Sunday, September 29, 2019

Contentment / Based on 1 Timothy 6:6-19 / Delivered on September 29, 2019 to CCH


Contentment / Based on 1 Timothy 6:6-19 / Delivered on September 29, 2019 to CCH
Hymns: As the Deer, ‘Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus, I Then Shall Live

1 Timothy 6:6-19
6:6 Of course, there is great gain in godliness combined with contentment;
6:7 for we brought nothing into the world, so that we can take nothing out of it;
6:8 but if we have food and clothing, we will be content with these.
6:9 But those who want to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.
6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains.
6:11 But as for you, man of God, shun all this; pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness.
6:12 Fight the good fight of the faith; take hold of the eternal life, to which you were called and for which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
6:13 In the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, I charge you
6:14 to keep the commandment without spot or blame until the manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ,
6:15 which he will bring about at the right time--he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords.
6:16 It is he alone who has immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see; to him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.
6:17 As 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.
6:18 They are to do good, to be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share,
6:19 thus 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.

Good morning and Happy Sunday to you.  I am Darci Strutt McQuiston, a Lay Servant of the United Methodist Church up on the hill from here.  It is my honor to be with you this morning.  Some of you may know that each Sunday many churches follow the same scriptural recommendations called the lectionary.  The scriptures from this week’s lectionary fit together very well so I’m going to pull in from a few as well as the one I picked as my focus which is 1 Timothy.

The three ideas I’m attempting to bring out today are:
Importance of focus
Importance of trust
Contentment combined with service

Importance of focus
The lectionary is quite filled with examples of how we use our money this week.  The Luke scripture (Luke 16:19-31) shares a parable from Jesus about a rich man and the poor man at his gate.  They both die and the rich man finds himself in an unpleasant afterlife and sees the poor man, Lazarus, being comforted by Abraham.  The rich man isn’t condemned because of his wealth.  He put his trust in money instead of mercy.  He showed no mercy to Lazarus and in the parable, he received no mercy as a result.

In Amos 6:1a, 4-7 – The prophet says the wealthy will be the first to go into exile.  Their crime isn’t wealth but the failure to be “grieved over the ruin of Joseph!” which represents the northern kingdom.

In both of those scripture passages the rich focused on their wealth and didn’t respond with compassion to those around them.

The letter puts it to Timothy in this way:
 6:9 But those who want to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.
6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains.

That last phrase is often misquoted as “money is the root of all evil.”  That’s not what it is saying at all.  It isn’t the money that’s the problem it is the senseless and harmful desires.  When money becomes the object of devotion then there’s a problem.

It’s not easy.  In Matthew 19:21-24 Jesus told his disciples it wasn’t easy.  A wealthy, law abiding, man asked Jesus to tell him what he lacked.

Mat 19:21-24
Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”  When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.  Then Jesus said 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.”

Importance of trust
I think it comes down to trust.  We must trust Jesus at his word.  Giving to others doesn’t mean we will have lack. 

1 Timothy
6:13 In the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, I charge you
6:14 to keep the commandment without spot or blame until the manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ,
6:15 which he will bring about at the right time--he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords.
6:16 It is he alone who has immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see; to him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.

God gives life.  Jesus can be trusted as the King and kings and Lord of lords.

The selection from Jeremiah for today demonstrated a trust like that.

Jeremiah, an Old Testament prophet, has no children and is currently in prison.  His future doesn’t look the most hopeful.  Babylon was about to take over Jerusalem.  In comes his uncle asking him to buy his field.  The price of land wasn’t negotiable like it is in our time.  The next of kin was the first to be offered land if the owner needed to sell, so it would stay in the family.  Jeremiah, who had been preaching gloom and doom, suddenly took an action of hope.  He trusted God would be true to his word.  He parted with his money and gave the people hope for the future.

Jeremiah 32:14-15 Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Take these deeds, both this sealed deed of purchase and this open deed, and put them in an earthenware jar, in order that they may last for a long time.  For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Houses and fields and vineyards shall again be bought in the land.

The Psalm for today, 146, puts it this way:
146:3 Do not put your trust in princes, in mortals, in whom there is no help.
146:4 When their breath departs, they return to the earth; on that very day their plans perish.
146:5 Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD their God,

Trust God above mortals and certainly above wealth.  It also said we would be happy.

Contentment combined with service
1 Timothy
6:6 Of course, there is great gain in godliness combined with contentment;
6:7 for we brought nothing into the world, so that we can take nothing out of it;
6:8 but if we have food and clothing, we will be content with these.

I looked up contentment and some synonyms listed were fulfillment, gratification, pleasure, satisfaction, serenity.

Timothy is not told to just get along with what he has; to grin and bear it.  He is being told to feel satisfied, and grateful for all he has.  There’s a difference in tone to those two feelings.  The first is you bear it like a burden.  The second is you feel pleasure in what you have.

The contentment is to be combined with godliness.  The letter to Timothy ends with verses of instruction to the wealthy.

6:17 As 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.
6:18 They are to do good, to be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share,
6:19 thus 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.

God provides.  Real life is the life of love and interrelationship.  It is focused on love of neighbor and love of God.  The Greek word translated as “take hold of” has a full translation of “take hold of, grasp, catch, sometimes with violence.”  Eternal life and true life are to be seized. 

I was raised to be a good steward of my money.  I was taught to always keep three months of income in savings so if you lost your job or had a major home repair you wouldn’t be caught off guard.  Keep your spending below your earning.  These are all words of wisdom still.

I have also gone through lean years.  During those times the help from family and neighbors bridged me over until I could get back on my feet.  There are times now I worry about my financial future, and I need to remember those past times I already lived through and trust I will be OK.

Money can be a god or a demon in that way; by causing you to race after “more” or by causing worry.  Be a good steward of your money but don’t let it control your life.  That is not true life.  We are to turn our attention to things that are lasting beyond the material. 

Last weekend I went to my childhood church in McGregor Iowa.  My brother happened to be filling the pulpit last Sunday.  Part of his message included teaching that we can use our time and money in this life to feel a special welcome when we enter our afterlife.  My brother had us imagine with joy the people that we had helped or led to Christ greeting us as we entered heaven.  Those are lasting things.  That is Heavenly treasure!

We know this world is not our end.  We have been promised access to true life.  This final chapter of First Timothy is advising us to live like we are already there.  Live as if you are before God already.  Don’t wait.  Seize it. 

Amen