Spirit of Abundance/ Spirit of Scarcity

Spirit of Abundance/ Spirit of Scarcity
John 10: 10
Commitment Sunday – Peters Creek United Presbyterian Church
November 23, 2003

I. Introduction:

Jesus said: “I came that they might have life and have it abundantly.” (John 10:10) At the end of this sermon I will ask you to do something that demonstrates whether or not you believe these words of Jesus…

As a son of this congregation who has gone into ministry because of your faithfulness I have observed you and your faith over many, many years. My first memories were of the little, old historic church across the road, when Peters Creek was just a small, rural church. I vaguely remember worshipping in the old sanctuary as a little child. I remember beautiful walks in the cemetery where my grandparents and aunt and uncles are now buried. In the same way they used to all sit in the pews now they’re just up on the hill sitting in another set of pews. I remember having Sunday School in the quote/ unquote “New Sunday School” wing across the street. I vaguely remember the old wooden rec hall where now is a parking lot. I remember the old manse. I remember when the new sanctuary was built. I remember how from a few faithful people came a large and faithful congregation. I remember.

And I will tell you that it was not done out of a spirit of scarcity. It was done out of a spirit of abundance. It was done trusting in Jesus. It was done believing in the promises of God. That is your history. That is who you are. That is who you have always been to me.

“I came that they might have life, and have it abundantly”, says Jesus. And it is true. It is so very true…God calls us to life in His Son Jesus Christ. God calls you to life this day. But it is not a life where anything you give up is not given back to you a thousand fold. Christ calls us to ABUNDANT life!

While I was still serving in my field education church I learned yet another lesson in the providence of God. I was asked to lead their summer youth program and the salary was a whopping $250 for the entire summer. I prayed about it and felt I was called to do it even though I had no idea how I was going to live on $250 for the entire summer. I said “Yes” to God and when we say “Yes” to God, God always provides. “Everything is “yes” in Jesus Christ.” I would buy my one packet of hotdogs and one packet of hotdog bund each week. I would buy my one packet of whatever frozen vegetables were on sale that week. I learned to like even Brussel sprouts! I lived in Westminster House with refugees from southeast Asia. You know its pretty bad when as I’d be boiling my one, lonely hot dog for dinner and one of the refugees would come in, point to it, and say: “No good, no good.” You know its pretty bad when refugees offer to share their meal with you. But I would pray as the week neared the end and as my food supply was running low. And someone would call me on the phone and invite me over to dinner. Or someone would be baking and would say something like, “You know, Stu, as I was baking I thought of you and so I’m sending you these muffins.” Lunch for a week! Or a friend of mine who worked in a fig processing plant in California as a joke, sent me a box of figs and dried apricots. Lunch for a month! At the very beginning of my ministry I learned to trust God to provide, to make a way when there seemed to be no way.

“I have come that they may have life, and have it abundantly…” Yes, Lord, I believe. “I believe; help Thou my unbelief.”

That summer I spent with those young people was the most extraordinary summer of my entire life. And that fall, because of that summer youth program, about 150 young people came every week just to see this crazy preacher living with the refugees…just to see the ONE LIFE that lived in me, the abundant life, the Jesus life, the life that was overflowing from Him to me, to them…

I’m not bragging. Because, trust me, its not about me. Its about Him… Its not about abundant material possessions. Its about a spiritually abundant life lived through Him…lived TO Him…lived because of Him…

II. Spirit of Scarcity:

You want to know a funny thing? --a truth that is really odd? Rich people have a spirit of scarcity not a spirit of abundance in their life. For them there is never enough money. There is never enough security. There are never enough material possessions to satisfy. Bill Gates always needs another billion. Warren Buffet isn’t happy until he possesses it all.

You want to know another funny thing? --a truth that is really REALLY odd? Living in America today we can convince ourselves that we are poor. We can convince ourselves we don’t have enough. Though the poorest of us here today probably lives in a house and drives a car and has medical care the envy of the world we can convince ourselves we are poor. We can live out of a Spirit of Scarcity rather than out of a Spirit of Abundance!

The decisions we make, the way we choose to live, how magnanimous we are, whether or not we possess a generous spirit, whether grace and life flows from our heart is a direct result of a very basic decision we make. Do we choose to live our life out of a Spirit of Scarcity? Or do we choose to live our life out of a Spirit of Abundance? Do we believe Jesus’ words: “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly” or not?

Now here is what I mean. I mean today we could look at our life, our job, our world and say: “The economy stinks. The stock market stinks. I might not have a job next year. How can I provide for my family? I live on a fixed income” You could adopt a spirit of scarcity and choose to live your life out of that.

I mean today we could look at our life and our world and say: “We are at war. How do I know what tomorrow holds. The war might make things worse, not better. Terrorists might strike at any moment. There is no peace, no security.” You could adopt a spirit of scarcity and choose to live your life out of that.

Or, you can choose to believe and trust the words and promises of Jesus. You can believe that no matter what God will provide for you in your life and for those that you love. You can believe that life is not so much about material abundance as it is about spiritual abundance. You can choose to live your life out of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, the ABUNDANT Spirit, the ABUNDANT life, the life of FAITH and TRUST, the life of a certain future, and a lasting peace, and a providence by the hand of a loving and faithful God.

It’s your choice. It’s the choice you make today. It’s the choice you make every day. “Am I going to trust in the promises of God or not?” “Do I, or do I not, believe that Jesus has come into my life to give me life and give me life and life abundantly?”

III. Spirit of Abundance:

I went to Kenya on a mission trip a year ago August. When you’re a preacher on a mission trip you’d better be prepared to preach almost everywhere you go.

Its funny but in Kenya there is great material poverty but there is greater spiritual abundance. An evangelist took us to see a new church development. We drove and we drove and we drove. We got out and we walked and we walked and we walked. Of course in this country a new church development takes at least $1 million. Because it costs so much we can convince ourselves everything we cannot do. Though rich we can convince ourselves we are poor. I don’t know what I expected when I rounded a bend in a little creek, the creekbed was filled with Calla lilies on either side. The evangelist, Cyrus, had a brilliant, abundant smile on his face, and swept his arm back with pride. I was looking for a church but what I saw were two stumps with a board across them, and five sticks made to look like the point of a roof overhead. Five people worshipped there every Sunday. Spirit of Abundance could see that as a church. Spirit of Scarcity just saw it as five sticks. The church in Africa is growing by leaps and bounds. The church here is not. What Spirit do we possess?

The next day was Sunday. It was to be a Harumbee, a big outdoor, fundraising service for the new clinic the church hoped to build. So I asked the pastor of the church, “Kaugi, am I preaching tomorrow?” See I’m suspicious. Kaugi said: “No, Stuart, The Reverend Solomon Kamau is preaching.” “Kaugi, now there’s not going to be two sermons, right?” Right. “And there’s not going to be another service where you’re going to ask me to preach, right?” Right. I went to bed that night knowing in my heart that I would be preaching the next day…

Njoro, Kenya is a town of 300,000 people with just two clinics in it. And as I was told, “Don’t go to the government clinic it never has any medicine.” This church had a vision for building a third clinic in town. Now in the central rift valley most of the people are poor. The average daily wage is 70 Kenya shillings, or about $1.50 a day. This clinic could make a real difference in people’s lives. It was testimony that indeed Jesus wants his people to have life and have it abundantly.

So I get up the next morning just sure I am preaching. And we gather in the vestry with all the ministers in that area and the elders of the church. And the pastor, Kaugi, stands up and intones: “I regret to inform you that the Reverend Solomon Kamau has had car trouble.” So guess who was preaching?

I stood up in the pulpit and I preached this sermon on abundance and scarcity. I asked the people to look at where they sat in the open field and to envision the vision that God had given them. I asked them to believe that God could and would provide for that vision. I asked them to think of the abundant life they had been given in Christ. I asked them to give out of a spirit of abundance not out of a spirit of scarcity. I asked them to fix in their mind and in their heart the figure they intended to give that day. And then I told them that was their figure. It was not God’s figure. I asked them to give twice as much as they planned; three times as much as they planned; four times as much as they planned. Give to the glory of God. Give to the vision of God. Give to the abundant life of God.

And when the dust had settled, these 700 people who earned $1.50 a day, had given 1.2 million Kenya Shillings, more than twice what the elders had hoped, and exactly what it would take to complete the clinic for Njoro…Don’t ever tell me that God doesn’t provide perfectly…

Spirit of Abundance or Spirit of Scarcity –what Spirit do we bring to the Lord today?

IV. Conclusion: The Secret of the Abundant Life:

Now let me give you a secret to the abundant life. Its really so simple. Its there in the Bible. Its called tithing. Its thinking about what you have received and giving back in percentage terms. If you’re an average Presbyterian you give 1.9% of what you receive back to the Lord. If you doubled that you’d give 4%. If you tripled that you’d give 6%. If you quadrupled that you’d give 8%. And you still wouldn’t be at 10%. You still wouldn’t tithe. To double what you give, to really think about striving to tithe, to move your percentage upwards would require a lot of faith, would require you to trust in God to provide in your life, would require you to give in the way you have received –out of a spirit of abundance.

Well, well, well…at the beginning of the sermon I promised you I would ask you to do something at the end that showed whether you believed in Jesus’ words, “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” And now we come to that time.

So I ask you to take out your pledge card and to look at it. I want you to look at the figure you have written there. I want you to ask yourself a very basic question. It’s the question of what Spirit you bring to life and to the Lord this day. I want you to look at what you’ve written there and ask yourself: Is that my figure or is that God’s figure? Is that figure written out of a spirit of abundance or a spirit of scarcity? Is that figure written out of my fears and concerns or out of my hopes and my dreams and my faith that God will always provide for me in my life? You know, you can always scratch out the original figure you wrote there earlier and now put in one that is written out of a spirit of abundance. Two times, three times, four times what you originally thought.

I want you to write something in there that shows you believe that Jesus has come, that Jesus lives within your heart. I want you to write something in there that is abundant and joyous and loving and grace-filled.

And as you’re writing I want you to pray this prayer: “Lord, I believe you have come to bring me LIFE…and life ABUNDANT!” And Amen.

By: The Reverend Dr. Stuart D. Broberg
Pittsburgh Theological Seminary
616 North Highland Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15206
412.362.5610 x2213
Sbroberg@pts.edu