Ecclesiastes 1:12-14; 2:18-23
I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. I devoted myself to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven. What a heavy burden God has laid on men! I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind. I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have control over all the work into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless. So my heart began to despair over all my toilsome labor under the sun. For a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then he must leave all he owns to someone who has not worked for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune.
What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is meaningless.
Psalm 49:1-11
Hear this, all you peoples; hearken, all you who dwell in the world, you of high degree and low, rich and poor together.
My mouth shall speak of wisdom, and my heart shall meditate on understanding.
I will incline my ear to a proverb and set forth my riddle upon the harp.
Why should I be afraid in evil days, when the wickedness of those at my heels surrounds me,
The wickedness of those who put their trust in their goods, and boast of their great riches?
We can never ransom ourselves, or deliver to God the price of our life;
For the ransom of our life is so great, that we should never have enough to pay it,
In order to live for ever and ever, and never see the grave.
For we see that the wise die also; like the dull and stupid they perish and leave their wealth to those who come after them.
Their graves shall be their homes for ever, their dwelling places from generation to generation, though they call the lands after their own names.
Even though honored, they cannot live for ever; they are like the beasts that perish.
Colossians 3:12-17
Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Luke 12:13-21
Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”
Had the choice been mine I probably would have visited this church just for the unusual architecture: the w-shaped roof with hash windows down the sides and domed skylight at the peak. There is a great wooden cross suspended from the ceiling bearing a crowned Christ figure. The floor is exposed aggregate and the lectern and pulpit have cut out figures and symbols. The wall has some large wooden pieces with Christian symbols.
Another interesting architectural aspect was the ceiling treatment in the fellowship room. The dropped ceiling treatment ¾ up on the junior bar joist made for an appealing look and what must be an asset for decorating.
We were greeted right off by a woman setting up for music and someone from the kitchen, and then a longtime member came and offered us a tour and introduction.
The message was from Luke based on the Parable of the Rich Fool. He started by relating how Martin Luther was asked what he would do if he knew he would die tomorrow. Luther’s response was that he would plant a tree today.
He shared the concept that he who dies with the most toys, still dies. And my favorite, that the saved are already living forever so live without worry…a great spiritual message from the movie “Groundhog Day.” The time we waste hedging our bets could be spent wisely living for Christ.
With his concluding admonishment that we should plant a tree that will bear fruit for years to come, I felt drawn to a symbol of a Tree of Life from Genesis.
The pastor used inflection and emphasis in delivering his message and the congregation seemed to receive it well.
Today we were accurate on the time and arrived with plenty of opportunity to look around. Those we encountered welcomed us warmly and one gentleman, who was well versed in the history of this church, generously made the time to give us a guided tour of the building. Numerous folks introduced themselves and kindly offered us coffee even before worship. Hospitality seems to be a gift of many in this church.
One of the most striking things about this facility is its architecture, from the dramatic presentation outside to the row of skylight windows at the top of the sanctuary ceiling. The signage was good.
The musical accompaniment was provided by two women on acoustic guitars who sounded excellent together.
All music was indicated in the bulletin as being from a songbook of somewhat more contemporary music and the bulletin included the words to each Scripture reading and all liturgies. Obviously this makes for a more detailed bulletin, but it also makes it much easier for the unfamiliar to follow.
The untitled sermon began with the question, “What would you do differently if you knew you would live forever?” The Rector suggested one might stop worrying, be more in the present as opposed to the past or the future, and we might opt to accumulate fewer things.
He pointed out that from the world’s perspective the Rich Fool in Jesus’ parable is to be admired for his planning and preparation, that he did everything right by worldly standards; but from an eternal perspective he was living for himself and for things and in the process he forfeited all else. He believed the false message that we can control our own lives, but we cannot be god of our lives and still live in faith in God.
He pointed out that as believers we are already living eternal life, and urged those hearing him to live in the light of this truth by leaving worry behind and giving up the desire for wealth and control. How we live now can change the fabric of eternity.
I appreciated one of his final questions: “Why do we insist on living starved in the midst of God’s abundance?”
After a mostly sleepless night last night, this message struck home for me. Why indeed do I forget that God provides abundantly and perfectly, that He remembers His children, and is for them. I always want to abandon my plans in favor of His…I just do not always do it as well as I would like. Perhaps this message will help me remember the Truth when I cannot sleep.
Lord, we pray this church did get Your message to live for You and boldly act in Your name. May we all know the peace from understanding that all our fears for tomorrow have already been met in You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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