The taste of a Penny

Matthew 6:24-34

Ephiphany 8

Rev. Michael Trask

Albertville, MN

 

Do you know what a penny tastes like? You do don’t you! How do you know. Well, at some time in your life, before you knew about the world of germs; before you understood the significance of money, you put one in your mouth! You can remember that coppery flavor and you didn’t care for it that much.

Think back with me now, if you can, to that time first gripped a penny with your sticky little fingers, and then learned how it tasted. When you were at that stage of life, where did you find your sense of security? It came from knowing that your parents were going to take care of you. If ever you felt insecure, you’d climb into their arms and snuggle close, and a world of fears and troubles would disappear. At that age, providing that you had decent parents, your worries were few; and your life was full of warmth and joy. You felt secure.

What happened to you? You grew up didn’t you. You left the worry-free days of childhood and plunged yourself into the often brutal world of economics. It was quite bracing at first, to think that you would make your stand against all comers, to think that you with sweat and toil would earn all that you need, to think that security would originate from you and could be stored in in the form of dollars and cents. This is what adulthood is, isn’t it? It’s about being your own source; its about independence from everything and everybody; it’s about you making the decisions of what you need and what you don’t need.

So it’s all on you? The only security that you have is that which you are able to create for yourself. You are in charge! Everything depends on you. Yikes! So that’s why you are so stressed out!

But in the midst of all this, God has been reaching out to you. You notice we start our worship “in the name of the FATHER and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” Jesus taught us to pray “Our Father”. You may be all grown up. You may be flush with all manner of professional skills, but you never ever grow out of the loving care of of your Father. And if you feel like you have, you are deluding yourself You’ve gone off on a break the first commandment bender.

The inscription on our money in the United States doesn’t say “In money we trust” nor does it say “In ourselves we trust”, but it does say “In God We trust.” This is amazing! Yeah I know it’s amazing that in this age of anti religion in our country that it is still on our money. But that’s not the amazing part I’m talking about. What’s amazing is the very thing that we gaze longingly at thinking it will bring security, urges us to look away and to look to God. Money cannot love you. Money cannot care for you. Money cannot wipe the tears from your eyes. Your parents did that for you when you were young, and now there remains for you your Father in heaven.

You see the reason that we withhold our trust from our father in heaven and start putting our trust in inanimate objects like money is because we are not always convinced that we can trust him. We are not convinced that he really does love us and that he really will take care of us. That’s our old sinful natures talking. “Does God really love us and care for us?” We wonder.

Our Lord understands our trouble. And in an effort to take away our doubts about his love for us. He sent his Son, his only son, his Son whom he loved with a perfect love to suffer and die on our behalf. Doesn’t that say something? Of course it does. If he was willing to give up his beloved son for us, then he will certainly look after us. Paul the apostle says, “he who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all--how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things.” (Rom. 8:12) The very one who God gave up for us all, who understood why he was there boldly said “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear.”

And here we see a little bit of Jesus’ humor. He said “look at the birds, they do not so or reap or store away in barns.” Nope. Birds do not wear seed corn hats. They do erect butler bins. And they don’t go down to the local coffee shop each day at 10 to talk with the other birds. “Nope, your father in heaven feeds them, And you, you are more valuable to him than they are.” And then he says “see how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin” Nope, the lilies do not shear sheep and card the wool and spin it and put it on a loom. The Lilies do not drape themselves in knitted sweaters. Nope God has already clothed them.... In color schemes that are more beautiful than we can ever imagine. “If that’s how he treats the grass of the field which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he cloth you?”

Okay, so we got the message. We understand that Jesus says our Father in heaven will take care of us; we understand that he loves us. He shows us how much he loves us by the giving of his Son. But still we have this hard to break habit of placing our trust in anything but God. How do we break away from that? Well, The giving of his son, was not merely an emblem of his love, but it was also a way for us to go back to his arms.

He has made it possible for us to confess. We confess that we have treated money as if it were our God. We throw ourselves on God’s mercy. And God has mercy. He forgives for the sake of Jesus Christ.

Once forgiven, we can begin to change. Yes we can take steps to get past our misplaced trust in money and enjoy the freedom of a life without worries. One step is to give an offering. We consider our offerings to be an act of worship. As we make them, we are demonstrating a clear choice. Rather than giving up God for our money. We give up our money for God. Money is the number one false God. All of us are tempted by it. So right smack dab in the middle of our service, we take the opportunity to say that money is not my God.

But that’s just one thing you can do. Prayer would be another. He has told you that he’s going to take care of you so hold him to that. Take your concerns to your Father in heaven. He has told you that he wants you to depend on him. Hold him to that! Talk to him about it! Instead of carrying the burden of your life and sometimes also the lives of the people in your family, “cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you;” says psalm 55:22. In prayer, surrender your days and your nights to the Lord, cast your cares on him and he will sustain you.

“Do not worry” says Jesus. “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink” “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life.” “Do not worry about tommorrow” “Each day has enough trouble of his own.” Can you really live without worry? Can you really have rest in your nights and joy in your days? Can you really take the furrows out of your brow? Yes. Through faith in Christ Jesus you can. Through faith in Christ Jesus and by the power of his Holy Spirit you will. And you can recapture that sense of security you had when you learned what a penny tasted like. AMEN