"Double Your Money"

How many people here today would jump at the chance to double your money? 

What would you think of an investment manager who told you, give me your money I can double it in a month? 

What would you say is the best way to protect your investment money today? 

Reading Matthew 25:14-30

At first glance I found this parable a little hard to take as my understanding of doubling your money in any century is almost impossible unless the deal is, well you know shady.   In fact all good investment councilors today will tell you this is not realistic in any economic conditions.  So what was Jesus getting at with this parable?  Money talk!! Investments!! Profits!! Personal gain!! or loss!!.  Well I think Jesus is pretty witty, because there is no better way to get someone’s attention than money talk, would you agree?    Isn’t it ironic that if you look at many of Jesus parables, there seems to be a lot of talk about money.   I think it was and still is one of the best way to get someone’s  attention?   You will recall the women who gives her last penny, everything she had financially. Then there is the story of a wealthy man trying to get into the kingdom of heaven.  Jesus tells his listeners; that is like trying to push a camel through the eye of a needle.  Jesus asks for a Roman coin when ask if they should pay taxes to Rome.   The prodigal son, is about Money, the young son, foolishly spending his inheritance.  The Good Samaritan pays the inn keeper and tells him if there are any further charges for keeping the Stanger he will pay it, and the list just goes on, and on.  Jesus often seems to be pointing to this:  There is always a price to be paid when choices have to be made isn’t there.  I believe Jesus is just trying to illustrate for us that there are better choices in life than that which money, position or power can provide.  The worldly way often leads people into places of kayos and darkness.

But if we learn to surrender to God’s way, it always leads us to the light.  

Jesus tells these stories in the middle of his high risk venture.  It was during the last few days of his life that he shares this particular parable.  But, Folks: do you think this story is really about money, fairness, or God’s wrath?   How many of us have had the experience of the third servant, I mean seeing God as unjust; a hard task master who’s concerned more about us doing everything right and punishing those who you get it wrong rather than loving us unconditionally?   When you make a choice in life and things don’t work to your advantage, who do you blame: your wife, husband, neighbor, your employer, or do you do as the third servant does in the parable, put the blame on God? 

May I suggest a question for us to consider here this morning.  How often do you turn to the bible seeking answers to you choices?   Even deeper, how often do you seek counsel through prayer.  Are you seeing God as did the third servant, a hard task master, who is harvesting his obedient children only for thy Kingdom come.  Do you think an unconditional loving God separates his obedient children from the disobedient then sends some off to eternal punishment?   May I suggest to you that it is you or I who call down judgement upon ourselves when we make a bad choice?  Being expelled from the Garden of Eden was mixture of choices humans made, not Gods.  The planet is still struggling with the curiosity of humankind.   We who think we can do a better job of creating circumstances than God.

The deeper understanding here is our bad choices in life do not stop God from loving us as one of His own.  If God were to punish or reward you according to your behavior, would that not put an expectation on God’s unconditional love.  Punishment or reward are expression of conditional love but God does not love us with conditions folks.

Wrath is a consequence, one of the fruits of conditional love.  Wrath is the consequence or the results of sin, or in short as the Hebrew would say missing the mark  folks.   I challenge you the next time you are in difficult circumstances, confused, or lost, call out to Jesus for help and His Father who has promised never to forsake or leave you will show up, somehow, some way.   If you can trust in that rather than your money or your security your life will change.  Turn around, and you will see God has never left you. 

Do you know the lyrics to “Turn your eyes upon Jesus”.   

Are we that naive to believe that God somehow takes away our ability to choose and then builds the difficult circumstances surrounding our lives?  Do not the scriptures throughout the Hebrew and Greek writings teach us of a God who continuously rescues us from the circumstances we have created, offering us a place of sanctuary and a way home?  Is that not the God of our ancestors? 

Are we that naive to believe that we do not call down upon ourselves kayos and wrath?  Are we not aware that the circumstances surrendering our lives do not control our future?   Try telling that to, the Gandhi’s of this world, the Paul Hansen’s or the physicist Stephen Hawkins.  How about the Mother Tessa’s, or the Martin Luther Kings of our world.  All those great names who have superseded their circumstances.

I’m sure you probably have known someone in your own communities who has defied their circumstances to live a full life.  For them obstacles and hardship actually turned into opportunities.  You see everything is possible with God folks, nothing can defeat the faithful.  Want to be part of the Kingdom of Heaven, turn around and begin again.  Take the risk, learn to discover your talents and gifts and begin using them as a one of the Kingdom builders.  When you do, God will multiply and expand your territory and give you more. 

Jeremiah 29: 11:  “For I know the plans I have for you” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 

Even if you only see yourself as a one talent person.  May I suggest to you this morning to begin using it in to help in the building of the kingdom of heaven?  Jesus tells us that the Kingdom begin right here, right now.  We are either kingdom builders for God or we are still trying to build our own little kingdom.   
                                    "Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus"