On Sunday, February 5, 2017 at Wildwood Community Church, I preached a sermon based on 1 Timothy 6:17-19. This message was part 2 of the “Generous Living” sermon series. Below, you will see the sermon audio to listen to or share.
To listen offline, click on the link to download the file:
To listen online, use the media player below:
To see a number of the summary slides used in connection with this message, click here and visit this post.
On Sunday, February 5, 2017 at Wildwood Community Church, I preached a sermon based on 1 Timothy 6:17-19. (You can access the sermon audio by clicking here.) Below are a number of slides from this message that summarize the main points. In addition, at the bottom of this post, you will see a few references I have found helpful on this topic.
Books on the topic:
Online article:
Additional Resource:
On Sunday, February 5, 2017 at Wildwood Community Church, I preached a sermon based on 1 Timothy 6:17-19. This message was part 2 in the “Generous Living” series. Below are a set of questions for personal reflection or group discussion related to this message.
Sermon Questions:
To access these questions in pdf format, click here.
Imagine for a moment that you are going on a trip to Disney World. As you prepare for the journey, you decide to buy a book to help you plan your vacation. You hop onto Amazon and purchase a copy of the 2017 Guide to Disney World from a respected tour company. 2 days later, the book arrives in your mailbox and you begin to read in preparation for your trip.
Chapter 1 of the book focuses on how much the trip will cost, including budgeting information about how much to save over a 2-5 year period to pay for this vacation. Chapter 2 explains the many different ways to get Orlando by plane: what routes are serviced by Delta, American, United, etc. Chapter 3 unpacks the different ways to get to Disney World via train, by showing the most recent Amtrak schedule. Chapter 4 contains road maps of all the different paths to drive to the Magic Kingdom (including projected drive times from different cities in the U.S.A.). Finally, chapter 5 concludes with a comparison chart of each of the different ways to get to Disney in 2017.
Now, let me ask you . . . If this was the travel guide you purchased, how many stars would you give this book in the review? For my money, this kind of travel guide would only get 1 out of 5 stars. Why such a severe rating?
I would downgrade this travel guide because it only told me how to GET to Disney World without any instruction about what to do when I got there.
I mention this today, because I see a parallel with this kind of travel guide and good chunk of the counsel I have seen (even from Christian circles) about managing finances. Much of what has been written about money has focused on how to “get rich” . . . but seldom do I see instruction about what to do when God provides more than what I need. To put it another way, how am I supposed to live AS a rich person?
Now, I know when I say that, many of you are concerned that I have either stolen from the church treasury or am deluded. After all, Pastors are not supposed to be rich. By comparison to many in our community, I certainly am not rich (as many make considerable more money than I do). However, when we compare our standard of living to that of most people in the world today, we see that most all Americans are indeed “rich.” We have enough food to eat, a choice in what we wear, live in a house with indoor plumbing, heat and air conditioning, etc. The Lord has provided MORE than what I need . . . so what am I supposed to do with that? How are we supposed to live as “rich people?”
Believe it or not, God has given us great insight into this topic in 1 Timothy 6:17-19. In this passage of Scripture, Paul instructs Timothy on how to live as someone who is “rich in this present age” (in other words, what do we do when “get there.”) This Sunday, as we conclude our two part series on “Generous Living” we will explore this passage in more depth. Join us at Wildwood Community Church at our 8:30, 9:45, or 11:00 worship service as we talk about living generously together. See you Sunday!
On Sunday, January 29, 2017 at Wildwood Community Church, I preached a sermon based on Mark 10:17-31. This message was part 1 in the “Generous Living” series. Below you will find the sermon audio to listen to or share.
To listen offline, click the link below to download:
To listen online, use the media player below:
On Sunday, January 29, 2017 at Wildwood Community Church, I preached a sermon based on Mark 10:17-31. It was part 1 in the “Generous Living” series. Below you will find questions related to this message for personal reflection or group discussion.
Sermon Questions:
To access these questions in pdf format, click here.
Have you ever been in a “what do I have to lose” scenario? You know one of those moments where taking a risk is not all that risky because of the desperation of your situation — ever been in a spot like that?
I think about the night in August of 1994 when I asked Kimberly (now my wife) if she was interested in dating me. My desire to be “more than friends” was strong enough that the potential awkwardness of rejection was eclipsed, so I asked her out. (By the way . . . she said “no”. Seriously. Though, thankfully she reconsidered a couple of days later!) The night I drove over to her house to pick her up, I thought – “What do I have to lose?”
At times, though, we do take risks with things that we hold dear:
In each of these cases, we feel like we are taking a big risk . . . because we have something to lose!
Back when Jesus was walking on the earth, a person who had a lot to lose approached Jesus. This person was “rich,” “young,” and a “ruler.” Not only that, he had good morals, good manners, and was standing next to the most important Man who ever lived. This guy seemed to have it all! Or, at least He had it all to lose. And that dilemma caused him to break into a cold sweat when Jesus asked him to do something radical. What did Jesus ask him to do? Well, I’m not going to tell you. 🙂
You can read about it yourself (if you want) in Mark 10:17-31, then come to Wildwood this Sunday morning at 8:30, 9:45, or 11:00 as we will look in depth at what it means to experience “Generous Living” as we will be in part 1 of this short two week series. We may not always feel like it, but when compared to the rest of the world, we are rich people. Materially speaking, many times we feel as though we have something to lose. This feeling of risk prevents us from living generously with those around us. For the next couple of weeks, we will be reflecting on what a true connection with the Living God does for our attitude about the “things” in our lives. When we understand who He is and what He is offering, investing in His agenda does not feel so risky.
Looking forward to worshipping with you this weekend, and celebrating the Lord’s Supper together. See you Sunday!
