Luke 16:1-13
Jeremy Blake, age 35 and Theresa Duncan, age 40, filmmakers, artists, writers and lovers, ended their lives this summer – Duncan with pills and bourbon, and one week latter, Blake walked into the Atlantic Ocean.
Why begin on such a disturbing note?
To remember why we’re here.
For all the folks who can’t believe,
who struggle with faith …
who take drugs and abuse themselves …
who are bright and creative, sad and lost, fearful and hopeless.
For their sake, we’re here today.
“You are the light of the world,” says Jesus. “You are the salt of the earth.”
The Apostle Peter says:
You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
We’re baptized in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
We’re fed at the LORD's Table.
We count among our ancestors the likes of Abraham and Sarah … Moses and Miriam, David and Solomon … Deborah and Lydia …
Their stories, our stories: from bondage to freedom … through the wilderness, across the River Jordan … we stand with Joshua by the walls of Jericho; we watch David pick up five smooth stones in the Valley of Elah and defeat Goliath; we buy the field in Anathoth with Jeremiah; we stand with Ezekiel by the valley of dry bones.
We walk with Jesus in Galilee and follow Him up to Jerusalem; we pray with Him in the Garden of Gethsemane; we watch Judas betray Him, and Peter deny Him.
We stand with the disciples at the foot of the cross; we flee in horror and can only doubt.
On the third day, we run with Peter to the tomb, to see if it’s really empty, as the women tell us.
We’re on the mountain with Jesus when He says, “Go … go into all the world … tell folks the truth, that life is good and God is real … tell folks about the water and the bread … help them find themselves by finding God – all of God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit … and I am with you always, to the end of the age, until the task is done.”
“Go” says Jesus …
The church of Jesus Christ is a missionary organization … the church of Jesus Christ exists for the sake of those who are not here … who can’t believe, who won’t believe … we believe for them.
That’s our Covenant purpose …
I love the name Covenant Presbyterian Church.
Basic agreements – essential tasks.
The promise of God: “You shall be my people, and I will be your God.”
We are people of the covenant, and its various permutations:
The creation covenant with Adam and Eve,
The rainbow covenant with Noah and His family.
The blessing covenant with Abraham and Sarah.
The salvation wrought by Christ on the cross, confirmed by God in the empty tomb, sealed in our hearts by the Holy Spirit.
We are people of the Covenant!
We are Covenant Presbyterian Church.
Our purpose is our neighbor; to bring light to the world … a light so good, so clean and so pure that folks like Jeremy Blake and Theresa Duncan are included in the circle of light.
2 Corinthians 5:
The love of Christ urges us on, because we are convinced that one has died for all; therefore all have died. And he died for all, so that those who live might live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died and was raised for them.
We echo Paul’s confession:
I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. The life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God.
The Prayer of St. Francis:
Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace;
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life. Amen.
It is the glory of our life … less of ourselves and more of Christ … to live the prayer of John the Baptist: “He must become greater; I must become less.”
Christ in the morning, Christ at noon, Christ at night.
It can be done; it’s happening now … we grow into Christ, and Christ grows into us. Not that we’re already there, but we press on to the high calling of Christ.
Josh Waitzkin, the chess prodigy who inspired the film, Searching for Bobby Fisher, has written a book entitled, The Art of Learning.
Waitzkin notes that success is not driven by some mysterious process, but by mastery of basic skills …
Vince Lombardi, famed coach of the Green Bay Packers, the glory days of Bart Star and Jim Taylor, said of the Packers: “We don’t play fancy football; we play basic football and play it very well.”
I used to be drummer in another life … several hours a day, practice … a simple rule of thumb: if I missed one day of practice, I knew it; if I missed two days, the band knew it; if I missed three days, the audience knew it.
Every practice session began with the rudiments, the basics … single and double-stroke rolls … paradiddles … flams and ratamacues … basic skills … again and again and again …
Basic skills – Covenant:
Love one another as I have loved you.
Do not judge, and you will not be judged.
Love your enemies and do good to those who hate you.
Basic skills, Covenant skills: use your money well, says Jesus; make friends with it.
Jesus catches everyone’s attention with a story about a rich man and a dishonest manager …
The point is clear – if dishonest managers know how take advantage of the moment and make friends while they can, surely God’s people ought to know how to make friends, too.
Use money to make friends, says Jesus … be faithful with material things … practice the art of giving … give and it shall be given unto you … a good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over … for the measure you give will be the measure you get” – Luke 6:38.
Money is one of the most powerful commodities of life … I think about money a lot … will there be enough? Wish I had more … when’s the next paycheck … will Donna be able to support me in the life-style to which I’ve grown accustomed?
A woman told her friend, “I’m responsible for making my husband a millionaire.” “Goodness, what was he before you married him?” She replied, “A billionaire.”
A tour guide was showing someone around Washington, D. C. The guide pointed out the place where George Washington supposedly threw a dollar across the Potomac River. "That's impossible," said the tourist. "No one could throw a coin that far!" "You have to remember," said the guide, "a dollar went a lot farther in those days."
And for the latest in stocks …
Helium was up. Feathers were down. Paper was stationary. Knives were up sharply. Pencils lost a few points. Hiking equipment was trailing. Elevators rose, while escalators continued a slow decline. Light switches were off. Mining equipment hit rock bottom. Diapers remained unchanged. Shipping lines stayed at an even keel. Balloon prices were inflated. And batteries exploded in an attempt to recharge the market.
Bill Evans recalls a pastor saying, “Give until it feels good.”
That’s basic … that’s covenant.
The art of giving.
Doing it right.
Donna and I took dance lessons for years – we learned a basic rule: “When it’s done right, it feels right.”
If it’s not done right, it never feels right, no matter how hard we try, no matter how often we try it – if it’s not done right, it doesn’t feel right.
We’d go back to the dance studio, the instructor would show us the missing move, and there it was – we could do it, we could do it right, and it felt right.
Do it right. Give until it feels right!
Learn the basics. Look to Christ in all things.
George Burr said at Staff this week: “Look for God in the music.
Pray more often; open your Bibles and read a little bit every day. Read John Ortberg’s latest book … watch Joel Osteen now and then to get a boost … feed your soul, fill your life with positive energy and the grace of God.
“The one who sows bountifully will reap bountifully.”
As long as there are Jeremy Blakes and Theresa Duncans, we’ve got our work cut out for us … that’s why we‘re here!
I’m glad to know these things, and I know that you are, too. Use your money to make friends. We are … Covenant People! Amen!
