Meditations

When they had all had enough to eat, [Jesus] said to His disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten. John 6:12-13

“All are satisfied; all had enough to eat. John portrays this miracle, not a eucharistic mouthful, still less an ethical lesson on how to shame people into sharing their lunches. This is the ample provision of the Lord who declares, ‘My people will be filled with my bounty’ (Jeremiah 31:14). Though the Lord has lavish abundance to meet the needs of the people, he will let nothing be wasted.”

D.A. Carson in The Gospel According to John (PNTC; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1990) 270-271.

I am weary of getting appeals in the mail that try to shame me into sharing. They’re uninspiring. I wonder if relief organizations might take a different approach. What if they reminded all who are satisfied to gather what is left over and let nothing be wasted? Think about it.

When God looks at the world, generally speaking, I think He sees half of it hungry for food and thirsty for clean drinking water. Those who enjoy these gifts need not be shamed into sharing but educated as to what to do with any surplus. It should be gathered for sharing with those in need and not wasted.

Paul follows suit in 1 Corinthians 16:1-4. He does not beg people to give to feed starving people in Jerusalem. He gives them instructions, the same ones he gave the Galatian churches, and gathers their collective surplus and delivers it to famine-stricken Christians.

What’s my point today? If God has graciously and abundantly provided for you, if you eat and are satisfied, gather the pieces that are left over. They are not yours. Let nothing be wasted. Your surplus is another’s supply. This miracle Passover meal had twelve baskets leftover: the provision of Jesus was sufficient for all Israel.

“Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.”

When Jesus had called the Twelve together, He gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. He told them: “Take nothing for the journey — no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra shirt.” Luke 9:1-3

“The Twelve were to travel light. Jesus told them to take nothing with them, and he spelled this out with no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money. They are to concentrate on the task in hand, not to elaborate preparations. In fact they are to forgo even what would have been regarded as normal preparations for the journey. God will provide what they need and they are to trust Him for it…

Edersheim connects this with the rabbinic rule that one must not enter the temple precincts with staff, shoes and money-bag. ‘The symbolic reasons underlying this command would, in both cases, be probably the same: to avoid even the appearance of being engaged on other business, when the whole being should be absorbed in the service of the Lord.'”

Leon Morris in Luke (Downers Grove: IVP, 1988) 182-183 and Alfred Edersheim in The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2 vols. (1890: Pickering and Inglis, 1959) 1:643.

I flew home from Chicago last night, but the Northern Seminary students remain in my heart. I pray, like the first disciples, that as Morris says, that they will “travel light” and as Edersheim adds, that they will “be absorbed in the service of the Lord.” What about you?

This text relates to everyone who desires to follow Christ. We may think we need stuff and money to make things happen, and God wants us to let go of those things so we can learn to trust Him. In God we have everything we have ever needed and will ever need.

God worked then and still works now through willing servants willing to travel light through life. He supplies for those absorbed in His service. That leads to two questions. Are you traveling heavy? Are you distracted by other business?

The one who travels heavy rather than light reveals his or her heart struggles to trust God. If that’s you, ask God to help you today to trust Him to provide. God, help me follow You obediently trusting you to guide and provide. Make this so of my students and readers, Father!

The distracted person shows vacillating allegiance. Other things captivate their hearts. If that’s you, ask God to help you identify and get rid of what distracts you. In biblical terms, cut it off! God, help me let go of anything that draws my heart away from You. Do this in each of our lives for your glory, Jesus!

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 1 John 4:18

“The root of an ungenerous heart is not mere stinginess or greed but fearfulness. Accruing resources is often a way we try to take control of our own world and fend for ourselves because we fear we can’t trust God… That is why we become crushed by suffering rather than growing through it. And that is why we are so ungenerous with ourselves and our assets. America is filled with comfortably prosperous people who mostly feel they don’t have enough. They are dominated and controlled by a pervasive sense of resource scarcity and precariousness.”

Timothy Keller in the foreword to The God Guarantee: Finding Freedom from the Fear of Not Having Enough by Jack Alexander (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2017).

In my exploration of abundance and its relationship to generosity between meetings with students this weekend, I discovered this profound, concise thought: “The root of an ungenerous heart is not mere stinginess or greed but fearfulness.” Does fear hinder your generosity?

Numerous times in my life I have wrestled with worry and fear. I have found that focusing on the love of God dispels my fears. To grow in generosity in 2018, consider God’s perfect love for you and start the year by driving out fear! Read Psalm 136, a celebration of the faithful and everlasting love of God!

For if the readiness is present, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. For this is not for the ease of others and for your affliction, but by way of equality — at this present time your abundance being a supply for their need, so that their abundance also may become a supply for your need, that there may be equality. 2 Corinthians 8:12-14

“Equality here is not the erasing of differences but the alternation of attentive care. The manner of giving, therefore, should not be by exaction, but by a response to the gift of God. Thus, the motivation Paul gives his Corinthian congregation is not based on the ideas of friendship or egalitarianism, but on the gift of God. They are to give because God has given to them. They are able to give because they have first received. It is not only that God loves a cheerful giver, or that God will sustain them in life and given them even greater prosperity when they give generously. No, their gift, ultimately, must be based on the gift given to them.”

Luke Timothy Johnson in Sharing Possessions: What Faith Demands, second edition (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2011) 103.

The interaction with Northern Seminary students has been warm this weekend despite the frigid cold outside in Chicago (pictured above). One student talked at length about how “sharing is caring” which made me think about how sharing our abundance becomes their supply and also our way of showing care to others in need. This led me to read an excerpt from Johnson’s classic scholarly work on the topic.

People get intimidated by the word “equality” in Paul’s correspondence with the Corinthian church regarding the function of their sharing with the starving saints in Jerusalem. Some mistake it for socialism or communism dictated by exaction. Johnson, however, unpacks how equality portrays Christianity in it’s purest form. “The alternation of attentive care” reflects the “love one another” generosity aspect of our faith.

Some days we get to give. Other days we receive. Thus, “the alternation of attentive care” is not about taking care of friends, but about showing the world we are eager to share with others in the family of God in gratitude for God’s care for us. As you think with me about “abundance” this year, ask yourself what you possess in abundance that could be shared attentively with fellow believers in need.

Share with them how you’d like them to share with you if you were in need.

Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. Luke 12:32-34

“Let’s suppose, you see, that the kingdom of heaven is up for sale, for the price of almsgiving. A most fertile and valuable estate has been put up for us to buy; one which, after we have acquired it and come into possession of it, we won’t leave to some successors on our decease, but will always remain in possession of, never to leave it, never to move out of at all. A splendid estate, an estate worth buying indeed! It remains for you to inquire how much it’s worth, in case you aren’t worth what it’s worth, and are not able to buy it, though you are most eager to get it. You may not think you can make it, so I’ll tell you its price: it’s worth whatever you have.”

Augustine of Hippo (354-430) in Sermon 105A in Essential Sermons, translated by Edmund Hill, edited by Daniel Doyle (New York: New City Press, 2007) 168.

A classroom full of students enrolled in Faith and Finances at Northern Seminary thinking they would learn what the Bible teaches on the handling of money in order to put their houses in order. What they have discovered through the course material is how to purchase “a splendid estate” indeed! The offer stands for everyone. The question remains for each of them and everyone reading this: Who will take hold of it? Augustine smartly states that it’s price is everything we have. At that price, it’s a bargain. It’s like getting a billion dollar eternal estate for a buck.

Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Romans 12:15

“Cultivate the habit of taking delight in the good fortune of others and you will never been without occasion for joy.”

Kerry Alys Robinson in Imagining Abundance: Fundraising, Philanthropy, and a Spiritual Call for Service (Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 2014) 63.

Robinson keenly notes that we tend to extend sympathy to the hurting but rarely take delight in the good fortune of others. Why? Instead of rejoicing with them we often wish the good fortune had come our way!

My wife, Jenni, shines as a spiritual director, but in few ways brighter than this one. She rejoices with those who rejoice and mourns with those who mourn as good as anyone! She excels because this is a habit she has cultivated.

She meets with dozens of women monthly. Each visit follows an intentional pattern, and she records confidential notes afterwards. She cares how God is working in others. That’s taking delight! God help me take delight in my students this weekend.

What about you? If you want abundant joy in your life in 2018, as Robinson says, “cultivate the habit of taking delight in the good fortune of others.” This form of generosity touches the deepest part of peoples’ lives.

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. Romans 12:21

“This story takes place in a setting of abject poverty. Mother Teresa is caring for the dying in Calcutta, and there is a man who resents her care, rejects her attendant ablutions, spits in her face when she tries to administer medicine and comfort. This contentious relationship carries on for days, as the man, with no family or friends, lies dying. And still Mother Teresa comes to him, washes him, feeds him, extends her compassion. He argues with her, tells her he does not believe in God, he does not believe in human kindness. He wants to be left alone to die alone. He is angry, bitter, demoralized, radically ungrateful. And still she comes to him that he might have dignity in his final days. She cleans his own filth, dresses him in fresh clothes, spoons broth into his mouth. Weakly he tries to swat her hands away, admonishes her for her care. Until, frightened, knowing these are the final hours of his life, he leans into her arms as she holds him, looks up at her, and begs of her, “Please. Is your God like you?”

Mother Teresa (1910-1997) recounted by Kerry Alys Robinson in Imagining Abundance: Fundraising, Philanthropy, and a Spiritual Call for Service (Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 2014) 39.

Shortly, I head to the airport with my daughter, Sophie. She will return to San Diego to complete her junior year at San Diego Christian College. She’s such a beautiful conduit of the love of God. Undoubtedly, she will be a “Mother Teresa” for her generation, as will our son, Sammy, who’s already completed his undergraduate studies and serving full-time, and who has named his puppy, Hope St. Teresa, after this tenacious, loving servant.

I fly to Chicago for meetings with ministry colleagues and to teach Faith and Finances at Northern Seminary. Stories like this one go a long way in my teaching. They illustrate the deeper spiritual realities in play with regard to generosity. Over time, only the love of God can soften the most angry heart, sweeten the most bitter soul, and transform the radically ungrateful. By sharing this story with others, it inspires them to do the good that overcomes the evil in this world!

Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, He gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then He gave them to His disciples to distribute to the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish. The number of the men who had eaten was five thousand. Mark 6:41-44

“The words sound familiar do they not? His prayer consists in the four big verbs of Holy Communion: “He took, He blessed, He broke, He gave.” Jesus takes the ordinary stuff of life in all its scarcity – two fish and five loaves – and transforms them into God’s self-giving generosity. The outcome was that “all ate and were filled” (v. 42). But that is not all: there were twelve baskets left over, enough bread for all the tribes of Israel.

The church – the disciples – are always a little slow, unwilling to learn what the new data of Jesus means, unwilling to recognize that the world is changed by Jesus, unable to act differently in the new world of Jesus. The disciples seem often to act as though Jesus did not really matter; they act as though the world was still bound in scarcity and anxiety and fearfulness and hoarding.

But let me tell you the news that is proclaimed by Christ’s coming, about which we are reminded at every Communion service: Jesus has turned the world into abundance. God is the gift who keeps on giving, and the people around Jesus are empowered to receive abundance and therefore to act generously.

Every day, all day: it’s still true! “He takes, He blesses, He breaks, He gives.” And we are astonished about the surplus. It is all there for those with eyes to see, with ears to hear, and with hearts to remember. We are recipients of enough and enough and more than enough, enough and enough and more than enough to share. And to be glad in this Giver who keeps on giving…endlessly.”

Walter Brueggemann in Celebrating Abundance (Louisville: WJKP, 2017) 8-9.

After this powerful reading, Brueggemann concludes with this prayer, which is fitting, because we, like the disciples, “are always a little slow” and unwilling to live in the reality of Jesus so we fail to grasp life in His abundant economy. We remain bound in “scarcity and anxiety and fearfulness and hoarding.” Let’s pray it with him.

God whose giving knows no end, make us glad recipients of your generosity. Give us eyes to see and ears to hear and hearts to remember your abundance, that we might share it with the world. Amen.

But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:18

“A mirror doesn’t have much to do. To do it’s job it just must hang or stand in the right direction. You and I don’t have to do a great deal either. We need only to look to the Lord Jesus and He will make us like mirrors, and He does it so well! We don’t need to strive and try to be a blessing but just look in the right direction. Then Jesus makes us a mirror of Himself. When you get to heaven, people may say to you, “You invited me here.” Then you will ask, “When did I tell you about heaven?” You will discover that Jesus used you when you were really looking to Him.”

Corrie ten Boom (1892-1983) in Messages of God’s Abundance (Grand Rapids: Zondervan) 28-29.

Many people make resolutions each new year about things they want to do. If you want to grow in generosity, if you want to bless more people, I suggest remove the veil from your face and look at Jesus as much as possible. I don’t think you can do too much of this. I have never heard anyone say, “You are spending too much time with Jesus.” People will appreciate that you are real. They will see Christ’s love through your words and actions. You will bless people without even realizing it because your focus is on Jesus. Ask yourself as the year begins: Which way is my mirror turned?

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed. 2 Corinthians 9:8

“The human body and spirit are simply built in such a way that they tend to thrive when they experience the liberation, enjoyment, gratitude, confidence, and openness that accompany life in a perceived world of abundance. And those same bodies and spirits wither under the anxiety, stress, preoccupations, hoarding, and self-protection that accompany imagined worlds of scarcity and threat.

Practicing generosity often entails at some point an existential confrontation that is involved in the personal paradigm shift away from living in a world of scarcity and instead into living in a world of abundance, blessing, gratitude, enjoyment, security, and sharing. Therefore, practicing generosity in this way tends to promote happiness, health, and purposeful living.”

Christian Smith and Hilary Davidson in The Paradox of Generosity: Giving We Receive, Grasping We Lose (Oxford: OUP, 2014) 77-78.

Happy New Year!

As you may recall, two years ago my word for the year was simplicity, and last year, providence. This year, my word is abundance. I plan to explore the idea of abundance in the Scriptures and through church history as it relates to generosity over the course of 2018.

For the Apostle Paul, abundance is the fruit of grace. When God’s grace abounds toward us and toward His creation, the guiding economy that results always reflects a world of abundance, which frees us from the stresses and patterns of the world of scarcity.

Practicing generosity, according to the extensive research of Smith and Davidson, becomes the pathway from the oppressive world of scarcity to flourishing in the world of abundance. And what’s so exciting is the benefits that await everyone, not just wealthy people.

When we practice generosity in light of God’s abundance, “blessing, gratitude, enjoyment, security, and sharing” characterize the various aspects of life. Furthermore, the research shows that it promotes “happiness, health, and purposeful living.”

These benefits resonate with me as I am working on an ebook with Tim Macready of Christian Super called, Purposeful Living. Stay tuned for the release of that resource to gain financial wisdom for all of life. We appreciate your prayers for us and that project.

Thank you God for your grace. It provides us with everything we need to live, give, serve and love. By your Holy Spirit, help us model life in your abundant economy and point the way so others join us and take hold of life. Hear our prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.