We are in our last weeks of a new series on “Becoming Like Family”. This is important as our online community begin to share the daily challenges with friends, and we begin to gather our larger community together as one church community. We won’t be bound together by a building, or institution, but rather by five commitments. We’ve talked about commitment to common learning goals, connectedness as a community of small and large groups, connectedness to God in worship, grace in our lifestyles, and finally this week we end our series with a commitment to generosity in our resources.
Canadians clearly have an openness and willingness to give to others. According to a survey published in November 2012 the number of Canadians who made a charitable donation increased by 10% in 2012, while the total amount of donations increased by 14% when compared to 2011.
But when Christians talks about giving, sometimes it feels different. We might expect Christian teaching on giving to be self-serving, like we only talk about generosity when it means putting money on a plate to support a particular institute or building, or in the worst examples, buying a pastor a luxury car or mansion in the woods.
Imagine you are channel surfing, and you see a televangelist asking people to make a pledge – do you assume they’re genuine, or do you get concerned? Billy Graham, who just celebrated a birthday, is widely recognized as one internationally known preacher whose reputation is intact, but it’s so unfortunate that he’s seen as the exception rather than the norm.
A friend of mine attended church for first time, to support a friend’s baptism, and I remember the look of horror on his face when the members of the church started passing a brass collection plate around. This man of another religion felt compelled to give to support something he didn’t believe or understand simply because a plate was going to be passed under his nose and he didn’t want to be embarrassed appearing cheap.
For all these reasons and more, the notion of churches and christian ministries talking about money can be a touchy thing. Some might suggest we’d be better to leave it alone, and teach about lighter stuff.
But if someone told you that the Bible was a great way to learn about Jesus, and then handed you a Bible with a bunch of sections blacked out, you’d be suspicious, wouldn’t you? You’d wonder what they were holding back, and rightfully so. You’d call WikiLeaks and see if they know what’s been blacked out!
It would be dishonest of me to pretend that Jesus didn’t have an awful lot to say about money and how we live with it. It would be like blacking out 15% of Jesus’ words in the Bible!
I think Jesus said so much about money and possessions because he knew that the place of money in our lives was a spiritual issue far more than it was simply an economic issue. He knew money had a lot to do with our feelings of self-worth, identity and security in life. These are the exact things we are meant to derive from God, and that are meant to be developed in and through our generosity.
Question: Have you seen someone who worships money? How could you tell?
Reminder: Earlier in this series, we saw the importance of reading the Bible together in sync, so our new daily bible readings start today in our mobile app and web site.
Read the Bible in Sync Today
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Matthew 6:16-18 ESV - “And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Fasting – willingly going without food, completely or just for a part of each day.
It was a common practice in Jesus’ day. The Pharisees fasted twice a week. John the Baptist and his disciples fasted regularly. We know that the disciples of Jesus were notable for not fasting, although Jesus did, and expected they would after his death.
And here – he seems to assume they will fast. He says, "When you fast." not "if you fast".
So just like the last two weeks – Jesus is not simply commanding some religious observance, like generosity or prayer. He is teaching about how, and the motivations for, those observances.
The inner motivations matter to him, not just the outer practices.
And it’s important with fasting.
Throughout the Bible, fasting was a means of self-denial or self-discipline, particularly in penitence for some sin in their life. Humbling ourselves for God.
But the hypocrites made it something for others to see as well. There are a few ways to do that – look dishevelled, rub ashes on your face to look sickly, or cover your head in sackcloth.
Like they were doing with their ostentatious public prayers, or their conspicuous generosity, they advertised their religiosity to the world. It makes no sense at all, because fasting is supposed to be an exercise of humility!
Acting humbly, to engage in an outer sign of penitence and humility like fasting, and yet have no inner remorse or motivation to change our ways. They are actors – the very definition of a hypocrite.
We do this all the time – in job interviews we don’t want to come across as a self-centered renegade, but want to sound like a team player, so we find ways to communicate how humble and effective we are at the same time.
When people congratulate us, we downplay it – oh it was nothing.
It’s become almost a joke that every Oscar winner needs to thank God for their success, whether they believe that or not. This year, though, people somehow looked beyond all those scripted moments, and fell in love with Jennifer Lawrence because her back stage interview came across as genuine, down to earth and honest.
Question: Have you ever needed to prove your humility to someone? How did you do it?
