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August 21, 2005
Minding Our Business
Romans 12:1-8
"Living sacrifices." That's what I'm looking at. Living sacrifices. All of you, in Paul's eyes, are called to be "living sacrifices." That's what comes of our commitment to Christ. It just follows. Christ laid down his life for the world. We lay down our lives in Christ's service. That's our business.
We're not surprised to hear a train pass through the middle of town. They've been doing it for decades. Railroads fell on hard times. I think the hard times for them began when the Interstate highways opened up. Now we have eighteen-wheelers everywhere. Some say railroads lost out because they forgot what their business was. They thought they were in the "railroad" business, when they could have been thinking they were in the "transportation" business. Railroads got left behind.
What about our business? Paul's statement in Romans isn't the only thing we'd want to consider, but it's a good starting point. Our business is to "discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect." When Peter confessed that Jesus was the Christ, it wasn't something he figured out on his own. It was shown to him, revealed to him. That's the key to discernment. More about that later.
Now and then I hear people say: "The church should be more like a business." I'm guessing when people say that they're not thinking of Enron, or World Com, or Tyco, or any of the other mega scams that have crowded out other news. Nor do I imagine they're thinking of the nine businesses of every ten started that fail. Likely, if they're in business and successful at what they do, they mean "business" run the way they run theirs, or the way they imagine theirs is run. The bottom line is: being more like a business has to do with money.
Some years ago, when I was a young pastor in southern Arkansas, I was making a home visit to a family who were members of the church. The man of the family was President of a local carpet manufacturing company. "What do you think we're in business for?" he asked me, as we talked about his work. I was tempted to say "making carpet," but thought that was too obvious. "To make money," I ventured. He seemed astonished at my wisdom. "Exactly."
Should the church be more like a business? Should we be gearing everything we do to making money? Intriguing thought. Let's imagine for a moment that we were more like a business. I'm the CEO and President, at least for the time being. First thing I'd want to know is whether you all have paid to be here. Is your pledge up to date? Do you have a current membership card? Are you one of our "gold" members? Or "silver?" Or "brass?" Only "gold" and "silver" get coffee and cookies following worship. How many guest passes are here today? Do we have a member able to vouch for each of them? How many guests will get signed up as paying members? Remember, each month we'll have a drawing for a "free" membership—well, at least the activation fee will be waived and you'll get one month's worship. You see how being more like a business might work.
Time was, you know, when people paid "pew rent." They paid the going rate for the pew of their choice. The "pew rent" paid the pastor, the building upkeep, and whatever else needed paying for. In my previous interim in Pennsylvania the congregation worshiped in a stone "meeting house" built in 1783. The pews were gated. You paid by the pew. The closer to the front, the higher the "pew rent." Each pew would hold about five adults. A couple without children might "sub-let" two or three of their spaces, or go together with another household. One family of eight children was able to afford to pay "rent" for only one pew. Now there was a test of the conviction that "the family that prays together stays together." Nowadays, people have an emotional attachment to "their place;" then, it was a financial attachment. Now we rely upon what Paul calls the gift of generosity for church support.
Things have changed. Not only do we not pay "pew rent" anymore, people's seating preferences are different, too. Market research shows that, contrary to other enterprises, front seats are not popular in churches nowadays. Back seats are the place to be. So, considering the rule of supply and demand, the further back you sit, the more you pay. Let's get personal for a moment. Bob, you and Sue will get to move back two pews when you get caught up. If you get further behind, you all are likely to find yourselves right here in front of the pulpit.
What's our big ticket item? For Protestants the "sermon" is the big deal. "I heard Pastor Kash preach today." Preaching. That's what we call worship. We will, of course, rate each week's sermon. As long as I get at least a 50% rating I receive base pay; more than that, I get an adjustment upward for each point above 50%; if I'm on a roll, and get more than 50% for a month of Sundays, I get a bonus. If I fail to please at least half of you, I lose. If I keep failing to please you, I'm outta here. Being boring doesn't count. So you know I'll do my best not to say anything to upset you or make you unhappy. The customer is always right.
A lot of businesses work on a "fee for services" basis. My experience is that the church is mostly about "service" and "services." I've yet to be at a church where members did not expect the pastor to call on them when they were in hospital. Remember, now, we're going to try to be more like a business. Before I go to the hospital, I'll be checking to see if you're a "member in good standing," that you're paid up on your pledge. If you are, then I'll just bill you for my call; if you're not, then I'll expect you to pay at the time I make the call. The amount will vary. If I just stand in the door, wave and say "God bless you," that qualifies for the base charge. My "base plus" charge will apply if I come into the room, ask how you are, and converse briefly. If you've signed up for our "Medi-Prayer" plan—Parts A and B—you get a discount. Part A takes care of in-hospital prayers; Part B covers prayers for all times and places. See how these things can add up? And don't even think about a "home visit."
What about things like SEMP, the Thrift Shop, the Food Bank? Come on, now, there's no money in poor people. We're looking for profit centers. We can have only so many cost centers, and we need to watch our loss leaders.
Now, I don't think any of the people who say churches ought to be more like businesses believe we ought to do the kinds of things I described. I think they want church leaders to exercise good judgment and use good judgment in money matters. On the other hand, no business is "risk free." Discerning what's good, acceptable and perfect in God's eyes carries a lot of risk. Finding out things that "flesh and blood" can't figure out carries some risk. Not only might we find out some things we don't know, we could very well find out some things we'd just as soon not know. "The life you save may be your own," is part of what we've figured out. Being "living sacrifices" is risky business. That's a good way to lose your life. But you know what the Lord says about that: the life you lose is the one you save (See Matthew 16:25).
What if instead of "the church ought to be more like a business," we heard ourselves saying: "the church should be more like a church?" Now, there's an idea. That brings us back to Paul's thought about what the business of the church is: to "discern what is the will of God-what is good and acceptable and perfect." What Paul thought was "acceptable" for members of a church was to "present your bodies is living sacrifices." Perfect. Animal sacrifice was a key to worship in Paul's day. The sacrificed animal ended up dead. So what's this "living sacrifice" business?
The midwives who refused to kill the male children even though the King of Egypt order it done, put themselves in harm's way. They saved children from a merciless, self-serving edict. They made mercy work. They became living sacrifices.
Joseph, whose memory and influence the new King of Egypt did not favor, was sold into slavery by his brothers when he was just a boy. Through his gifts of interpretive insight and political adroitness, he rose to become Egypt's Prime Minister. When famine struck the region, Joseph's brothers came to Egypt looking for aid. They did not know that Joseph had even survived, much less that he had become such a powerful person. When they stood before Joseph, hat in hand, he did not use his advantage for revenge. He wanted reconciliation. Joseph became a living sacrifice.
Setting aside our own priorities for the sake of another, taking risks so others might have a life, seeking reconciliation rather than revenge, working for peace rather than war—are these not ways in which people present their bodies as living sacrifices? Then let the church be the church.
The church is a community of gifts. Gifts! Gifts! A gift is free, else it's not a gift. Faith is among the highest of these gifts. You and I are not to think of ourselves more highly than we ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. Faith is the measure, not money. "If things don't go my way, my money and I will walk." What kind of faith does that show?
When Paul tells disciples to prophecy, that is to tell God's truth, it comes out of the depth of one's faith, not from the depth of one's pockets. Money talks. True enough. But often out of both sides of its mouth. And money's been known to take both sides of an argument, just to hedge its bets. Wasn't it one of the Rockefellers, who said, when asked how much money is enough, said something like "just a little bit more?" Jesus told us that faith amounting to no more than a mustard seed was enough. God's truth comes from a little bit of faith, not from a whole lot of money. When God's truth is the bottom line, our business looks different.
Well, what about the church and money? How does the church be the church when it comes to money? Through givers. Through people who give. Through people who give generously. I know lots of churches have fund-raisers for this and fund-raisers for that. That's not the way of scripture nor has it been the Presbyterian way. The church's ministry is supported by the generosity of its members. That's the church being the church with money.
Before long we're going to be talking about "stewardship." Actually, about our financial support of this congregation's ministry. The Presbyterian pattern has been "proportional giving." Give in proportion to your ability. A percentage of your income is one way to think of it. Ten percent has been the standard. Not everyone's there. But everyone can start heading in that direction. Pick a percent. Increase that percentage over the years until you get where you need to be. That's the way Presbyterians go about it. That's the church being the church with money.
A sacrifice is not just about giving up something. It's about taking on something. It's about serving Christ. It's about taking on somebody else's cares. It's about sharing another's burdens. It's about using the gifts we have received to be the church. A living sacrifice is a church member who takes up serving Christ and grows doing it into what is good and acceptable and perfect in God's eyes. I think the church should be more like the church. I think that is getting closer to what's "good and acceptable and perfect." That's our business. We ought to stick to it.
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First Presbyterian
Church of Cedar Rapids
310 Fifth Street SE Cedar Rapids, IA 52401
Phone: 319-364-6148
E-mail: church@fpccr.org
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