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https://youtu.be/3l1u6ZjgFbg

Hespeler, March 20, 2022 © Scott McAndless – Lent 3
Isaiah 55:1-9, Psalm 63:1-8, 1 Corinthians 10:1-13, Luke 13:1-9

Come on down to Crazy Scott’s Discount Emporium today! You won’t believe the deals I’ve got for you. You better grab them while you can, before they take me away for being so crazy!

Would you like to have some gasoline? That is right, I am talking about that precious liquid that, as of last night, was selling for $1.70 litre at the local gas station. At Crazy Scott’s, you can have as much of it as you possibly could desire! Want to fill up your Humvee? Here you go! Heck, if you want to fill up your swimming pool you can do that.

No Money

What’s that? You want to know how much it costs? Well, that is the truly crazy part because this gasoline is not being pumped based on how much money you have but rather based on what your need is. In fact, let me say this: “You that have no money, come, buy and guzzle!”

In fact, let’s not just make this about gasoline. What if you are in need of the basics of life: bread, meat, vegetables or wine? Or how about water? Everybody needs water! We’ve got all of those things too and you can get them right now at the amazing, unbeatable price of, well, no money at all – no money down, no payments, no interest. I’m sure you’re all asking how do I do it? Well, if you are asking that then you haven’t been paying attention because there is only one explanation: I’m just plain crazy!

Inappropriate Commercial

So, what would you think if you saw a commercial like that right about now? In the middle of some kind of economic crisis, at a moment when inflation seems to be galloping out of control, there are a lot of people, especially those who are living on fixed incomes or whose pay has been depressed for a very long time, who are really struggling to make ends meet. Meanwhile people all over the place just can’t afford to live in homes anymore. How would that make you feel?

You might take it as some kind of joke, perhaps a bad joke, but at least as an attempt at humour. Or you might receive it as something in pretty bad taste. How cruel to make fun of people who are struggling to get by making a joke of giving all of this stuff that’s getting too expensive away. You might even say it would be inappropriate to include it in a sermon. But what if I were to tell you that that commercial was inspired by our reading this morning from the Prophet Isaiah?

The reading starts out very strangely. It starts with about the closest thing to a television commercial that you could find in the ancient world. Basically, back then, the only way that merchants had to market what they had to sell in the marketplace was to literally call out to the people passing and tell them that they should buy their wares. It’s the kind of thing that still sometimes happens in marketplaces to this very day. But back then, it was really the only way to market. So, the really weird thing is that this prophecy from the book of Isaiah begins with one of these calls that merchants traditionally would have made in the marketplace.

The Merchant’s Call

“Ho,” they would cry out to passers by, “Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters.” One would call out. And then, from another booth, “You that have money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk.” Still another would be calling, “Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labour for that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food!” Everyone would have been very familiar with these cries; they heard them all the time.

But, although the prophet is clearly imitating these cries, he’s not copying them precisely. And that is because of what was going on at the time that this prophecy was made. There was an economic crisis. Inflation was out of control. As a result, huge numbers of people were just unable to afford the basic needs of life. They were being forced into debt that they would never be able to pay off. People were losing their homes and even having to sell family members into slavery.

The Prophet Changes it

So rather than call out what all the merchants would have called, he does the Crazy Scott’s Discount Emporium version of the traditional market call: “Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labour for that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.”

Now, the really unfortunate thing about these ancient prophecies is that all that got retained and written down were the words. Nobody wrote down the stage directions. Nobody wrote down what the prophet was doing as he or she said these things. But, in this case, I think it’s pretty easy to imagine what he was doing. I am pretty sure that he actually set up a stand in the marketplace, probably in the big marketplace in Jerusalem, and he stood there alongside the other merchants and he was literally giving away his entire stock to anyone who needed it. This was actually the kind of thing that ancient prophets often did in Israel.

And of course, it was ridiculous. No one is going to sell their goods in the marketplace for nothing. And can you imagine the reaction of the other merchants who were trying to profit from all the inflated prices on everything? They must have been livid.

Why He did it

So why did he do it? He did it for the same reason that a prophet did anything. He did it because he was trying desperately to get a message from the Lord across to the people. And it was not a message that was just about spiritual realities that were totally disconnected from the physical struggles of people’s lives.

I imagine that he really was giving away free water and bread and other things that people couldn’t afford to buy. But, at the same time, he was not just playing at running a food bank. He was proclaiming something really important about God, and especially about what God cares about when people are really struggling to make ends meet.

Reacting to a Bad Economy

What happens when we are living through trying economic times? We see the reaction very clearly in our world right now. The worst economic effects in the last while have been in Russia, of course. Because if you think that we have been experiencing inflation lately, the Russians – reeling from sanctions and a plummeting Ruble – would probably tell you that we ain’t seen nothing yet.

But we see the extreme reaction to economic disaster on full display there. There have been runs on the banks. People, who cannot even exchange what they have for foreign currency, have been desperate to buy anything they can possibly get their hands on. They’re buying anything that might actually maintain its value. Basically, it seems, the present crisis has shown up just what an illusion the entire economic and monetary system is. The things that we thought had all the value, things like money, turn out to be almost without value and we are desperately searching for something valuable to replace them with. It is kind of a metaphor for the whole of modern society.

The Message We Need to Hear

So, what message is the prophet trying to get across, because I’m really starting to think that it might be a message that we need to hear. I believe that it particularly comes down to this verse: “Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labour for that which does not satisfy?” We have all been caught up for so long in this endless cycle of working in order to get the good things in life. But we don’t get the good things in life. We get money, and money, it turns out, does not necessarily equal value. The value can just disappear. Even more important, having the money, even if you spend it on things, does not mean that you will get the satisfaction that you truly need.

Yes, we are all struggling to get by in difficult times. It is heartbreaking to watch families having trouble feeding their children. It is disheartening to watch those who are on fixed incomes as their purchasing power gets less and less. But what we are discovering is that the things that we have built our economy on have a lot less value than we have been led to believe. They have value that can disappear so easily. We are learning that we cannot put our trust in these things.

What We Can Trust

So what can we trust instead? Well, that is really interesting, because the prophet reaches out to these people all around him who are just struggling to get by, and he tells them what they can trust in. “Incline your ear, and come to me; Listen, so that you may live. I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.” The one thing that you can count on, in other words, is God’s commitment to you. God has made an everlasting covenant and so will never fail to love God’s people. The world teaches us to trust in money, but money will fail us.

We are seeing it happening in the world right now. I know that many would consider it foolishness to trust in God instead. I would argue that, at the very least, it is no less foolish to trust in that than in the false and potentially vanishing value that is found in money.

“Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake their way, And the unrighteous their thoughts.” Of course, our tendency is to do the opposite. When we discover that our way of doing things is empty and meaningless, what do we do? We tend to double down. We bail out our currencies, we take measures to build up their false value because we are afraid to let go of the illusion of value. But we really ought to take advantage of times of crisis like this to be willing to look at the entire system and just ask the question, can we really think of value in a very different way?

“Let them return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on them, And to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.” I think we would all be better off putting our trust in a God who is forgiving rather than a currency system that is anything but – that never offers any grace for those who fall through the cracks of the system for any reason.

The Prophet was Crazy

Was the prophet crazy to do what he did? Did everyone think he was being just plain foolish? Absolutely. But he was trying to shock the people who were living through a crisis into seeing a fundamental truth about God’s ways. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” So high above the ways of this world that, yes, they certainly do seem like complete and utter foolishness as far as this world is concerned. That was kind of the point of what he was doing.

And, I’ve got to tell you, I think we’ve seen some of that foolishness here at St. Andrews. We have become a key place in this community for people to turn to when they are struggling to make ends meet. They come here, not because it’s the only place they could go, not because there are more resources available here than any place else.

They come here because we try to do our best, and the incredible volunteers we have here try to do their best, not to treat people as the world treats them. We try not to judge them according to the system of this world and how they measure up within it. And make no mistake, my friends, that is pure foolishness. That is craziness according to this world. And yet by the grace of God, we have seen good things happening here in people’s lives because of it. God’s love has been made real in countless incidences.

I do not say any of this in order to toot our own horns. We have done nothing really apart from being in the right place at a time of need. We have just been fools who have rejected the wisdom of this world. And God has brought blessing into our lives and into the lives of others as a result. There is real value in that, just not like the world measures value. No, the world is pretty sure that we are crazy.

For our families this week.

Baking bread! Recipes included.

Watch the sermon video here:

https://youtu.be/vWA9j10OLh8

Hespeler, 13 March 2022 © Scott McAndless – Lent 2
Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18, Psalm 27, Philippians 3:17-4:1, Luke 13:31-35 (click to read)

First of all, let me make one thing perfectly clear. There was absolutely nothing wrong with Eliezer of Damascus. He was a very nice young man. And Abram had felt very close to him ever since he was born to one of the slave girls in his household. He was reliable, trustworthy and had risen until he became the steward of all of his master’s possessions. So long as Eliezer was managing things, Abram rarely had to worry. He knew that, no matter what, the man would do well in life.

So, Abram certainly knew that he could do a whole lot worse than to pass down all of his possessions to such a fine young man. There was only one problem, despite the rumours that unfortunately did still persist in the household, Eliezer was not his son. He did not carry his blood and would never be able to carry his name. And Abram had held onto the hope that someday he would be able to have a child of his own body who would be able to carry on his true legacy. He had thought that it was something that God had promised him that he could have and he had clung to that promise beyond all reason. But maybe it was time to re-evaluate that.

Past the Point of Hope

Abram was seventy-five years old now. Sarai, his wife, was closing in on sixty-five. It was now way past the point where you could call Abram hopeful or optimistic. We were now talking in terms of him being downright delusional. So, he had finally made the decision. He was going to call in some of the local elders as his witnesses and make the formal declaration that Eliezer would inherit everything when he was gone. He kept telling himself that this was just wisdom and prudence. He wasn’t settling, he was embracing a new and realistic possibility. It was the right thing to do. It was a good thing to do. But, no matter how often he told himself that, he just couldn’t quite bring himself to believe it.

An Eliezer in your Life

And I can’t help but wonder today whether you might have an Eliezer of Damascus in your life. And please understand me that I’m not talking about a person in your life, or at least not necessarily a person. I am more wondering whether there’s not a situation in your life which is an Eliezer situation. Is there something that you are settling for? Now, remember that in this story Eliezer is not a bad option. In fact, he seems to be a pretty good option. He is someone who would do a pretty good job as an heir of all of Abram’s goods. He’s just not the best option. He is not what Abram has always dreamed of, and he’s not the fulfillment of what God has called Abram to be.

So, what is the good thing in your life that you have settled for instead of doing what, somewhere deep down inside, you know is really the best thing? Obviously, this is a very personal question. It is also not something that anyone else can decide for you. But perhaps you know of something in your own life that just doesn’t quite measure up to what you know it could be. Have you opted for some job or for some activity not because it’s what you know you should be doing but just because it seemed like the safest option to go for? Or maybe you have settled for a certain level of knowledge or a certain proficiency even though you know that you are capable of more.

Why it’s Sometimes Necessary

Now, there are all kinds of reasons why we make these sorts of decisions. And they may be very good reasons. There may be a real need to embrace the safe option for a time because you need to give your family some stability, for example. That is perfectly legitimate. But it also doesn’t mean that you need to stay with the safe option forever.

Or perhaps think of it in these terms. We have been living through some very difficult times for the last two years almost to this very date. And as a result of that, we have all made some choices. And those have been very good choices. It is good to stay home and not socialize in certain ways when there’s a great danger that you will spread a dangerous illness if you do so. It was a good choice for people not to come to church in person. And there are all kinds of other good choices that people have made. I don’t really need to go on and make a list here because I know that you have all been making these kinds of choices again and again over the last couple of years.

If you are like most people, you have likely also fallen into certain patterns to manage the stress of these unusual times. Perhaps you have indulged yourself in ways that would not have been normal for you before such times. I certainly know that there are people who have imbibed more or eaten more or been less active than is ideal. There are also other habits that people have embraced that might be addictive – gambling, social media doom scrolling and even, dare I say it, Wordle. (Okay, I am totally joking about that last one. And I was actually able to solve yesterday’s puzzle in two lines!)

Survival is Good

If any of that reminds you of the things that you have settled into over the last couple of years, then perhaps you should consider that to be an Eliezer response. Because you did something good: you survived. You managed to make your way through a very difficult time. That is not just good; that is fantastic. But what if we are getting to the place where you don’t need to settle for Eliezer of Damascus anymore? What if it is time to get back to embracing a little bit more of who you are really meant to be?

Well, if any of what I have said speaks to you and where you feel you are in your life right now, then please do pay heed to what happened to Abram next. Abram had resolved to settle for the good thing that was Eliezer, but then he apparently took a step outside of his tent. Now, Abram was in the middle of a desolate place. There was clearly nobody around. There were no streetlights or big city lights, there were not even any campfires or lamps burning.

The Night Sky

And so, Abram was immediately confronted with a sight that folks like us who live in cities rarely see. For there, blazing over his head was the most breathtaking display of stars imaginable. And if you have ever been out in the wilderness and looked up and seen that sight, you know that it can greatly affect you. It’s not just a beautiful sight, it is a sight that can overwhelm you with the sheer size of it. There is this sense that you are looking on something that is truly infinite. It is no accident that since ancient times, people have looked up at nighttime and found themselves confronted with powers and beings far beyond their understanding.

And so, when Abram looked up that night, just after making that fateful decision about the disposition of his assets, he was reminded that he was dealing with a God of infinite possibility. When such a God is involved, anything can happen. He realized that it was not only possible that he might have one child, there could be as many as there were stars overhead.

Abram Believed God

And in that moment, Abram did a very simple thing. It was small, but it changed everything. He believed God. He didn’t believe in his own body’s ability to produce an heir. He didn’t believe in Sarai’s ability to carry a child at her age. Maybe that had been the problem up until now. He had been trying to believe in those things. But somehow the sight of that infinite heaven, of the stars far beyond all counting, that made it possible to believe in a God of infinite possibility.

And there is a message in that for you as you ponder that question of whether you should settle for your Eliezer of Damascus or if it is time to aspire for what you were really made to do and be. I am not suggesting, and no one should suggest, that you have been lacking in faith before this point. I am sure that your faith has brought you this far. But perhaps a vision of a God of infinite possibility might persuade you to approach the question of where you go from here from a new perspective.

What if I don’t Deserve it?

Ah yes, you might say, but there is a problem. Maybe Abram was an extraordinary man. Maybe he just deserved to have the deepest desire of his heart realized. But what if that doesn’t apply to me? After all, I’ve made too many mistakes in my life. I’ve let too many opportunities go by, I’ve been weak or indecisive or foolish in my choices. That’s why I don’t really deserve to have my deepest desires, hopes and dreams fulfilled. In short, what if I’m just not good enough to have it? I don’t feel like I deserve it.

I know that that is how we often feel. I honestly feel that, for many of us, that is the real reason why we don’t reach for the things that we are meant to do. It is not because we are lazy or timid. It is because, somewhere deep down inside, we are just terribly afraid that we just don’t deserve to succeed. Maybe Abram felt that too and that was the real reason why he had decided to settle for Eliezer. But that is why what happened next is so important.

When Abram had been swept away by the sight of those stars and decided that he was going to trust God to fulfill God’s promises instead, this is what happened. “And [Abram] believed the Lord;” it says, “and the Lord reckoned it to him as righteousness.”

The Theme of Grace

What does that mean? It means that right there and then, God decided that Abram was good, that he was worthy of all sorts of good things to happen to him. And on what basis did God decide that? It was not because Abram had done anything special. It was not because he had worked hard for it or because he had made all the right decisions. God simply took Abram’s willingness to believe and trust as enough to declare him righteousness and worthy.

This is, in case I need to say it, a key theme that runs through the whole Bible (not just the New Testament like some people think). It is the simple truth that God loves, accepts and approves of us, not because we have done all the right things, but just because we are willing to trust and believe in God. It is when we forget that truth that we are most likely to stop believing in ourselves, which sometimes means we usually end up settling for Eliezer.

Two Reasons not to Settle for Eliezer

 So, there you are. There are two reasons why you can ask for and expect something better for your life than just settling for Eliezer – for the thing that is just good enough. The first reason is that you have a God whose potential is as vast as all the stars in the sky. If you have been limiting your expectations because the God you think you serve is too small, let me suggest that you do like Abram and spend some time contemplating the vastness of the heavens that your God created.

The second reason why you have settled for Eliezer may be because you don’t think that you deserve any better. That is a lie. You deserve it all and more. But not because of anything you have done, not because you made all of the right decisions or worked the hardest. You deserve it because of what Christ has done for you. All God is looking for is that you trust him. God will count that as righteousness and will declare you worthy. So don’t settle for Eliezer. Dream of what God is truly calling for you to be.                                                                        

For our families this week.

All youth welcome to join us to work at Hope Clothing for the morning and then enjoy a pizza lunch together.   Please let Joni know ahead of time if you are planning to come.