Celebrate Abundance

This week's message was the culmination of our stewardship series. It looks at the connection between a strong vision and moblizing people into action. We looked at the parallels between the Israelites in the book of Exodus and the journey of Brimfield Faith United Methodist Church. May you be motivated and activated into God's mighty works!

Click here for the audio: http://www.mediafire.com/file/6r524v2prqca67e/Celebrate%20Abundance.mp3

“Celebrate Abundance”
Brimfield Faith UMC / November 21, 2010
Exodus 36:2-7

Today marks the conclusion of our series on financial stewardship. Over the last three weeks, we have heard John Wesley’s uses of money. Earn all you can. Save all you can. Give all you can. We have discussed what that looks like and learned about God’s views of money. Ultimately, God’s goal is to transform us into generous people because God is a generous God. Money is a tool that God gives us to participate in his mighty works. While much of the advice we have discussed is on a personal level, this morning I want to speak on a corporate level. I want to talk about the journey that the people of Brimfield Faith have been on over the past several years and I want to speak about where we are going and how I believe God is going to get us there.

THE EXODUS
To do that, we are going to take a running overview of the book of Exodus. As we hear the story of the Israelite people, we will also hear the story of our congregation. The book of Exodus gets its name for the pinnacle event in the book, the freeing of the Israelite people out of slavery in Egypt. It is important to understand that the Exodus event is the pinnacle event in the Old Testament and the defining moment for the Israelite people. In many ways, the entire Bible is written through the lens of the Exodus event.
The Israelites had been an ancient tribe of semi-nomadic people who claimed Abraham as their founding father. It wasn’t until a man named Moses led them out of Egypt and revealed to them the name of the LORD God that their collective identity was formed. Every Passover the Jewish people retell the story of the Great Exodus. They remember the way God revealed himself to Moses and called him to set the Israelites free from slavery under Pharaoh in Egypt. They recall the 10 plagues that God sent as judgments against the Egyptians and how finally, the Israelites fled out of Egypt being chased by the Pharaoh’s army. They celebrate the parting of the Red Sea and the journey towards the land promised by God. The Exodus event defines the Israelite people because it tells the story of God’s great provision and protection. Regardless of how bleak circumstances have looked throughout the history of the Jewish people, they always refer back to the Exodus and know the God will be their faithful defender.
As I look back on the history of this congregation, I believe God has and is doing a similar work to that which he did in the Israelites. When I arrived at this church 3 ½ years ago, we found ourselves in a desperate place. The mission and vision of the church had been lost. Average worship attendance had dipped to 50. Morale was low and there were real discussions of closing the church. Just when almost all hope was lost, God blew his Spirit into our dry bones and led us out of slavery in Egypt. He raised up key people to speak a word of hope and to show us the way across our own Red Sea. God gave us a renewed mission, a new vision and a fresh hope. I tell this story because it reminds us of God’s faithfulness and provision at Brimfield Faith. God continues to be faithful to this people called Brimfield Faith United Methodist Church. This history is an important part of our DNA as a congregation of people. As we encounter challenging times in the present and the future, we can refer back to that place where God led us into freedom.


THE WILDERNESS
While the Exodus is the defining event in the story, it is also just the beginning of the story. After they crossed the Red Sea, they find themselves in the wandering in the wilderness as they sought to discover the Promise Land. The journey through the wilderness was a time of preparation and refining. While God had established in his identity to the Israelites, the journey of the wilderness was designed to prepare the people to be faithful to God. It was designed to teach them to fully rely on God. While the wilderness comes with challenges, it is primary a place of preparation. It is a time of learning to trust in God’s provision. It is a time to establish identity and solidify character. It is a time to hear from God about destiny and eternal purpose.
In the wilderness, the Israelites went through a number of experiences in the desert that helped to prepare their hearts and strengthen their character. They receive manna, bread, from heaven. They see water come up from a rock. They withstand attacks from hostile groups. Then they receive the Ten Commandments and the Law of God. The wilderness taught the Israelite people how to live as the people of God. It forever shaped their identity and character as a people.
As the community of Brimfield Faith, I believe we have been wandering in the wilderness over the past several years. We have been learning new things about God. We have been learning to trust God for our provision. We have been learning as follow Christ as disciples and to walk in faith. We have witnessed supernatural miracles and healings. We have seen a powerful and loving God move in our midst and on our behalf. And not unlike the Israelites, we have even lost a few people along the way, but God has also raised up another generation of people in this place. And perhaps most importantly, we have been learning about our destiny and eternal purpose as a people.

THE TABERNACLE
During Israel’s time in the wilderness, they learned how to be a worshiping people. How they worshiped and followed God was lived out in the construction of the Tabernacle. The Tabernacle was the tent of God. Essentially, it was a mobile sanctuary and it was massive.
At least 20% of Exodus details the plans for construction. The Tabernacle was so important because in some real sense God’s presence resided in it. The pursuit of this vision transformed the life of the Israelites. It gave them a tangible and real way of worship and give honor to YHWH, their God. It gave them a sense of legitimacy in the eyes of other nations because every nation worshiped their own God. Other nations now knew that Israel worshiped YHWH. The building of the Tabernacle fulfilled the call to become the people of God.
In Proverbs 29:18 it says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” The vision of the Tabernacle gave the Israelite people purpose and a cause on which to rally. At the beginning of this year, I believe the God gave us a clear vision of this church summarized in the words: Connect, Deepen, Engage. I believe this vision is about become the people of God again in this place. It is designed to teach us how to worship and follow Christ with our lives. The vision is intended to mobilize a people and breathe new life into them.
While we have been working on elements of connect, deepen and engage for almost two years, we have no completed it. We spent all of 2009 working on creating vibrant worship that connects our community to Christ. This vision is yielding fruit but it is not completed. This eyar we have focused on creating relationships that deepen our faith and change lives. The DIG Small Groups are the vehicle that is moving us towards this component of the vision. It continues to be a work in process. As we approach 2011, we will be focusing on the third component of the vision to creating opportunities to engage our faith to transform the community through service, witness, and mission. This is why we exist as a church. To be a part of this community of faith is to join in working towards this vision.

THE RESPONSE
In Exodus 35 and 36, we witness Moses mobilize the Israelites Once Moses had the plans, it was time to mobilize the people. The response was remarkable and overwhelming. In Exodus 35, Moses fully mobilizes the people into action. Every morning, the people brought freewill offerings to help with the Tabernacle. They brought some much that Moses finally says in Exodus 36:6-7. “So Moses gave command, and word was proclaimed throughout the camp: “No man or woman is to make anything else as an offering for the sanctuary.” So the people were restrained from bringing; 7 for what they had already brought was more than enough to do all the work.”
I believe this was a defining moment for the Israelites. They could have complained about the amount of time and resources that it was going to take to build the Tabernacle. They could have gripped about being former slaves, wandering in the wilderness. They could have doubted and refused to respond. Instead, they embraced the vision and became the embodiment of it. They learned that God’s provision existed in the context of the community. They were transformed from a poor, enslaved people into a people filled with the blessings of God. They discovered that God was a God of abundance and this was cause for celebration.
I believe that God is calling us into a similar place as the people of Brimfield Faith. For too long, we have looked at our resources and said “We don’t have enough.” We look at small numbers at the end of the month and worry and doubt. Instead on focusing on what we don’t have, I believe it is time to respond to the vision of God. We are called to steward the vision of God for this community of faith. God is calling us to be Christ’s body in Brimfield, Ohio. There are lives that need changed, a community that needs transformed and a denomination that needs revitalized. If we will respond to the vision, God will provide in abundance.
Even though the Israelites were a nomadic, formerly enslaved people they gave in excess of the need. They were able to do this because they believed passionately in the vision. In Exodus 35:21, it speaks to this. “And they came, everyone whose heart was stirred, and everyone whose spirit was willing, and brought the Lord’s offering to be used for the tent of meeting, and for all its service, and for the sacred vestments.” Their hearts had been stirred and responded to the Lord’s vision. They knew the Tabernacle would change everything. Do we believe our vision will change everything? Will pursuing connect, deepen, engage, really change my life and transform this community? I believe it will. And if we can passionately embrace the vision, we will find creative ways to give towards this vision.
Exodus 35 lists some of the ways that the Israelites gave. They essentially brought whatever they had. Some offered gold and others sliver. Some brought fine linens and animal skins. The women spun with their hands. The leaders offered up gems and jewels. Some were filled with the Holy Spirit and gave of their skills, intelligence and knowledge. The Lord raised up a people to accomplish the work no individual could.
When you join the church, you promise to commit your prayers, your presence, your gifts, you service and your witness to the ministry of the church. Simplified a bit, I believe we need three primary things for each member of the congregation. One, attend worship regularly. If you are in town, you need you to be in worship. Average church attendance in America in regular worship attenders is 2 Sundays a month. We cannot grow fully into our vision unless we gather weekly together. Two, financially support the church and work towards biblical tithing. If everyone in the church tithed their income, we wouldn’t have shortages and our ministries wouldn’t be limited because of financial resources. Three, serve. Everyone is called to be a minister of the Gospel. Serving Jesus not a part-time commitment but rather a full-time calling. There are important roles and responsibilities that need filled if we are going to live into the vision.
A VISION FOR ALL
It is important to realize at the end of the day building a church is raising up a people. The church is not a building or an institution, it is a group of people being called out by God to transform the world. Therefore, the vision of connect, deepen and engage is a vision isn’t a stagnant, stationary. It is designed to guide a people on the journey of faith to transform the world. It is intended not to gather us as a comfortable group of Christians; instead, it is a vision to be launched out into the world. And so I appeal to you to passionately embrace the vision for this church so that we can change lives and transform communities for the sake of the Kingdom of God.
We are going to pray and then you will be given several minutes to prayerful fill out your “Estimate of Giving Cards.” We understand that this card is simply that: an estimate of what you intend to give next year. We know circumstances can change. I pray that yours will indeed change for the better and that you will need to increase your pledge next year. Remember as we commit this estimates that we are committing to the vision to build a church that changes lives and transforms communities through connecting, deepening, and engaging our faith.
Let’s pray.




SIDE NOTE:

The Tabernacle was built to travel with the people. It was never intended to be permanent but it was important to shaping the people and guiding them into the future. They would eventually come to occupy the Promise Land and build the Temple. The Temple would never have been built, if the people hadn’t first built the Tabernacle. We, as the body of Christ, are the new temple of the Holy Spirit. We are being blessed to be a blessing to the world, not just to one another. We are being launched into the world in order to transform it.