This sermon on the Christian use of financial resources was presented September 29, 2019 at Bethany Presbyterian Church, Sacramento CA
Old Testament Reading – 23rd Psalm
The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley,I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
Luke 16:19-31 New International Version (NIV)
The Rich Man and Lazarus
“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
“The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’
“But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’
“He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’
“Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’
“‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
“He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”
***Thus ends the reading
***************
You can often tell who the bad guys are in the Bible, of course from the context and also because they are often not given names. “The Rich Young King.” “The Pharisees,” as a group, and in our story today, “The Rich Man.”
We also meet Lazarus, who is not the Lazarus that Jesus raised from the dead. Our Lazarus today is a beggar, covered with sores and willing to eat even scraps of food that have fallen to the ground.
It is clear that these two know each other, for it is at the rich man’s gate the beggar Lazarus was laid each day and was surely was passed by the Rich Man, who it seems did nothing to alleviate Lazarus’ condition.
So our story is not about wealthy people and how they are evil. It is about those who have resources and do nothing to alleviate the suffering of others.
But how much is enough? How much should we give? I confess that this is where the sermon becomes very difficult to write, as on one hand we speak about what the Bible tells us and on the other we don’t wish to denigrate the generosity of good people.
Matthew 19 tells us of the aforementioned young, rich ruler who follows all the commandments and has lived a generally blameless life. But when he asks Jesus, “what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?”, Jesus answers, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”
But when the young man heard that, he went away sorrowful, for he had a great many possessions.
Bill and Melinda Gates have been named the most generous philanthropists in the US and have donated more than $36 billion to charitable causes, focusing on global health, education, and poverty. What they have done to improve the world is beyond the imagination of most of us. If heaven is reserved for “good deed doers,” certainly they have earned a place there.
Not like that widow that only dropped two pennies in the church plate. You know the one that Mark and Luke talked about.
“As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. “Truly I tell you,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”
This woman had nothing, yet gave all she had. Bill Gates is worth $106 billion, a third of which has been donated to very worthy causes.
Is it wrong to be rich? In Matthew 19, Jesus says to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
“It is HARD for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven.” Hard. But not impossible.
In Matthew 16, Jesus says, “What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?”
From my readings in preparing for today’s sermon, I believe the sin is not in being wealthy. The sin is in not spending the money – not sharing the wealth. I’ve been quoting from the Bible, so let’s get something a little fresher. From 500 years ago, Francis Bacon said “Money is like Manure. Of very little use except to be spread.”
God doesn’t care how wealthy we are. It’s how we use our resources that matter.
MATTHEW 6 tells us ““Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
And if you are unclear on where your Christian heart should be, Jesus has some examples. Use your resources to seek justice and show mercy, while always walk humbly with God. Obey the Commandments. Clothe the naked, feed the hungry. In short – Love one another.
Some of you might be saying, “But I am entitled to a new car every other year.” And that may be true and don’t be embarrassed about it. That new car provides food and shelter for the salesperson who sold it, the mechanic who maintains it, the truck driver who brought it to you, the union worker who built it, etc. The same is true for the food servers at your elegant restaurant, the actors at your live theater, the florist who sell you flowers…
Having nice things is not a sin. Hoarding money and resources – THAT is the Biblical sin.
And be aware – if you have a lot of resources, the onus is greater on you than on someone with simpler means. “It is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven.” Because you can do more and you SHOULD do more.
This sermon is not to beat up on the rich. It’s to remind us of our duty as Christians. And be assured – if you are here today, you are rich. You have more resources than most anyone else in the world.
And how should you spread this manure … I mean, money?
Jesus warns us in Matthew 6, “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
“So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
And that would be the end of a very good sermon. Except for Part II of our reading.
If you recall from eight pages ago, the Rich Man and Lazarus both die, one going to heaven and one going to hell, to use the vernacular.
But even from his torment in Hades, the Rich Man still doesn’t get it. He asks Abraham to “send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue.” He begs this not out of humility, but because he still looks at Lazarus as a lesser person – a servant to fulfill his needs.
Abraham simply says, “Ain’t gonna happen.”
But again, the Rich Man pleads, “Then send him to my Father’s house to warn my brothers, so they will not come into this place of torment.”
Someone coming from the grave to warn another of is fate – if he doesn’t change. Does this sound familiar? A story written in December 1843, about a fellow who came back from the dead to warn his partner to change his ways – to stop hoarding his coins and take on the business Marley did not. Scrooge tells him, “You were a good businessman,z’ to which Marley responds, “Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business. Charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence were all my business. I have none to give – but you may yet – have a chance and hope of escaping my fate, Ebeneezer.”
When you watch one of the 927 iterations of Dicken’s A CHRISTMAS CAROL, reflect on Marley’s ability to come to Scrooge and warn him to change his ways.
Such is not possible for the brothers of the Rich Man. They have been given all the lessons they need and Lazarus returning from the grave will not do any good.
Abraham says, “If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”
In Mark 4, Jesus says it as simply as possible. “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”
Let all hear the words of Creator God and live the life shown to us by Jesus the Christ and move in the manner that the Holy Spirit guides us, using our resources to show how we love God with all our heart and with all our soul and with all our mind and with all our strength.’
And THIS is the word of God.