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This week I had the chance to revisit a book that I was introduced
to about two and one-half years ago, when I first arrived in College
Station. It is Fred Brison’s book about A&M United Methodist
Church, entitled, The First Fifty Years. It tells the
stories of this church from 1923-1973. Brison began his book with a
beautiful invitation, “Just for a day let the present fade and
feel the past stir behind the illusion we call time.”
Jane Marshall, wrote a hymn for her church’s 25th
anniversary in Dallas. The second verse of that song, “What Gift
Can We Bring?” begins,
Give thanks for the past, for those who had vision,
Who planted and watered
so dreams could come true.
This is an invitation to look at heroes of faith that time simply
cannot forget. Jesus recognized one of these heroes in the Temple
only days after he spent the afternoon with Zacchaeus, an example of
generosity. This particular hero from the past has her story told
in Luke 21:1-4 on page 83 of the New Testament in the pew Bibles in
front of you. Hear now the Word of the Lord:
1He looked up and saw rich people putting
their gifts into the treasury;
2he also saw a poor widow put in two small
copper coins. 3He said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow
has put in more than all of them;
4for all of them have contributed out of their
abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live
on.”
This is the Word of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God.
In this passage Luke reported for his readers Jesus’ interest in
proportional giving. Let us pray.
It is a short story that
we find here, but oh, what depth. We discover in this passage that
money matters. God cares about what we do with money,
calculates our faithfulness in giving and commends our faith
demonstrated through giving. Money matters.
God cares about what we do
with our money.
Jesus had planted himself right next to one of the thirteen trumpet
shaped receptacles in the outer court of the Temple. He observed
the different types of giving. Rich men probably swaggered up to
the offering jar and were pleased to be able to contribute so much
to the treasury for the benefit of the Temple that they loved so
dearly. A poor widow did not love it any less, but her gift barely
made a sound as it dropped through the narrow mouth and into the
broad base. But before we get any farther into the story notice how
concerned Jesus was with this drama. He cared about what these
individuals did with what God gave them.
Randy Alcorn made the following observation in his book, The
Treasure Principle:
Throughout the entire Bible there are roughly 2,350 verses
concerning money. This is roughly twice as many as faith and prayer
combined. Fifteen percent of everything Jesus said related to money
and possessions. He spoke about money and possessions more than
heaven and hell combined. The only subject Jesus spoke of more often
is the Kingdom of God. Why? Because the Scriptures make clear there
is a fundamental connection between a person's spiritual life and
his attitudes and actions concerning money and possessions. Often we
divorce the two -- Christ sees them as essentially related to one
another.
Eugene Grimm pointed out in his book, Generous People,
Money was just
as important in Jesus' day. Sixteen of Jesus' approximately 38
parables dealt with money. One of every seven verses in the first
three Gospels in some way deals with money. Perhaps this was
because Jesus understood how money itself can become a god.
The year was 1919 and First Methodist Church in Bryan had a $500
surplus. For years there had been a desire for a Methodist ministry
to the students of A&M College. The Reverend Preston Taylor Ramsey
recommended that such a ministry be started with that $500. The
governing body of the church agreed. Soon thereafter King Vivion
was appointed to a two-point charge where he would serve Alexander
Methodist Church off of Tauber Road and the A&M College Methodist
Church. He had no salary, no parsonage, but was given the license
to collect $2,000 from his phantom congregation. He did, however,
have a handful of followers who had the yearning to do good. A
little over three years later, on February 23, 1923 King Vivion
stood up at a District Conference held on campus and said, “Tonight
we are setting up the organization of A&M Methodist Church.” There
were nineteen people present, three of them were visitors.
“Just for a day let the
present fade and feel the past stir behind the illusion we call
time.”
Was there ever a bigger investment in the ministries of this church
than that first $500 gift? For the record, I was told that our
first pastor built his parsonage at about the spot where our
courtyard is. It was a two-room, two-story house that added a
bathroom several years later. King Vivion also played on the scrubs
for Texas AMC, having completed his eligibility for playing in games
at SMU. So he practiced with the team.
Some wonderful stories were generated by that initial gift, stories
that are still being told. Last month I received a card and a gift
to the church. The card read:
Dear Reverend Gilts,
I attended A&M United Methodist Church
until I graduated from A&M. As a college student, I was typically
destitute during that time, and as a result, I did not give to the
church. Now that I am employed, I wanted to recognize the spiritual
guidance I received. Therefore, please find enclosed a check. I
hope everything at the church is going well.
Make no mistake about it, God cares about what we do with our money.
Money matters.
God calculates faithfulness
in our giving.
This was the shocking part of the story we read about the poor widow
from Luke 21. Jesus looked at what people were putting into the
bronze jar. There were probably some substantial amounts, because
the givers were identified as rich people. Then this poor widow
dropped two copper coins, two lepta, the minimal amount of an
offering in those days. Modern commentators have run the
calculations and declared that this was equivalent to what someone
in that day would make in five minutes of labor at minimum wage.
Years ago, I was on the
Mount of Olives years ago and a little boy came running up to me
with an olive branch in his hand. He extended it to me and I
accepted it with a smile. I was caught a little off guard when his
hand opened as if I were to give him something in exchange. I
fumbled around in my pocket and handed him what I thought was a ten
shekel piece about $1.40 back then. However, he looked at the coin,
which was actually 1/10 of a shekel (about .14 cents) and in perfect
English he spoke for the first time, “Ah, come on, man.”
Embarrassed, I gave the boy one American dollar and he returned a
smile.
I could imagine the folks
in the temple catching the humble gift out of the corner of their
eye and saying to the widow, “Ah, come on! What is the Temple going
to do with that? That’s not enough to buy a candle or a drop of oil
for the lamp.” Jesus, however, looked at her and said, “She has put
in more than all of them.” The commentators point out that this
literally means, “she has put in more than all of them put
together.” What she had to give may not have made a huge
difference to the Temple budget that year, but her faithfulness was
calculated on that gift and it was lavish generosity that Jesus
saw. He must have smiled.
Ambrose, the early church
father, wrote that the standard of evaluation of a gift is not the
amount given, but how much is left over. This woman gave with
faithfulness. William Arndt, a New Testament scholar said, “This
widow gave gladly, moved by the love of God, she was not compelled
to contribute.”
I wonder if God ever
looks at our gifts and looks at us like that little boy looked at me
on the Mount of Olives and utters, “Aw, come on, man!” I believe
God calculates our faithfulness in our giving. Money matters.
God commends our faith
demonstrated through our giving.
Why was this woman’s gift so much, when it appeared to be so
little? It was everything she had. That night when she went to
bed, if she prayed the prayer that we say every Sunday morning,
“Give us this day our daily bread…” She would have meant it.
Widows had very little means to make a living in those days. They
were the poorest of the poor and the people of faith were told to
care for them, because their Father in heaven certainly did. R.C.H.
Lenski wrote about this woman, “She gave all she had, gave
herself into the hands of God completely.” Then he added,
“What makes so many gifts so small? The fear that the givers will
not have enough for themselves. They depend on what they have, not
on God who gave them that and can give them much more.”
I wonder
if she ever knew that her small monetary gift would make her such a
hero of faith when seen and exposed by the Savior. This gift has
inspired artists to paint her, authors to write about her and once
about 12 years ago, it inspired a woman in the church I served to
present me with this beautiful framed reminder of this gift of
faith. Coincidentally, the giver may very well have been the
poorest person in that church, but I would guarantee you that she
was not the one who gave the least.
I am not sure that the widow of
Luke 21 or the giver of this gift ever knew of the depth and breadth
of their lavish generosity. Perhaps they had a hint. I wonder if
this woman heard Jesus commend her for her faith. I’m also certain
that she did. That just seems to be the way Jesus is.
Dr. A. Mitchell planted
three-foot tall live oaks on University Drive in 1936. Fred Brison
in his book, The First Fifty Years, wrote, “Professor
Mitchell knew when he planted those trees that mainly those of other
ages and generations would enjoy them.” So it often is with heroes
of faith, their deeds and the depth of their love waters generations
following that we too might grow in our own faith.
This morning, as you exit
the sanctuary, look across the courtyard and you will see a stained
glass window from what is now the WeekDay School office. It was
once a prayer chapel and will once again be a prayer chapel, when we
have moved in completely to the Christian Life Center. That stained
glass window was partially funded by a gift from the pastor at the
time, Jimmy Jackson. He had been given money to buy a suit by a
businessman in town, and instead helped by a window for the church
he loved. His faith was demonstrated by what he gave. How is our
faith demonstrated by our giving? Money matters.
I am often asked about my
feelings about Stewardship Campaigns like “What Gift Can I
Bring?” I must admit at the beginning of my ministry I felt
embarrassed about preaching about money. It seemed so personal,
almost intrusive. However, I have seen God do so many marvelous
things in people’s lives once they have yielded their finances to
his expectations. I want to invite you, if you have not already
done so, to pick up a “What Gift Can I Bring?” packet. Inside you
will find an introductory letter from our chairpersons, Jesse and
Becky Parr. A Vision Path statement of the church, a brochure
outlining the ministries of the church, a CD with some music by Ed
and some stories by me and a response card for you to declare your
estimate of giving.
I cannot read very far in
the Bible without realizing that money matters. God
cares about what we do with our money. God calculates our
faithfulness in our giving and God commends our faith demonstrated
through our giving.
Give thanks for
the past, for those who had vision,
Who planted and watered so dreams could come true.
Our past is peppered with heroes of faith, those that we read about
in the scriptures as well as those recalled in this book by Fred
Brison and in the hearts of each of us who have witnessed such
giants. Give thanks for the past – we have the chance to join
them. Amen.
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