Walking in the Light

When I was younger, my bedroom door was right in front of the hallway light. And because of where my bed was in my room, the hall light shone right in my face. At that point I was too scared to try to sleep with my door closed. That was too much darkness. But there was enough light, from enough other rooms in the house that turning off the hall light would allow me to sleep, while still having a comfortable amount of light dancing around. So I got up, and turned off the hall light.

Well this lasted all of half a second and then my sister began to scream, and one of my parents yelled up, “Turn that light back on.” My plot had been foiled. So I decided to go in and reason with my little sister. You would have thought that I would learned by then that reasoning with her was impossible, but I decided to give it a try anyway.

So I walked into her room and said, “Melissa, why do you have to have the hall light on?” She said, “Because I’m scared of the monsters.” I said, “But Melissa, look at your room. You have toys everywhere. It is like a minefield in here. If you turn the light off, the monsters won’t be able to see where they are going, and they will most likely fall and break their neck. However, if you leave the light on, it will be much easier for them to see where they are going and they will have a safer trip getting to you.” That was the first night that I slept with my door closed.

There is something about the dark. It is not always a pleasant experience to have. It is one thing to have dark when we are trying to sleep or watching a movie. But what about doing other things? Have you ever tried to read or work with too little light? Have you ever tried to walk in the dark, I mean in the pitch-black-can’t-really-see dark? It is difficult. When it comes to walking, it is much easier to walk in the light. Dark times call for walking in the light.

Our lesson for today is from the second chapter of Isaiah. It wasn’t all that long ago that we were reading from Isaiah as part of our Bible in 90 Days challenge. You know that the people of his day were walking in some dark times. They Assyrians had captured and destroyed the northern kingdom of Israel. Now they were knocking on the doors of the Kingdom of Judah. David and Solomon’s Kingdom, which one shined so brightly that people from all over the world would come to see it, is now little more than a smoldering wick trembling under the threat of a terrible empire.

Things inside the country were not much better either. On the surface things looked OK. The temple was there. Sacrifices were being made, but the hearts of the people were not in it. They would go through the motions, but it seemed little more than that. They did not trust God. He was not their source of peace and security. They were looking to other countries to save and protect them. Their money and possessions were more important than the poor and needy. Their courts were a joke. The people of the kingdom of Judah were living in some dark times. Dark times call walking in the light.

In some respects, it doesn’t seem as if a whole lot has changed for our world today. If someone were to ask if we are walking in dark times too; the answer would have to be yes. There is the economy. But you don’t need me to tell you about that. The greed and corruption that brought all this about is enough to make you want to scream and pull your hair out.

Our faith is not immune for trouble either. Christians around the world, in places like India and countries run by hard-line Islamic governments are being attacked and killed. Their homes are destroyed, all because they love and believe in Jesus. Nonbelievers, atheists, and agnostics in America and Europe are organizing and advertising. Perhaps you have seen this on the news. They want a world without religion. Now granted, whenever the church strays from the gospel, it is not pretty. Then you could almost understand that viewpoint. But the reality of the world that we live in is that the times are dark.

You don’t need me to tell you this. So what do we do? What do we do when we find ourselves surrounded by such a great darkness? What do we do when the going is so tough? It can be really, really hard. So what do we do? When the going gets tough, when the going gets dark, the tough don’t give up, they go for a walk. They walk in the light of the Lord.

Isaiah’s word to the people of Judah was to look ahead. Look to those latter days. The days are coming when people from all over the world will come to worship God. That tiny hill where the temple stood in Jerusalem would be the greatest mountain in the world. People would not only hear God’s word, but they would live their lives in accordance with it.

And there will be peace. No need to worry about swords, because they will be turned into plows that will provide food to eat. What an amazing image. The weapons of war that bring about death and destruction will be transformed into tools to feed the hungry. Isaiah’s message is a simple one of hope. Don’t get caught up in the darkness. Don’t let it overwhelm you. Instead, walk in the promise of the Light of the Lord. Walk in this light, even if the darkness is great. God is faithful. He keeps his promises. Those days will come.

They did. Those latter day promises came true. The day of light had dawned a little over seven hundred years after Isaiah wrote these words. Because Jesus, the light of the world, came down from heaven above. And do you remember what the angels sang at his birth? “Peace on earth.” People streamed to hear Jesus’ sermons, especially when he gave the sermon on the mount.

When they went to arrest Jesus in the garden, and Peter pulled out his sword; Jesus told him to put it away. When he was on the cross, darkness covered the earth for three hours.

But it was there on that cross that Jesus took all the darkness of the sin of the world upon himself. He took all our greed and selfishness, injustices, pride, hatred, fighting, he took it all, everything that makes the darkness great and he died. They place him into a dark tomb, and rolled a stone in front of it. Jesus, the light of the world, was surrounded by our darkness.

And yet, the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. That tomb is now empty. The darkness was broken on Easter morning. When the women went to the tomb early that morning, they found that it was empty and the stone was rolled away. Isaiah’s promise was kept. So that walking in the Lord, now is walking with Jesus.

Do you see how Jesus is the kept promise of Isaiah? Isaiah said that people would stream from all over the world to worship God, listen to his Word and to seek to live their lives according to it. On Sunday mornings, all over the world there are people worshipping Jesus. They are gathered together to hear God’s Word and receive the gifts that he so graciously gives to us in the sacraments. When believers all over the world come to this table, they are fed and nourished with Jesus’ very body and blood.

Of course, it goes without saying, but I’m going to say it anyway, that we are still waiting to see Isaiah’s promise being kept in all of it fullness and glory. We wait for that day when our brothers and sisters in the faith wait can worship without persecution. We are waiting for all swords everywhere to be turned into plows. We are waiting for this promise to be completely fulfilled.

And it will be. What we see in Jesus is a taste, a sample of what is to come. What we see is proof that the rest of it is just around the corner. We don’t know exactly when it will arrive. But it is coming. It is on its way. We have already gotten the e-mail notification that our shipment has shipped and left the warehouse. We are simply waiting for it to arrive.

So while we are waiting, we walk in the light. While we are waiting, we walk with Jesus. So we worship. We receive the gifts he gives us in communion. We read his Word. We gather and find that peace which surpasses all human understanding. We find joy and hope as we hear and are reminded of Jesus’ resurrection. We love, serve and care for one another and our neighbors. We refuse to allow the darkness to overcome us. We refuse to allow it to convince us that the darkness is all there is, even though the arguments can seem quite compelling. Because we know that our God is faithful. He keeps his promises. He is with us. And we walk with him. After all, dark times call for a walk in the light of the Lord. Amen.

What a Steward Does

One Sunday, during the offering, a little boy took off his tie and put it into the offering plate. “What are you doing?” His mother asked him. “I’m doing what the pastor said to do.” The little boy answered. “He told us to give our “ties” and offerings.”

Well, you made it. We have come to the end of our stewardship emphasis and made it all the way to commitment Sunday. I hope and pray that this time has been for you a blessing and that you have come to see stewardship in a new light.

We began by tweaking our understanding of stewardship and emphasizing that it is not about money or giving money. But instead that stewardship is a source of identity, it is a worldview, a way of life; ultimately, it is a relationship. Then we looked at what a steward is. We talked about how we are all stewards, and that as stewards we belong to our God, because he created and re-created us. We are managers and not owners, because the earth is the Lord’s and everything in it. That we are at the very same time saint and sinner and that we are uniquely singular and profoundly plural in this awesome thing called the church.

Today we are going to wrap up our stewardship emphasis by talking about what it is that a steward does. We know what stewardship is. We know what a steward is. So it makes sense to talk about what a steward does, and that is four things. A steward lives, in the world, but not of the world. A steward loves, and is loved. A steward serves, and is served. A steward lives always in the present, but with an eye toward the future.

A steward lives in the world, but not of the world. This makes a lot of sense, especially as we consider that stewardship is ultimately about a relationship. We belong to our God. We are his. He created us. He purchased and redeemed us, not with gold or silver, but with his holy precious blood and with his innocent suffering and death. He sanctifies us and richly forgives us all our sins.

But God doesn’t make us his own so that we might live apart from the world. It is by the life changing power of the Gospel that we are actually sent back into the world to live out this good news that touches our lives and is indeed for the world. As we talk about what this means for us, it is that we develop the mind of Jesus, that our minds are transformed as we ready and study the scriptures, as we worship together and pray and serve and live the lives of stewardship.

As this happens there is a diminishing of the desire to focus on our selves, and for us to be number one, while, at the same time, there is a growing desire to live our lives so that we may be a blessing to others. Now I know that this can sound scary and threatening. After all, if I don’t look out for me, who will? Our relationship with Jesus gives us the security that we need so that we can trust him and live for him every day.

So we live our lives, not just for ourselves, but for our God and for our neighbors too. This means that the way we lives our lives is different from the rest of the world. We have a different set of values, and different set of priorities, a different goal, a different way of looking at things. We live our lives to the glory of our God and for the benefit of those people that God has placed into our lives.

By the way, while this does include service that is done in this congregation, it is not limited to that alone. This worldview would also compel us to spend time in service to our community and those who are in need there also. This also means that we are not to use the same kinds of “pressure tactics” or emphasis on the law, the bottom, line or whatever you want to call it. While the ends may justifies the means in the business world. That is not the way we operate here in the church. A steward is in the world, but not of the world.

A steward loves and is loved. So that as we talk about stewardship and living this lifestyle, we understand that it flows out of God’s love for us in Jesus. Again there is no room for guilt here. There is no room for fear, because perfect love drives out fear. So we embrace and live this life of stewardship empower by the love of Christ, and thus we are able to love others with a love that is Christ-like. In other words, we love because he first loved us.

When we love people in this way there is new hope, significance and meaning for life. When we believe that God loves sinners, well, then that is see in the actions and deeds that we do toward others. Do you remember what the two greatest commandments are in the scriptures? Love the Lord your God, and Love your neighbor. A steward loves and is loved.

A steward serves and is served. Jesus told his disciples that the greatest among them would be the one who serves. As the gospel impacts and empowers our lives, the result of this is a life of service. We do not live as servants because we are forced to, or because it is required of us, but instead we live this life because our savior is one who serves us. Again this is not a guilt motivation kind of thing. It is really a logical conclusion. We have been loved and serve, therefore when we go out, because this is the example that has been set for us, that is what we are going to do for our congregation, for our community, and world. And so we challenge and encourage one another to live lives filled with compassion, kindness and charity, all in ways that bring glory to God. A Steward serves and is served.

A steward lives always in the present, but with an eye toward the future. That is, we allow the hope that we have for the future, that time when Jesus will come back, we allow that hope to influence what we do in the present. We know that there will be a day when sin and death will be no more. There will be no more suffering or sickness or injustice and so as we gather and live together, we can do so in such a way that we make this future reality known. This understanding of what is to come also helps us to put where we are now in perspective. It provides us a lens through which we can look at all the things in our lives and determine what really is important, what really matters, what really is lasting.

This means that we don’t just live to accumulate and collect things, but our treasure is to do the will of God, and using what he has given to us to accomplish that. Our purpose is to make a contribution to others in the name Jesus. Because we believe that doing this will have a lasting impact. This is done in present as we have opportunities to serve those people that God has placed into our lives.

You may have noticed on the cover of your news and notes that today is the Sunday of the Fulfillment. That actually is not part of our emphasis. It is simply the last Sunday of the church year. However, it does capture this idea. Because the Sunday of the Fulfillment is where we look to the promises and hopes that we have in our God and that he keeps his promises, and therefore we can expect this future reality to come. A Steward lives always in the present, but with an eye toward the future.

Christian stewardship is the free and joyful life of the child of God and of God’s family, the church, in managing all life and the resources of life to the glory of our God. May God grant us the grace to continue to grow in our understanding of, identification with, and practice of stewardship. Now and always. Amen.

What a Steward Is

The animals were sitting around the barn one evening trying to decide how they were going to help out the farmer. After much discussion they decided to do a fundraiser. The only thing left now, was to figure out exactly what kind of fundraiser they wanted to do. The chicken said, “I have a great idea. We could put on a fresh farm breakfast. Bacon, Eggs, you know the whole nine yards.” At which point the pig spoke up, “Well, that’s easy for you to suggest. For you this fundraiser would only require a contribution, for me it requires a commitment.”

Now, I don’t know if you have heard this one before or not. But it is kind of funny. And I think that it gives us a good picture to help us understand the different understandings people have about stewardship. We are ultimately talking about this idea between contribution and commitment. For most, they see stewardship as a matter of contribution. But last week we said that stewardship was not about money or giving money. Last week we said that stewardship was a worldview, a way of life, a source of identity, a relationship. Stewardship really is a commitment. But that should not come as a surprise. After all, Jesus did say, “If any would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.”

Last week we talked about how stewardship is a way of life. It is a worldview and a source of identity, and that ultimately stewardship is about relationship. Today we are going to unpack that a little bit more. This way of life, worldview, source of identity are God’s gracious gifts given to us because of and for the sake of our Savior Jesus. So we are going to talk about us as God’s stewards.

The first thing we want to understand is that God’s stewards are God’s stewards. We belong to our God. Now I know that I am not telling you anything new. However, this is the starting point. If stewardship is ultimately about a relationship than it is important to understand that we belong to our God.

We belong to him because he is our creator. We confess this all the time in the creed. He has made me and all creatures and given my body and all its members and still cares for them. We don’t just belong to him by way of the creator and creation relationship, but by also by a new re-creation relationship. For not only did God knit us together in our mother’s wombs, but he re-created us in the waters of Holy Baptism. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

This relationship is a two way street. Not only does it allow us to know the one who created, redeemed and sanctifies us, but it also assures us that we are known by him. You are not a number. You are not just one in a million who is lost in a sea of faces. He knows you, loves you, and cares for you. This love is more than we could ever comprehend. Knowing and understanding this allows us to have our identity, as God’s own dearly loved daughters and sons, as God’s stewards, be even more sure and firm.

This relationship allows us to see our place in God’s mission and to find our purpose for life. ”In Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.”

This is all the gift of God. It is really pretty awesome. God is the source of all our Gifts, Talents, Skills and even time. With this being the case, then as we talk about stewardship, we are talking about something that encompasses all of life. Therefore, stewardship is about our Life, real true life, being lived as an offering and contribution to others in the name of Jesus. Because in life lived in this way, life lived for Jesus’ sake and the sake of the Gospel, we find true life.

So as God’s stewards, we belong to God. And since he is the source of all our gifts, talents, skills and time, then as God’s stewards we are managers and not owners. Now, I know that this is a completely different way of looking at life than the way the world would tell us to see it. The world would tell us that we work hard for the money. I’ve earned it. It is mine. But this is a view and mindset that is very much focused on ourselves. It is all about me. Ultimately, this is a very unfulfilling way to live. No matter how much you have there is not enough. There is always something newer, improved or better. Something breaks and then it has to be replaced.

Now I am not saying that we have to give up what we have. That is not the case at all. What I am suggesting is that we change the way we see it. As God’s stewards we are entrusted with Life and the resources of Life. So what we do with those resources and how we manage them is kind of important. What we have, we have from the God. And so we use it not just for our own benefit and enjoyment but for God and his purposes. The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it.

Again it is important to reiterate that this is not a view that can be arrived at by guilt. I am not saying, “It really belongs to God, so you can’t do with it what you would like.” Instead, we should challenge ourselves to cultivate a gratefulness for the things that God has blessed us with. How can we use them for his benefit and his glory. Because when we see things from this perspective, we will find even more than mere enjoyment from these gifts. We will find fulfillment.

Now this is not an easy thing to do. God’s stewards are at the same time Saints and sinners. As saints we rejoice in and live out what we have been declared to be by our Lord through the cross. But at the same time we realize that we are sinners who battle with sin and the consequences of sin on a daily basis.

As we are talking about stewardship here, I hope that some of this is presenting to you a challenge. But in a good way. That you would hear it and say, “Yeah. I want that in my life.” Understanding that we are at the same time saints and sinners helps us to realize that while this is something good to want, that getting there is not easy. Growth as a disciple of Jesus is not easy or quick. Yet we are called to reflect him, his will, his values, his purpose and to join him in his mission. This is our calling.

So what do we do? Do we give up? Do we get overwhelmed? Do we pretend that we got it all together? No. We remember God’s promises. He is faithful. He keeps his promises. The promises that he makes to us, especially the promises in Baptism, provide for us what we need to be able to live the life as God’s stewards, God’s people, God’s dearly loved sons and daughters. So we remember our baptism, we are strengthened and sustained in Holy Communion. We read and study his word and allow it to be a regular part of our lives.

As we do all this, we seek to live this life in God’s grace. As we seek to grow and mature in our discipleship and following of Jesus. Not only are we strengthened and sustained in Baptism and Communion, but we are also not in this alone. God’s stewards are at the same time uniquely singular, yet profoundly plural. It is important for us to understand that life is not a solo performance. That as we live our lives as God’s own dearly loved daughters and sons we do this within a community of faith. We do this within the church, for the benefit of the world.

So in this great and awesome thing, called the church, we learn from one another. We are able to discover and learn to better use our talents, gifts and skills as they are discovered, developed and deployed. And all of this is not for our own personal use, but so that the church, the body of Christ might be built up and strengthened. And all of this is for the benefit of the world.

This is awesome stuff. It impacts everything in our lives. But not in a negative way. I think life lived in this way is life better than anything we could ever imagine or hope for. I pray that that as we see ourselves as God’s stewards who manage the gifts that he gives to us as saints and sinners who are uniquely singular, but profoundly plural, that we would all grow in our disciple and be strengthened in our faith. May it be a blessing to us now and always.

Stewardship

A little more than ten years ago the greatest commercial to ever hit the air waves was playing on the television. You may have even seen it. It was a Staples commercial. The commercial opened with a view inside the store. You heard the song “Most Wonderful Time of the Year” playing. And you see this dad dancing down the aisle with a cart. The announcer says. “It’s that time again.” And that dad is dancing with much joy and enthusiasm. “It’s back to school.” And then you see his kids walk across the screen and their heads are hanging low and they are walking at a very slow pace.

Not only is this commercial really funny but I think that it is safe to say that way that the kids on this video feel about going back to school is not all that different from the way that the average person feels about stewardship. I mean, what comes to mind for you when you hear the word “stewardship?” is it a positive thing, or a negative thing?

Well it is no surprise. You have seen a couple of newsletter articles. You have gotten some flyers and letters in the mail. Today marks the beginning of the annual stewardship campaign. I look out there and I see great excitement and enthusiasm. Am I right? Is it a difficult time? I think it can be. But maybe that is because of the way that we talk about it and approach it.

We all know that stewardship is important, and that it is something that needs to be done. Yet no one really likes to talk about it. It makes us all uncomfortable, and we really just want it to hurry up and be over. Then we won’t have to worry about for a whole year.

What if we celebrated stewardship the same kind of way that we celebrated Christmas? We could send out stewardship cards to our friends and family. We could greet one another with “Merry Stewardship.” We could exchange gifts and decorate stewardship trees. We could even go door to door and sing Stewardship Carols.

But then again, maybe that wouldn’t help all that much. Because we would only be changing how we do stewardship. So what are we to do? Well I think the answer is not in how we do stewardship, although that is certainly a part of it, as much as it is how we understand stewardship. Because when you understand what we are really talking about, well. It really is a cool thing.

We will be spending the next couple of weeks talking about this. And I want to invite you to be a part of this conversation. I mean you can’t really have a conversation with just one person talking. So please leave comments thoughts and questions on these topics as we share them over the next weeks.

Personally I think that stewardship has gotten a bad reputation. It is not really fair. Because when you understand it and what it is, well then you will find it to be something that is really very exciting and fulfilling. Stewardship is not simply the sermon on the amount. Although I think that it is easy for it to come across that way. I mean we most often talk about stewardship and budgeting and paying the bills all in the same breath. But that is not what stewardship is.

Stewardship is not about giving money. Although I think that it is easy for it to come across that way too. We interrupt this regularly scheduled worship service in order to bring you this stewardship campaign. Your regular worship programming will continue when we have our all our required pledges made. But that is not what stewardship is either.

Stewardship is not accomplished when you are tithing either. As long as I am giving ten percent of my income then they will leave me alone. I’ve got my stewardship requirement met. I am up-to-date on all my bills I don’t have to go to these services. But that is not what stewardship is either.

So then what is stewardship? If it is not the sermon on the amount, if it is not about giving money, if it is not accomplished when we are tithing, then what is it? Stewardship is a worldview. Stewardship is a way of life. Stewardship is an identity. It allows us to see our world and ourselves in a whole new way. Stewardship is ultimately about a relationship.

Stewardship gives to life purpose and significance. So when we are talking about this we are talking about life that is lived in response to God’s accepting and forgiving love in Jesus. It is important to understand here that when we say this it is not being said in a way that is meant to induce guilt. This is not saying that God has done so much for him, therefore you should do this little thing, if you can’t even do that much, well then you should feel really bad about it. That is not even close. Because God’s accepting and forgiving love in Jesus is given to us because of who God is. This is not based on us or what we do. Therefore we have it. And we can be certain that we have it.

Having it is life changing. God’s acceptance and forgiveness in Jesus changes everything. It does not matter what anyone else says about us. Because we have the love and acceptance and forgiveness of our God. We are his. We are valuable enough to him that he sent his son to live a sinless life, die on the cross and be raised again. He did that for you. Because he loves you so very much. This kind of love is life changing. It is does not come into a person’s life and then just leaves them the same. It impacts them. It changes them.

So when we talk about stewardship we are talking about life that is lived in response to God’s love. It is also life that is lived to make a contribution to others in the name of Jesus. When we live life for ourselves, we will ultimately find out that such a life is unfulfilling. But when we live our lives to make a contribution to others, that they may see our good deeds and give glory to our father in heaven; then we are beginning to understand what stewardship is all about.

We believe, know and are certain of God’s love for us. We see this in Jesus, in Scripture, in the Sacraments and in worship. We believe, know and are certain of God’s love for others as well. Therefore we can live our lives to make contributions to others in Jesus’ name. We know that God has blessed us greatly. But he didn’t bless us so that we would keep it all to ourselves. We are blessed so that we can be a blessing. It goes all the way back to Abraham and the covenant that God made with him. Life lived in this way can be challenging. But I promise you, it is also the best and most fulfilling way to live life. It is not for the faint of heart. But there is no better way to live.

This is what we are getting at as we are talking about stewardship. And when you begin to understand this, you begin to understand that what we are talking about here is bigger and more important than money.

Stewardship is a way of life. It is a relationship. It is a relationship that God begins with us in the waters of holy baptism. It is a relationship that he continues to live with us as the Holy Spirit works in our lives to make us more and more in the image of Jesus. It helps us to see God in our world and lives. It helps us to understand who we are and where we fit. It guides us in our daily lives and allows for us to grow and mature in our faith. It allows us to see our place in the story and understand the role that we have in joining God in the work that he is doing in our world. I am really genuinely excited about this. And I pray that it will be exciting for you too.

Do you feel like you now have a better understanding of what stewardship is? During the next couple of weeks we will talk more about what a steward is and what a steward does. The stewardship campaign will then culminate on that last week as we turn in our pledges and commitments. But not the emphasis and understanding of stewardship. Since it is a way of life, you can’t just leave it at a few brief mentions once a year. Stewardship is a way for us to grow and mature in our discipleship and faith. It is a way for us to talk about and work in mission. To join God in the work that he is doing in our world. We have some exciting things coming up in the next year.

I pray that as we live our lives out of the identity that God has given us as his baptized people, that we would find great joy and peace, hope and fulfillment, now and always. Amen.