SERMON, PROPER 8B

Death. That's not a topic we like to discuss. My perception is we don't discuss it because, like most everything else in our lives, death is complicated. Wills and caskets and funeral directors and the wake are things that weigh on our mind; and that's not to mention pre-death issues like long-term care, DNR orders and such.

But death is a fact of life. Nothing living can escape it, and even non-living things eventually decay and crumble and disappear. In short, nobody gets out of here alive.

Regardless of that fact, not many people are likely to think ahead about death, and fewer still are actually looking forward to dying. Besides the aforementioned complications, there are the doubts and fears. Is there really a heaven? Is there really a hell? Have I been good enough? Is this all there is?

I think it's because of those questions that people want to hang on. There are those people who hold on and fight and live through a long, drawn out death, not wanting to let go. There are those who hold on just long enough for family to arrive. And there are those who hang on until they have permission to die.

In the end, dying means letting go -- letting go of our doubts and fears, letting go of this life and crossing the boundary to the next. We let go of our family and friends and things we have worked for. We have alot to let go of; and if you think you don't, make a list of everything that needs letting go. Like moving, you probably have more than you think you do.

Death and dying, though, are only the first part of the equation. As Christians, we proclaim new life. We are baptized into a new life. We live new lives by example. Christ was resurrected into new life, and we live in the assurance of eternal life.

For us to have new life, though, we must die. We die to our old, selfish lives and are resurrected into a new life of community. We die to the world but live in Christ. We give up and let go of our past and look to claim a new, glorious future.

Looking to that glorious future, however, is a process. In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul wrote, ". . . to us who are being saved it is the power of God." We are not simply looking to the future, we are working towards it. We are being saved, little by little; and step by step we are being transformed. We are dying and being resurrected.

Why all this talk about death and dying, you ask? I'm not talking about death and dying; I'm talking about letting go. In this process of being saved, we have to learn to let go. We need to let go of our fear of scarcity and trust in God's abundance. That theology of abundance is at the heart of all four readings today.

Do not be tight-fisted. Give liberally. Be ungrudging and open your hand to the poor. Be generous in lending. Give freely to the poor. A balance between your abundance and their need. Jairus had a need, and Jesus freely gave of his abundant spirit.

We have an abundance of gifts in this place; an abundance of time, talent and treasure. That abundance can be used for alot of things, including a concerted effort to grow our parish and work towards making the kingdom of God present on earth and in this valley; but just acknowledging that abundance doesn't mean that it gets used.

We have to be willing to let go. We need to stop hanging onto our abundance as if it were a rare commodity. We need to let go, little by little, so that we can grow the church step by step. We need to let our selfish desires die so that we can live a life of abundant community.

At its core, Christianity is about death and new life. If we are to be truly resurrected, we must be willing to let go of what we think is important, letting go of our doubts and fears. We need to begin giving voluntarily of our abundance of time, talent and treasure. That means doing more than simply the minimum.

If we aren't generous with our abundance, then we are living contrary to scripture. If we aren't willing to let go, if we aren't willing to die in the hope of the resurrection, then we just die.

We should be willing . . . no, we should be excited to see this place as a living, abundant community, rather than simply a Sunday morning gathering place. What risks are you willing to take to make that happen? What do you need to let go of so that God's abundant love can shine forth? What time, talent or treasure are you holding onto because you are afraid of what will happen if you let go? What are you holding onto because you are afraid you won't have enough?

Scripture is calling us to think abundantly. Scripture is calling us to be generous. Scripture is calling us to let go and live.