Tag: Offerings

STEWARDSHIP & THE MIRACLE MAKER

In chapter 12 of the Gospel of Mark, Jesus addressed the subject of temple offerings. The following is from Mark 12:41-43…

He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny. Then he called his disciples and said to them, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury.”

Of course, Jesus is not saying that we should give to the work of God’s Kingdom to the point of financial hardship. Rather, he is saying that those who give out of their abundant wealth are not giving as much as those with far less wealth who give a lesser amount. In other words, Jesus is simply praising the generous spirit of the poor widow over and against the less generous spirit of the rich elite of Jerusalem.

While Jesus is not advocating for our impoverishment in Mark 12, he is certainly advocating for us to be as generous as possible (without material injury to ourselves) for the work of the ministry of God’s Kingdom for all people. Because of God’s unlimited grace for us in Christ Jesus our Lord, we are free to joyfully and cheerfully give whatever it is that we have pledged to the mission and ministry of our “temple” congregation, Mt. Olive Lutheran Church. For that’s what it says in Second Corinthians 9:7, where it says, “Each of you must give as you have made up your own mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”

ALL that we have and ALL that we are (absolutely everything) comes from God and belongs to God. From the Christian perspective, we are not owners but only stewards of all that the Creator gives to us — our lives, families, possessions, labor, income and talents. Therefore, everything that we have and everything that we are is to serve the glory of God for the sake of the world.

So, it’s not that we give a certain percentage to the work of God, and the rest is ours. No, it’s that 100% belongs to God, and we are to be good stewards of his 100%, including our offerings to our congregation. It is all from God anyway, and so it’s all in service of God’s Kingdom here in our earthly lives as a sweet foretaste of our heavenly lives to come. In other words, stewardship is everything we do after we say we believe. And stewardship is also the first things that we do. It’s the first fruits of our lives; the first fruits of everything.

“First fruits” means that we dedicate a certain amount of our time, talents and income to the work of God first thing — right off the top. For example, our Sunday worship service is the first fruits of our time each week, which is the morning of the very first day of the week. For another example, the Lord’s Prayer prayed each morning as we’re still sitting on the side of our bed (first thing) is a powerful first fruits practice. And of course, cheerfully giving a pledged amount of our income every pay period (first thing, right off the top) is a fundamental first fruits spiritual discipline.

Giving a set pledged amount to the work of God within our community of faith first thing off the top — rather than the last thing from the bottom dregs — is an act of worship that is multiplied by the offerings of others. As our Lord Jesus miraculously multiplied the loaves and fishes, we need to remember that it’s not for us to perform the miracle but it’s only for us to offer the five loaves and two fish. From everlasting to everlasting, the Lord God Almighty is the Miracle Maker and the Source of all that is, both seen and unseen.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, eternal world without end! Amen!

Together in Christ, Pastor Tim

HOLY COMMUNION: OUR WEEKLY PENTECOST

On Pentecost Sunday for 2019, I shared in my sermon about Martin Luther’s “Seven Marks of the Church” (a.k.a. “Seven Principle Signs of the Church” or “Seven Pillars of the Church”)…

  • 1) Proclamation of the Gospel – (the good news of Jesus Christ)
  • 2) Holy Baptism – (in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit)
  • 3) Holy Communion – (the Lord’s Supper)
  • 4) Absolution of Sins – (declaring forgiveness with Christ’s authority)
  • 5) Ordination of Leadership – (deacons, pastors, bishops)
  • 6) Praise of God – (public worship through word, prayer and song)
  • 7) The Way of the Cross – (charitable service and sacrificial love)

For this article, I will focus on the Third Mark of the Church (Holy Communion).

In ancient times, when a relationship had been broken, the offering of a meal was given in order to bring about reconciliation and restored fellowship. In fact, this was the whole basis for the sacrifices and sin-offerings of the ancient Hebrew Tabernacle and the ancient Hebrew Temple. These sacrifices were simply offerings of food (in a spirit of confession, repentance and forgiveness) in order to restore full fellowship with God.

Quite literally, the ancient offerings of food (especially some kind of meat) were offered to restore full Table Fellowship with God, bringing reconciliation and “atonement” (at-one-ment) in relationship to God. However, the problem was that there was no perfect offering that mere human beings could have given in order to permanently and everlastingly (once and for all time) restore full fellowship with a perfect, holy and pure Almighty God.

Then two thousand years ago, a perfect offering (that God himself provided to us) was given on behalf of all us imperfect sinful human beings — a supreme offering to perfectly restore our full table fellowship with God and with one another.  And as you already know of course, this perfect offering was and is the very life (body, blood, soul and divinity) of our Lord Jesus Christ, freely given and poured out for you and me and all people. Being fully God and fully human at the same time, Jesus was the perfect offering for the sins of the world. He’s the perfect “Lamb of God” (John 1:29) offered as the once-and-for-all-time sacred meal of reconciliation, atonement and renewal.

Being fully God, Jesus’ offering to restore us to fellowship with God was the most perfect of offerings. And being fully human, Jesus’ offering to restore us to communion with God was truly a real sacrifice on his part. Consequently, on the night in which he was betrayed, Jesus connected the bread and wine of his Holy Supper to the offering of his life for us. So Jesus tells us that, as we partake of this bread and wine in remembrance of him, we are literally sharing in a meal of reconciliation and holy table fellowship with God according to his sacrificial offering of his body and blood for this purpose.

Therefore, although the Lord is omnipresent (everywhere present), we believe that Christ our Lord is uniquely and especially present with us and for us in the Blessed Sacrament of Holy Communion to continually restore us to fellowship with God and strengthen us in faith, hope and love. In other words, we come to this sacramental meal (over and over again) to keep us in an abiding relationship with God, and to empower us to love one another and all people just as our Lord Jesus loves us.

When we receive the body and blood of Christ in the form of the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper, we receive the grace and power of the Holy Spirit of God, which makes this sacred meal our weekly Pentecost. But Holy Communion is not only for our own spiritual wellbeing. In fact, the purpose of Holy Communion also has to do with the great Love Commandment of our Lord Jesus.

This is why the Apostle Paul got so upset at the Corinthian Christians who were sharing in the Lord’s Supper while simultaneously setting up distinctions and discriminations between one another. Basically, the wealthy congregants were being shown special favor within the Corinthian congregation, while the poor congregants were being marginalized. This outraged Paul, so he writes that we must not receive the bread and wine of Holy Communion while practicing discrimination and partiality within the Body of Christ (the Church). “For those who eat and drink without discerning the Body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves” (First Corinthians 11:29).

Through the Apostle Paul’s very strong words in First Corinthians 11, we can see the intimate connection between the Lord’s Supper and Jesus’ command to love one another and all people as he loves us. Therefore, the good gifts of God’s Holy Spirit through the Sacrament of the Altar (the Lord’s Supper) are for an inclusive purpose according to God’s all-encompassing love. In other words, Holy Communion is focused outwards as well as inwards.

From Holy Communion we are sent by the power of the Holy Spirit to bear the grace and love of God to all the world around us! Empowered by Christ’s sacramental offering and presence at the altar, we are to go out from this meal to serve and love (according to his Way of the Cross) for the sake of the world.

Together in Christ, Pastor Tim