I have always had a little trouble believing in super heroes.  I think it has something to do with their disguises.  Clark Kent loses his glasses and becomes Superman, Bruce Wayne dons a mask and a sculpted body suit and becomes Batman, the Lone Ranger never has his identity revealed because he is a masked man.  Even as a little boy, I wondered about these things.  But then, maybe it doesn’t really take much to convince us or to confuse us.
           This past Tuesday was Mardi Gras, the day before Ash Wednesday.  For many it was a day to don masks and to do what my sister once told me, “We have to eat all the Fudgesicles today, because Mom says tomorrow we are going on a diet.”  We do wear a lot of masks and see a lot of masks.  The disguises usually aren’t that clever, but maybe it doesn’t take much to convince us or confuse us.
            Money and material possessions often wear masks.  This has always been the case.  The disguises aren’t that clever, but they do seem to be quite effective.  Paul tried to uncover this disguise when he wrote to his student and friend, Timothy, who had the task of pastoring the church in beautiful Ephesus, a city of great diversity.  The apostle’s instructions are found in I Timothy 6:17-19 on page 211 of the New Testament in the pew Bibles in front of you.  Hear now the Word of the Lord:

¹⁷As for those who in the present age are rich, command them not to be haughty, or to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but rather on God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. ¹⁸They are to do good, to be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share, ¹⁹thus storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of the life that really is life.

This is the Word of God for the people of God.  Thanks be to God.  In this passage Paul told Timothy to tell the people of possessions to put their gifts toward good use.  Let us pray.

In this brief passage we discover some of what Jesus referred to as the deceitfulness of riches in Matthew 13:22.  Today as we examine this passage I want to encourage you by saying, Mardi Gras is over; you can take off the mask.    

Take off the mask that disguises the gift as the Giver.

           Paul encouraged Timothy to be direct with the people of means in Ephesus.  They could fall into the same trap into which so many over the centuries had fallen – the trap of pride.  They could actually become haughty or take pride in their status as well-to-do.  Look at how Paul describes these individuals, they are rich in the present age, but are encouraged not to put their hope into the uncertainty of riches.  The truth was all those things were uncertain for two reasons – they are fickle and they are finite. Money and material possessions are fickle in that they fluctuate with the market, the value of the dollar, theft, fire, accidents, and so many other variables.  They can indeed be here today and gone tomorrow.  They are finite in that they are only good here.  Even if you could take them with you, what good would they do in a place where the best things of this earth are mere pavement?  These possessions were gifts, expressions of love and generosity from the Giver who is love.  The people of possessions of this age were encouraged to take off the mask of money and look at it as a gift.  They were instructed to put their hope in God, the Giver who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.
           Years ago I went to pick Chelsea up from school.  She was in the ninth grade, but seemed much younger to her father who remains in a constant state of denial.  As soon as she got in the car, she declared, “I’m hungry.”  It just so happened that there was a McDonald’s right around the corner from the school – what a coincidence.  I drove into the drive-through and ordered a Happy Meal for my High School freshman.  It still worked – she smiled.  I too love to see her smile.  The smile turned into a frown only moments later as I reached into the bag for one of those irresistible golden treasures glistening with diamonds of salt.  My sweet little girl clasped the bag tightly.  I then asked her how many of those French fries did she have in her hand before I picked her up from school.  She said, “None.”  I asked her how many of those French fries did she provide for herself, purchasing them with money she had.  She said, “None.”  I asked her how much of what she held in her hand was a gift given to her out of love.  She said, “All of it.”  Her grip loosened on the bag and she said, “Do you want some French Fries?”
           How often God has brought that image to mind!  It is easy to confuse the gift for the Giver and begin to worship it and treasure it, rather than seeing the God who richly provides us with everything.  My gift to Chelsea could have actually created a rift between us, if she would have chosen the gift over the giver.  My guess is that is what was going on in Ephesus.  E. M. Blaiklock wrote in his commentary on I Timothy, “There must have been a problem of some seriousness among the well-to-do of the Christian community in the great city.”  It is easy to do, to be confused by the mask on the gift.  But remember, Mardi Gras is over; you can take off the mask.  Take off the mask that disguises the gift as the Giver.

Take off the mask that disguises riches for the reason.

           Paul’s audience in this portion of the letter were the people of means in Ephesus.  It was not wrong to be rich, so long as one took advantage of that position for the kingdom of God.  Paul’s instructions in verse 18 were brief but profound.  “Do good, be rich in good works, be generous, be ready to share.”  They were rich for a reason, not to be a storehouse, but a clearinghouse.  Not to be the homeowner, but the chief steward of the master’s resources.
           Last week I received a book in the mail.  It was a promotional gift entitled, The Wealth Conundrum.  Normally, I would have either tossed the book or put it on a shelf somewhere.  I have found several free books to be worth every bit of what I paid for them.  However, with this book arriving on my desk during our Stewardship Campaign, “What Gift Can I Bring?” and the many times I have sung the verse, 

Give thanks for tomorrow, full of surprises, for knowing whatever tomorrow may bring,

The Word is our promise always, forever; we rest in God's keeping and live in God's love…

           Well, I thought I should at least look through it.  And there were some nuggets buried in this little book.  In fact, it reiterated what I had heard before, a fool proof formula on how to get rich.  I am going to share it with you today, with the full assurance that I believe these principles to be true.  It is a simple formula, it is not easy, but it works.  Are you ready?

1.      Give 10 % back to God first.

2.      Pay yourself 10-20% in savings, IRA, 401k or any other way to put it where you can’t get to it.

3.      Live completely on the 70 – 80 % that is left.

           That is really all there is to it.  Whoever follows this plan will have little or no money problems.  Ralph Doudera offers some other tips that really help to elaborate on these three principles:

1.      Spend less than you earn

2.      Establish a budget

3.      Stay out of debt

4.      Protect your wealth with insurance, such as disability insurance and life insurance.  He asked if you had a goose that laid golden eggs, which would you insure first, the goose or the eggs?

           The point is in America in the 21^st century building wealth is not hard.  Doudera points out, “If a college graduate invested in an IRA all the money he/she would otherwise have spent on his/her first new car, when he/she turned 65 he/she would be a millionaire, even after adjusting for inflation.”  You can become a person with money and material possessions rather simply, not easily or quickly, but simply.  However, if you never really understand the reason for riches, then it won’t make any difference in the world or in your life.  Don’t confuse the ‘what’ for the ‘why’.  What you have been given, riches, is for a reason – to do good, be rich in good works, be generous, be ready to share.  Mardi Gras is over; you can take off the mask - the mask that disguises the gift as the Giver, the mask that disguises the riches for the reason.

Take off the mask that disguises spending and saving.

           Paul seems to imply that we often confuse these two elements of handling money.  We think that if we hold onto money we are saving it and if we let go of money we are spending it.  Unless, of course, I write a check from one account to another.  If I follow the principle I mentioned above and gave 10% back to God and placed 10% in savings, I am investing in my future.  However, we generally think of the investment as our savings and tithing as spending.  This scripture says it a little differently.  When we heed the warnings of verse 17 and not confuse the gift for the giver, when we follow the instruction of verse 18 and use our riches for a reason (to do good, be rich in good deeds, be generous, and be ready to share), then we are investing in the future.  Paul said we are laying a good foundation for the future and taking hold of life as it is meant to be.
           Now I’m sure I don’t need to stress the importance of a good foundation to any of the members of A&M United Methodist Church.  We have waited two years to get fully moved into a new building because of foundation problems in one part of the new Christian Life Center.  There were some architectural miscalculations and some construction errors that combined to create a problem that we are finally addressing.  By the way, we should be in the building completely in May, but not with out a great deal of stress, patience and perseverance by many members of this great church.  Foundations are important.  Paul knew this as well or better than we do.  How dreadful it would be if this poignant example was restricted to a two-year struggle with a flooring surface across the street.  Let us get the importance of this for our very lives.
           Tuesday morning I had the privilege of giving the Invocation at the 3^rd Annual Community Builders Breakfast for the Bryan/College Station Habitat for Humanity.  I have been a fan of this faith-based ministry ever since I first heard about it, but Tuesday helped to increase my appreciation for it.  We heard from a current homeowner and a future homeowner, the difference that this hope brings to their lives.  At each place setting was a card that told the story of one of the Habitat homeowners.  My place setting had the story of the Hendersons the seventh Habitat homeowners in Bryan/College Station who moved into their home in 1994.  They were like many families caught in the cycle of sub-standard housing, caught in a cycle of poverty.  But with the help of Habitat for Humanity they were able to move into a simple, decent home at no-interest and receive classes on financial management, minor home repairs, home economics and other helpful instructions.  Both of their sons wound up attending the University of Massachusetts with one of them currently thriving as a New England homebuilder and the other getting ready for law school.  What an extraordinary foundation has been laid in the Habitat for Humanity neighborhoods where stories like these are almost commonplace.
           Those stories are not restricted to Habitat neighborhoods.  They abound right here at A&M United Methodist Church.  I cannot begin to tell you how many stories I heard, in the 28 homes that I visited in 28 days, of how this church has provided a foundation for families, children, youth and adults.  The gifts that you have given to this church enabling its ministries has been like writing a check into your savings account, not the one here on earth that is made up of uncertain riches, but the one that is in the future, whose benefits we get to taste already.

Give thanks for tomorrow, full of surprises, for knowing whatever tomorrow may bring,

The Word is our promise always, forever; we rest in God's keeping and live in God's love.

            What will tomorrow bring for A&M United Methodist Church?  God only knows, but as we take off the masks that disguise the gifts as the Giver, riches for the reason and spending as saving, we lay the foundation for something extraordinary – God’s future and we take hold of the life that really is life.   Mardi Gras is over; you can take off the mask.  Amen.