Where is your Treasure?

August 1, 2010
Where is your treasure?
Colossians 3:1-11
Luke 12:13-21
Year C
10th Sunday after Pentecost

Introduction
Comments on Chelsea Clinton’s wedding…..

Well, the big day has finally come and gone. Chelsea Clinton has finally gotten married, and everything seemed to go off with a hitch. If there was a problem, it would have been all over the news this morning, and so far I have heard nothing more than good reports. They say that the average wedding costs about $25,000 – Chelsea’s reportedly could be anywhere from 3 to 6 millions dollars when the final figures comes in. I have had to ask everyone that I know this weekend – why would they need to spend so much. It seems a little over extravagant and unnessessary to me, but then again I am not the one paying for it.
Comparisons of weddings
I heard of another wedding recently where the family announced to the guest after the wedding that they were taking all that they would have spent on a nice wedding, with flowers, and food and decorations, and gifts, and they were going to the local orphanage to give it to children in need, they invited the guest to join them and give whatever they were going to give to the new couple to the children.
It raises the question for me of how much is too much? When do we know that we are spending our money wisely, and when we have crossed the line and become just out right greedy? When are we being ambituous, and when are we getting carried away. What if I don’t even have 3-6 million dollars to spend – can I ever be accused of greed?

Greed
Greed is not about how much money you have, it is a condition of the spirit. When we are afraid of not having enough- then we start to hoard and hold onto things for our own security. Greed becomes a thief that robs us of our life, and our connection to God. We forget to rely on God. Greed has the power to destroy our bodies and souls, it causes us to place things over people, it compromises our principles, and it can get so bad that it makes us fools. Someone who has lost track of whats real and what is just in our imagination. Greed is a soul condition. Jesus addresses greed in his teaching for today – he saw it in the request for him to judge how much one brother should give to another in an inheritance dispute.

There is even a rumor that since Jesus lived so long ago and since he was such a nice person, that he always talked about our souls, but he would never address our stuff. Jesus was concerned about our behavior, but he would never address money issues. That is not true. If Jesus did not talk about money then neither should the preacher, – but the truth is – that Jesus talked about money all of the time. He was a little obsessed with it actually. Almost 2/3 of his parables had to do with money or possessions. The story in Luke 12:13-21 is one of those times when Jesus talks about money.

Commentary on the text
A man, probably a younger brother steps out of the crowd to ask Jesus to settle a dispute between his brother over his inheritance. In those days, it was the older brother who received the inheritance from his father. It was his decision to share it with his other brothers. Jesus tells him that he has not come here to settle disputes between brothers. Jesus says that he does not want to make a decision between greedy and greedy. Instead he tells the brother and all listening the story of a farmer who stored up grain for himself. He was so blessed that he had too much grain, and decided to tear down his old storehouses and to build bigger ones. God gets a little concerned about the man’s priorities, and demands his soul that very night. We are supposed to strive to be rich in God, not in stuff. Because you can’t take stuff with you when you die.

Life focused just on self
The bible calls this man a silly fool. But we are all a lot like him. He was not a bad man; he did not have evil intentions. The story did not say that he cheated anyone, that he lied, he probably was a very shrewd businessman. But he was convinced that his life was in his hands. As he spoke of his dilemma of having too much stuff and needing more storage space, his whole conversation was about himself. What he had, what he could do, how it would affect him. His whole conversation was about me and mine. You can look back and note how many times in his conversation that he said I. Jesus’ conversation is always about we and us. We are not in this world alone- there are many others in need. When we hold onto our money and possession, there are always others who do without. Jesus didn’t have any possession. He didn’t have a house, or a donkey or even a moneybag. What he did have were people – lots of people who depended upon his word for life.


A Life focused on what’s in front of you
The man lived in a world where what he could see right before him was all that there was. He didn’t feel he needed to prepare himself for eternal life – so he needed to work as hard as he could to win before the game was over. Colossians says that when we take on Christ that we take on a new perspective in life. We are focused on our lives in heaven, and not on the things of the earth. When you try to fix your life from the bottom up. Starting down here and moving up there, it is easy for you to get stuck in the details. It is sort of like cleaning out your basement – once you open one box, you open another and you cant complete your task, because you are so busy looking at what you have. But when you start up here, and work down – then you see life from a different perspective. You can see everything at once – and your start to prioritize what is important and what it is that you are never going to look at. You can throw away those boxes, without even bothering to look in them. You start to see yourselves and your potential the way God sees your potential and you make a difference.
Jesus reminds us that we are all just like the older brother who has been given an inheritance. We shouldn’t have to be told to share the gift that we have been given with our brothers and sisters.

Story of the young woman
There was a young woman – one could say that she was very rich in her gifts from god. Very rich indeed. Her gifts were great. From the very moment of her birth her intelligence, and tenacity were quite evident. As she grew she became in succession, ruler of her nursery school, monarch of day care, student council chairperson, and valedictorian of bother her high school and college classes. Then not being content with her Harvard bachelor’s degree in business administration, she graduated at the top of the best MBA program in the country. No one was surprised when half the companies in the fortune 100 actively courted her. a major manufacturer finally won the competition for her skills. The company’s president proudly told the Wall Street journal about how she would transform the firm. It wasn’t too long before he realized that complete accuracy of his statements. But unfortunately his business savvy didn’t foretell the way she deflated his golden parachute as she almost literally shoved him out the executive suite door. In doing so, she became the youngest CEO in the history of the firm. The firm she took over was no ordinary firm, of course. You could see that from its balance sheet. But you could see it even more in the faces of its employees. For while the firm was immensely profitable, it had the reputation of being even more immensely honorable.
Over its hundred year plus history, its officers had always treated their employees and customers, as they wished to be treated themselves. Even more impressively, in this day and age, they’d always refused to do business with any company that treated their customers or employees with anything but the same level of honor.
After she’d installed herself in the corner office, the firms new CEO carefully examined this well crafted tradition of honor. At least she examined it before she tossed it our. Then her drive to success led her to a search for a new tradition. To keep on top, she thought profit must rule over anything else.
It wasn’t long before the firm’s workers were hit with massive layoffs, and plant closures. In their place came factories in countries that were less picky about labor and environmental issues. The average age of those employees was about 12. and it suddenly didn’t seem too important when the firm’s child laborers developed many cancers never before seen in their country. Soon the firms share price climbed through the roof. With all of her stock options the new CEO seemed set for life. After all, with more money, she had more possessions. More power then she could ever possibly use or spend. Her life seemed perfect.
But her perfect world began to unravel after her visit to the firm’s new factory in Thailand. She’d gone there to assure herself that everything was being done to maximize its profitability. She was quite pleased by what she saw at the plant. Her young workers there were laboring at a feverish speed. And no funds were being spent to provide them any unnecessary frills; frills like safety equipment.
Then just as she was leaving the plant, she heard a hissing noise. Before she could even turn to locate the source, she found herself enveloped in a cloud of foul smelling fumes. Quickly she ran from the plant and stood grasping for breath beside the main door. When at last she could speak she questioned the plant manager about the fumes source. Don’t worry, he told her. The holding tank for our processing chemicals springs a leak now and then. The workers are used to it by now.
Satisfies by the explanation, she returned to the firms New York headquarters. There she threw herself into her latest effort; a hostile takeover of a major competitor. But after a few months, she began to feel strange. She tired easily, became nauseated frequently. And began to loose weight. At first she thought that it was just a virus. But why didn’t the symptoms go away? Then she notices a lump on her neck.
For the first time, she was scared. She made an appointment with the best doctor in the city.
After being poked and prodded, and tested the doctor looked at her in silence. His eyes seemed to pierce her soul. I am so sorry he said, her death would come very quick, within a month. She was confined to her home, as hospice took very good care of her.
Dying is a very lonely affair. None of her employees ever came to visit. She heard that they celebrated when they heard the news,
She had not friends, and she had alienated her family. Weeks went by with no one, until one day an unexpected visitor why knocked at the door.

A friend who was rich in God
It was her former boss; the one she had fired. He sat with her that day, and came back every day to visit. He often bought flowers or other gifts to cheer her up. She began to look forward to these visits and to wonder why he was so nice to her.
One day she asked him. Why are you visiting me – took everything away from you. After I fired you , you were so poor.
Her former boss smiled at her for a moment and then leaned forward and took her hand. You could never make me poor. As long as I can do something for someone else I can never be poor.
You see, the secret of being rich, isn’t gaining possessions, it isn’t winning the rat race. For I found out early in life that no matter who well I did in the rat race, I was still a rat.
The secret of being rich is using your gifts and whatever you gain from those gifts to help others. We have a choice in life he said – you can be rich in ourselves, and build up money and things, but in the end no amount of money or things will matter
But if we use what we have to enrich God’s people, we’ll have created things that matter. Only in that way can we be rich toward God.
Her life ended painfully, but the pain was lessoned by a sense of awe. For at least she’d met someone who was rich. Very rich indeed. To God alone be the glory.

Conclusion
How much is too much? When do we reach the point in our lives when we are using our resources, and when we are being greedy. Jesus never gives a straight answer. But he does warn us all to be on constant guard against greed. Our lives are not defined by what we have or don’t have, it is defined by the relationships we have. The most important relationship being the one we have with Christ.

Clothing ourselves in Christ
An anonymous author expressed what it means to come to Christ and discover the wonderful experience of salvation.

He asked:

Let a person go to a psychiatrist and what does he become? An adjusted sinner.
Let a person go to a physician and what does he become? A healthy sinner.
Let a person achieve wealth and what does he become? A wealthy sinner.
Let a person join a church, sign a card, and turn over a new leaf in life and what does he become? A religious sinner.

But what happens when a person goes to Jesus? If he/she comes to Christ in sincere repentance, confessing their sin and receiving Christ by faith through the cross of Calvary, that person becomes a new creature in Christ, forgiven, reconciled, and adopted into the family of God, with a new vision, mission, meaning, and purpose to life. That person will also find achievement, fulfillment, and direction in God's will and call in life! We become God’s children.

Stewardship
With life in Christ stewardship is caring for the things that God cares about. Guarding ourselves against greed, being rich in the things of Christ, Keeping our heads on the things of God, Clothing ourselves in Christ all leads to a conversation on stewardship. Stewardship – taking care of god’s things is not just a time once a year when we are deciding what we are going to give to God. Stewardship is a process that starts with how much money we give to the church, it ends with how much money we give to the church after we become aware of how much god has given us. Stewardship is the time when we must constantly assess what it is that I need to take off. So that I can put on the new self that Christ has given you. Let us pray.

Amen.