Abundant Love
Sermon
Sermons On The First Readings
Series I, Cycle B
The pastor began his sermon by telling of an encounter earlier that week. A man entered the church, dripping wet from the rain, looking for help. The man had nowhere else to go for help. As he stood there, it was obvious just how dirty his hair and face were, as water continued to drip down his face. He explained to the pastor that he hadn't eaten anything since the day before. He had no money. Any help the church could give would be appreciated.
He explained how he was traveling, mostly on foot from somewhere upstate. Someone had told him that he might be able to find a job in another part of the state, so he set out hitchhiking but ended up mostly walking. It had been a long time or at least it seemed like a long time since he held a steady job. While he was looking for a fresh start in life, all he really wanted that day was something to eat.
The pastor made arrangements with a nearby restaurant to give this man a good meal. The pastor could not help but wonder how this man would be received at the restaurant. Would the hostess refuse to seat him? Would the waitress not want to serve him? What would the paying customers think? The pastor gave the man directions; the restaurant was on the next block.
About an hour later the same man came back to the church. He wanted to thank the pastor for the delicious meal. The pastor wished him well as he continued on his journey.
As the pastor shared this story with the congregation, it was obvious that some of the people sitting in the pews were uncomfortable. The pastor asked the congregation, "Why do people who are down on their luck or who have not had the same advantages as others make us feel uncomfortable?" While we might be able to list several reasons perhaps they are just excuses for not getting involved or trying to help in some way.
Our honest response might be to look down on people who struggle with issues that many of us take for granted, like food and shelter. We find in our lesson from Proverbs the following verse, "The rich and the poor have this in common: the Lord is the maker of them all." God is the creator of both the rich and the poor. When we are tempted to look down on other people we need to remember that God loves all people. When people are struggling and do not have anywhere else to turn, they can always turn to the God who created them and never stops loving them. If only we could see people for who they really are and not judge people in superficial ways, by the kind of clothes they wear or cars they drive or the jobs they hold.
What is important for us to remember is that we cannot be good Christians in isolation, we need each other, and we need to be with other people. Our attitude toward the poor needs to be grounded in our faith. As the wise author of Proverbs clearly stated, "A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold." To have a good name or reputation means that we view other people as beloved children of God and not by outward appearances. As God explained to the prophet Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearances, but the Lord looks on the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7).
We also have a responsibility to help others in their time of need. We should not take unfair advantage of anyone, especially those with the greatest needs. We are outraged when we read about people who take unfair advantage of the poor and in the process make a profit. And rightly so.
Throughout the scriptures we discover that God is on the side of the poor and oppressed. "Do not rob the poor because they are poor, or crush the afflicted at the gate; for the Lord pleads their cause." God has a special place for the "least of these who are members of my family" (Matthew 25:40). Because people who are lost or forgotten matter to God, they should matter to us as well.
The greatest compliment anyone could give us is that we have made a positive impact in his or her life. Perhaps all it took was our willingness to listen to another person's problems. Or maybe sitting with a friend in a hospital waiting room awaiting news of a loved one. Or even giving someone a good meal that might give them the confidence to turn their lives around. There might be other times when our words make an indelible impression on another person. Only God knows how our words and actions will impact another person. We might truly be the person to make a difference in another person's life.
It was nearly midnight when Richard's plane landed in Bang-kok. He would have another lengthy layover before his next flight that would take him to his final destination, Calcutta. With the support of his church back home in New York City, Richard was going to spend two months as a volunteer at Mother Teresa's mission.
Forty hours earlier, at the start of his trip, Richard said it was like a dream come true. Awaiting his final flight, he wasn't as sure. "My nerves worn raw by sleeplessness," he explained, "I tried to absorb the information that somewhere between South Korea and Thailand my luggage had been 'misdirected.' " He was beginning to think his trip was a mistake. Maybe he should have stayed at home, instead of traveling halfway around the world, without his luggage. He admitted, "I felt as lost as my bags." As he waited, he noticed four clocks on the wall telling the time in various places in the world. He realized that back home it was noon on Sunday.
He remembered how the church that was sponsoring his trip promised to pray for him at their noon service. It struck him that there were people praying for him at that very moment halfway around the world. Richard says with that realization "a peaceful assurance burst over me, and I felt comforted. I wasn't alone."
Richard spent two months volunteering at a home for the destitute run by Mother Teresa and the missionaries of Charity. "It was a holy experience," Richard said.1 When we reach out to help others, offering them an encouraging word, it becomes a holy moment in our lives because we realize that we have made a difference.
As people of faith we realize that God permeates all of life. We cannot separate certain aspects of our lives. The way we treat other people, especially people who might be different from us in some way, is a reflection of how we understand our faith. Do we treat everyone we come in contact with as a precious child of God? Some might be tempted to take advantage of those less fortunate, thinking they will get away with it and that no one will ever know. The people who have been taken advantage of do not have the means to fight their maltreatment and so are powerless. No one would take his or her word over ours, we might think to ourselves.
The wise writer of Proverbs believes differently. "Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity, and the rod of anger will fail." Therefore we should not treat other people badly, because one day we might find ourselves in a similar situation or worse. Someday someone will treat us in the same way we've treated others. The day might come when we need someone's help or assistance and we expect to be treated fairly. Anyone who exploits the weakness of another person for personal gain, whether to rob or cheat, will one day pay for it. One thing we can all be certain of is that God will have the last word for each one of us.
After the worship service a woman asked if she might speak to the pastor for a minute or two. The pastor's encounter with the person who needed assistance caused her to think. She remembered visiting her grandmother when she was a young girl. Her grandmother would often tell her how during the Great Depression of the 1930s people would stop by the house asking for food. Her kindhearted grandmother would always give the person a sandwich and a glass of water. She said her grandmother would never turn anyone away hungry.
The woman asked the pastor why the church could not help feed hungry people like the man who wandered in from the street. Certainly if this one man found his way to the church there must be other people who are hungry. The pastor encouraged her, telling her to develop a plan to provide meals for needy persons. The woman gladly accepted the challenge to start a new ministry in their community. She said she knew other people from church who would help her as well.
By the next Sunday she had researched the problem and discovered that there were people living near the church who could use help. There were elderly people living on limited incomes that would appreciate a meal now and then. She also discovered that there were also some single-parent families living nearby who she knew statistically must be living near or below the poverty line that might accept occasional help.
She proposed starting a Saturday morning breakfast once a month for anyone who would like to come from the neighborhood. There would be no forms to fill out, no paper work, just a good nutritious breakfast cooked by people from the church. She could hardly contain her enthusiasm. She saw so many benefits from her idea. For those who lived alone this would provide a time to be with other people. It would also bring people into the church who might not feel welcomed, thinking specifically of the single-parent families. "Isn't being involved in our community what you've been preaching to us?" she asked her pastor. A new ministry was born. The first Saturday morning breakfast twenty people attended; there were even more the next month. Before too long others wanted to be involved in this ministry, helping to cook or serve, while others gladly donated food.
The last Saturday of the month, rain or shine the church would be open to people from the neighborhood. Within six months over seventy persons ate breakfast in the church's fellowship hall.
The love of God fills our lives to the point that God's love simply overflows. That overabundance of love can then be shared with other people. As our lesson reminds us, "Those who are generous are blessed, for they share their bread with the poor."
The truly faithful person is the one whose love of God is so full that it overflows with love toward other people no matter what their status or condition.
____________
1. Guideposts.
He explained how he was traveling, mostly on foot from somewhere upstate. Someone had told him that he might be able to find a job in another part of the state, so he set out hitchhiking but ended up mostly walking. It had been a long time or at least it seemed like a long time since he held a steady job. While he was looking for a fresh start in life, all he really wanted that day was something to eat.
The pastor made arrangements with a nearby restaurant to give this man a good meal. The pastor could not help but wonder how this man would be received at the restaurant. Would the hostess refuse to seat him? Would the waitress not want to serve him? What would the paying customers think? The pastor gave the man directions; the restaurant was on the next block.
About an hour later the same man came back to the church. He wanted to thank the pastor for the delicious meal. The pastor wished him well as he continued on his journey.
As the pastor shared this story with the congregation, it was obvious that some of the people sitting in the pews were uncomfortable. The pastor asked the congregation, "Why do people who are down on their luck or who have not had the same advantages as others make us feel uncomfortable?" While we might be able to list several reasons perhaps they are just excuses for not getting involved or trying to help in some way.
Our honest response might be to look down on people who struggle with issues that many of us take for granted, like food and shelter. We find in our lesson from Proverbs the following verse, "The rich and the poor have this in common: the Lord is the maker of them all." God is the creator of both the rich and the poor. When we are tempted to look down on other people we need to remember that God loves all people. When people are struggling and do not have anywhere else to turn, they can always turn to the God who created them and never stops loving them. If only we could see people for who they really are and not judge people in superficial ways, by the kind of clothes they wear or cars they drive or the jobs they hold.
What is important for us to remember is that we cannot be good Christians in isolation, we need each other, and we need to be with other people. Our attitude toward the poor needs to be grounded in our faith. As the wise author of Proverbs clearly stated, "A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold." To have a good name or reputation means that we view other people as beloved children of God and not by outward appearances. As God explained to the prophet Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearances, but the Lord looks on the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7).
We also have a responsibility to help others in their time of need. We should not take unfair advantage of anyone, especially those with the greatest needs. We are outraged when we read about people who take unfair advantage of the poor and in the process make a profit. And rightly so.
Throughout the scriptures we discover that God is on the side of the poor and oppressed. "Do not rob the poor because they are poor, or crush the afflicted at the gate; for the Lord pleads their cause." God has a special place for the "least of these who are members of my family" (Matthew 25:40). Because people who are lost or forgotten matter to God, they should matter to us as well.
The greatest compliment anyone could give us is that we have made a positive impact in his or her life. Perhaps all it took was our willingness to listen to another person's problems. Or maybe sitting with a friend in a hospital waiting room awaiting news of a loved one. Or even giving someone a good meal that might give them the confidence to turn their lives around. There might be other times when our words make an indelible impression on another person. Only God knows how our words and actions will impact another person. We might truly be the person to make a difference in another person's life.
It was nearly midnight when Richard's plane landed in Bang-kok. He would have another lengthy layover before his next flight that would take him to his final destination, Calcutta. With the support of his church back home in New York City, Richard was going to spend two months as a volunteer at Mother Teresa's mission.
Forty hours earlier, at the start of his trip, Richard said it was like a dream come true. Awaiting his final flight, he wasn't as sure. "My nerves worn raw by sleeplessness," he explained, "I tried to absorb the information that somewhere between South Korea and Thailand my luggage had been 'misdirected.' " He was beginning to think his trip was a mistake. Maybe he should have stayed at home, instead of traveling halfway around the world, without his luggage. He admitted, "I felt as lost as my bags." As he waited, he noticed four clocks on the wall telling the time in various places in the world. He realized that back home it was noon on Sunday.
He remembered how the church that was sponsoring his trip promised to pray for him at their noon service. It struck him that there were people praying for him at that very moment halfway around the world. Richard says with that realization "a peaceful assurance burst over me, and I felt comforted. I wasn't alone."
Richard spent two months volunteering at a home for the destitute run by Mother Teresa and the missionaries of Charity. "It was a holy experience," Richard said.1 When we reach out to help others, offering them an encouraging word, it becomes a holy moment in our lives because we realize that we have made a difference.
As people of faith we realize that God permeates all of life. We cannot separate certain aspects of our lives. The way we treat other people, especially people who might be different from us in some way, is a reflection of how we understand our faith. Do we treat everyone we come in contact with as a precious child of God? Some might be tempted to take advantage of those less fortunate, thinking they will get away with it and that no one will ever know. The people who have been taken advantage of do not have the means to fight their maltreatment and so are powerless. No one would take his or her word over ours, we might think to ourselves.
The wise writer of Proverbs believes differently. "Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity, and the rod of anger will fail." Therefore we should not treat other people badly, because one day we might find ourselves in a similar situation or worse. Someday someone will treat us in the same way we've treated others. The day might come when we need someone's help or assistance and we expect to be treated fairly. Anyone who exploits the weakness of another person for personal gain, whether to rob or cheat, will one day pay for it. One thing we can all be certain of is that God will have the last word for each one of us.
After the worship service a woman asked if she might speak to the pastor for a minute or two. The pastor's encounter with the person who needed assistance caused her to think. She remembered visiting her grandmother when she was a young girl. Her grandmother would often tell her how during the Great Depression of the 1930s people would stop by the house asking for food. Her kindhearted grandmother would always give the person a sandwich and a glass of water. She said her grandmother would never turn anyone away hungry.
The woman asked the pastor why the church could not help feed hungry people like the man who wandered in from the street. Certainly if this one man found his way to the church there must be other people who are hungry. The pastor encouraged her, telling her to develop a plan to provide meals for needy persons. The woman gladly accepted the challenge to start a new ministry in their community. She said she knew other people from church who would help her as well.
By the next Sunday she had researched the problem and discovered that there were people living near the church who could use help. There were elderly people living on limited incomes that would appreciate a meal now and then. She also discovered that there were also some single-parent families living nearby who she knew statistically must be living near or below the poverty line that might accept occasional help.
She proposed starting a Saturday morning breakfast once a month for anyone who would like to come from the neighborhood. There would be no forms to fill out, no paper work, just a good nutritious breakfast cooked by people from the church. She could hardly contain her enthusiasm. She saw so many benefits from her idea. For those who lived alone this would provide a time to be with other people. It would also bring people into the church who might not feel welcomed, thinking specifically of the single-parent families. "Isn't being involved in our community what you've been preaching to us?" she asked her pastor. A new ministry was born. The first Saturday morning breakfast twenty people attended; there were even more the next month. Before too long others wanted to be involved in this ministry, helping to cook or serve, while others gladly donated food.
The last Saturday of the month, rain or shine the church would be open to people from the neighborhood. Within six months over seventy persons ate breakfast in the church's fellowship hall.
The love of God fills our lives to the point that God's love simply overflows. That overabundance of love can then be shared with other people. As our lesson reminds us, "Those who are generous are blessed, for they share their bread with the poor."
The truly faithful person is the one whose love of God is so full that it overflows with love toward other people no matter what their status or condition.
____________
1. Guideposts.
