Friday 7 November 2008

Sunday 12 October 2008 Matthew 6:1-4 Learning to Trust Him - Step by Step Bruce

Earlier this year I was helping my daughter with a topic in her A level history – the USA. We looked at prohibition, and then at the 1929 Wall Street Crash. I wonder if in 80 years, school pupils will be doing projects on the economic situation in 2008, what the governments and bankers did wrong (or right), and how ordinary people lived through it all.

When we planned this series “Learning to Trust Him” earlier in the year, we had no idea that the rollercoaster ride would be so scary and bumpy. As Kim reminded us last week, there are many in the lesser developed world who must literally pray “Give us each day bread enough for today”. There are many in our own society, perhaps in our circle of family and friends, who have fears about their job, their home, their heating, their retirement.

The good news contained in the bible and still speaking to us today is that we can trust God to provide for our needs. This is true for us as individuals, and it is true for us as the community of the church of Jesus Christ.

I use that language of community, fellowship, involvement, and yet I am aware that we each have our own understanding of what it means to be a Christian. A friend of mine has suggested that there are six ways to think of Church:

Survival
Supermarket
Support
Subscription
Submission
Sacrifice

We are not all the same. It is important to start from where we are, not where someone else thinks we ought to be. So I bring to you three questions:

Where would you be at your happiest?
Where in fact are you?
Would you like to take a step forward?

So, what do they look like, these six ways of seeing church?

Survival
“I give a bit when I am asked because the church ought to be there in case I need it”
Church can sometimes feel a bit like a lifebuoy. There in the background, for emergencies. I’m really glad its there for important times in people’s lives and to support those who are having a rough time. I know it does a lot of good. I want the church to be there for me when I need it too but I realise it costs money to keep it going. I am willing to help out when I am asked, but I don’t think it is necessary to get involved any further than that on a regular basis.
Am I ready to give money to help ensure that the church is there whenever I might need it for myself, my family or my friends? If so, how should I work out how much and how regularly is appropriate, given its value?

Supermarket
“I’m happy to pay towards the cost of the bits of the church that I want and enjoy”The church offers lots of good things which help many people. I see myself as a customer, and I am happy to pay for those things that the church does that benefit me or that I approve of.
Am I ready to give money to help the church do all that it does? How can I work out what is worth paying for, and how much is my fair share?

Support
“The work of the Church is important to me, so I will support it.”
Supporting the church is important. I might not go very often myself, but I feel strongly enough that it should be there for others. So I make sure that I support the church. I am a member, just not a very active member.
Am I ready to give money to help ensure that the church is there whenever I might need it for myself, my family or my friends? If so, how should I work out how much and how regularly is appropriate, given its value?

Subscription
“I see myself as a member and I wish to contribute to my fair share of the costs”
When we are committed to an organisation, we agree to pay the annual subscription costs. We recognise the value of belonging to that group and that ultimately members carry the responsibility for the costs involved. It is all part of being committed. By contributing to the church on a regular basis, we underpin our sense of belonging and commitment to its upkeep and ongoing work.
Have I taken the trouble to discover how much it costs for our church to carry out its mission? Have I thought and prayed about how much I could contribute towards that cost, having regard to my own financial circumstances?

Submission
“My understanding of being a disciple is that I should put God first in my life”
‘Do you submit to Christ as Lord?’ asks the Vicar of every godparent and parent at a child’s baptism. ‘I submit to Christ.’ each replies.
Submission is about recognising a higher power and giving in to that power. Submitting to Christ means putting him first in my life. My desires do not dominate my life but my response to Jesus Christ does. Jesus is in charge of my life and my giving responds to God and his mission rather than just meeting the needs of the Church.
Is my professed submission to Christ in my life reflected in how I deal with my money so that it is used first for his mission and his purpose for us? What would submission mean as I look at my income, my wealth and how I spend it?

Sacrifice
“I am called to be Christ-like, and so I give both joyfully and sacrificially – following Jesus Christ”
Jesus had it all - a place in heaven next to his Father and honour and respect to which he was entitled. He did not need to strive for recognition and success, it was his to command but he turned his back on it all and gave it up to become a human baby, born illegitimate, to a teenage girl. He became a refugee and was brought up in a very undesirable area of the Middle East where he spent his ministry touching undesirables, healing the sick, performing miracles and pointing towards the Kingdom of God. He was falsely accused and crucified. He did all of that for us – so that we could see just how much he loved us.
We recognise that we cannot repay Jesus’ amazing sacrifice for us, but we can give praise and thanks by offering ourselves and all that he has given to us in humble adoration.
When I consider the sacrifice Jesus made for us, what is its practical influence on the decisions I make about money and other possessions?

This about you. It does not matter what others are doing. It does not matter what others think of you. Each of us might be feeling better or worse about this subject. The fact remains that God loves us completely, absolutely, as we are, not because of what we do or how much we give.

My request to you today is that you resolve to learn to trust him, more and more, day by day. Take a step forward, even a small one, in prayer, in reading the scriptures, and in giving.
Where would you be at your happiest?
Where in fact are you?
Would you like to take a step forward?

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