generous heart has a way of routing out the tough old miser within us. Even the poor need to know that they can give. Just the very act of letting go of money or some other treasure does something within us. That something is it destroys the demon, greed." SOURCE: Richard Foster
1. 2 Corinthians 9:6-11 says, "Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work... Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God."
c. Story: We need to give what we already have – the resources to the do the work of the Kingdom of Heaven are within our bank accounts!
i. Tony Campolo was giving a major address at a women’s conference. At a point in the program the women were being challenged with a several thousand dollar goal for their mission project, the chairperson for the day turned to Dr Campolo and asked him if he would pray for God’s blessing on the women as they considered what they might do to achieve their goal. To her astonishment, he went to the podium and graciously declined. He said, “You already have the necessary resources to complete this project right here in this room. It would be inappropriate to ask God’s blessing when God has already blessed you. The necessary gifts are in your hands. As soon as we take the offering and underwrite this project, then we will thank God for freeing us to be generous, responsible and accountable stewards.”
When the offering was taken, the mission goal was overreached. Then Dr. Campolo led them in a joyous prayer of thanksgiving....Campolo: “The Gift Is in Your Hand” (p.239, Illustrations Unlimited, Hewett).
ii. The gift of giving is spoken about in Romans 12:8: “…if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously…13 share with God’s people who are in need, practice hospitality.”
iii. James 4:17: “Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.”
T.S. – We need to not be selfish but be generous givers because God rewards us according to how we manage our resources and how we use our resources.
III. The third reality check is what we possess is to be invested – to be used for good – for the benefit of the Kingdom of Heaven.
a. Andrew Carnegie stated, “Surplus wealth is a sacred trust to be managed for the good of others.”
i. Malachi 3:10: “Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this, “says the Lord of hosts. If I will not open for you the windows of Heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it.”
1. We are to give – so that there is food in the House of God for those who are hungry!
2. We are to give 10% to the church – our church and allow these funds to provide a place to feed the hungry – to meet the needs of the poor and hurting.
b. In this reality check it is important to hear the Holy Spirit’s voice to use our resources for a greater impact in the Kingdom of Heaven this includes offerings.
i. Think about this point? Talk about giving meaning an eternal purpose for my life – your life! My giving to the church and the giving of offerings to others is too used to impact the lost and the hurting.
1. Generous giving story: On April 28, 1999, just eight days after the Columbine shooting, shock rock singer Marilyn Manson was scheduled to perform a concert in Iowa City, Iowa. And since Manson’s music was prominent in the lives of Columbine killers Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, there was a lot of emotion surrounding his concert. Mark Forstrom, a local Youth Minister in the area wrote about what happened. He wrote, "The police, the media, and the community began to prepare for angry protests and ugly brawling between Christians and Marilyn Manson supporters."Suddenly, something totally unexpected happened. Emerging thru the vehicle of e-mail, another local movement suddenly sprang to life— that the only way to truly change our moral climate is to soften hard hearts. (The hearts of Manson fans have been hardened by
their perception that Christians are mean-spirited, hateful, and judgmental.) Thus, the idea was birthed to unravel that stereotype by encouraging Christians to show the pure LOVE of Christ to these fans in tangible ways. Concert day finally arrived, and tension filled the community. The media geared up for an ugly battle between Manson fans and the Christian opposition. Instead, what they observed here was an amazing testament to the power of and love of Christ! Scores of Christians from churches all over Linn County and as far away as Des Moines (2 hours away) converged on the sidewalks outside the Five Seasons Center, to do two POSITIVE things: pray, and to show unmistakable love. It was a sight to behold.
~ Groups conducted "prayer walks" around the arena.
~ People prayed in huddles on the sidewalk.
~ Churches around the city held special prayer meetings.
As for showing LOVE to the fans,
~ One church purchased 100 pizzas, which were freely given away to the fans in line and bystanders.
~ Cookies and over 1,200 cans of soda were purchased or donated and distributed.
~ Someone made turkey & cheese sandwiches and gave them away.
~ One pastor asked Manson fans who passed by how he could pray for them--about 20 shared specific things & were prayed for on the spot.
~ After the concert, about $200 in cash (collected mostly by a local youth group) was given out to pay for parking in the parking ramp.
The Christians involved said, "We’re Christians and we’d like to show you God’s love by paying for your parking tonight." The
immediate results of this love in action were phenomenal:
~ People continually asked, "Why are you doing this?" and then listened to the answer. ~ Two "live" radio reporters (one inside the stadium and one outside) discussed--on the air--how preferable it was to be outside with the generous Christians.
~ At least 3 people gave their lives to Christ through the loving care of the Christians.
~ At least one other fan that we know of chose not to go to the concert, ending up in church the following Sunday.
~ After getting the pizza, one kid commented, "Wow, Marilyn Manson never gave me anything!"
~ A Marilyn Manson web-site, reporting on our Christian response admitted, "so maybe those Christians aren’t half bad!"
As for the concert itself, we saw God work a miracle there as well. After only an hour, Manson abruptly ended the concert early. He suddenly flew into a rage: he threw his microphone to the ground, and stormed off the stage, never to return!
So to summarize the totality of Marilyn Manson’s visit to Cedar Rapids, we might say this: many fans came to the concert convinced that Christians were irritating and that Marilyn Manson was impressive and many left the concert feeling that Marilyn Manson was
irritating and that Christians were impressive! Think of how much closer to the kingdom thousands of kids might be as a result of this unforeseen outreach event.
a. From sermoncentral.com Stan Martin contributor
c. I am also reminded that what I am given will be brought back to my attention in the end and I will have to give an account of how I managed God’s resources through my life.
i. Just like in the parable told by Jesus about these individuals we will all be held accountable how we managed God resources.
ii. Galatians 6:7-10: 7Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature£ will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.
1. Please hear this – you will reap what you sow!
d. Illustration: FAITHFUL INSTRUCTIONS
i. There was a man who got lost in the desert. After wandering around for a long time his throat became very dry, about that time he saw a little shack in the distance. He made his way over to the shack and found a water pump with a small jug of water and a note. The note read: "pour all the water into the top of the pump to prime it, if you do this you will get all the water you need". Now the man had a choice to make, if he trusted the note and poured the water in and it worked he would have all the water he needed. If it didn’t work he would still be thirsty and he might die. Or he could choose to drink the water in the jug and get immediate satisfaction, but it might not be enough and he still might die. After thinking about it the man decided to risk it. He poured the entire jug into the pump and began to work the handle, at first nothing happened and he got a little scared but he kept going and water started coming out. So much water came out he drank all he wanted, took a shower, and filled all the containers he could find. Because he was willing to give up momentary satisfaction, he got all the water he needed. Now the note also said: after you have finished, please refill the jug for the next traveller.” The man refilled the jug and added to the note: “ Please prime the pump, believe me it works”!
We have the same choice to make, do we hold on to what we have because we don’t believe there are better things in store for us, and settle for immediate satisfaction? Or do we trust God and give up all that we have to get what God has promised us? I think the choice is obvious. We need to pour in all the water, trust God with everything.
Then once we have experienced what God has to offer, the living water, we need to tell other people, “Go ahead prime the pump, believe me it works”! (from Randy Leckliter contributor on sermoncentral.com)
Video Illustration: Life is temporary – so what are you living for? From BluefishTv
Conclusion:
A tangible spiritual mile marker challenge:
The basic question is what is God doing through you? What is God doing through your talents? Your treasures? Your time?
In a moment we will be handing out envelops with $12.00 in it. We are going to give you $12 for you to use and to seek to multiply for the Kingdom of Heaven. Our desire is to give you an opportunity to be used by the Holy Spirit to multiply this money so we can offer scholarships to people who desire to send their kids to Christian Hills School.
The assignment for each of you today is based on the parable of the talents, please come forward and get an envelope with $12 in it - and multiply it for scholarship to Christian Hills School:
I reminded the participants:
1) This is not your money, it’s God’s money so pray about how to multiply it because He is able to show you how too.
3) Report your results back in 60 days and bring the money in on June 24th.
Here are some ideas for you to multiply that money – but I would really like you to pray to the Lord for wisdom and insight on how to multiply this money for His kingdom:
Ideas:
Bake sales
Buy water then go sell it on the corner on a very hot day!
Go buy something then sell it for more than you paid - like candy – world finest chocolate has a deal buy bars for 50 cents and sell them for a dollar.
Make something with the money and then sell it.
Invest it somehow?
You could align with others combining your money and then do a project together to raise more money –idea --- like making a quilt then auctioning it off?
Some of you may be thinking that $12.00 is not that much money to start with but trust me God can multiply the little and turn it into a lot – listen to this story:
Story: Osceola McCarty, African-American Philanthropist
The late great African-American laundry woman, author, and philanthropist, Osceola McCarty (1908 - 1999), did one thing all of her life: laundry! For decades, Osceola, a frugal Christian woman who never bought a car - who never got married - who lived in a simple frame home in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, earned 50 cents a load doing laundry for the well-to-do families of Hattiesburg!
Preferring to use a washboard instead of an electric washing machine, she toiled for three-quarters of a century as a domestic: washing, ironing, and folding other people’s clothing! Her life was an inspiration to many! Her formal education ended in the sixth grade when an aunt became ill and was paralyzed! Osceola had to quit school so that she could take care of her! She took in laundry to earn money; and, every week she put a little aside in a savings account!
Osceola had a dream - a dream that she never shared with anyone - a dream of getting a higher education - a dream that was never fulfilled for her; but, is being lived vicariously through the students that she has and continues, even after her death, to help! That dream was revealed when she shocked the University of Southern Mississippi, in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, in 1995, with a generous gift of $150,000 to "help somebody’s child go to college."
You see, my brothers and sisters, that money she had put aside in a savings account for all of those years had grown to $250,000 with compound interest, which,as she said, "was more than she could use!" She explained, "I can’t carry anything away from here with me, so I thought it was best to give it to some child to get an education!" The University of Southern Mississippi used the money to endow the "Osceola McCarty Scholarship USM Foundation" which provides money for African-American children of limited means with the opportunity to be able to go to college!
She once told reporters, "It’s more blessed to give than to receive - I’ve tried it!"
Osceola McCarty is a good example of an individual who understands what it means to love others with our giving - giving that is much more than anyone expects from us - giving that is much more than what is required of us - extravagant giving! Our Holy Scripture text, for today, describes an encounter that Jesus, the Christ, had with Mary of Bethany, a woman who understood the principle of extravagant giving and demonstrated that principle, like Osceola McCarty, in a marvelous way!
(Sources: "Angel Hero: Osceola McCarty," by Molly, www.myhero.com, accessed 02 November 2009. "Osceola McCarty," by Blair Walker, special to AOL Black Voices, Black History Month Work & Money Heroes, www.blackvoices.com, accessed 02 November 2009. From a sermon by George Dillahunty, A Heart To Give!, 11/3/2009) –from sermoncentral.com
