"Risky Business" (11/16/08, Proper 28A/Pentecost +27)

"Risky Business"
Proper 28A (Pentecost +27A)
Sermon from 11-16-08
Matthew 25:14-30; Psalm 90:1-8, 12


Please join me in praying the prayer Jesus taught us to pray: The Lord's Prayer (found on page 4 in the Blue Book of Worship if you need to read along).

"Our Father, who art in heaven, hollowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done. On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, power and glory forever and ever. Amen."


This week sitting in my office was risky as I was tempted, oh SO tempted by the smells wafting through the hallway-it was RISKY being in the building with hundreds of pans of fresh-baked sugar cake. It was sugar-cake-baking-week here and BOY DID IT SMELL GOOD. All those ooey, gooey pans of dough, cinnamon, brown sugar, and butter--what's not to LOVE! I walked through the fellowship hall once or twice and it was all I could do to resist snatching a fresh baked, still-hot-from-the-oven sugar cake square.

Our scripture passage this morning from Matthew's Gospel is often referred to as the Parable of the Talents. I would guess it is difficult passage to understand for most of us, and there are so many different parts to examine and look at to try to interpret what Jesus is saying here. I often find it helpful to look at other translations to gain insight and would like to share another version of this story with you from The Message. Eugene Peterson, the translator, entitles it "A Story about Investment". We pick up the story when the master meets back with the third servant in verse 24.

24-25"The servant given one said, 'Master, I know you have high standards and hate careless ways, that you demand the best and make no allowances for error. I was afraid I might disappoint you, so I found a good hiding place and secured your money. Here it is, safe and sound down to the last cent.'

26-27"The master was furious. 'That's a terrible way to live! It's criminal to live cautiously like that! If you knew I was after the best, why did you do less than the least? The least you could have done would have been to invest the sum with the bankers, where at least I would have gotten a little interest.

28-30"'Take the thousand and give it to the one who risked the most. And get rid of this "play-it-safe" who won't go out on a limb. Throw him out into utter darkness.'

Strong words for sure--Living safe, cautious lives is a "terrible way to live." There are so many different angles we can take with this story--this parable--this fable to teach us a lesson that is important for us to learn. These statements about not living cautiously are what really jumped out at me this week. To follow Jesus means not living cautiously--Christianity is risky business.

The three servants were given talents from the master. Then the master left. A talent in those days was an amount of money. One talent was equal to the money a day laborer would earn after working 15-20 years. ONE TALENT took 15-20 years to earn--that's a huge amount of money--about a half million dollars or more in today's terms. And it's interesting that our contemporary word talent as a gift or ability comes from this parable. As I looked at this story over, I kept wondering what was the difference in the master's reaction to the first two servants and the third servant. In order for the two servants to double their money, they must have done something where that money was used and thus its value doubled. This gain could not have come without risk. The servants likely doubled their money with wise investments, not foolish wagering.

Steve and I were watching TV the other evening when the silly game show "Cash Cab" came on the Discovery Channel. The contestants answered trivia questions while riding in a cab through New York City, and at the end of their trip they had a video bonus question where they risked their whole winnings in order to have a chance to answer the final question. IF they got it right, their money doubled. If they got it wrong, they lost everything. I'm not sure how Jesus would feel about comparing the parable to a TV game show, but the contestants did remind me of the servants. Two of the groups risked everything and ended up doubling their money. One group decided that what they had won was enough and did not risk what they had been given. Double or nothing is high stakes, but the winners felt that risky business was worth it. I'll leave it up to you to decide whether you think game show investing is really a good risk or not.

This Parable of the Talents is sometimes referred to as a "kingdom parable" because it is dealing with the way we are to live in this world in order to help bring about God's kingdom here on earth. Christians, I believe, are called to be kingdom-workers in our world. We are to be agents of change to make our world a better place for everyone--"Thy kingdom come, thy will be done." Jesus empowers his disciples in the church to do his work here, and His work often involves risk. I might even venture to say it always involves risk. How many of you thought it was risky to show up here this morning? Who thinks it is risky to be a Christian or walk through the doors of the church? In some parts of the world, showing up for church and being Christian is more risky, literally, than it is here today because of persecutions of Christians, burning of church buildings, or having to worship underground to survive.

But there is risk here too. We are called to be in relationship with one another. Relationships are tough sometimes--friendships are tough sometimes--families sometimes DO NOT make life easier. When we open ourselves up to be vulnerable with one another in community, there is always the risk of being hurt or rejected. We are called to care, share, and love... befriend the friend-less, lift-up the hope-less, and love the unlovable. None of these activities is easy, and none comes without risk: risking ourselves, our talents, our gifts, and our money to make the world more like a little piece of heaven here on earth.

Even from our earliest days, we must risk to survive. We watch children striving to walk, knowing that they will learn some day, and watch them risk one step then the next, finally letting go of our hands and seeing their risk pay off. Risks are part of life, and are certainly part of life in the church. Ralph Winter, a researcher, said, "Risks are not to be evaluated by the probability of success, but by the value of the goal." ["Risk" in McHenry's Quips, Quotes, & Other Notes, compiled by Raymond McHenry (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishing, 1998) 215.] Our goal, as I see it, is to create a culture of stewardship where everyone is willing to risk whatever it takes to accomplish the mission and ministry that God has called Raleigh Moravian to do.

It may be very hard to hear about risks right now for most of us. Having just come through a fierce election season with much fear-based advertising, many of us are probably still weary. Turning on the news is almost sure to cause some anxiety. With the state of the economy where it is right now and knowing that so many have lost so much in the stock market, or wherever else, risk might be the farthest thing on your mind. You would rather play it safe, because risk seems too risky. We know from the parable that the fear of failure or loss was the thing that caused the third servant to bury his money in the ground. He was paralyzed with fear. The risk was too great, he thought, and wasn't worth it. Sometimes the risk isn't worth it. I believe many of us would agree that there are good risks and not-so-good risks and our lists might differ. It is important in any situation like we are in today to evaluate what is worth the risk while looking at the greater picture of God's kingdom.

What is worth taking a risk? What is the goal? Why do we put ourselves out on a limb? Is it because Jesus promises that the reward is great--to hear "Well done, Good and trustworthy servant." To know that there will be reward thought we might not see it in this life--to risk is tough, but it is the only thing we can do. The call of Jesus to risk it all was followed by his example of his own life. He suffered death on the cross for the risks he took, and he knew that going in. His reward was eternal, and our reward is the same.

As a child on Thursday evenings I was allowed to watch The Cosby Show. Cliff Huxtable, aka Bill Cosby, was notorious for sneaking frosting, slices of cake, potato chips, or whatever he could while the family wasn't watching. I almost felt like Cliff this past week with all the sugar cakes sitting on the counters. In a very small way, Cliff Huxtable risked when he took a piece of cake from whatever goodie was on the counter. The Cosby show was good and won numerous awards over the 8 seasons it ran from 1984-1992. Looking back on the successful show today, I doubt any of us would understand the risk that was involved in NBC deciding to air the show back in 1984. The network ABC rejected The Cosby Show before NBC finally decided to air it. In a bigger way, NBC took a risk and reaped much benefit from airing the show that had been previously rejected. They went out on a limb, so to speak, and were glad they did. How can we go out on a limb for God?

It is my hope that we can all support one another to be risk-takers. It is not always the easy road. There can be difficulties along the way. But I believe we can start small and take the baby steps together to learn to walk without holding on to the furniture.
So what are you willing to do?
Which type of servant are you?
Are we willing to be risk-takers together?
What might that look like here at Raleigh Moravian?

The risks differ for everyone, just as our comfort zones differ. They can involve our time, talents, and treasures.

For some people, risk might mean joining the band or choir or singing a solo of Morning Star for Christmas Eve lovefeast.

Risk might be joining the youth at the homeless shelter one Sunday morning to hand out clothing and sing with them.

Or risk might mean going on a mission trip for the first time this spring or summer. For those who have gone to Mississippi or Laurel Ridge, risk might mean taking another trip this year to serve in a different capacity.

For others risk might mean inviting a visitor to lunch after church or a church member you barely know over to dinner one evening.

Risk might include inviting a friend from school to come to MYF one week or asking that neighbor you see across the fence to the Candle Tea on December 6th or congregational lovefeast on December 21st as an introduction to Raleigh Moravian.

Still others might see a risk as increasing their pledge to the church this year despite the looming economy, or pledging for the first time to help out the ministry and mission of the church in the world.

And still others might think about risk in terms of participating in a small bible study or prayer group as we look to forming those in the near future.

As one of my favorite authors, Shane Claiborne, writes in The Irresistible Revolution, quoting his college professor, "'Being a Christian is about choosing Jesus and deciding to do something incredibly daring with your life.' [Shane says,] I decided to take him up on that challenge." (The Irresistible Revolution, page 18) Are you up to the challenge? After all, it's Risky Business. Let's go do something daring together! Amen.

Please pray with me:
Lord, help us to daily choose You and risk wisely to help bring about your kingdom here on earth. Amen. So be it.