“Take a Risk for a Change”

Scripture: Luke 19:12-27

Have you ever really considered what Christianity is all about? That Christianity is not a faith based on “feel good” thoughts and proclamations, that it is not a faith that is easy to follow, that Christianity is not a faith that calls the people to “sit back and watch”. But rather that our faith is a faith that calls the people to risk all that they have. It is a call that invites everyone to take a step in faith – and sometimes it is a huge step! Ours is a faith that must be active, involved, trusting, and above all else, it must be a journey that takes us through uncharted territory.

Christianity, when it is lived out to the fullest, is one that both leads us into the unknown and blesses us beyond all measure. Our faith is most readily expressed when we come to acknowledge that all that we have – skills, resources, joys, aptitudes - are merely gifts that are on loan from God, to be used as He desires.

In his book Worldly Spirituality, William McClelland writes:
“The story line in Jesus' parable of the [Minas] calls for the money given the stewards to be risked precisely because it is God's money. The stewards hold it only in trust and will be held accountable for its use. Jesus' point keeps rolling off our Teflon consciences like water off a duck's back. People with possessions do not want to be reminded that those possessions are to be held in trust and continually laid before the throne of grace, always available to do God's good pleasure. So, rather than live with that burr under our saddle, we, like the rich would-be disciple, choose to turn away. We go on our way - and usually not, as he did, sorrowfully. We go on our way rejoicing, rejoicing in our good fortune, grateful to [the world] but not to God Almighty."

And he continues:
"But the Bible stands there as stubborn as a rock, and every time we open it to read, we stub our toe on its assumption that all the resources of our lives come from God: the strength of our hands, the cleverness of our minds, the health we enjoy and the possessions with which we have been blessed. God has loaned them all to us in trust. We are stewards of these gifts of grace, and we are to use them whenever and however the Spirit indicates.”
-William Robert McClelland, Worldly Spirituality: Biblical Reflections on Money, Politics, and Sex (St. Louis, Missouri: P Press, 1990), 40.

Read Luke 19:12-27

There are 2 themes in this story. The first is comparison between those who refuse to acknowledge the kingship of the Master versus those who do accept his rightful position. The second is about how these servants respond to the trust that the master shows to them when he gives each one responsibility for a relatively small amount of money.
The first is revealed only at the beginning and the end of the story, and is very straightforward. Those who accept the King, live. Those who do not, die. Period.

But the second theme seems to receive the bulk of the focus in the parable. Each servant receives the same amount of money, including those who will oppose the Master, but they are not expected to display the same degree of skill in managing their charge. The Master does, however, expect a faithful response from all of them in carrying out the assignment. He wants them to stretch themselves, trusting that in their faithfulness that the assignment will produce far more than they ever could on their own, and even far more than they could ever imagine it would.
7 servants won’t even give the master their loyalty, and one of the remaining 3 isn’t able to bring himself to use his master’s money as directed. It wasn’t his money, but he fears the possibility of failure. Out of 10 servants, only 2 are willing to faithfully carry out the call given to them. Personally, I think that this is a rather meager response.

Christianity is a faith that calls the people to risk all that they have, even though it never was theirs in the first place! We must be vigilant and ready and eager to serve wherever and whenever God may call.

Rodney Stark writes: “For 70 years, Soviet schools drilled their students in official state atheism, and few churches could hold religious services. To be openly religious entailed substantial risk. The result? When state repression collapsed, widespread religious participation surfaced and sustained an enormous revival -- a religious outburst of such magnitude that it prompted Andrew Greeley, the well-known Catholic novelist, priest and sociologist of religion, to write an article proclaiming that ‘God Is Alive and Well and Living in Moscow.’”
--Rodney Stark, American Religion Remains Robust, Insight, 11 July 1994, 23.

The faithful constantly live their faith, even in Soviet Moscow!
The faithful continue to live their faith, even in Communist China!
The faithful continue to live their faith, even in Hindu India!
The faithful continue to live their faith, even in prisons!
The faithful continue to live their faith, even in nursing homes!

Southern Baptist preacher Don Bouldin tells about a study of a group of 95+ year old folks, all of whom were asked this question, “If you had life to do over again, what would you do differently?” Their responses fell into three major categories.

First, reflect more. Spend more time considering who you are, what you are here for, what God is calling you to become.
What makes life worth living and fulfilling? Family and faith, both of which require hefty doses of forgiveness.

Second, take more risks. Life is very short. Take some risks to accomplish more. Don't be afraid of failures or mistakes.
Why climb out on limbs? Because that's where the fruit is. No limb-climbing, no fruit-picking.

Third, do more things that will last forever. Invest in eternity. Make this world a better place because you sojourned here.
--Bouldin, Ears to Hear, Eyes to See: Witnessing Through Media (Nashville: Broadman, 1987), 81.

Know who you are and why you are here. Take a risk. No limb climbing, no fruit picking. And try to make this world a better place than it was when you arrived. These are the things that make this life worth living – otherwise, we are just treading water, waiting for someone else to come along and drain the swamp.

Faith grows and lives in the conflicted – why is it so hard for the comfortable to live out their faith?
Are you willing to take a risk – a real risk – to serve God?
Are you willing to take a step into the unknown to discover just who you are, and who your God is?
Have you ever admitted to yourself that all that you have isn’t really yours – that it all is just on loan from our Lord?

Jesus took risks every day, every moment, of His life on this earth, and He calls each of us to do the same. And as much as the Christ accomplished while He was with us, He proclaims that if we just trust Him, if we just place our faith in Him, if we would just follow Him wherever He leads, if we would risk all that He has given us to gain glory for Him, then we will gain even more than He was able to! (John 14:12-14)

Are you willing to risk it all for the glory of God? The call is before you. Take it or leave it. The choice up to you! But first, remember those 10 servants, and the decisions that they made, and the various results that came from those choices.