Generous Sowing
Reveille United Methodist Church
January 22, 2012
Tom Arthur
Matthew 13:1-9
(This sermon was preached at Reveille United Methodist Church in Richmond, VA for their calling Sunday. I was an intern at Reveille during the summer of 2006.)
Peace, friends!
It is good to be back among you. I have many many good memories of Reveille from the summer I spent as an intern here in 2006. I will share with you later in the sermon some of the ways that summer had an impact on me, but for now, let’s dive into the Scripture text for today.
Matthew 13:1-9 NRSV
That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: “Listen! A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell on the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up quickly, since they had no depth of soil. But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Let anyone with ears listen!”
Today I have been asked to come and speak to you about calling. Calling in general, but also calling in a very specific way, calling to be a pastor. In this parable we read about a farmer who sows seeds. On one level the famer is Jesus, the seeds are the Gospel, and the soil is each of our hearts (how teachable are our hearts today?), but on another level, the farmer is each of us, and the seeds are the Good News of Jesus that we sow in the hearts, minds, and lives of those around us. How do we sow in the same way or manner of the farmer?
I’d like to suggest that the primary characteristic of the way or manner that the famer sows is generously, gratuitously, even wastefully. Notice how much of the seed falls on soil that has little chance of bearing fruit to begin with. And yet the famer seems unfazed by his wasteful sowing. He sows anyway and lets the seeds fall where they may. If we sow as the farmer in this story sows, then we too will sow seeds of faith in the lives of those around us in ways that are generous, gratuitous, even, dare I say it, wasteful. I’d like to explore today how we sow seeds in this way by giving generously of our time, talents, treasure, and testimony.
Time and Talent
Look around you. Notice how many people and the wide variety of skills it takes to make a Sunday morning worship happen for a community this large. At first glance it may not seem like many. You’ve got the obvious ones: all the pastors up front. Yes, some are called by their time and talent to be preachers and pastors. Then there’s the music leaders, the choir, band, musical accompanist, and so on. Look a little closer and you’ll notice the ushers, the media techs. Leave the worship area and you’ll begin to see Sunday school teachers, nursery workers, and all the assistants who help them nurture our children. Go even deeper and you’ll see a team of people called Stephen Ministers, who gather regularly to support people in times of crisis and need. Deeper still and you’ll find a missions team focusing us outward. Further in and you’ll begin to notice all the people who make sure the finances are taken care of, the staff is hired and supported, and the building and grounds are properly cared for. And who have I missed? Probably too many to even try to be exhaustive. Each of these roles is a calling. Each of these roles requires time and talent. Yes, there are those who stand up front, the preachers and pastors, and they are very important, but when we talk about calling, even on a day when we will focus on the calling to be a pastor, let us not forget that all of us have talents and all of us have time we are called to use to sow seeds of faith in those around us.
OK, maybe still I have not convinced you that you have some talent or time that you are called to share with your church in its mission of sowing seeds of faith. Let me give you one last example that I know every single one of you can do. As you read the story of the farmer, did you wonder how the farmer or someone else might plow and prepare the soil to receive the seeds? I do. One way that you all can plow the soil for the seeds of a sermon on any given Sunday is through the gift of hospitality. How welcome do you make the people feel who are your first, second, or third-time guests? They will experience Reveille as a welcome and inviting place not based on whether they are greeted at the door or by an usher, but they will feel greeted warmly by how the people they sit next to treat them. Have you met the people sitting next to you today? Did you get their name? Did you write it down so you don’t forget it after worship is over?
Let me share with you a simple universal rule of hospitality. It works in the church, at your office, at school, or in any social setting you find yourself in. It’s called the 5-10-Link rule. Five minutes before and after worship begins, focus not on the people you know but look for the people you don’t know. You don’t have to look around the whole room. Just pay attention to the people you don’t know who come within ten feet of you. Greet them warmly, and in the midst of conversation, link them to someone else that you do know. If you can link them to someone who has a similar interest that they have, that’s great, but if not, just introduce them to someone else so they now know not just you, but someone else too. This is something that all of you can do, but if even ten percent of you practiced the 5-10-link rule consistently every Sunday, Reveille would soon become known as the most friendly place to be on Sunday morning.
What talents do you have to sow seeds generously? What time is God calling you to give? And might God be calling you to use your time and talents as a pastor or preacher? More on that shortly…
Treasure
This isn’t a sermon about money. Oh wait! It is a sermon about money. Because you can’t talk about sowing generously without talking about what’s in your pocket. The Old Testament standard for giving generously is 10%, the first 10%. The first 10% before taxes, before you give to yourself, before you give to your family. 10%. Now just in case you think that standard is too high, let’s talk about the New Testament standard. The New Testament standard is everything. John Wesley summed it up well when he said, “Make all you can, save all you can, and give the rest away!” I like to summarize all this by saying, live simply and give generously. In doing so you will begin to sow seeds of the Good News of Jesus in the lives of those around you.
Let’s talk about specifics. I took some time to look up the median income of the areas surrounding Reveille: Goochland, Hanover, Henrico, Richmond, and Chesterfield. They median income ranges from $36,928 to over $100,000. So let’s say $50,000 is the median income of the individual who attends Reveille. Is that high or low? You tell me. So let’s use the Old Testament standard of 10%, which is $5000, and multiply it by the average attendance of 500. That equals $2.5 million. That’s over twice your current giving. Imagine how generously you could as a community sow seeds of faith in the lives of others if you lived into the minimum standard of giving as described in the Old Testament. Imagine the number of people you could reach with the Good News of Jesus Christ. Imagine the transformed lives.
Now while I was here as an intern, I came to learn a bit about your finances, and I gave thanks to God when I realized that people in ages past have sown generously for the future of Reveille by building up a rather hefty endowment. We’re talking several millions here. I also noticed a temptation in the culture of Reveille—to rely upon that endowment rather than to build a culture of generous giving now. Friends, to give in to that temptation, and not all of you do, is to give in to the temptation of thinking that some are called to give generously while others are not. That is false. Generously sow seeds of faith by giving generously.
Testimony
Sharing your testimony is one very powerful way of sowing seeds of faith in the lives of those around you. How generously do you share your testimony? I’m talking about simply telling stories about what God is up to in your life. I’m not talking about some complicated evangelistic strategy of memorizing Bible verses or four key points or a tract of some sort. I’m talking about telling someone what God is doing in your life. What is your God story?
This takes on several different forms. One form of sharing your testimony is sharing what you like about Reveille. What keeps you coming back? How do you encounter God when you come here? How has your life been transformed? And then invite them to join you some Sunday here at worship. Offer to pick them up so they don’t have to show up here alone. Be invitational when you share your testimony. And remember that if you have the same success that the farmer had in our story today, you will make four invites and only get one person who accepts. Sow invitations generously.
Called To Be A Pastor
I’d like to share with you my own testimony, my own story of how the church has made an impact on my life, and especially the role that you played in my own calling to be a pastor.
I graduated from Wheaton College and got married in May, 1997. I moved to Petoskey, Michigan, a place with more cold and snow than most people in Virginia want to experience. I began working as the part-time Christian Education Director at Petoskey United Methodist Church. I had never even been in a United Methodist Church before I began working at one. Over time my responsibilities increased, and eventually I began preaching when the pastor was on vacation. Slowly but surely people in the church began to ask me whether I was planning on going to seminary and becoming a pastor. My answer was always, “No. I’m not called to be a pastor.” Over time their encouragement grew. One day in a prayer meeting, one of the older ladies in the church said to me, “God told me in prayer today that you’re called to be a pastor.” I said, “Thanks”, but internally I thought, “No way, Jose!” Then I participated in a Disciple Bible Study, and there is a final week where you spend a day in spiritual retreat discerning together one another’s call. My Disciple Bible Study group thought I was called to be a pastor. “Yeah, thanks. But no thanks.”
Then September 11th hit. My pastor was on vacation in the mountains of Colorado. When all the flights were grounded, He couldn’t get back, and I was it! I didn’t want to be it that week, but God gave me the grace to care for the flock and over that week they slowly became “my” flock. My ministry moved from my head to my heart. Eventually I had several experiences that confirmed that I was called to be a pastor. I told my pastor he was about to lose a staff person, and he replied, “I haven’t lost a staff person. I’ve gained a colleague.”
Off to seminary it was at Duke University, and then my first internship: Reveille United Methodist Church. When I showed up here, I was scared of this church. It was big and formal and that way high pulpit followed me in my dreams. My calling was still a little too much in my head. I knew I was called, but I still didn’t see or understand at a deep level that I was a pastor. So I did my best to fake it. I hoped no one noticed. And yet, it was that summer here at Reveille that I became a pastor. Do you know why I became a pastor that summer? Because y’all treated me like one. I grew to become what you thought I already was.
Friends, do you realize what I am saying? The church has significant power to recognize and call pastors. Look around you. To your left, and to your right. Who here among you is called to be a pastor? Have you told them what you see in them? Have you encouraged them to follow that call? Have you prayed for them? Have you given them the opportunity to try on being a pastor in the moments that really count? You have the power of the Holy Spirit within your community to shape and form future pastors for this church, The United Methodist Church, and the church world-wide. You can sow seeds generously by seeking, noticing, and encouraging those among you who are called.
Let me bring you up to speed on where I am at now. I am currently pastor of Sycamore Creek Church, a United Methodist Worshiping Community. We are an eleven-year-old church that was planted by a grandma. She retired in 2009, and I was appointed to be the second pastor they have ever had. We currently rent office space and meet in a school. We are saving for a building of our own. At thirty-six I am about the average age of our church. I visit the hospital more for births than illnesses. I have only done two funerals in two and a half years for members of our church. We specialize in reaching people who have no church background or who were once in a church but have become alienated by church. I’ve learned that if you want to bear more fruit, if you want to sow more generously, then the best and most effective way to do so on a large scale, is to plant new gardens. Reveille, are you called to plant a new garden? A new church? A new campus? A new venue? A new satellite? Sow seeds generously by giving life to a new church community!
Call
Friends, how is God calling you today to generously sow seeds of faith in the lives around you? How can you give of your time and talent? How are you called to give of your treasure generously? How are you called to share your testimony with those around you? And who among you are you called to encourage and support in their call to be a pastor? Be like the farmer. Sow seeds of faith generously in the lives of those around you.
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