Being that we are in the midst of a pledge drive, it was suggested that I relate my message to you along those lines. Quite frankly, it is not an area I am comfortable preaching about. Yet, our lectionary text today speaks of using money and resources wisely. So, I will dive in and try to tackle some of the things that Jesus and John say about money. Now, the Jesus I am to speak of I think we all know, but the John I will speak of today is John Wesley, the founder of Methodism.

            At Riverview, until recently we have never really talked that much about money, or stewardship drives, or any of that stuff. It seemed that in the past, we could rely on a reasonable amount of money to come in, and consequently, we would go with a more balanced budget or even budget a small deficit secure in the fact that our finances would be okay. Yet within the past year we have seen a more dramatic decline in membership and consequently in the amount given, that our financial situation has become a little more precarious.

            In some ways, we have done ourselves a disservice by not concentrating on a more recognizable stewardship drive in the past. By devoting a certain portion of the year to issues of stewardship, we the congregation grow used to looking critically at our gifts both monetarily and our gifts of service, and are able to more prayerfully reflect on these things. This is all kind of uncharted territory to us. Discussions about money are usually uncomfortable, and in some ways seem a bit sordid when discussing the well being of the church. Many pastors look at the “stewardship season” as one of the less inspirational times of the year. Churches, however have a certain rhythm about their life. We are now in stewardship mode.

            Unfortunately, in order to operate in the world we live in, we must have money to do it. I sometimes find it odd that a non profit organization must participate in the for profit world in order to survive. The utilities we pay, the supplies we use and consume, and to some extent even the worship materials we buy are from for profit companies. I don’t know, in just thinking about this I found it a bit strange. Anyway, moving forward, I thought we could look a little at what Jesus said about handling money in this text, as well as what John Wesley had to say about money…and gifts.

            I have always had trouble with this parable, for it seemed to say initially to me that Jesus rewarded those that invested poorly, and condemned those that did not. In fact, the poor slave that put the money away and did not lose it would be thrown “into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” This text has often been used to justify the accumulation of wealth and that Jesus blessed those that invested money wisely. Yet, I wonder how the master would have responded if the slave with five talents had invested his money in junk bonds or squandered it at the race track. If Five Talent Slave had said, “Master, you have handed me five talents, and I invested them in a wager on Mesada at the Chariot races, and that upstart Ben Hur won, and now I have no talents to give you,” I think some wailing and gnashing of teeth would have been in order for him, and One Talent Slave would have come out looking a whole lot better

            I have come to the conclusion that this parable is not just about money. It is about how we choose to invest our time and our talents as well as our financial resources.. Money is a wonderful gift you can give to the church which takes care of its financial and physical needs. Yet I would argue that the time and talented that is donated by members is just as valuable. To me what Jesus is saying is that it is not good to keep your faith hidden away.

It is important for us to understand that as a Christian, Faith is not a private affair. I repeat, faith is not a private affair. A person known to others as a serious man, once said to John Wesley:

“Sir, you wish to serve God and go to Heaven? Remember you cannot serve him alone. You must therefore find companions or make them. The Bible knows nothing of solitary religion.”

Therefore, what we see in this parable is a metaphor for how to live a  Christian life. If one person takes their faith and shares it with another, they become not one but two. It’s the same old adage from the commercial stating that they would tell two friends, and they would tell two friends, and so on and so on. And one of the best ways to bring your faith out to others is to let others know who you are. One of the hardest things that I’ve learned to do in secular situations is to bring reference to my process in becoming a local pastor. I have consciously changed the answer to the question, “So, Stephen, what do you do?”

Now, I used to answer that question by stating that I was a singer and songwriter. I modified that eventually to stating that I was a “Christian” singer/songwriter. I decided to do that because even though I work by day now at a law firm, that is not who I am, that is what pays the bills. What I am is a musician with a Christian perspective. Now, as I am more strongly identifying myself with the role of Local Pastor, I am stating that I am a ministry candidate for the United Methodist Church. This opens the door up for a lot of conversation, and in a non threatening way, I let people know that I am a person of faith. Some of these conversations leads others to explore paths in faith. My cousin Donna has stated that because of my call, she is currently exploring ministry and has contacted her pastor. Learning to share beliefs in secular society is very hard to do, and in some instances impossible in some jobs. In answering that question “What do you do” I try to make people aware of who I am.

Perhaps the point that the church is not a building, or anything other than the people is perhaps most annoying brought out in the Hymn “I Am The Church.” I say annoying tongue in cheek because once you sing the song it never, ever, ever leaves your head for days.  Yet the essential truth of this song is simply stated thus:

I am the church, you are the church we are the church together

All who follow Jesus all around the world, yes, we’re the church together.

It goes on to state all the things the church is not, such as a building, a steeple, or anything physica. The church is the people. A church can exist without a physical building, but as the saying goes, wherever two or more are gathered. The point being, TWO OR MORE. Again, faith is to be shared corporately, not individually.

            Getting back to the parable, what Jesus seems to be saying is that those that invest their time, talent, and yes MONEY, investing it in sharing our faith, time, and gifts with others in our worship community and especially outside, are those that are rewarded. And the reward is not monetary, physical, or anything like that. The reward is in sharing Christ’s message of love and peace and bringing others to Christ and the way Jesus taught us to live by loving each other.

            But since we are talking about stewardship, what are some of the ways money helps us do this. What does John Wesley say about money? What does he say about riches?

1.      Provide things needful for yourself and your family. The believer should make sure that his or her family has the necessities and conveniences of life, which he lists as food to eat, clean clothes to wear, as well as a place to live. 1 Timothy 5:8 states that if one does not provide for one’s relatives and especially for one’s immediate family, he has denied his faith and is “worse than an unbeliever.”

2.      Be content with the basics of life. 1 Timothy 6:8 states that “But if we have but food and clothing, be content with that.” Wesley draws a harsh line after this in stating that anything above these necessities is considered riches. Whoever has sufficient food to eat, clothes to wear, and a place to lay their head, is rich according to Wesley.

3.      Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody and let no debt remain outstanding. Wesley believed that after the family, the next claim on a Christian’s money belonged to their creditors. The creditors of Wesley’s day, however, tended to be those who were in business for themselves, and he strongly believed that those in business for themselves need to have adequate tools, stock, and capital for carrying out their businesses. Remember, in Wesley’s day in the 1700’s people got their goods and services mostly from individuals, and not from large corporations. I am not so sure how this applies to some of the businesses today, especially what I have seen working in the credit and collections industry for the past 15 years, and it is an industry I am going to be happy to leave.

4.      As we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially those who belong to the family of believers. In the early Methodist Societies it was rare that a family who was suffering financial distress ever had to go on any public assistance, as they tended to help each other out and provide money to those in the societies that needed it. Wesley is basically stating that God gives his children money so that their reasonable needs can be met and then expects them to return the rest to God by giving it away.  – Wesley not only refers to money here, but of other things as he questions us:  "Wast thou accordingly a general benefactor to mankind: feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, assisting the stranger, relieving the afflicted, according to their various necessities? Wast thou an eye to the blind, and feet to the lame, a father to the fatherless, and a husband to the widow?

5.      Wesley was also known to have said: Earn all you can, save all you can, give all you can…

                 Besides these questions, Wesley also recognizes that some situations are not clear-cut. It is not always obvious how the Christian should use the Lord's money. Wesley offers four questions to help his hearers decide how to spend money:
     · In spending this money, am I acting as if I owned it, or am I acting as the Lord's trustee?
     · What Scripture requires me to spend this money in this way?
     · Can I offer up this purchase as a sacrifice to the Lord?
     · Will God reward me for this expenditure at the resurrection of the just?

               Wesley lived and breathed this doctrine, at one time earning the equivalent of 1.2 million dollars from his preaching and giving 98% of it away. Also, some could not believe he did so as evidenced in 1776 the English tax commissioners inspected his tax return and wrote back, "We cannot doubt but you have silver plate for which you have hitherto neglected to make entry." They assumed that a man of his prominence certainly had silver dinnerware in his house, and they wanted him to pay the proper tax on it. Wesley wrote back, "I have two silver spoons at London and two at Bristol. This is all the plate I have at present, and I shall not buy any more while so many round me want bread."

            John Wesley's principles about money remain to challenge us about our expenditures and our giving. There is no doubt that we can use some challenging for there is always a tendency for us to indulge ourselves, to pander to our own needs, and to have little over to give away. It is important for us to be reminded of the simplicity of the lives of people like John Wesley. He was attempting to follow Jesus in his own way, Jesus who said, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head." (Matthew 8:20) We have food, clothes, beds, and dwellings in abundance.

            Some pretty heady stuff. I just thought it would be interesting to look at what Wesley and Methodism says about money. Take what you think is useful from this, and consider these things not only in what we give monetarily, but in what we give in time, talent, gifts, and of ourselves, and how we carry ourselves in the world. I look out on this congregation and I see talented, gifted, spiritual, and loving people. You have much to give the church, community, and world by just sharing who you are.