Nov 8, 2015 Pent 23/Lect 32
Trinity, Kent
Pr. D. Fidler
In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
A morsel of bread, not a loaf of bread. A little water, not a lot of
water… The images in the story of Elijah visiting the widow of
Zarephath are simple yet lasting. Something striking are the
amounts illustrated. I guess we don’t know for sure how much
bread a morsel is but it doesn’t convey an abundance to us, does
it? And all Elijah asks for is a little water. Doesn’t seem like
much to us, does it?
We’ve become accustomed to going places to eat and coming back
with enough food leftover for a full meal the next day, maybe
even two! We’re approaching the annual holiday where our tables
are overflowing with an abundance of food and our waistlines
carry the abundance too.
And there is plenty with our food ministry too. We handed out an
abundance of food vouchers in less than an hour on Wednesday.
The Lord’s Lunch attracts new people all the time. Those calling
for help is a daily, a couple times a day request. Oh, there is an
abundance all right- of scarcity.
We live in a society that suffers from a tension between abundance and
scarcity and really not able to always distinguish between either of
them at times. Scarcity of jobs…abundance of debt… scarcity of
expendable income…abundance of things to which we’re bound.
I’m guessing that most of us, not all of us, but most have pretty wellstocked pantry shelves and freezers; still have closets and attics
crammed with stuff, still have money to make at least those
minimum payments and with whatever debt have the hope that it
will be paid off, someday. And despite our abundance there is
always that part of us that says not enough, scarcity, hold back.
Well at least that discussion goes on in my head a lot.
And still we’re asked to give – to contribute to those who are in greater
need than we ourselves, and yes, to contribute to the work, the
worship and the witness of the Church at the corner of Water and
Williams. Do we give out of scarcity or abundance?
As we read scripture we quickly discover that God is not at all
opposed to abundance. God IS a God of abundance. He didn’t
skimp on anything when it came to this marvelous creation and he
doesn’t seem to have a problem with individuals prospering in it;
people like Abraham, Jacob, David, Solomon or Job.
Or Boaz- remember him? He contributed “from his abundance” by
allowing the young widow Ruth to glean from his harvest for
herself and her mother-in-law. Going above and beyond his
religious duty by telling the harvesters to leave extra grain in the
field for the two women.
The Lord went to on to bless the middle aged Boaz and the lovely,
young Ruth and eventually their child; and although God might
not reward quite so extravagant in every case, when we are
blessed, it’s to be a blessing, and we feel the pull, drawing us
closer to God.
Giving from our abundance is a good and a God pleasing thing. But
contributing “out of abundance” is relatively easy, so much so that
at times we’re tempted to take credit for it. Continuing to give
even when we’re barely getting by, and when we’re not at all sure
that that’s going to change for the better anytime soon – that that’s
hard! And it’s scary, and its’ counter-intuitive which is a fancy
way of saying it doesn’t make sense.
Yet as the people of God, that is what we are asked to do. It’s what
tugs at us!
I don’t know quite what to make of the woman whose story we heard
read from the 17th chapter of 1st Kings. She risked her own
survival and that of her son by giving to the prophet Elijah the
very last bit of food she had, the bread that she had expected to be
literally their last supper.
I don’t know what to make of that, because she was not one of God’s
people Israel. Her village, Zarephath, was in the territory of Sidon
to the north of Israel, what is now Lebanon, which most likely
made her a Phoenician. She was a Gentile, a pagan.
So when the man from Israel came asking for a handout, even one who
claimed to be a prophet of Israel’s God, I don’t know what
prompted her to comply with his request.Did she too feel the pull?
Under similar circumstances, I’m not sure that I’d have been very
polite in telling him a firm “no, sorry, I can’t spare it just now”
which was her first response. But then instead of moving on to
the next prospective donor, Elijah looked her in the eye with that
certain compelling gaze that I always imagine a prophet had.
“Don’t be afraid,” he said to her; and by the authority of the Lord, the
God of Israel, he promised to her that her cupboard would not be
left bare as a result of her generosity to him , not that day and not
ever. She believed him, and she acted on her belief, and found it
to be just as the Lord had said.
And Mrs. Widow of Zarephath didn’t even have the advantage of
knowing the story of the covenant community of God’s people,
and how over and over and over again, against all odd, in the face
of their complains, lack of faith, and recurring episodes of
ingratitude, the Lord never failed to provide for their needs, never
failed to preserve a chosen people, precious to Himself and given
as a blessing to his world!
Or did she? Had she heard, somewhere, from someone, the story of
Israel and of Israel’s God who remains faithful, steadfast and
abundant even when His people do not, when we do not?
We’ve heard the story.
The scriptures tell it over and over and over again- of how the Lord
rescued His people from captivity, rolled back the waters of the
sea ahead of them, and fed them every single day without fail as
they wandered in the wilderness waiting for the fulfillment of
God’s promise of a land.
The scriptures tell us again and again stories of the Lord’s deliverance
of his people from their enemies, though not without allowing
them first to experience the consequences of their own foolish and
faithless actions.
The scriptures tell us that we who have been brought into the New
Covenant by the body and blood of Jesus Christ, given and shed
for us on the cross, are now God’s people, chosen and precious
and called to give testimony in word and deed to the “mighty
acts” of the One who has called us out of darkness, despair,
scarcity and death into his marvelous light and life.
Like the widow of Zarephath we’ve had our own jars and they have
been filled with blessings throughout this year. Today we share
those stories, the blessings God has continually showered upon us.
Why would we ever doubt the Lord’s ability to provide the resources
to fulfill our calling? And how could we fail to respond as He
coaxes them from our fingers, from our days, and from our hearts,
pulling us toward Him?
Except, of course, we can – fail, I mean. In fact, failing to respond
would be only too easy. And it also would be a wasted
opportunity, a rotten shame, and evidence of a “poverty” of spirit
that can be filled only by practicing faith – letting go of what we
think will secure our future, personally AND in this place called
Trinity, placing it and placing ourselves in the hands of the Lord,
the only One who can.
The widow in the story utters that she has nothing. She has admitted
death’s victory. Still she is asked to give. Like the widow in the
story, from our own scarcity the God of abundance asks us to
participate in something we cannot yet see or comprehend but
which He will bring to pass, because as we’ll discover – He’s got
us!
The widow of Zarephath, here, the unlikeliest and most vulnerable
character, takes center stage. She and her son face starvation yet
give to Elijah anyway. “Do not be afraid,” she is
told. Why? Because she has nothing to lose? We hear
throughout scripture that great comes from small, power from
powerlessness, strength from weakness, life from death.
We also heard from Mark about another widow who becomes a model
of great faith. The unlikely reveals the wonderful. The ordinary
becomes a vessel of the holy. Scarcity promises abundance.
Weekly we come to the table for nothing more than a morsel of
bread and a sip of wine. Baptism does not require an abundant
amount of water. But it is through these ordinary things that God
in Christ gives us life and grace and abundance. It is through
ordinary things that God nourishes and sustains us. It is through
ordinary things and through unlikely ways that God is revealed to
the world and promises faithfulness and salvation for all.
Today and in the coming weeks we’re being asked to commit
ourselves to the Lord’s work at Trinity for another year. We have
a calling, and it’s not diminished just because a pastor retired or
attendance isn’t what it used to be. We have a vibrant ministry, a
task, a calling given to us by the Lord to accomplish in this place
serving as God’s hands and heart.
God promises abundance when we gather together to sing. God
promises abundance when we feed the hung of our neighborhood.
God promises abundance when we gather around his Word. God
promises abundance out of what may seem small, insignificant,
and scarce. Our God is a God of abundance. In this place AND
in your life and in mine!
Through the widow, God calls us from places of scarcity and says,
‘Come, receive the gift I offer; a gift of refreshment; a gift of
sustenance; a gift of life.’ Through the widow, God proclaims
abundance to all people. Through the widow God proclaims to us,
‘you will not be emptied.’
IF we feel the gut, the stretch in our giving it’s just a simple reminder
that God’s got us. It’s not scarcity but a pull toward abundance in
amazing things God can do through us.
I suspect that the only way the details of our future ministry will
become clearer is as we throw ourselves into it; as we take the
next step forward, and then the next investing ourselves and our
resources with no holding back, trusting God to see to it that the
jar will never come up empty while our walk is WITH Him… in
the most precious name of Jesus. Amen.