More Blessed Feb. 24, 2008 Albertville Rev Michael A. Trask
[Jesus Said] ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ (Acts 20:35)
What an odd thing for the Jesus to say! It is more blessed to give than to receive? It seems to violate all common sense. Most people spend the better portion of their lives striving, struggling, building, working, sweating, studying, plotting, planning so that we might be able to reach the supposedly more blessed state of getting and having more stuff. Inwardly, we believe that we are more blessed to receive than to give. That is what we come into the world believing. From our very core, what Jesus says seems so very wrong. It’s a nice religious platitude and would make a great wall plaque written in some sentimental and archaic script....but that’s where it should stay on the plaque. But lets not be overly defensive. This is not an either or thing! He didn’t say that giving is blessed and receiving is not blessed. It is most definitely a blessing to receive. Check out the end of the book of Job! It says that “The Lord blessed the latter part of job’s life more than the first...He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels....and it goes on and on.” He was most definitely blessed to receive. (Job 42) The Lord also blessed Abraham and Solomon with much wealth. Jesus is not proposing an either or thing. You are blessed to receive! God has blessed you and blessed you and blessed you. Jesus is not denying any of that. It is blessed to receive, What he’s saying is that there is a state of blessedness that goes above and beyond receiving....and that is giving. “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” This is the new frontier that he has opened for us this is part of that “meaning and purpose in life” that people are so avidly searching for. And you already know this is true. You know that there is meaning in giving....the giving of yourself, the giving of your time, and your money. Just a few years back our congregation entered into one of its most exciting times. We decided that it was time to build this sanctuary. Many of the members who were around at that time say that it was a very meaningful time for them. Much of this was built by volunteer hours. Large numbers of people were sacrificing large amounts of their precious time and I didn’t hear any complaining at all! On the contrary, I saw joy, I saw laughter, saw camaraderie, I saw fellowship among the volunteers. Same thing happened again when we redid the basement. During this time, you volunteers understood that it was more blessed to give than to receive as you gave hours and hours of time. And you who participated in our huge 5 year building fund drive. Lots of people gave a lot of money to help fund this project and indeed, make it possible. Didn’t you, as you saw walls going up, find it meaningful that you helped make it possible? Didn’t you, at that moment, feel it was more blessed to give? Let’s bring it a little closer to home: You who have had children. As you know, Parenting kind of sneaks up on you. Nobody can tell you the extent of the sacrifices and the giving of every aspect of yourself that will be required in raising those children that arrive in your home. It shocks you....you might complain bitterly about it at first, but then you find yourself making the necessary sacrifices. There are moments when you feel like you might be losing yourself, but if you punch through that initial selfishness, you actually start finding yourself....the self that God intended. You begin to make the switch from taker to giver.....and you never felt more meaningful in life. There is a a great feeling that comes over us when we are giving or when we make sacrifices for the sake of others: the best I can describe is that you just feel right for once. Even those who don’t believe in God know about this: they know how good it feels to give of themselves...they know how it provides meaning and purpose to life. Bill Gates a man who was hated for his wealth and wisdom in business has now begun to spend his days giving all of his wealth away. He says it’s the best time of his life! How do people figure it out without God telling them? I think he did tell them insofar as he wrote the law upon the hearts of all people. IT’s part of their wiring. Even those who don’t believe in him cannot help but bear the marks of he who made them. People just feel best when they are giving, because the one who made them is the primary and ultimate giver! As Luther says “he gives us clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and home, land, animals and all that I have. He richly and daily provides me with all that I need to support this body and life.” God gives constantly! And when we sinned and pulled ourselves away from him, what did he do? He gave more to save us and get us back! He gave his only begotten son; Sacrificed him for us on the cross so that our lives could be spared for eternity. Of course this one who came to die for us would say “it is more blessed to give than to receive.” He would say that, because that’s how he himself lived. He would say that because he wants us to discover the secret to a more meaningful life. The secret to a meaningful life is giving not taking. I know, it’s tempting to say that this teaching is counterintuitive....that is “contrary to what you apparently know by intuition.” And yet, by your own intuition you know that you are at your best when you giving. You know that. You know that you feel best and most meaningful when you are giving of yourself. So give more! Take Jesus at his word! He says that it is more blessed to give than to receive. Hold him to that! In a week or so, we are going to bring our stewardship emphasis to an end by giving you a packet of information....In that packet there will be a little worksheet that will ask you to think about giving for this year. Take some time: Talk about it: Think about it. What we’re doing here in this church, is meaningful. It’s meaningful in the same way that helping out in any charitable organization is meaningful, but even more then that. For unlike many charitable organizations, the church deal in eternal things: We proclaim the eternal gospel, so that eternal souls may reached and and saved for eternity in him! Long after many of our other accomplishments in this world have gone away, the accomplishments that God has allowed us to do together in this church will remain. We’ll be standing next to them in Glory. Many have and will meet Jesus in this church. Many have and will kept in Jesus through this church. What other work can we do together and do locally that is of greater meaning and significance? What other work is more worthy of your giving? You already know what a blessing it is to receive. If you haven’t already, discover the greater blessing that is to give. AMEN |
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