John Milbank: Exact appropriateness

And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. Colossians 3:14

“Charity indeed is not…a matter of mere generous intention: on the contrary, it involves that exact appropriateness of reciprocal action necessary to produce a ‘beautiful’ order, and in this sense, charity is the very consummation of both justice and prudence.”

John Milbank in Theology and Social Theory: Beyond Secular Reason (Malden: Blackwell, 2006) 416.

Charity is grace: unmerited favor. When we receive it from God and extend it toward others we exhibit generosity that Milbank rightly describes as “that exact appropriateness of reciprocal action.” It produces unquestionably beautiful order, or in plain terms, it makes things right.

On this Lord’s day, ask the Father what it would look like for you to consummate justice and prudence in the place where He has planted you. How has he placed you there to bring beauty and contribute to flourishing not by “mere generous intention” but as an conduit of charity?

For a taste of our experience at Union Church Hong Kong last Sunday, read the lyrics of a beautiful song we sang last weekend, “Great Source of all our life” by Joy F. Patterson.

Great Source of all our life,
we come with thanks and praise,
for countless gifts of love with which you bless our days.

Chorus:
With joyful hearts
we come to you, renewing now
our gifts of love.

For time to work and play,
for talents we can share,
for wealth enough to live, and give for others’ care,

For those who went before,
strong followers of your way,
who worked and gave to build the church we know today,

Dear God who first loved us
and drew our hearts toward you,
confirm our faith, increase our love our whole life through.

And if you want hear the sermon I preached at Union Church Hong Kong on 24 April 2016, click this link entitled, “Guarding our Lives against Greed: Five Insights for Faithful Stewards” from Luke 12:13-21.

Being rich toward God is only possible when we realize that the God who loves us is the great Source of all our life, and the One who provides “enough to live, and give for others’ care.”

Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need. Ephesians 4:28

“Paul defines the opposite of stealing another’s property and possessions: work in order to have something to share with those in need. In other words the trajectory of the eight commandment [You shall not steal] explicitly opens up from a narrow reading of the commandment as a guard of private property to a positive inducement to generosity…

In this way, the injunction to the Ephesian community follows out of and builds upon the various Old Testament regulations growing out of the eighth commandment that serve not only to protect the neighbor’s economic well-being but to enhance it, and especially those statutes providing for the poor, that is those in need.

The Scripture thus argues implicitly for a countercultural assumption that our aim is not the acquisition and protection (by legal and illegal means, by work and by stealing, by truth-telling and false witness) of our property and possessions but the sharing of the wealth that God provides.”

Patrick D. Miller in “Property and Possession in Light of the Ten Commandments” in Having Property and Possession in Religious and Social Life, eds. William Schweiker and Charles Mathewes (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2004) 41-42.

The OT provides a beautiful backdrop for the NT. The fruit of work in the OT Law was not private ownership for selfish gain, but rather private property stewarded in obedience to care for family, needy neighbor, and foreigner. I love how this restores meaning to the income-earning side of work in God’s economy.

Consider some examples. Through our work, our family has resources to help the church our son has helped plant here in Littleton. We have funds to help destitute children get food and Christ-centered education in Guatemala. We have monies to support friends who serve refuges in Germany, and we are positioned to mobilize missionaries in Hong Kong and Asia.

The “countercultural assumption” the Scriptures call for is seeing the fruit of our labor not as ours per se but as resources for blessing others. Failure to live this way is stealing because it holds back for self what God intends for blessing. When we obey, we are enriched and filled with joy. When we don’t obey, God’s work still goes forward, and we are the ones who miss out because God works through other channels.

Are you joyfully participating or missing out?

Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 1 Timothy 6:9

“Despise riches, if you would have riches. If you would be truly rich, become poor. For such are the paradoxes of God. He would not have you rich from your own care, but from His grace. Leave these things to Me, He says; make spiritual things your concern, that you may know My power [cf. Colossians 3:2]. Flee from that yoke of slavery, which riches impose. As long as you cleave to them, you are poor. When you despise them, you are doubly rich, in that such things shall flow in upon you from every side, and in that you shall want none of those things, which the multitude want. For not to possess much, but to need little, is to be rich indeed.”

John Chrysostom (347-407) in Homilies on First Timothy 11.

Last night Jenni and I got to a Colorado Rockies baseball game with Paul and Marj Lewan. They are truly rich people because they don’t let riches stay with them. With openhanded generosity they are “doubly rich” people who joyfully serve as conduits of God’s material and spiritual blessings.

Chrysostom is spot on when he depicts the handling of money as one of the “paradoxes of God” as those who chase after it, lose everything. Those who want to possess it end up empty, while those who “make spiritual things” their concern end up truly rich.

How can you grow in your generosity journey? Find people who have the right perspective on this paradox. Spend time with them. They “know” God’s power by experience. Riches don’t secure our life, they seek to enslave them. Carve out time with truly rich people who “need little” and you will begin to understand.

Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 1 Peter 4:10

“God expects us to be “trustworthy stewards” of all that belongs to Him. When we ignore that everything belongs to God, squander His resources, or act as if it belongs to us, we are not acting in a trustworthy manner; we are unfaithful stewards. So what does it mean to be a trustworthy steward? …

We act as trustworthy stewards when we use what He’s entrusted to us to serve others…Once we grasp that we are not owners and aren’t supposed to be mere consumers, but stewards, we realize that we are to be conduits of God’s grace to those around us. God never intended for us to receive His grace and gifts and keep them for ourselves; we are to let His grace flow through us to others…

So why do many of us receive God’s grace and gifts but then stop the flow, keeping so much of it to ourselves instead of distributing it to others? One reason: fear. We are afraid that if we give, we won’t have enough. we are afraid the supply will not continue to flow, that it will dry up…

Fear is always a lack of trust. We’re not sure God can be trusted. This fear lies deep within us; in fact, trust is the core issue of life. We want to trust, but fear talks us out of trusting and obeying God. Fear sabotages our desire to be faithful. That’s why God teaches us over and over again about trust…We were made to live in a trusting, wonderful, vibrant dependence on God.”

Jim Mindling in Learn to Breathe: The Surprising Path to a Transformed Life (Bloomington: WestBow, 2014) 228, 234-236.

One of the colleagues who joined me for meetings in Hong Kong was Anjji Gabriel. He believes (like Mindling) that trust is the core issue of the transparent administration of God’s work and a core component for generosity. I will never forget the rhetorical question he asked Christian leaders to consider: “Can God trust you?”

When we live in fear we hold back God’s material blessings rather than serve as a conduit. Alternatively, when our everyday living, giving, serving, and loving is rooted in trust, we hold nothing back because we know the generosity of the One who provided it in the first place. Has fear sabotaged your desire to be faithful? Can God trust you?

If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? 1 John 3:17

“If we want to understand God’s goodness in God’s gifts, then we must think of them as a responsibility we bear for our brothers and sisters. Let none say: God has blessed us with money and possessions, and then live as if they and their God were alone in the world. For the time will come when they realize that they have been worshiping the idols of their good fortune and selfishness. Possessions are not God’s blessing and goodness, but the opportunities of service which God entrusts to us.”

Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945) in A Testament to Freedom as recounted in The NRSV Daily Bible: Read, Meditate, and Pray Through the Entire Bible in 365 Days (HarperCollins, Kindle Edition) 569-570. Special thanks John Cochran for sharing this meditation with me.

Jenni and I have safely returned home from Hong Kong. In reflecting on our experience this morning, I think this is a perspective that can be spotted both in the East and the West: people can treat material blessing as an idol or as an opportunity for service. How will you view the material possessions entrusted to you? We cannot live like we are alone in the world. As John writes, if we see someone in need, we get to show God’s love by helping them.

Before I preached at Union Church this past Sunday on Hong Kong Island, we sang this song. The last two lines really touched Jenni and me as it sums up the faith of life in God’s economy: “I know I’m filled to be emptied again. The seed I’ve received I will sow.” Enjoy Desert Song on YouTube. Enjoy (while we make the long journey home).

This is my prayer in the desert
When all that’s within me feels dry
This is my prayer in my hunger and need
My God is the God who provides

And this is my prayer in the fire
In weakness or trial or pain
There is a faith proved
Of more worth than gold
So refine me, Lord, through the flame

Chorus
And I will bring praise, I will bring praise
No weapon formed against me shall remain
I will rejoice, I will declare
God is my victory and He is here

And this is my prayer in the battle
When triumph is still on its way
I am a conqueror and co-heir with Christ
So firm on His promise I’ll stand

Bridge
All of my life
In every season
You are still God
I have a reason to sing
I have a reason to worship

This is my prayer in the harvest
When favor and providence flow
I know I’m filled to be emptied again
The seed I’ve received I will sow

You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. Romans 8:9

“Christian joy and security is not about the absence of pain and sorrow, but about the presence of the Spirit. Our hope is not based on what we see, but on what is not yet visible. While circumstances in our lives may make us question God’s love and provision, the gift of His Spirit reframes our vision to include the future. While we continue to groan inwardly in anticipation of this future, we have received firstfruits from that future–the Spirit of Christ–who enables us to pray and rejoice in the midst of trouble and scarcity, fear and grief…To experience the Spirit as an abundant supply of nourishing water is to grow up and flourish in the freedom of giving one’s self away.”

Kelly Kapic in God So Loved, He Gave: Entering the Movement of Divine Generosity (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010) 103-105. This book offers a good “theology of generosity” and required reading for my D.Min. students at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School this summer.

What a joy to serve church pastors, ministry administrators, and congregations in Hong Kong this week. Financial transparency will not only contribute to greater Christian generosity, it will also show people how to live in God’s economy, which is secure, abundant, trustworthy and dependable.

But do we live as if we are confident in God’s love and provision?

Because of the difficulties in our world, our tendency is to retreat to comfort rather than go forth with compassion. This is not an Eastern or Western crisis but part of the human condition: we conform to the culture. Those who are under the realm and reign of Christ will show it by our lives.

With the Spirit of Christ in us, giving ourselves away results not in emptiness, but enrichment!

No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. Luke 16:13

“Bountiful giving requires a willingness to talk about money–inside the church and from the pulpit. Daring to talk about money is one of the most challenging aspects of any successful stewardship program. Both pastors and lay leaders struggle to have open and honest conversations about this issue. Often, the pastor has been pressured to keep talk of money out of the pulpit, usually by people who don’t give, and has acquiesced. But when church leaders choose to keep silent about money, they allow money to hold their ministries hostage. Instead of addressing the topic head on, many churches back away, making money taboo and giving the issue an unhealthy measure of power. By talking about money and speaking clearly about its control of our lives, we can begin to put things back into perspective.”

Kristine Miller and Scott McKenzie in Bounty: Ten Ways To Increase Giving At Your Church (Nashville: Abingdon, 2013) 15. I shot this new header photo of the Central district of Hong Kong Island on our harbor cruise last night. The prominent building with the triangular white lights is the Bank of China Tower. This is the heart of the “Wall Street” in Asia, and a great place to preach about money from God’s Word!

I’d appreciate your prayers as I am preaching twice here on Sunday at Union Church and teaching through the Scriptures on generosity at Island Evangelical Community Church. I concur with Miller and Mckenzie that talking about money is vital. I plan to share truth with transparency from what I have learned in my own life. Pray with me for a fruitful response and for stamina as our long trip to Hong Kong nears its end.

But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Luke 6:35

“God wants us to understand how little control we have over the outcome. He reminds us throughout Scripture that although he allows us to plant and water, He controls the results. The sovereignty of God works with the freedom of humanity in order to establish the outcome. When an abused mother exploits the kindness of a church, the mission is not aborted as a failure. When a homeless man mistreats the love of God, the missional work of the church is not thwarted. When a greedy person walks away with the money of the church community, failure is not assumed. The elephant in the room that we should be concerned with is not failure to achieve statistical results but failure to walk in the way of Jesus.”

John Richardson in Giving Away the Collection Plate: Regifting God’s Love and Money (Mustang: Tate, 2012) 101.

Our Western culture is fascinated with statistical results we think we can control rather than faithful discipleship that leaves all the results to God. Perhaps its part of the sinful human condition to try to steal God’s glory as this perspective came into view in a dinner we had with Eastern business leaders in HK too. Sadly, it leads charity rankings not linked to consistency with the way of Jesus but the numbers for which they take credit. Furthermore, Richardson rightly notes in his book (and a recent email from Generous Church) that when generosity is misused, the mission is not a failure. As today’s Scripture reminds us, God is kind even to the most undeserving, because the overarching mission is not solving problems but showing lovingkindness!

Father in heaven, thank you that you are kind to me when I am undeserving. Thanks for teaching me that generosity that reflects your love for the world, happens when I extend your kindness to even the least deserving person who may even try to take advantage of me. Help me love like you love. Do this your Holy Spirit (because I cannot do it alone) I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.