This is the first of our August services when we join with Wing and Wingrave. The service included the baptism of Oliver Ireson.
Reading Colossians 3.1-11
Since you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
Gospel Luke 12.13-21
Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”
And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’
“Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ‘
“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
“This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich towards God.”
Sermon
May be coincidence – two passages on same theme.
Colossians – set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Then later – as if Paul wanted to reinforce his message: Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
Then in Luke 12: “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich towards God.”
Paul’s emphasis is on Judgement. You died, he says, with Christ. So turn away from earthly things, and rid yourselves of the sins of this world. Take off your old self and put on your new self which is being renewed in the image of its Creator.
Like the Emperor’s New Clothes. Except, far from parading naked, the new garments are the image of God.
Gospel passage also about lure of worldly things but also about self-reliance and its futility when today you live but tomorrow you may die and sometime soon you will die. ‘You can’t take it with you’ as the saying goes.
This parable can make us feel guilty, when we have so much and so many people in the world have so little. We all have possessions, and have to provide for our futures if we are not to be a burden to others. But story not about money itself but love of money, overreliance on wealth, caring too much for possessions. About what riches really are – rich towards God and not in eyes of bank.
Parable starts with an argument between two brothers. In Judaism, inheritance goes to older brother – not usually split. Younger brother complains, and asks Jesus to rule against the Law in his favour.
Jesus refuses, and accuses him of greed. A man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions. Then Jesus tells them a story.
Story well-known. Farmer has many good harvests. Pulls barns down – builds bigger ones. Stashes possessions and relaxes. Eat, drink and be merry. But the moral of the story is that very night he dies. Has put himself right with the world. Has not put himself right with God.
Story is called ‘The Rich Fool’ – that’s what he is. His emphasis is on himself. My goods. My grain. My barns.
He relies on himself and his good fortune. Things material rather than things eternal. There’s a comparison here between Faith and Personal possessions. Which do you rely on? Material reliance is seductive. It feels good to have no money worries, but scrooges tend to feather their own nests and ignore the very real needs of others.
Nothing wrong with money. It’s what you do with it, and how much it means to you that may be wrong.
Today we baptize baby Oliver, and invite his parents and godparents to give him a start on his journey of faith. We welcome him into the body of Christ – the church – as we welcomed his brother William and his mum Claire last September.
Maybe he will be a rich man one day. Maybe not. But we want to prepare him for his decision, when he is old enough to make it, to walk that narrow road of faith – that is where his true wealth lies. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment