Sunday, March 16, 2008
Matthew 21:1-13
Senior Pastor
This is a wonderful story of Jesus being recognized and celebrated by crowds of people as he enters Jerusalem. They are singing and shouting and waving palm branches. When people ask who is this, the crowds answer: This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee. (v. 11) Now Matthew has already told us earlier in verse 5 that this is their King and earlier than that in chapter 16 he records Peter’s declaration that this Jesus is the Messiah. Perhaps there is some misunderstanding among the people about who exactly this is and why the parade?
But then in verse 12 things
most likely become much more confusing as Jesus entered the temple
and drove out all who were selling and buying in the temple, and he overturned
the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves. Can you imagine the ruckus if after service
someone came in and turned over the tables in the Great Hall, maybe scattering
all the papers off the Welcome Desk and yelling this is a house of prayer
but you have made it a den of robbers.
It would be scary and dramatic, unsettling and disturbing. Certainly Jesus has just made such a scene in the temple. Why is he so upset as to take this drastic action? There are several possible answers, but I want to focus on only one today. I think one of the things that is upsetting to Jesus is that those involved in these temple activities, the selling of doves and such, have lost their spiritual focus.
They have turned worship into a
mere business transaction. They are
fulfilling the sacrificial ritual of worship but it seems that Jesus thinks
they are missing the point. He seems to
be emphasizing that connecting with God through worship is not a business
activity but rather a spiritual activity.
I sense a parallel in our day with the difference between giving our
money and giving our life.
Now you know that I think it is important to give a portion of your money back to God. I think it is an important step in discipleship and commitment that many of us have trouble with these days. It’s important not just to fund ministry, but it is also important because it deepens our ties to the work of God. But, if giving our money doesn’t lead us into a deeper relationship with God, then it is like Paul says in Corinthians about the person who gives all their possessions but does it without love, then we have gained nothing.
Dave Wetzler was the trainer
last December when I was part of a three-day training program in Natural Church
Development, which is a church health and vitality ministry. As part of the training Dave told us his
personal story as to why he was spending his life traveling around the country
helping churches learn about this information.
He related how one Sunday he showed up at church and his pastor started
this sermon on stewardship. Dave
thought to himself, “I could preach this sermon. I should have just stayed in bed this morning.” But to his surprise his pastor, Bill
Hybels, took him deeper than he expected on this topic.
That day his preacher related his message about stewardship and generous living to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. (Slide 2) You may remember from some class along the way that Abraham Maslow suggested that we meet our needs in order. If the needs on the bottom of the pyramid are not met first, then we can’t move up toward the higher needs. At the bottom of the pyramid are our physical needs and it moves from there up to safety and then to belonging, self-esteem and at the top what Maslow called self-actualization.
Well Hybel’s took that idea and came up with what he called the Generous Living Pyramid. In his pyramid he wanted to examine how people develop in terms of giving, especially considering one’s motivation for the giving. He says at the bottom of the pyramid people give based on self-interest, that is, they give when they will get something out of it. Either it makes them feel good or if I help you then you will help me kind of motivation. (Slide 3)
Hybels says you need not be a Christian to give in this way. Someone might be quite generous and it not be based on a faith understanding at all. But he says at the next level of motivation faith does come in to play and we give based on a sense of spiritual gratitude. (Slide 4) People of faith recognize that God has blessed them and so they want to give back something to the Lord. The Psalmist (Slide 5) summed this up well when he wrote, “How can I repay the Lord for all his goodness to me.” Most of us have felt that.
But Hybels says there is a third level that some Christians move into which recognizes that it is a matter of calling or what he refers to as spiritual obedience. (Slide 7) It is a spiritual perspective that is grateful to God but also understands that God challenges us to give not only when we feel like we want to but as a part and parcel of our life of faith. It is a spiritual discipline or as Paul says in Romans (Slide 16) it is a part of our spiritual worship. Sometimes we talk about tithing here or we could include sacrificial giving in this level – where we feel like we are really stretching to give beyond what we have been doing. Many of us did that during our great Rise and Shine Campaign a couple of years ago. Yet, as Paul mentions in his letter to the Corinthians, (Slide 12) it is something that God expects of each of us.
Now when Dave was telling us this story, he stopped here and said he thought sacrificial giving would be at the top of the pyramid, so he was confused when all of that was included at level three. But he said Hybels went on to the next level which he called spiritual vision. (Slide 17). He explained that at this level God has gotten a hold of you in such a way that you have a keen sense that God is leading you and you are ready to do more than drop your money in the plate on Sunday morning. At this level you have begun to see things more from God’s perspective than ever before. He quoted Jesus from Matthew’s Gospel, chapter 10 (Slide 19) where he says, “Do not store up for yourselves treasure on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth nor rust do not destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there you heart will be also.”
On that Sunday morning Dave says he was struggling with the proposal from the Natural Church Development people to become their North American partner and publisher. He said his mind strayed from the sermon for a few moments and he said to God, “Are you speaking to me about this. Is this the spiritual vision you are giving me? Dave felt the answer was “Yes.”
Then he protested to God saying, “You know there is no way I have enough money in savings to make this deal work.” God prompted, “You could mortgage your house.” Dave says now this was getting crazy. “Mortgage my house. But even if I did I wouldn’t have time to make all of this work.” His next thought was, “You could quit your job.” Dave says at this point in the sermon he had tears running down his face because he truly felt God was speaking to him in a way he had never experienced in his life, even though he was a lifelong Christian.
He tuned back in to hear Hybels quote Jesus again when he said, “Whoever finds his life will lose it and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Dave says he was feeling pretty overwhelmed as Hybels moved on to the fifth level that he calls supernatural love. (Slide 21)
He said at this level one has
gained the spiritual maturity such that their giving is based on the
understanding that God loves you so much and has given you everything,
therefore nothing asked of us from God is too much. Think about that perspective:
Nothing asked of us from God is too much.
These last two levels cross over the threshold from just giving your money to giving your life. God sends us Jesus to reveal the difference, to model the way and to invite us to follow, to give all of who we are and what we have over to God’s will and work.
That day in worship Dave Wetzler crossed the threshold between giving money and giving his life. He mortgaged his house, he quit his job and he went into business with the Natural Church Development Institute. How about you? Where are you on the pyramid?
Jesus says there is a difference between doing faith as a business transaction rather than a spiritual lifestyle. He turns the tables over and everyone is stunned. What will we do now?
This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee. (v. 11)
But then in verse ____… more confusing
…have lost their __________________ focus.
…connecting with God through
worship is not a business…
…rather a spiritual
activity. …a parallel in our day with
the
difference between giving our
money and giving our ________.
…gives all their possessions but
does it without love,
then we have gained ______________.
But to his surprise his pastor,
Bill Hybels, took him
____________than he expected on
this topic.
…the bottom of the pyramid people give based on self-interest…
…we give based on a sense of spiritual ___________________.
…what he refers to as spiritual __________________.
…the next level which he called
spiritual ____________.
…his mind strayed from the
sermon… and he said to ______…
…the fifth level that he calls supernatural ________.
Nothing asked of us from God is
______ ________.
Dave Wetzler crossed the threshold
between giving money
and giving his life. How about ______?
Kid’s Question: If we give without love what have we gained?