What Does Jesus Say about Wealth?

Date: Sunday October 12, 2008
Scripture: Matthew 26:6-16
Sermon: What Does Jesus Say about Wealth?
Pastor: Rev. Kim Wells

I can’t tell you how many times as a pastor I have heard, we can’t talk about money in church. People don’t like to hear about money in church. When you talk about money in church, people think of those TV preachers always begging for money. If we have to talk about money once a year at stewardship time when we make our financial commitments to the church for the coming year, well, o.k. but otherwise, stay away from talking about money. People won’t come to church. It will turn new people away.

I recently read of a church with a new fund-raising scheme for the church. Rev. Rob Hartwell, pastor of the Village Lutheran Church in Bronxville, New York was admittedly overweight. A donor promised to give $5,000 to the church for every pound Hartwell lost – if he lost at least 70 pounds. The challenge worked. Hartwell is almost 100 pounds lighter and the church received almost $400,000 in income. [See Christian Century, Sept. 23, 2008, p. 8]

It is inevitable that churches talk about money. And not just because money is needed to do the mission of the church.

When we look at the teachings of Jesus in the gospels, it’s a wonder we are not talking about money as a main topic almost every week in church because in story after story in the New Testament, Jesus is talking about money, economics, and wealth. Of the 38 parables, 16 are about money. Jesus talks more about money than about prayer, or worship, or heaven, or abortion, or marriage, or sexuality, or any number of other topics.

As Jim Forbes, recently retired pastor of the Riverside Church in New York City, pointed out in his lecture at Eckerd College Tuesday evening, we might not like what conservative Christians and propagators of the prosperity gospel are saying, but they have one thing right. Money and faith go together.

Multiple teachings of Jesus validate this. Money and faith are inextricably linked. And to ignore money, because we don’t want to turn people off to church, or because it is too worldly, or because we have inherited our culture’s discomfort with talking about money (we’d much rather talk about sex), is to short change the gospel of Jesus Christ.

So, friends, if you don’t like talking about money in church, then you probably aren’t going to like this sermon, because it is about money.

What does Jesus say about wealth?

My guess is that most of us already have a pretty good idea of what Jesus has to say about wealth and money. Jesus was from a poor family. We are told that at the rite of circumcision when Jesus was 8 days old, his family was not able to make the customary sacrifice of a lamb, but instead offered a pair of pigeons, the fall back sacrifice for those who were poor. [Luke 2:24, Lev. 12:8] We basically know that during his ministry, Jesus was poor, relied on others and the land for his material needs, and that he never owned a house or a business.

When we look at the teachings of Jesus about money, many are familiar, especially for those who attended church school, or have been regular church goers, or who have read the New Testament. There is the story of Jesus telling the rich young man to sell all he has and give to the poor. [Luke 18:18ff, Mark 10:17ff, Matthew 19:16ff] There is the saying that it is harder for a rich person to enter the realm of God than for a camel to go through the eye of the needle. [Matthew 19:23-24, Mark 10:25, Luke 18:25] There is the verse advising, if you’ve got two coats, give one away. [Matthew 5:40, Luke Luke 6:29] And the invitation not to fret about our material well-being and consider the lilies of the field. [Luke 12:22ff, Matthew 6:25ff] We may be familiar with the story of Jesus driving the money changers out of the Temple. [Matthew 21;12ff, John 2:13ff, Mark 11:15ff, Luke 19:45ff] We may remember the story about the rich man and Lazarus: the rich man dies and is burning in hell for ignoring the poor man at his gate. [Luke 16:19ff] There is Jesus’ chastisement of religious officials who wore fine robes, and lived on the pensions of widows. [Luke 20:45ff,Mark 12:38ff] There is the story of the widow who put all she had into the offering at the Temple. All she had. [Luke 21:1ff,Mark 12:41ff] There is the beatitude, blessed are the poor. [Luke 6:20] And the story about building bigger barns for storage, while your soul rots. [Luke 12:16] Perhaps we remember the story of how Zacchaeus not only climbed a tree, but paid back four fold those he had cheated and then gave half of what he had left to the poor. [Luke 19:1ff] Frankly, my guess is that we know quite a bit about the teachings of Jesus relating to money.

But it’s hard to know what to do with these teachings, because we need money to live. So, we generally prefer to put our head in the sand, and ignore these teachings. Or consider them anachronistic or idealistic. So we resort to, don’t talk about money in church. . .

But this morning, since we’re looking at “What Does Jesus Say about Wealth?” let’s ask ourselves why Jesus talks so much about money. I think the two stories that we heard this morning give us some clues. Right next to each other in the gospel of Matthew is the story of the woman who anoints Jesus’ feet using ointment worth a year’s wages. Maybe equivalent to $30,000 today. That is extravagant. Lavish. Even profligate. What about the poor???

And then there is the story about Judas betraying Jesus for just 30 pieces of silver. Maybe a month’s wages. A fairly small amount. What might be paid to purchase a disabled slave.

These stories involve a large amount of money and a fairly small amount of money. When we think about money, it is not just a medium of exchange, but it is something we use to measure value. Something that costs more is worth more in some way – either because of labor, or materials, or demand or other things that influence production costs, like energy, transportation, and taxation. And something that costs less is of less value, again usually because of labor, materials, or demand or other factors. But basically money helps us to establish the relative worth of things. I think that Jesus uses teachings about money in this way. What we do with our money shows how much value things have for us. Money is used to assess relative value. Especially regarding our spiritual lives and commitments.

In the story about the anointing, which involves a large sum of money, we see a large value placed on the gospel, a large value placed on the will of God, a large value placed on the spiritual life. The woman has no reservations that we know of about spending a year’s wages on a compassionate gesture to a friend. This pure and generous gift shows us that she was completely committed to God.

The woman with the ointment is doing God’s work. She is using her wealth, her resources in accordance with God’s will. She is offering what she has to God’s realm. She is freely giving this incredibly expensive gift away, not hoping to get anything back, not to impress anyone, but simply out of love and faithfulness. She is showing her commitment to God, and the realm of God that Jesus has shown and taught and embodied. She is showing her faith and her desire to be part of God’s hopes and dreams. So she is using her money to glorify God. She is holding nothing back from God

In the story of Judas, and the relatively smaller amount of money, we see less value placed on doing the will of God, the work of God, less commitment to the gospel. There are some who say that Judas was the most faithful disciple because only he was willing to further God’s plan that Jesus be sacrificed by turning him over to the authorities. But if Judas was so pure, I don’t think he would have taken any money. He would have done God’s will for free with no personal reward. So, I think Judas was enticed by personal gain, greed, and the desire to salve his disillusionment. His faith and commitment to the ministry of Jesus was not great enough to overcome his self interest. So his involvement with the 30 pieces of silver shows the state of his commitment to the Gospel.

So I think Jesus uses teachings about money and wealth as an indicator of the condition of one’s spiritual life. It’s not the specific amount of money involved necessarily, but what it indicates about the values of the people involved.

So these stories help us to see how Jesus talks about money. Money can be used to assess the value we place on God’s will, on our spiritual life, on our relationship with God, and on our commitment to the gospel of Jesus Christ. The more our use of money reflects gospel values of peace and justice and compassion, the more we know that we are serious about our commitment to God and the Gospel. When we see ourselves using money in other ways, we see less of that commitment and less faith.

Jesus talks so much about money and wealth because he knows the power it has to lure us away from God’s intentions for creation and for the human family. He knows the power of money to draw us away from community values of the common good and compassion. He knows the seductive power of money to create an illusion of power, security, control, and worth. Like the serpent in the story of the garden of Eden, money can entice us away from God’s will. So Jesus knows that money and wealth are a prime indicator of the condition of a person’s spiritual life and commitment to God. So he is paying a lot of attention to matters of money and wealth.

In the story of the rich young man who comes to Jesus, he is spiritually hungry. He has fulfilled all of the commands of his faith, and he knows that still something is lacking. He still does not feel the close relationship to God that he desires. He senses that his commitment to God is still not complete. In the story, Jesus tells the rich young man to sell all that he has and come follow Jesus. The man walks away sadly, because this he cannot do. So his money stands in the way of his relationship with God. His wealth is impeding his spiritual life. This teaching of Jesus shows how what we do with our money shows the value we place on our faith and spiritual life. This man does not value his commitment to God enough to part with his money. So the story helps to show us how Jesus uses money to assess the condition of the man’s spiritual life.

We see this same kind of assessment involving money in the story of the widow who gives 2 cents to the Temple treasury. Here we see someone so committed to God that she gives all that she has. Her very last cent. How will she eat? How will she live? Yet, she holds nothing back. Her commitment to God is complete. She retains nothings. And in the story, Jesus lifts her up as a model of faithfulness far greater than those who give much more but also retain much more. Again, money is used to assess level of commitment to God and the condition of the person’s spiritual life.

So if want to assess our spiritual lives, our commitment to the gospel, our relationship with God, if we want to examine our deepest hunger and longing, we need to be willing to look at what we are doing with our money. Is our money at God’s disposal? Do we use our money in ways that bring us closer to God and our neighbor? Are we using our money in ways that work for God’s intentions that the poor be fed and everyone live in justice and peace with no victims, and the earth itself not a victim of our greed? Does our money control us? Is our money and our concern about wealth blocking fulfillment of our deepest and truest desires? A bold and courageous analysis of our use of money will show us where we are spiritually.

I think many of us don’t like talking about money in church because we don’t want to ask ourselves these questions because we are afraid of the answers we will find if we have the courage to be honest.

But that is to be expected. In today’s world, Wall Street spends, or spent, billions trying to entice us to want more, buy more, spend more. It has taken billions to mould us into consumers, whose primary mindset is of ourselves and others as economic entities. The teachings of Jesus invite us to see ourselves as God’s children, God’s family, beloved people of God. Good and beautiful. Created to be in community with God and one another for mutual enjoyment and consolation. That is not an economic entity. That is a spiritual entity. And one hour a week in church, even if we did talk about money every Sunday, is not much of an opportunity to reorient our identity, when the market is luring us the other 167 hours of the week!

But there is good news in the gospel about money. Like the woman who anoints Jesus, we can choose to use our money for good and see the deepening of our spiritual lives and our growing commitment to God. Through investing in justice and peace, we can use our money for making God’s realm more present on this earth. There are mutual funds, and micro credit funds, and all kinds of ways of investing that are in keeping with God’s commitments to economic and social justice. People are using their investments in companies with oppressive records to transform those corporations through resolutions for change in corporate practices. Shareholder activism has increased by 68% since 1999 in the US. [Sojourners May 2008, p.12 ]

We can also use our money as an indicator of our faith commitment by investing in this church. Within the past week, I have heard these two testimonies. Someone from the community came to the church, and in the course of the conversation remarked, “This church has a reputation for accepting everyone. . .” And a woman called the church to find out where we got the “Vote No to Amendment 2” signs, and she said, “I love what your church is doing and what you stand for.” This church is making a difference. And though it is not pledging Sunday, the one Sunday you expect to be asked to support the church financially, I need to tell you that the financial support that you give to this church is a way of assessing your spiritual life. It is a way of gauging your faith and your commitment to God. If you are not satisfied with the condition of your spiritual life, then you probably need to be looking at how you are using your wealth, money and time, and chances are you need to be giving more away.

Like the people in Jesus’ day, we too have money. Our times are more complicated, and we certainly do have much more money than the average person whom Jesus addressed. So, we need to be paying more attention, not less, to what the gospels say about money, because we are more in danger of money luring us away from God’s purposes. So, really, the church, to be faithful, to be committed to the spiritual well being of people, to be proclaiming the gospel, should be talking about money, more than ever! Because our relationship with money is a measure of our spiritual life, as Jesus tells us.

Even given the complexities of our modern situation, when we ask, What Does Jesus Say about Wealth? We have to come to terms with the fact that money and faith are related. That’s why Jesus talks so much about money. And that basic fundamental has not changed.

A new movement called Bolder Giving encourages generosity for the good of the giver as well as the good of the communities, the human family and the earth. I invite you to listen to the story of Tom Hsieh, a contemporary who has made the choice to use money to reflect the importance of God and his faith commitment in his life:

When I graduated from college, God pointed out to me: 1) He has a heart for the poor, and 2) I didn’t. So I decided to place my self where I could develop a heart for the poor. I passed up lucrative job offers, joined Servant Partner’s work (where I eventually met my wife, Bree) and took an hourly job as a computer technician. But even on that salary, I made more than I needed, so God started disciplining me in giving.

When Bree and I married seven years go, we knew that we could easily slide into spending more on ourselves. So we committed to living at or below the national median household income (currently $46,000/year) as way to set a limit. I’m 36, my wife is 31, and our daughter Kadence is now one year old.

This year I co-founded a new telecommunications business, SplinterRock, Inc. We save our clients 30%-70% on their telecommunications expenses, and have a non-profit affinity program that generates recurring unrestricted revenues for our non-profit partners.

Last year I made more than $200,000 as a technology executive; our family lived on $38,000 and donated the remaining money (after taxes). Giving is easy, because we live in the second poorest community in L.A. county, where needs stare us in the face. Compared to our neighbors we are still wealthy. We have two bedrooms for the three of us, while most of our neighbors have 3 families in the same sized apartment…

Some think too much of us and think we’re saving people’s lives. But doing this giving . . .has saved my life. I could easily have lived a life that was boring and inconsequential. Now I am graced with a life of service and meaning. [boldergiving.org/inspiring_stories/profile.php?cat=ages&value=35to60&id=87]

The gospels tell us, “Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” [Luke 12:34, Matthew 6:21] Too often, we are waiting for the spiritual experience to lead us to give our money away. We are waiting to have enough faith to be able to part with more of our money. What Jesus tells us is that if we want a heart filled with faith, if we want the serenity that comes with trust in God, we need to put our money into God’s hands to be used for good. We need to be generous and giving. After we put our treasure where it should be, our hearts will follow. The faith will come. The security will come. The trust, like the lilies of the field will come. We will experience the unimaginable riches of the spiritual life.

So what does Jesus say about wealth? “The measure you give will be the measure you get.” [Mark 4:24, Luke 6:38 Jesus gave his life. We’re only talking about money! Amen.

A reasonable effort has been made to appropriately cite materials referenced in this sermon. For additional information, please contact Lakewood United Church of Christ.