Hope in Skin RUMC 9/28/14

Hope in Skin

RUMC

9/28/14

Story chapter 22a

Did you hear that?  Where is the humble Jesus, meek and mild?

This isn’t the Christmas story is it? Where is the sweet little baby cuddled in his mother’s arms? Where are the humble beginnings of the manger and the stable? Where are the shepherds and the wise men? Where is everyone’s favorite villain, the innkeeper?

That scripture passage can’t be in the Christmas story that we know, can it?

Of course it is. It is right there in Luke Chapter 1, New Testament page 57 of your pew bibles. It is right between the story of the frightened, confused, pregnant 14-year-old Mary visiting her cousin Elizabeth, and the decree from Cesar Augustus that all the world should be enrolled.

Unfortunately, the Magnificat… (That’s what this poem is called because the first word in the Latin translation of this passage.) Unfortunately, the Magnificat is not part of the Christmas story included in our Christmas pageants, or on Christmas cards. I say unfortunately, because of all the texts of the Christmas story, the Magnificat alone reveals the truly, radically revolutionary nature of Christmas. We don’t normally think of Christmas as radical or revolutionary, usually we use words like exhausting and busy. But Christmas is the most radical and revolutionary event in all of history. You might argue that the cross is more important, but without Christmas, the cross is just the execution of another political agitant.

Remember, in the Old Testament portion of the story last year we talked about God’s upper story, God’s deepest intention for humanity. God’s plan was for us to live in love with God and love toward one another. In the Garden of Eden, God envisioned a community of caring, generous, forgiving, grace filled, hope filled, people living in the beauty of the garden and walking with God in the coolness of the morning. God’s plan revolved around love and worship.

Is that the way the lower story worked? Is that what actually happened in the Old Testament story? Although there were glimpses of that plan in the lower story, most of the lower story- what we call history, was NOT what God wanted. Sin invaded the world, and with sin came death and deceit, murder and manipulation, slavery and selfishness. You know how people treat one another in our lower story, and it is not what God wants for us.

Throughout the Old Testament, we followed the two stories: God’s upper story, and our lower story. I don’t know how it seemed to you, but by time we were done, it seemed to me like the two stories were further apart than ever.

Today, however, everything changes.

The angel coming… that is old news. We have seen angels before.

The young girl… that’s old news. We have seen God chose unlikely candidates before.

The baby… that is something different… never before has God become a human being.

God spoke to people, commanded people, God directed people, God led people, God appeared in dreams, God was manifest in miracles and prophets:

·         But never ever before has the most divine God become a human being. Never before has God put on skin and moved in to a young woman’s uterus.

·         Never before has God been born as one of us, to live among us.

·         Never before has God taken hold of his upper story and our lower story and tied them in a knot as he did in the incarnation of Jesus Christ.

·         Never before has God’s upper story come crashing into our lower story in order to radically and permanently transform the relationship between creator and creation.

That is what Mary is singing about in the Magnificat. Usually when we hear these words put to music, they are with a harp or a flute and they are soft, and melodic, and beautiful like a lullaby. Just once I would like to hear the magnificat sung to banging drums and crashing symbols. Really, the Magnificat is more a march than a lullaby.

Listen to the chorus, 

⁵¹ He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
    he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
⁵² He has brought down rulers from their thrones
    but has lifted up the humble.
⁵³ He has filled the hungry with good things
    but has sent the rich away empty.

You can almost hear the cymbals crashing and the drums beating with every word

MIGHTY DEEDS

THE PROUD SCATTERED

THE RULERS BROUGHT DOWN

THE HUMBLE LIFTED UP

THE HUNGRY FILLED

THE RICH SENT AWAY EMPTY

I tell you this is not your sweet little baby lying in a manger surrounded by a mysterious glow with silent night playing in the background. 

·         This is the God of all creation, the God who

o   spoke the stars into existence with a word, and

o   started the ocean waves rolling with a touch of his finger.

·         This is the God who kicked Adam and Eve out of the garden,

o   brought fire on Sodom and Gomorrah, and

o   poured out the waters of the flood. 

·         This is the God who raised up Joseph to be a ruler in Egypt, and

o   Moses to lead his people out from among the dead in Egypt.

·         This is the God who parted the sea and

o   spoke the commandments.

·         This is the God who battled the Amorites and the Philistines in fierce battle.

·         This is the God who raised up kings and brought them down again.

·         This is the God who spoke judgment and justice through the prophets.

·         This is the God who held the mouth of the lion shut for Daniel, and

o   opened the mouth of the Persian king to free the captives.

·         This is the God of the heavens and the earth bringing heaven down to earth in the shape of a baby whose cry in the manger and on the cross would change the world forever.

Is it changed? Is our world really that much different from the world of the Old Testament? We still have sin. We still have death and deceit, murder and manipulation, slavery and selfishness. You know how our world is. In some ways, nothing has changed, but in the most important way, everything is different because of the Christmas revolution.

·         We talk about the American Revolution, and how it changed history forever.

·         We talk about the industrial revolution, and how it changed our lives forever.

·         We talk about the technology revolution, and how it has changed our thinking and expanded out knowledge.

But today we talk about the Christmas revolution, and how our lower story lives will never the same because the upper story has come crashing into our lives in Jesus Christ and now we have HOPE.

The world may look the same but now we have hope.

The world may act the same, but now we have hope.

People may sin the same, but now we have hope.

No matter what the newspapers may say, hope makes the world a different place and makes us different people.

A public elementary school was cautious about bringing religion into their winter program. They had a nice little program scheduled, and the content centered around family, friends, and fun times during the holidays -- all of which are good things, but none of which are the reason we have Christmas. The program was called "Christmas Love." For the grand finale, a line of kids was supposed to march across the stage with pieces of poster board spelling out the words "Christmas Love." Their backs were turned to the audience, and at the exact right moment, they were supposed to turn around to spell the words with the letters on their poster board. Moms were backstage to make sure they marched out in the right order, but once they got on stage, they were on their own. Sure enough, one little girl holding the "M" in "Christmas" got her sign turned upside down. So when the big moment came, and the kids turned around, and what the audience saw was not "CHRISTMAS LOVE" but "CHRIST WAS LOVE." Without meaning to, the elementary students had communicated the hope of Christmas[1]

What was hope in the Old Testament? 

·         Hope in their ability to follow the law?

·         Hope that they were good enough for God?

·         Hope that God would give them a little longer to get their act together?  

Let me tell you, hope that lies in the hope that I’ll get my act together is not hope. No, the Christmas revolution brought humanity a different kind of hope. 

The hope of Christmas is that CHRIST WAS LOVE. 

Now in Jesus Christ God’s love lives among us in the skin. 

In your skin and my skin.

In your heart and my heart.

Max Lucado puts it this way. Jesus, the maker of the universe, the one who invented time, the one who gave you the breath you just took, the one who owns everything, started off humble. How humble? Humble enough to understand what you’ve been through this week. Humble enough to understand what kept you awake. Humble enough to say, “I know what that’s like.” Humble enough that when an immigrant from Ethiopia prays or a squatter in Brazil offers a plea for help, that the Almighty God does not shake his head and say, “I wish they’d get their act together.” But he remembers the pain of a hungry belly and the chill of a cold night. He knows what it’s like to hear his parents tell the story of the day they got turned away on the night of his birth. [2]

He remembers…and loves.

He remembers…our ………. <<<<<>>>>>> and love brings a revolution.

He remembers…our ……….<<<<<>>>>>> and love brings a revolution.

He is our Hope… hope in skin. AMEN

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[1] From a sermon: “The Announcement of Salvation” by Bud Reeves; 12/5/2004

^[2] No source provided, copied from “Sermon features” for THE STORY.

The church #3: called to grow in Christ Reinbeck UMC

The church #3: called to grow in Christ

Reinbeck UMC

The great preacher and professor of religion Tony Campolo, says that one day he was on his way to work, walking down the sidewalk in winter, dressed in his suit and overcoat, when he was approached by a filthy bum. The guy was covered in soot from head to toe, and he had a huge beard. In the beard, we remnants of his last several meals. The bum was holding a cup of McDonald’s coffee and mumbling to himself. He spotted Dr. Campolo and said, “Hey, Mister. You want some of my coffee?"

Campolo took the cup and drank a bit, just to be nice. He handed the cup back and said, "You're being pretty generous giving away your coffee this morning. What's gotten into you that you're giving away your coffee all of a sudden?" The bum said, “"Well, the coffee was especially delicious this morning, and I figured if God gives you something good you ought to share it with people."[1]

There is more to the story, but I want to stop right there. “If God gives you something good you ought to share it with people.” Do you believe that? That is sure counter-cultural. “If God gives you something good you ought to share it with people."

Think about all that God has given you. Now don’t be too quick. Remember that everything we have comes from God. God is the source of all good things. God has given you everything from this wonderful, beautiful, fruitful world that surrounds you; to the cotton that was grown to make the cloth that was used to make your underwear; to the knowledge and skills you use to make your money. It all belongs to God and everything in between.

Bishop Schnase who wrote 5 PRACTICE OF FRUITFUL CONGREGATIONS starts with RADICAL HOSPITALITY, continues to PASSIONATE WORSHIP, adds on INTENTIONAL DISCIPLEMAKING. That is as far as we have gotten in the last two weeks. Then some would say bishop Schnase starts to meddle. He begins to talk about EXTRAVAGANT GENEROSITY.

Generosity is a key measure to our growth in discipleship. Think about your giving habits over the last 10 years. Do they show evidence of generous discipleship? Or are you just squeaking by, hoping God doesn’t notice.

Generosity is both …

·        A disciple’s grateful response to a  EXTRAVAGANTLY generous God

·        And the disciple’s offer of themselves to God’s work and God’s kingdom.

In other words, generosity can be either the cause of growth in discipleship, or the fruit of growth in discipleship. OR BOTH.

I want you to notice something… I am talking about EXTRAVAGANT generosity and it has nothing to do with the church budget. We are not talking about funding ministry. We aren’t talking about paying the light bill or the pastor’s salary. We aren’t talking about paying apportionments or fundraisers.

I am talking about EXTRAVAGANT GENEROSITY growing out of faithful discipleship. The fundamental question there is

·        Are we giving to pay the bills, or are we giving to grow in our faith?

·        Are we giving to get by, or giving to grow closer to Jesus.

Let me say something shocking…. If you are just giving to the church to keep the doors open and pay the bills. Just stop. We don’t need that money. What we need are disciples who out of thanksgiving and a true desire to grow closer to Jesus, give EXTRAVAGANTLY to God’s work in this place.

The question for the fruitful congregation is, what are we teaching? Are we living in a world of scarcity where we are competing with Wal-Mart for a limited number of dollars? Or are we teaching people to be EXTRAVAGANTLY generous because God has been EXTRAVAGANTLY generous to us.

·        Fruitful churches teach that EXTRAVAGANT generosity a PRIORITY as they train disciples. Do we? Or do we soft pedal stewardship because we are afraid of scaring them away?

·        Fruitful churches teach PROPORTIONAL giving. The Biblical proportion is the tithe or 10% of our income. We know that American churches only see 2-3% on average. That’s great if that is EXTRAVAGANT generous FOR YOU. If that is not EXTRAVAGANTLY generous for your family then it ought to be our goal to move that 3% to 4, and that 4% to 5 until we reach EXTRAVAGANT generosity. The Biblical guide is 10%. However, to be honest just as there are some who hit EXTRAVAGANT at 5%, there are also those who don’t hit EXTRAVAGANT unto 20%. Where is EXTRAVAGANTLY generous to you… and how close are you in your giving today?

·        Fruitful churches teach REGULAR giving: that giving needs to be consistent, regular, weekly, monthly, or quarterly (whatever works best for you). I know that December might be more convenient for you so you don’t have to think about it again, but if EXTRAVAGANT generosity is an important part of our growth as disciples, we need to be doing it regularly, not just conveniently. We should be reading the Bible regularly, not just once a year, and we ought to be giving EXTRAVAGANTLY regularly. Not just once a year.

·        Fruitful churches teach JOYFUL giving. There is no greater miracle than seeing a fundamentally self-interested person, open their heart and their treasure chest to give EXTRAVAGANTLY because God has filled them with the joy of giving.

 The fundamental truth is that we can never out give God. Growing disciples know that, and therefore practice EXTRAVAGANT generosity in thanksgiving for God’s EXTRAVAGANT love. As part of our discipleship system, the deeper we grow the more generous we can become.

We can never out give God, but for those who have received God’s  EXTRAVAGANT love and grace, the only appropriate response is to give with the same extreme love with which God gives:  EXTRAVAGANTLY.

To continue with the story about Rev. Campolo, and the homeless man.

Tony could feel the set-up coming, but he walked right into it. He asked, "Is there anything I can give you in return?" He was expecting to be hit up for money. Unfortunately, it wasn’t money the bum wanted. The bum said, “Yeah, you can give me a hug.” Rev. Campolo thought Five bucks would have been better. But there on the Philadelphia sidewalk, Tony Campolo put his arms around this filthy man, trying to avoid the pieces of rotted food in his beard, and the man hugged him. And kept hugging him. He would not let go.

People were staring at the professional in the overcoat and the homeless bum embracing on the street. Tony was embarrassed, until suddenly his embarrassment turned to awe. He said, “I heard a voice echoing down the corridors of time saying, I was hungry. Did you feed me? I was naked. Did you clothe me? I was sick. Did you care for me? I was the bum you met on Chestnut Street. Did you hug me? For if you did it unto the least of these, my brothers and sisters, you did it to me. And if you failed to do it unto the least of these, my brothers and sisters, you failed to do it unto me.”[2]

Bishop Robert Schnase, in Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations, says, “RISK-TAKING MISSION AND SERVICE is the last of the fundamental activities of church life that is so critical that failure to practice it in some form results in a deterioration of the church’s vitality and ability to make disciples of Jesus Christ. When churches turn inward, using all resources for their own survival and caring only for their own people, then spiritual vitality wanes.”[3]

First, RISK-TAKING mission and service transforms the life of the recipient.

·        People we really help are changed forever. It makes a difference in their lives. They are better for it. And when the help comes from somebody who loves Jesus, the people who receive the help know that Jesus loves them, too. RISK-TAKING mission and service transforms the lives of those we help.

·        But secondly, RISK-TAKING mission and service transforms the life of the servant. There is no way you can step out of the box and risk yourself to help someone else without being changed. Becoming a conduit for the love of God to one of his children will strengthen your own relationship to God. It will deepen your spirit. It will open up wellsprings of compassion that you never knew you had. It will energize you to serve even more.

In RISK-TAKING mission and service, both the servant and the served are transformed. There’s a reason for that. It’s because in RISK-TAKING mission and service, the one we touch is Jesus Christ.

The simple but highly profound truth is this: when we serve others, we serve Jesus Christ. We say that all the time, but think of it. The face of that unruly child in Sunday School, the face of that teenager with an attitude, the face of that old person with Alzheimer’s, the face of that homeless person, the face of that immigrant who doesn’t speak English, the face of that drug addict, the face of our spouse or our grandparent or a complete stranger is the face of Jesus Christ. How can we not love them?

So to get to the heart of the issue there is one key question. “What have we done in the last six months to make a positive difference in the lives of others that we would not have done if it were not for our relationship to Christ?”[4]

Youth mission trip, backpacks for refugees on the border, we have the ramp project we are working on.

The punch line of the entire ministry of Jesus. And the point is this passage is: “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.” And the converse is also true: “Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.”

I heard Rev. Andrew Young speak a few years ago. He has served in Congress, as the Ambassador to the United Nations in the Carter Administration, and as mayor of Atlanta in the 1980’s.

None of that prepared him for the time in 1985 when his youngest daughter surprised him by announcing that she was going to Uganda to work for Habitat for Humanity. He couldn’t believe she would go to a country so far away and to an area that was still very dangerous after the civil wars and the terror of Idi Amin. He feared for her safety. But she was a young adult, and her mind was made up. She felt God calling her to make a difference by building houses in a devastated country. So Andrew Young found himself standing in the Atlanta airport on January 7, 1985, with tears streaming down his face as he said good-bye to his daughter. He stood at the window and watched as the plane took off, taking his little girl—now grown up—to Uganda. As the plane lifted out of sight, he turned away from the window and his aides heard him mutter under his breath, “I always wanted her to be a respectable Christian…but not a real one!”[5]

Real Christians and real churches have PASSIONATE worship. Are we a real church?

Real Christians and real churches exercise RADICAL hospitality. Are we a real church?

Real Christians in real churches are INTENTIONAL about growing in discipleship. Are we a real church?

Real Christians and real churches practice EXTRAVAGANT generosity. Are we a real church?

Real Christians and real churches engage in risk-taking mission and service. Are we a real church?

Are we a real church? Absolutely. Are we a perfect church? By no means. Are we the best church we can be? I don’t think so. But with God’s help, we can get better.

PASSIONATE worship. RADICAL Hospitality. INTENTIONAL disciple making. EXTRAVAGANT generosity. RISK TAKING mission and service.

Let us be about God’s work. PASSIONATELY, RADICALLY, INTENTIONALLY, EXTRAVAGANTLY taking risks for the love of God and God’s people

Let do something.

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[1]  Tony Campolo, "Year of Jubilee," Preaching Today Sermon Tape #212.

[2] Tony Campolo, "Year of Jubilee," Preaching Today Sermon Tape #212.

[3] Robert Schnase, Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations (Nashville:

Abingdon, 2007), 83

[4] Robert Schnase, Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations (Nashville:

Abingdon, 2007), 88

[5] 8 From a sermon by Dr. Norman Neaves.

The church #2: called to grow in Christ Reinbeck UMC

The church #2: called to grow in Christ

Reinbeck UMC

Can anyone indentify this? It is Spanish moss. We saw in the Carolinas while we were on vacation. It is not a plant in the common sense of the word. Nor is it a moss, or lichen. It is also not parasitic. It does not hurt the tree. Does anyone know what is special about Spanish moss? It is an Epiphyte. It is a plant that lives non-parasitically on another plant, has no roots, and derives its nutrients and moisture from the air. It seems to grow like magic all over the south.

Christians are not epiphytes!

Christians do not grow by magic with no roots. As a rule, in fact, Christians do not become disciples outside the church.

Some people have the idea that discipleship is believing in Jesus. You know the kind. “I can be a Christian at the football stadium, the gun range, the grocery store, the mountains;” you name it, they can be a Christian there.” We even have them in this church. They are members, they believe in Jesus, but we never see them, or we see them once or twice a month or less. They think that being a disciple will come to them out of thin air as if they were an epiphyte!

Well, they are right in as much as faith is to permeate every aspect our lives whether we are working, playing, watching football, hunting, shopping, or hiking. Our faith follows us everywhere we go. They have that much right.

They are wrong in that, as a general rule, we don’t learn to be a disciple in those places.

·         Disciples don’t grow out of thin air.

·         Athletes don’t become excellent if they don’t train and practice.

·         We don’t learn to drive by watching the cars from our front porch.

·         We don’t learn to play a musical instrument by listening to the radio.

·          We don’t become disciples without connecting to a church. That church might be a traditional congregation, a mega-church, a house church, a coffee shop church, a church in the woods, or a church on the mountain. It might have a building or it might not. In order for discipleship to take root, the Christian must be firmly planted in Christian community. Our word for Christian Community is church. The church is the only place in the world where people are being taught to be disciples of Jesus Christ. Sadly, however, that is not true about every church only fruitful ones.

Last week we talked about RADICAL HOSPITALITY AND PASSIONATE WOPRSHIP. From Bishop Schnase’s book, 5 PRACTICES OF FRUITFUL CONGREGATIONS. This week we see that he says that fruitful churches practice INTENTIONAL FAITH DEVELOPMENT.  Next week I plan to finish up with the last two practices.

We can see from our Acts reading today that the early church was pretty intentional about developing disciples. “They devoted themselves to the apostles teaching, fellowship, the breaking of bread, and prayers.” That was the vision of the early church in Jerusalem: to make disciples by teaching, fellowshipping, worship, and prayer.

The good news as we look at our congregation is that people are growing in faith. We are growing closer to Jesus. We are becoming disciples. Thank God for that. Good churches see people growing in faith. We must be doing something right.

 Bishop Schnase, however, makes a special point to say excellent churches make disciples INTENTIONALLY.

I am afraid that our disciple making has often been like a baseball team without a game plan they put on the uniform. They stand wherever you want. They bat if they feel like it. They are bound to hit a home run occasionally, but just think what they could do if they had a plan and were intentional about it.

We are scoring some runs, but I think it is mostly by the grace of God.

Now, I don’t think we have to change much. We just need to THINK about what we are doing and why we do it. So, let’s think about how we make disciples.

Our church has a great vision. Do you know that it is? To KNOW Jesus, to GROW in Jesus, and to GO for Jesus. Simple, catchy, and Biblically sound

Disciple making falls under the second part of the vision: growing closer to Jesus.

We start with the raw materials of discipleship; people. Members, friends, neighbors, relatives. Some are already here. Others are not. Some know Jesus. Some do not. That is the first part of our vision to KNOW Jesus and to help others know him as well.

The first step in disciple making is bringing these people into some kind of relationship with God. Mostly people become part of our church by coming to worship first. Now LIGHT has a little different attraction model, where we usually see them in class first, but soon we see them in worship. Either way, worship is the heart of our disciple making process. In my illustration, we are going to think of worship as the tree trunk from which all the branches grow. Worship is where we all meet be nourished by God’s presence in the community, to grow in faith and practice and to be launched into discipleship. So far, so good? We are pretty intentional about getting people into worship.

Taking the next step is where we tend to get a little sloppy.

Now the next step might be different for different people. Do you remember when I first came, we had parsonage meetings, and everyone took a spiritual types test, to determine how you prefer to grow spiritually? Different people, because of personality and temperament, follow different routes to discipleship. There are three main branches.

Some people lead with their heart. They are the types that feel things before they know them. They are intuitive and sensitive.

Those of you who are heart people, need ministries that will nourish your heart in order for you to grow in discipleship. So we have a branch of ministries we might call heart ministries. They are designed to focus on loving God. You might be particularly helped by Worship itself, the Prayer list, the walk to Emmaus, daily Devotions, the “read with me” scriptures in the newsletter, participating in the Sacraments, choir, the prayer vigil, fasting or practicing generosity.

Are those all things that we are already doing? YES. Are we intentional about steering people in those directions to help them grow in Jesus? Not really, but all we lack is they intentionality.

Let’s look at another branch. Whereas some people lead with their hearts, others of us lead with our minds. We love to learn, and think, and debate. If you are one of those people, you might grow better if you were to participate in Sunday school, LIGHT, Bible Study, youth group, or short-term studies. Do we do those things? You bet we do. Because I am a head person, my assumption has been that everyone should be in a class. Kind of a cookie cutter discipleship development model.

We have to recognize that certain types of people need those learning environments to challenge and stimulate them in their Christian growth. Other types of people might be better served if we steered them a different direction. Now, that might seem painfully obvious, but have we been working that way? Hardly!

We aren’t doing anything wrong. It is just a matter of knowing our people and being intentional about steering them in the right direction.

Does that mean that if you are a heart person you have an excuse not to be in a class? Not really, because we are all a mix of the three types and a part of you might really benefit from a Bible study or Sunday school class. Those are great places to develop relationships, which are key to the growth of heart people. So, I am not trying to give anyone an excuse. Just trying to get us top think intentionally.

The final branch is for those who grow by using the hands. A lot of men grow this way. We prefer to grow by serving others. I am about 45% a hands on person. That’s why I love projects like the ramp. People who grow closer to Jesus by doing might be inclined to take on a Leadership role - be a Worship worker, Teach, help with the Facilities, or go on mission trips. They might be interested in community outreach, caring ministries, being on a light food crew, youth work, special projects like the handicap ramp, mission giving, or generosity.

Do you see how these opportunities are best suited for this kind of person?

Now, as I said, the truth is that none of us is purely a heart person, or a head person, or a hands person. We are all a mix. I tend to be about 45% head and 45% hands with 10% heart sprinkled in for good measure. That is why I love mission trips and teaching. They help me to grow in my discipleship.   

You see, we don’t do these ministries just so that you have something to do. We don’t just do them for our health.  We do them for you. We do them to help you grow to be more like Jesus.  To love God more, to understand God better, to serve God more effectively.

What is your mix? How do you learn best? How do you grow best.  Part of it is preference, part is personality, part is the miracle of the individual God made in you.  Every one of us is different, but every one of us ought to know how we grow and be participating in at least one of these disciple-making areas at any given time. If you don’t participate in any of these areas, you just might be a Christian couch potato. Get up and find  some ministry to help you grow in your faith.

Now, there is one thing that appears in two columns. It is both a heart ministry in that our grateful hearts overflow with generosity, and it is a hands ministry because ion our culture money is a great way to be involved in doing something.

Generosity is a key measure to our growth in discipleship. Think about your giving habits over the last 10 years. Do they show growth? Or do they give you reason to wonder.

Generosity is both …

·A disciple’s grateful response to a extravagantly generous God

·And the disciple’s offer of themselves to God’s work and God’s kingdom.

In other words, generosity can be either the cause of growth in discipleship, or the fruit of growth in discipleship. OR BOTH.

We are in the midst of the best financial year we have had in a long time. There was one little pinch point in the spring, and there may be another of which we don’t yet know, but we got through the summer. I think it is because we are learning about generosity and now we can focus more on making disciples than paying the bills, which is the way it should be.

The question for the fruitful congregation is, are we teaching EXTRAVAGANT generosity. Now be careful here. Extravagant does not mean reckless. Extravagant does not mean wasteful.

EXTRAVAGANT in this sense is a description of God’s generosity. We can never out give God, but for those who have received such extravagant love and grace, the most appropriate response is to give with the same extreme love with which God gives: extravagantly.

The question for the church is

·Are we giving to get by, or are we giving to grow in our faith?

·Are we giving to pay the bills, or giving to grow closer to Jesus.

Fruitful churches mane extravagant generosity a PRIORITY as they train disciples. Do we or do we soft pedal stewardship because we are afraid of scaring them away?

Fruitful churches teach giving in PROPORTION to what we have. The Biblical proportion is the tithe or 10% of our income. We know that American churches only see 2-3% on average. That’s great if that is extravagantly generous FOR YOU. If that is not extravagantly generous for your family then it ought to be our goal to move that 3% to 4, and that 4% to 5 until we reach extravagant generosity. The Biblical guide is 10%. However, to be honest just as there are some who hit extravagant at 5%, there are also those who don’t hit extravagant unto 20%. Where is extravagantly generous to you… and how close are you in your giving today?

Finally, fruitful churches teach REGULAR giving: that giving needs to be consistent, regular, weekly, monthly, or quarterly (whatever works best for you). I know that December might be more convenient for you so you don’t have to think about it again, but if extravagant generosity is an important part of our growth as disciples, we need to be doing it regularly, not just conveniently.

 The fundamental truth is that we can never out give God. Growing disciples know that and therefore practice extravagant generosity in thanksgiving for God’s extravagant love. As part of our discipleship system, the deeper we grow the more generous we can become.

The church is the training ground for discipleship. It is easy after a few years to become complacent and sit back resting on what God has done in the past.  Or what  we have done in the past. Nevertheless, let me tell you something.

God isn’t finished with us yet.

·         There is always opportunity to love God more deeply.

·         There is always opportunity to understand God more fully.

·         There is always the opportunity to serve God by serving others more lovingly.

Let’s keep climbing friends. Let’s work on being intentional in our disciple making,  Let’s get growing so we can keep going for God.

AMEN