Matthew 6: 18-24

            I could make a long list of people I don't understand; but lately I've realized that I don't understand billionaires. (I apologize in advance to any billionaires that might be present in the congregation this morning.) But I can't imagine what you do after, say, the first fifty million. Once you get to fifty million dollars, why would you even count any more? I also suspect that billionaires don't understand me. They probably don't walk out of a coffee shop like I might and think, "Man, I could have gotten cheaper coffee down the street." Or, "Good grief. Gas at $2.39 a gallon."  Billionaires probably don't understand that.

            I've never talked to a billionaire, but I suspect that they do something that everybody does - rich or poor - they think a lot about money. And they worry. And they wonder if they're going to have enough. I can't imagine it, but that's what their actions say.

            What a god we've made money into. This past Thursday night I was at a Western show at a ranch just outside of Colorado Springs. We ate a hearty meal fashioned after the old wagon train style, and then came the show. The MC was a cowboy spinning out stories and music. He said that the leader of our group called him up and said, "I've got two thousand Methodist preachers and lay people; can you feed 'em and give 'em a show?" And the cowboy said, "Well. It’s two weeks before our season begins. Nobody' s here yet. I don't see any way I can get enough of a crew to do it for you." So our leader said, "I've also got a bunch of money." And the cowboy said, "Shoot, I guess when you put it that way, I can figure something out."

            That's how money talks. It opens doors, it gets things done, and it buys things. One little boy said, wisely, to another, "Money does not buy happiness. You have to convert it to toys to buy happiness." And we do. Gadgets. Trips. Services. Designer clothes. Stuff. For the first time since the invention of the automobile, there are now, on average, more vehicles per household than there are licensed drivers. Why would we need more vehicles than drivers? Because it's not just about

transportation any more - it's about toys.

            Into this picture steps Jesus - intruding like he often does. Jesus said, "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in nor steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also... You cannot love both God and mammon- which, clearly, means money." Jesus was always talking, it seems, about money.

            Why? Because he knew that we could get everything else right, and still lose our souls to money. We can lose our souls because we have a lot of it, and we are addicted to it; and we can lose our souls because we don't have much of it, and we worry about it all the time. Jesus knew the stranglehold that money could take over our spirits.

            The state of Colorado, where I visited this past week, was part of the Louisiana Purchase, sold by the French to the United States in 1802. Unacknowledged in that transaction was the fact that Native Americans had possessed that land for many, many centuries. 'Possessed' is the right word there, because the natives did not believe in ownership. The land belonged to everybody - both the use of it, and the responsibility for it. A few years after the purchase, an Indian delegation, led by an Osage leader named Big Soldier, went to Washington. They tried to share their understanding of possessing and sharing the land with the white leaders. Big Soldier commented on how the white people lived in big, ward house, and had machines that could do most everything; and how they owned so much, including other people. And then Big Soldier said this: ".. .everything about you is in chains."

                        "Where your treasure is," said Jesus, "there will your heart be also." Jesus understood exactly what Big Soldier understood. We don't possess things; things possess us. And when you listen to the constant worry about money in today's world - whether it's individuals or families or schools or churches or organizations or governments - everything about us is in chains. Now don't get me wrong - money is important. There are budgets to make, there are bills to pay, it is important to use it wisely and morally, and generosity is one of the spiritual gifts mentioned in the Bible. I heard someone say, "The Bible says that money is the root of all evil." Well, not quite. Money is nothing but paper and rock - in and of itself, it can't be evil. What the Bible actually says is that the "love of money is the root of all evil." (I Timothy 6:10). It's what we make of it that enslaves us. Jesus knew that very well.

            I've been preaching along from the Sermon on the Mount in the Bible, and I'm glad to find this scripture about money at this time of year. Usually, when I preach about money it's in the context of the stewardship drive in the fall. During that season, the church is trying to raise pledges for its annual program. That is something that I am not embarrassed about doing because, as I said, Jesus talked about money constantly, and I also happen to be excited about the program of this church. But there's always a sense of business in those sermons that is not far from the surface.

            I'm not trying to support the church budget this morning, and maybe that will let us focus on the more important issue in these teachings of Jesus. Because even in the fall when I'm preaching those stewardship sermons, the main issue isn't that the church needs money. It's that you and I need to let go of it; we need to stop living constantly for the bottom line. We need to throw out ideas like, "How much is he worth?" or "A fool and his money are soon parted." And we need to say, as if we really believed it, and live by it - that the best things in life are truly free. That it's not that a fool and his money are soon parted, so much as that a fool and his money are inseparable. And that the most happiness we can ever get from our material possessions is the great joy we get from sharing them with others.

            And we need to say and believe and live under the vast and wonderful abundance of God's grace. The gift of creation, nature, beauty - the gift of human life, children of God, reflecting his image and his love - the gift of salvation, cancelled sin, a Risen Savior whose heart is flowing with grace - the gifts of health and provision. And yes, there are many in this world who are deprived of the material blessings because of the injustice of society. We can never forget that. But God's plan is a kingdom where everybody is invited to the table; everybody shares in the abundance. And it is our job to help God bring that day along.

            There's a story about a bottle of wine that was made by Thomas Jefferson. It went up for auction, and it was bought by a man for $156, 450. He took it home, and he placed it in a glass case, under security and display lights. A few times, special occasions came along, and someone would say, "Wouldn't it be nice to celebrate it with the Jefferson wine?" But the man wouldn't let it be touched, until a special anniversary. And he invited his closest family and friends, and the wine was finally uncorked and poured, and the lights under which the bottle had rested had turned the wine into vinegar. And the man put his glass down in disgust.

            And I don't know enough about wine to know if there is any truth to that story at all. But I know about another cup. It's the cup that was lifted up at Passover meal by a man who would die the next day. After Jesus gave the traditional blessing he shocked his disciples by telling him that the wine in that cup was his blood shed for the world. And he shared that cup with them, as he shared the bread that represented his body - and then he died on the cross to bring forgiveness and salvation and life to all of us.

            I suspect the wine in that cup was good wine; but nothing anyone would spend $150,000 to buy. But the wine in the cup that Jesus held represents something that is beyond price - the abundant love of God - something that will never spoil. Something that is precious beyond words.

            You and I come to the Lord's table carrying the worries and uncertainties of our lives within us. It's an anxious and troubling world we live in. But there's something different here at the Lord's table. Everything else in this world will let us down - will decay or rust or spoil or unravel- will let us down. But God won't. But here's the thing - you can't serve both God and mammon. You have to be willing to let go of the other, so that you can embrace what God is offering you. This moment he invites you to do something radical with your life - to shift your trust from the promises of this world to the promises of God. It makes so much sense - yet we're afraid to do it. Because the tangible has such a hold on us.

            But if it's deeper life we want - more meaningful and joyful existence - then it won't be found in anything less than the greatest gift that has ever been given - the cross of Christ, and the abundant love behind it.