Sunday, August 1, 2010

Why Greed Isn't Good: Sermon, Pentecost 10


August 1: Pentecost 10
 Luke 12:13-21
It would not be an overgeneralization to say that money is a significant source of worry for most Canadians. A recent Reuters survey found that 65 percent of Canadians regularly lost sleep over finances during the last year. As these folks were tossing and turning their heads were filled with worry about paying off debt, not having enough for retirement, or an emergency fund.
The wealthy or extremely wealthy are not out of the woods as far as worry goes either. The financial crisis which swept across the US almost two years ago demonstrated how precarious the economy can be. Fortunes can be won, but fortunes can also be lost, and with the loss of fortune go the loss of identity, self esteem, and reputation.  It would not be an overgeneralization to say that more money you have, the more money you have to worry about.
          In today’s gospel lesson, Jesus is confronted by a worried man. We don’t know much about him, but we do know that he was worried about money or material wealth. He was worried about his  inheritance, worried that he would not receive his share--that his brother was withholding what should rightfully belong to him. So the man enlisted the aid of Jesus to get him what he thought he deserved.
There are many today like that young man. How many people turn to Jesus in order to get the money they think they deserve? How many television evangelists have come and gone promising that if you turn to Jesus you will get wealthy beyond your wildest dreams? This is called the success gospel, and it is very popular. But as we read today, Jesus affirms that he is not what many would like him to be—the  cosmic candy man, who dispenses goodies at the behest of the pious. 
Instead of complying with the man’s request,  Jesus issues an admonishment: “ Be on your guard against all kinds of greed!” All kinds of greed has been a  constant throughout human history. What is greed? Greed is defined as an excessive desire to possess wealth or goods.  In the 1986 film, the fictional character Gordon Gekko, a corporate raider, proudly proclaimed that “Greed is Good”. It is a sad reality that much operation in the financial world follows this ethic, and it is a fundamentally truth that greed has infected human relationships at all levels—from the  ruthless cigar chomping corporate raider to the  sulking child who deprives his little sister of a chocolate cookie out of an insatiable desire to stuff himself with another. Greed comes in many different forms—greed for money, greed for power, greed for control over another.
But  the ethic of greed is based upon a faulty premise, a flawed starting point. This is the point of the parable we hear in today’s gospel lesson. In this lesson, Jesus does not use an exaggerated example to  illustrate the end point of greed.  He doesn’t  provide an example so far removed from common experience that we could never possibly relate to the motivation of its main character. Rather he uses the  example of a  rich farmer. And as we read what Jesus tells about his behavior, we might, if we are truly honest with ourselves, even say that this man was  prudent—that we might under the same circumstances do the  exact same thing. In fact, what this wealthy man does, is exactly what many people do—invest, and save, with the hope  of living off their fortunes.  So what is the problem? Well, first of all, Jesus isn’t speaking here about prudence and wisely setting aside resources for the future. He is, rather, speaking about idol making. The fortunes which many have amassed have become that in which they place ultimate trust. Their fortunes become, for them, god. Herein lies the root sin of greediness. As Paul points out in today’s epistle reading, greed is idolatry. Greed turns money and possessions into gods. Greed must therefore be condemned by the true God who  issued the first Commandment: “ You shall have no other gods.”
Since the wage of sin is death, a death sentence has been pronounced upon all greediness. You will nowhere encounter a more succinct  description of where greed ultimately leads than that given in today’s Old Testament reading from Ecclesiastes. This comes from the section of the Old Testament referred to as wisdom, and for good reason. In these pages of scripture you will encounter Holy fundamental wisdom concerning the human condition. The teacher of the lesson set out to see the end point of all human accumulation, and what he discovered was not a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but emptiness. All of that work, all of that effort put into gathering was an effort put forth in vain.  He concludes by asking, “ What do mortals get from all the toil and strain with which they toil under the sun? For all their days are full of pain, and their work is a vexation; even at night their minds do not rest.”  Death has been called the great leveler, and for good reason. In death, accumulated material  wealth means nothing. Even the best adorned casket cannot  erase that stark reality.
It is quite evident that the young man to whom Jesus speaks in today’s gospel lesson does not have a rested mind, and surely experienced much vexation But he is not left without hope. Jesus tells him plainly what it truly means to be rich. To truly be rich is to be rich toward God.
What exactly  does it mean to be rich toward God? The first thing we need to know about being rich toward God, is understanding where our wealth comes from, and what true wealth is. Being truly wealthy is living in the reality of God’s great gift of eternal life. This is the only enduring source of wealth we can ever enjoy. But it is not something we have earned, acquired, or own—it is a gift which comes to us through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is given to us in baptism.
In today’s epistle reading, St Paul reminds the Colossian Christians about  what true wealth means. He reminds them that they are raised with Christ, and being raised with Christ means a radical reordering of values and priorities. It means setting their minds on things that are above, not on earthly things. Paul is not telling them not to enjoy God’s physical gifts, or to enjoy what is offered in the physical world. To believe this is to misinterpret his message and to downgrade God beautiful creation. Rather he is telling them not to treat earthly things as idols. Therefore he admonishes them to put to death the idolatrous pull to the earthly—to put to death fornication, which is sex outside of marriage, put to death impurity, put to death evil desires and greed. With these things must go anger, malice, wrath, slander,  abusive language,  and lying. For these things are all remnants of the earthly way of doing things, all built on an orientation which does not see beyond the physical and trusts ultimately in that which is earthly. But this is the way of vanity.
Christ brings transformation, and a new self and a new orientation to reality, and a new way of thinking which is in accordance with our creator. With this new knowledge comes a new attitude toward possessions, toward saving, toward giving. With this new knowledge we are capable of seeing at length what we would otherwise be incapable of even getting a glimpse at—the eternal. With the eternal perspective in mind we need not toss and turn at night about our investments. With the eternal perspective in mind, we can share freely, knowing that we are guided by a higher vision and purpose. With the eternal perspective in mind we can be who we have been called to be, the ambassadors of Christ to a world which desperately needs to be transformed by His word.  Jesus has fed us and sustains us. We in turn are called to be rich toward God, and being rich toward God means being rich toward those whom he loves, and whom he loves are all people.  Jesus calls us to be bold in this love. So let us always and everywhere pray for the strength to be so. Now, may the peace  which surpasses all understanding guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.