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“Seasons of Sacrifice: Fall Harvest”, (2 Corinthians 9:6-15) A Sermon Preached By Rev. Peter W. Shidemantle
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Sunday, November 6, 2005 |
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PEBBLE HILL PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 5299 Jamesville Rd., DeWitt, NY 13214 Phone: 315-446-0960 FAX: 446-0672 phillchu@twcny.rr.com http://pebblehill.presbychurch.org
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Fall is a time of arrival, a
time of completion, when the earth has come full cycle and done its work
through seasons of cold silence (winter), of new life emerging and beginning
to grow (spring), of full growth blossoming (summer). And in the fall the
harvest comes. In a few weeks we’ll be singing of it in that great hymn of
thanksgiving, “First the blade, and then the ear, then the full corn shall
appear: Lord of harvest, grant that we wholesome grain and pure may be.”
Poets, composers, and even preachers have always found – as does scripture
itself – the grace of God in the rhythm of the seasons. The movement of the
human heart in relation to it is the movement toward thanksgiving; and out
of thanksgiving emerges a generous heart, for the harvest of God’s
faithfulness cannot be contained, but must be shared, which produces even
more thanksgiving. This is not automatically so, but if it isn’t, there is
something that is impeding or diverting the flow of life within us, the
rhythm on which is based the music of God’s gracious gifts to the earth and
to our lives.
It is not at all unusual that this should happen. There is illness and there is death of loved ones. There are times when life seems taken over by one distraction after another, one burden on top of another, and that which is most important to us can get lost and we can forget even how to look for it. There are times when there seems to be no room at the center of our lives for anyone but ourselves. We get out of step with God’s gracious rhythms, out of meaningful connection with our world and even with those closest to us. We are unable to give thanks, and not seeing the generosity of God, our hearts shrink with our hopes to the size of our expectations. Last Sunday I spoke of how our Lord apparently wants his followers to have and to lead expanded and expansive lives, and we looked at the story of the rich young man in the gospels who had everything you could possibly want, including a strong faith that kept all the commandments. But in the end, he lacked one thing. He was unable to give, truly give, which meant that he was unable to give thanks. Thus, he walked away, sorrowfully. All that has happened to this point has been preparation. In considering Seasons of Sacrifice, we began with “winter” as the season of stillness and quietness, when life moves inward, viewing this as a metaphor for the life that stirs beneath the surface of our visible lives, of how we need to be attentive to these stirrings, for that is where the work of new and transformed life, of sacrificial life, has to take hold if it is to grow. “Spring” is that time of transformation when the work of love and sacrifice begins to emerge in us, making us ready for new and transformed life. “Summer” is the time of fulness of growth, and is a metaphor for the “fulness of grace and truth” that is Christ in us. We have arrived, then, at the time of harvest, the time of taking up and giving from the fruits of sacrifice that have grown in us. It is true with most things, I think, that it is mostly about the preparation. I never minded taking tests in school because the hardest part was all the studying you had to do in order to take the test. On the athletic field the well-conditioned and well-practiced athletes can just relax and “let it go” once the contest actually starts because they have truly prepared. It is the same with the musician, whose talent can shine because she has put so many hours into preparing for the performance. For Christians and their giving it is no different. What I have hoped to do over these last weeks is to offer a kind of frame through which to see and consider the process of arriving at an important decision regarding our financial stewardship. It is not about the amount given, but about the faith and the faithful work that is behind the decision and the act. The harvest takes care of itself if the work has been done carefully and thoroughly. If prayer has been at the heart of it; if you have felt challenged and stretched, no matter the place from which you started; if you have considered the needs of the church alongside the other important needs that present themselves to us in life – then the gifts that flow will be gifts that come from thankful hearts, the kind of thankfulness that comes through and out the other side of that spiritual work. God has been involved, and God never depletes our lives, but only fills our lives. God fills us through our giving, our offering of our lives and our resources for the work of God’s redemptive love. Through it we are made part of that “endless song that hails a new creation.” It is not us alone, not my gift alone, but all of us together, gifts not equal in size but equal in sacrifice, that make for a true thank offering unto the Lord. When Jesus invited those who would follow him to lay down, set aside, give up or turn over livelihood, wealth, family concerns, business concerns, it was only because he knew that God had plans to fill them up with love and mercy and peace and forgiveness - and that there had to be room in their lives for these things. He was catching them up in, and equipping them for, the movement and the flow of God’s life in the world, which they could see in him. Like us, they didn’t always have an easy time of it, didn’t always understand it. He would say incredible and outlandish things that have always been easy to ignore as unrealistic or idealistic. Yet we have discovered that it is only in heading in the direction that Jesus’ words and actions lead us that true life is to be found. It is only forgiving that we can know forgiveness; it is only in loving that we can know love; it is only in serving that we can exercise true leadership; it is only in giving that we truly receive, grace upon grace. The Apostle Paul, for a significant portion of his ministry, was engaged in gathering a collection for the poor in Jerusalem. It became an important priority for him - for a couple of reasons. It would provide relief for the impoverished church in Palestine, it would also serve as an expression of solidarity between the newly established Gentile churches and the largely Jewish church in Palestine. At a critical stage in the gathering of this offering, Paul learned that the Corinthians were dragging their feet. We don’t know why, but Paul was working hard, bringing to bear all the logical and theological arguments he could muster, to appeal to their generosity. He reminded them of a few things that had doubtless heard before. He appealed first to the principle of return: sow sparingly and you will reap sparingly; sow bountifully and you will reap bountifully. He also observed with them that their generosity could not be forced, but had to be voluntary, not a matter of compulsion, but of their own free will. He told them of the voluntary generosity of the Macedonian churches, which could scarce afford to be generous, but who insisted that they be given the opportunity to give! Paul mentioned as well the generosity of God, of God’s capacity to provide for our needs, and do so abundantly, so that we can be equipped for good works. This was important, as Paul was pointing out a close connection between faith and generosity. You see, we may withhold our goods and our money to protect ourselves and preserve our way of life - but to do so implies that our preservation is in our own hands. To let go of our possessions becomes an expression of faith because it symbolizes the commitment of ourselves and our future to someone other than ourselves - to God. To hold on to our possessions symbolizes our doubts in God’s ability to provide. Finally, and I think most importantly, Paul says that generosity produces thanksgiving. Any act of charity benefits the one in need – but benefit also comes to the free-hearted giver, and through it God’s abundance is opened up even more. But in addition to this, God will be honored – acts of generosity “produce thanksgiving to God,” Paul writes. They “overflow with many thanksgivings to God.” Why is this so important to Paul? It is not as if God needs our prayers and acknowledgments. It is rather that for Paul such acts express the right kind of faith, faith in God as Creator. As far as Paul was concerned, the capacity to give thanks is the sign of true faith because it recognizes who is the creature and who is Creator, as he ends this section of his letter with the words, “Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift.” Thank God for the harvest, the harvest of the earth, the harvest of righteousness, the harvest of your sacrifice, as I end with the words of poet and preacher Arnold Kenseth in a portion of one of his canticles: Surely your harvest is in our hearts; And your joy is in us, Tumbled high, pressed down, and running over. Blessed are your hands upon this day, And blessed are all seasons. Amen.
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| Copyright, Rev. Dr.
Peter W. Shidemantle. All rights reserved. Permission granted for
non-commercial use.
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