Whole Body Workout

Pastor Phillips’ Sermon
Sunday, November 6, 2011

[Video] “Tell me, how many credit cards do you currently have?” “I carry one card.” “One credit card?” “Like, ten probably, like all the stores ones with everything.” “Two.” “Ten.” “Ten.” “Well, I have my five or six cards.” “Five or six?” “Like a Visa, a couple American Express, here comes another one, another Discover and wow, I use it just about for everything, all my purchases right now because of the rewards that I get from the card.” “All my shopping, hotel reservations, absolutely everything that we possibly can.” “How much do you think you owe on all of yours collectively?” “Right now, probably about $12,000.” “I don’t owe any.” “Really? So you have zero?” “I paid them off every month.” “I think it’s about $277.” “Nearly $20,000.” “$400,000.” “Now what kind of rewards have you been able to get?” “Cash back.” “$5,000 on the card. 5 x 12 is 60 so $120,000 gets you a couple of round trip tickets.” “Exactly.” “It’s a good deal.” “Oh, it’s a fantastic deal. We wouldn’t have taken a trip unless we had done that.” “Wow, unless you went into credit card debt, you would have never been able to take that Paris trip?” “I guess so, yeah.” “Now how much did you have to spend to get that 275?” “$30,000.” “Is that kind of good math? To spend $30,000 to get $275 back?” “Show me something better and I’ll sign up for that one.”

I’ll tell her something better. Let’s pray. Heavenly Father, you’ve given us a time today to worship you and a time to hear from your Word and we just thank you that you’ve put us in a position to be in a relationship with you. We pray that you will help us as we hear your Word, to respond to it with faith and trust in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Watching that video about the credit cards, I know this group doesn’t have any problems with that, right? We’re all okay. Well, it just seems like it’s such a convenience when you have a card and you don’t have to worry about carrying cash or writing a check and all that. You just swipe the card and you’re good, right? Well, that convenience obviously can be something of a stumbling block, too. You saw how many people and this is just a sampling, I bet he didn’t even have to try hard to find people on the street to answer these questions. It’s a huge problem out there today, financial missteps because of the ease of credit cards, so basically a loan card. You take a loan every time you use it. That’s the reality of it.

So it’s really easy to make financial mistakes that compromise your future and puts you in a position where you’re not able to respond to things that come along financially, opportunities that God might present before you. You’re not able to respond because your financial house is a mess. The opportunities are presented there by God and we need to be ready for them. We need to get things in order so we can take advantage of these opportunities.

The parable of the talents that was the gospel reading a little bit earlier talked about opportunities. The wealthy man leaves and goes on a trip, but he entrusts his wealth to three servants. It’s interesting that it says, “He gave to each one according to his abilities,” and he must have been a pretty wise man because he gave five talents to one servant, two talents to another and one talent to another, according to their abilities.

Now a talent is 6,000 dinars. I know that clears it all up for you, right? 6,000 dinars. Basically, 20 years of a common man’s wages is a talent. So the first man had 100 years of a common man’s wages, a common laborer’s wages. The second one had 40 years of a common laborer’s wages and the third one 20 years of a common man’s wages.

Well, the first two had a plan, didn’t they? As soon as the master gave them that opportunity in trusting his wealth to them, they immediately put it to work and made money. In fact, when the master returned, they had doubled his money and they gave it all back to him. And so he invites them, “Come and celebrate with your master.” The first one got five more so he had a total of ten. The second one got two more so he had a total of four.

And then it comes to the third one. I don’t know if he was just scared, but the master assumes he was just lazy. He didn’t do anything with it other than look around, dig a hole, bury it and make sure nothing happened to it, nothing bad but also nothing good. And for this, he is treated very harshly, isn’t he? Now this is a story by Jesus, our loving Savior. So we have to figure out why is Jesus so harsh in this story? Why is the point so serious? Why is it that He’s driving home a point where the person who didn’t do anything is punished and the ones who were productive with the money, they’re rewarded.

It’s more than just money here. Something else is going on and I think here’s the point. The point is that with Jesus, nothing is a game. Everything’s serious. The message of salvation is a serious message and as people manage their resources, as we are good stewards, as we do stewardship in a godly way, it allows us to respond to the opportunities to join our Lord in the ministry of the gospel.

And if our house is a mess, we can’t do it. If we just take our wealth and bury it, we’re not accomplishing anything for the Lord or His kingdom. That’s why it’s a big deal. It’s not just about money. It’s about joining our Lord in the ministry of the Gospel. It’s about reaching other people. We are in a position to enjoy God’s grace and mercy and love and the hope of eternal life and when our loved ones die, we know where they go and we look forward to joining them there. But there are thousands, hundreds of thousands around us who aren’t in that position.

So the point of managing our resources well that God has put into our hands is so that He might work through us to reach those others, to bring them into the same position that we enjoy today. It’s a big deal, not just a story. He’s not just picking on the guy who was lazy. There’s something at stake here, the salvation of the people through whom that good stewardship might be impacted.

So what does this parable 2,000 years ago say to us today? Bottom line, do something. Don’t do nothing. Do something. Live a life of significance. Make the most of what God has put in your hands. Take advantage of the opportunities that come your way, to do something great in Jesus’ name. Well, how can we do that?

It starts with a plan. We’re going with this whole body workout. That’s our theme today, so now we’re going to start exercising so let’s get ready. If you join a gym, the first thing you do is you sit down with a trainer or somebody who works there and they help you map out a plan to achieve your fitness goals, right? “Well, Tuesdays and Thursdays, you’re going to lift weights. Monday, Wednesday, Friday, you’re going to be on the elliptical,” all this kind of stuff. They map it all out.

“What are your goals?” “Well, I want to do the Walk for the Cure and I want to be healthy and strong and be able to do that.” Or “I want to run the Dam to Dam race.” Or “I want to ride in RAGBRAI.” Or whatever your goals might be. They ask you what your goals are and they take in mind your current condition and then they come up with a plan for you, right? That’s what your fitness consultant does.

The same thing needs to happen involving our stewardship. What are we going to do with all that God has blessed us with? We can’t even count all the stuff He’s given us. You could try. You could start out with first He’s given us His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for us. He’s given us eternal life in heaven. He’s given us our spouses. He’s given us our children. He’s given us our parents. He’s given us our jobs. He’s given us our talent, our intellect, our educational opportunities. He’s given us our home and the food on our tables. Everything we see, everything we touch, He’s given to us. It’s still His but it’s in our possession. It’s His property but we are the managers of it. We are the stewards of it.

So we need a plan. A wise man once said, “A failure to plan is a plan to fail.” We know that axiom. But it’s true. Plans are helpful. They lay out a course of action. They show us a way that we can measure what we’re doing. They give us goals so that we can celebrate when we accomplish them.

So we need a plan for our stewardship and that plan begins with an understanding that obeying God and following His direction is all based in the gospel. It’s because Jesus loves you. It’s because He died on the cross for you. It’s because He suffered terribly and endured great pain and humiliation so that you might receive forgiveness and eternal life. It’s because of all that He’s done for you that we want to respond to Him in some way.

When I was teaching confirmation back in the day, I’d ask kids, “Now what would be the greatest gift that you could ever receive?” And they’d come up with things like an awesome car, a house or a trip, all kinds of different things. And this one girl raised her hand and I said, “What’s your gift that you would say would be the ultimate?” She said, “The mall.” I said, “The mall? You mean like a shopping spree or your favorite store?” “No, the whole mall.” She wanted the whole thing and I said, “Well, that’s pretty impressive. That’s a pretty good gift.”

What would you do if somebody gave you that incredible gift that’s at the top of your list? What would you do? Would you say thanks? Would you shake their hands and give them a hug? I think you’d jump out of your socks with joy and happiness because what they’ve given you is the exact desire of your heart.

Well, God has given us something even more incredible than that gift at the top of our list. He’s given us His Son. He died on the cross. Sometimes, we just take that and it’s like a story and it doesn’t mean much. Sometimes, we need to watch that movie, Passion of the Christ, to see that suffering graphically portrayed just so we know what this is all about. That message, that event that God did for you, that His love compelled Him to do for you is the foundation for stewardship, for managing things well, for obeying God to follow His guidance and all of that.

So everything we do then is an expression of thanks. Stewardship begins with thanksgiving. Give thanks to God for providing all that He has in your life. Give thanks to Him for watching over you daily and meeting all your needs. As it says in Psalm 145, “The eyes of all look to you and you give them their food at the proper time. You open your hands and satisfy the desires of every living thing.” And 1 Chronicles 16 says, “Give thanks to the Lord for He is good. His love endures forever.” Wow. That’s love. So our plan begins by thanking God and understanding where all this stuff comes from.

Next we need to pray for wisdom because there are a lot of resources at our disposal. We need to know what to do with them. We need to be effective in managing them. We can’t squander them or bury them or just sit around and do nothing. We have to do something, but we need wisdom to know how. After you thank God, ask Him for wisdom in managing what He’s entrusted to you.

There’s a great story about asking for wisdom from 2 Chronicles 1:1-12 and it’s the story of Solomon. You know it but I’m going to read it to you again because it’s just awesome. “Solomon, son of David, established himself firmly over his kingdom, for the Lord His God was with him and made him exceedingly great. Then Solomon spoke to all Israel to the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, to the judges and to all the leaders in Israel, the heads of families-and Solomon and the whole assembly went to the high place at Gibeon, for God’s Tent of Meeting was there, which Moses, the Lord’s servant, had made in the wilderness. Now David had brought up the ark of God from Kiriath Jearim to the place he had prepared for it, because he had pitched a tent for it in Jerusalem. But the bronze altar that Bezalel, son of Uri, the son of Hur, had made was in Gibeon in front of the tabernacle of the Lord. So Solomon and the assembly inquired of him there. Solomon went up to the bronze altar before the Lord in the Tent of Meeting and offered a thousand burnt offerings on it. That night, God appeared to Solomon and said to him, ‘Ask for whatever you want me to give you.’ Solomon answered, ‘You have shown great kindness to David, my father, and have made me king in his place. Now, Lord, let your promise to my father, David, be confirmed, for you have made me king over a people who are as numerous as the dust of the earth. Give me wisdom and knowledge that I may lead this people, for who is able to govern this great people of yours?’ God said to Solomon, ‘Since this is your heart’s desire and you’ve not asked for wealth, possessions or honor nor for the death of your enemies, and since you have not asked for a long life but for wisdom and knowledge to govern my people over whom I have made you king, therefore, wisdom and knowledge will be given you. And I will also give you wealth, possessions and honor, such as no king who was before you ever had and none after you will have.’” Solomon asked God for wisdom and it pleased God and in response, God blessed him in every way. Ask for wisdom as you plan how you’re going to manage all that God has put in your hands.

Next, you need to educate yourself. You need to educate yourself so you can come up with a good plan. Maybe it means talking to somebody who’s wise and knowledgeable in these areas. But another great opportunity is a class that we offer here called Financial Peace University. You’ve probably heard of this class. It’s in the Weekly Word on the front page today and you can see all kinds of information about signing up for it. This is a class to help you in every aspect of your personal finances so that you can be effective in managing what God has put in your hands.

My wife and I took this class a year ago last summer and I just have to tell you, I don’t want to make it sound like we had problems or anything like that. We were always very careful with the money God gave us and always very thankful and always put Him first and tithes and everything else, but there were some challenges in our financial management. There would be times where we’d run out of money towards the end of the month and I’d ask my wife, “How come we’re out of money?” I just wanted to know, but she couldn’t answer the question and it made her feel bad, like I was saying she wasn’t doing a good job with the checkbook. I just wanted to know where’s it going? How come?

The reason she didn’t know, the reason I didn’t know was because we didn’t have a plan. We didn’t have a plan. So we took the class and before the class was even over, we started writing a monthly budget. The last week of each month, we wrote the budget for the next month. So in the last week of June, we wrote the budget for July. The last week of July, we wrote the budget for August. The last week of August, we wrote the budget for September and on and on and on. And each time we did it, the first three or four months, we had money left over at the end of the month. It was amazing. The same money, the same income level, the same bills, but we had a plan.

We were able to pay my truck off a year early. We refinanced our house from a 30 to a 15 and set it up to be paid off in ten years. We’ve paid a year on that so now we’re down to nine. And that’s our only debt. No debts. We have an emergency fund. You’re supposed to have three to six months of monthly expenses put aside in savings. We’re almost there. What a great plan. We pay cash for our daughter’s college. We don’t take student loans. We pay cash. How comforting to know that we have a plan. We’re on the same page. We’re working together. We get excited when we accomplish goals, like paying things off or saving for something else or making a plan for the future. How exciting to work together.

Not only that, but here’s the main point: Because our financial house is in order, we’re in a position to respond to the opportunities that God presents to us. Because we’re being careful managers of what God has put in our hands, we can respond when we hear of a child who needs sponsorship or a food bank needing donations or whatever it might be. We can respond because our house is in order and we’re being careful of what God has put in our hands.

Another story involves my daughter, Amy. Now Amy and her husband got married two years ago today. They were 19. Now you moms and dads know exactly what I was thinking when they were planning that. “19? Oh my gosh.” But they were in love and they made that decision and we just kind of said, “Okay, you’re getting off at that exit. We’ll get off there, too.” And we made it happen. We kind of expected them to have a rough time learning about marriage and learning about life, but they’ve done really well. And a year ago last fall, they took this Financial Peace University class and I have to tell you it’s very comforting as a dad to know that your kids have it under control. They have it figured out. They’re not going to crash and burn and come home and live in your basement. They’re doing okay. They’re living within their means. They’re putting money aside. The only debt they have is a few thousand dollars of their student loans from a couple years ago at Iowa. They have the cash set aside now for her next semester of nursing school. They’re doing great. Their cars are paid for. It’s very comforting as a dad. Very comforting.

But you know, having a plan isn’t the bottom line. You go to see that consultant at the health club and you get it all mapped out what you’re supposed to do and then you never go back, what good is that? You didn’t do the plan. So that’s the next point. Once you get a good plan and get some wisdom and some understanding about how to manage these things, then you do it. You walk it out. You live it. And you have somebody that you can check in with who can hold you accountable in a good way. If you’re married, then it’s your spouse or another couple you can talk to as a couple. If you’re single, pick out somebody you know who is wise and knowledgeable and has good character and somebody you can talk to about something like that. Just even having that person you know you’re going to have to talk to about it, it’s kind of inspirational to keep you on track, to keep you making progress and hitting the mark that you’ve set.

And finally, after you have a plan and you’re doing the plan, enjoy it. Enjoy the results, like I do knowing my daughter’s doing a good job and like my wife and I celebrate when we paid cash for her car instead of making a down payment and making monthly payments. We paid cash. Celebrate those accomplishments and celebrate when you can respond with love to God’s opportunities that He puts in front of you. “There’s a young couple and they need such and such.” “Wow, we can do that. Let’s go get a gift card for them.” Celebrate when you are now in a position to be able to do things you’ve always wanted to do.

Getting back to the beginning. Whatever we have, whether it’s our opportunities or the ability to use them, it all belongs to God. We are in possession of these things, but He’s the owner. We are His stewards and He provides us from time to time with many opportunities to do wonderful things in His name. The challenge is have we been faithful? Have we been faithful in managing these things?

I heard a story about a little boy. I think you might have heard this story, too, but it’s just really helpful to think of it this way. It’s about a little boy whose sister was really sick. She needed a blood transfusion and he was the only one who could give it to her. So the doctor and the parents sat down with the little boy and explained it to him. “Your sister is really sick and she’s going to die if she doesn’t get a blood transfusion and your blood is the only match. Will you give your sister some blood?” Well, the little boy thought about it for a little while and he said, “Okay, I’ll do it.” So as the boy and his sister lay down on the bed during the transfusion, her face was pale and sickly. She really needed that blood and as she began to receive the blood from him, her color changed and was restored and the boy’s determined expression as he was giving blood gave way to a look of fear. He became scared and finally, he said in a very serious tone, “Will I die soon?” He thought he had to give all his blood to his sister. Kind of touching, isn’t it, when you think about it? He was willing to do that.

God isn’t calling us to hand everything back that He’s blessed us with. He’s just challenging us to be good managers of those tings, not to be wasteful, not to be self absorbed and all those kinds of things but to be focused on doing a great job with what He’s put in our hands.

That boy gave just a portion of his blood and it saved a life. What will your gift to God accomplish? It’s interesting to think about. In stewardship, God gives us all things, including His Son, but only asks that we are diligent and faithful and generous with Him.

May God inspire us with a drive and purpose to manage His gifts. Amen.