SIMPLICITY: “LESS REALLY IS MORE”

“Staying in Touch with God” --- A Lenten Sermon Series

 

“…I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.”

 Philippians 3:8a (NRSV)

 

          There is an old word that one rarely hears in daily speech: “careworn.”  The only time I ever hear it used is in the film version of The Wizard of Oz. --- Gazing into his crystal ball with Dorothy across the table, Prof. Marvel describes the woman he sees, Aunt Em, as having a face that is “careworn.”  “Careworn” is such an apt descriptor for the lines, wrinkles, & gray hair that accompany a hard-scrabble life worn (down) by many cares.  I mean, what if Miss Gulch has her way & sues, obtaining the family farm because of Toto’s nipping?   It is not the years alone which age us, but anxiety takes its toll, too.

 

          We, like Aunt Em, have so many things that require our care.  Often, we’d like to shed the worries they cause, but realize that the only way to be worry-free or care-free, is to divest ourselves of that stuff.  That’s not easy.  We don’t know how to do it.  If it requires giving up our unhealthy attachments to unnecessary things, we refuse.  We pine for a simpler time, a simpler life, but pining is as far as we get.

 

          On the way to lunch with Lee Rankin two weeks ago, he remarked, “It took less time to build the 350-mile Alaskan Highway (8.5 months) in 1942, than one square block of Allentown & Troxel Roads nowadays.”  It was a simpler time.

 

          The word “simplicity” derives from a word meaning “single,” or “one.”  God created us to have one loyalty, one driving goal in life, namely, God.  To have anything additional, is possible … to a degree, but often, not to the degree to which we’ve taken things.  When our lives are taken over by all of the allegiances & stuff that are not of God, we split our loyalty between God & those things which have become our taskmasters.[1]  We find a good life riddled with stress & anxiety.  The formula itself is simple:  Stuff equals stress & anxiety.  Simplicity equals an abundant life without an abundance of stuff.

 

          The most philosophical text in the Bible, the book of Ecclesiastes says in 7:29 (& I paraphrase), “God made humans simple; humankind’s problems are of our own devising”

 

          Getting rid of worry, many believe, is about keeping the things that cause us anxiety, but simply entrusting them to God.  Wrong.  It’s about replacing those things, entirely, with God.  Remove them.  Add God.

 

          There’s an adage that says, “The second-best day in one’s life is when one buys a boat.  The best day in one’s life is when one sells the boat!”  The boat that was purchased for enjoyment & freedom, quickly becomes a worriment, an object of continual repairs & maintenance, a bottomless money pit in the sea.  The goal of relaxation devolves into a source of stress.

 

          Riches & an abundance of things often become objects of anxiety.  Think about our retirement savings collected for the purpose of making our reclining years financially worry-free.  Is there anyone who wasn’t upset about their pension recently?  Is there a single American who sees no problem with Social Security?  I rest my case!   Think about the name alone, “social security.”  How secure do you feel about it?[2]

 

          That’s exactly the point.  Auntie Em’s farm & family in the face of a tornado.  Traffic  tie ups.  Boats.  Pensions.  We’ve not reduced our anxiety.  We’ve raised it.  We’ve not made our lives easier.  They’re more complicated.   Affluence becomes a slavery, a bondage, an addiction all its own. 

 

          Richard Foster, whose text, Celebration of Discipline, has been a main source for this series, boldly writes

                    “… our need for security has led us into an insane attachment

          to things.  We really must understand that the lust for affluence in

          contemporary society is psychotic.  It is psychotic because it has

          completely lost touch with reality.  We crave things we neither need

          nor enjoy. ‘We buy things we do not want, to impress people we do

          not like.’” [3]

 

          Prof. Foster goes on to note that this psychosis creates its own cultural mythology, such that the idol of our times is the poor person who strikes it rich, rather than the rich individual who chooses to become poor.  Horatio Alger’s hero flush with worldly success & wealth is hallowed & heralded.  Jesus of Nazareth is antiquated & derided as quaint.

 

          But, it gets worse.  Coveting is now called ambition.  Hoarding is prudence.  Greed becomes industriousness.  The psychosis has us define persons by what they can produce & how much they earn.  We are taught to feel ashamed to wear clothes or drive cars that are worn out.  Mass media convinces us that being out of sync with what’s fashionable is to be out of sync with reality.  Foster concludes, “It is time we awaken to the fact that conformity to a sick society is to be sick” ourselves.[4]

 

          It is a known fact that holy scripture talks about money & wealth close to 2400 times.  Jesus talks about such matters four times more than he mentions love or the kingdom of heaven!  Why?  Because he knows from where God’s competition comes.  He knows that “where our treasure is, there will be our hearts also” (Mt. 6:21).  That’s why Commandment #10 of “The Big 10” is against coveting, jealously envying & lusting after what others have.  I want it & now!

 

          While many passages in the Bible are subject to varying interpretations & debate, the teaching on wealth is without equivocation.  It is abundantly clear throughout the broad sweep of scripture.

            The one who trusts in riches will wither. -- Proverbs 11:28

            Do not say in your heart, “My power & the might of my hand have gotten

                        me this wealth.” – Deuteronomy 8:17

            Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth. – Matthew 6:10

            Blest are the poor, for theirs is the kingdom of God. -- Luke 6:20

            Woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. – Lk. 6:24

Life does not consist of the abundance of one’s possessions. --  Luke 12:15

You cannot serve God & wealth (mammon).-- Luke 16:13

            The Lord loves a cheerful giver. ---2nd Cor. 9:7

            The rich should not set their hopes on the certainty of riches, but be

generous & ready to share.  – 1st Tim. 6:17-19

            Keep your life free from the love of money & be content with what you

have. --- Heb. 13:5

 

            Paul calls coveting idolatry (Ephesians 5:5).  He puts greed alongside adultery & theft (1st Corinthians 5:11). 

 

          Jesus advises the rich young ruler to do away with the abundance of his possessions, if he is sincere about desiring the kingdom of God (Matthew 19:16ff). 

 

            And all of these teachings were announced in cultures that never possessed the degree of affluence that we know in our world today.  Imagine how far we’ve come & what Jesus would say today!

 

 

          Does the Bible advocate becoming poverty-stricken hermits?  No, we all require adequate provision.  Involuntary poverty is, itself, an evil.  Scripture does not glorify the poor.  Poor persons can be as motivated by things & in love with money as the billionaire.  “No more money!” as we heard from the children last week, is only half the problem.  Our gospel lesson is not saying it’s good to be poor.  It’s teaching us to make Christ #1.  Rich or poor, alike, the gospel indicts persons who do not put the kingdom of God first. 

 

Simplicity, itself, is not the opposite of affluence, but a mid-point.  (Isn’t this a statement about how far we’ve come!?!)  At the extremes are conspicuous consumption (want, want want; have, have, have) & asceticism (near-complete disregard for material things).  Conspicuous consumption indulges in things more than God.  Asceticism (a stark, even harsh plainness) disregards God’s good creation & fails to enjoy it.  Simplicity is somewhere in the middle, holding life in its proper perspective.  (We, UM’s, like being in that “extreme center.”)  Because while material wealth & total denial of material goods both lead to anxiety, one of the first fruits of simplicity is a freedom from anxiety.  You have exactly what you need: no more; no less.

 

Asceticism is not the goal of the Christian faith.  Financial or material prosperity is not the goal, as certain TV preachers would have us believe.  Simplicity, itself, is not the goal.  Quite frankly, a twisted quest for simplicity can become a legalism all its own.  It can become an idol, too.  The goal is God’s kingdom. 

                    Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you

          shall eat or what you shall drink, nor about your body, what you shall       

          put on.  Is not life more than food, & the body more than clothing? …

          Oh you of little faith!  Do not be anxious, saying, “What shall we eat?”

          or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?” …  But seek first

          God’s kingdom & righteousness & all these things shall be yours, as

          well (Matthew 6:25ff). 


            Simplicity best helps us arrive at the kingdom goal.  Simplicity is an inward spiritual discipline that reveals itself outwardly in our lifestyle.  The trust we cultivate, by spending time with God & by honoring the values of Christ’s reign, gives us a freedom from anxiety’s bondage.  Peace is ours.

         

          So, how do we achieve simplicity?  Is there a test to see how well we’re doing? Yes.  I call it, “The ‘It’s Not Ours’ Test.”

          1) – When we realize, truly, that what we have – everything we have across the broad sweep of our life – is a gift from God, we’re embracing the inner attitude of simplicity.  It is not our labors, but God’s providence that gives what we have.  God provides natural resources, body, health, & mind, & each other.

          2) – When we understand that God is ultimately responsible to care for what we have, we’re nurturing simplicity.  Yes, it is wise to be good stewards of what we’ve been given, to take good care, to take precautions & protect, but not become so anxious about them.  “The Lord giveth & the Lord taketh away.”

          3) – When we make our goods available to others, we practice simplicity.  To not give to others when there is a clear & right need is to be in possession of stolen goods, Foster strongly remarks.[5]  God has given to us in order to share.  If we do not share, we’ve stolen what God’s given by keeping it for our selfish & exclusive use.

 

          In the bulletin, I’ve listed 10 helpful guidelines from Prof. Foster.  Again, they are helps & guides to simplicity, not rules to follow slavishly.  They intend to help us achieve simplicity & the best life that God desires for his children.

 

          When the reign of God is primary in our lives, we can appreciate the beauties of Creation, the blessings of the harvest in a land of milk & honey, & all that God abundantly provides.  We find ourselves less overtaken by stress in the rat race.  We extend compassion to the poor.  We act in ways that are ecologi-cally & environmentally sound.   Simplicity changes us by drawing us closer to Christ & God’s kingdom &, in the process, changes our relationships & our world for the better, too.  Less really is more!

 

In the Name….                        Copyright 2010 by G.D.Knerr at Lansdale, Pa.  All rights reserved.

 

SIMPLICITY HELPS

(To be used as guidelines, not rules.)

 

1)    Buy things for their usefulness, rather than status.  Newer & bigger are not always better.

2)    Reject anything that produces an addiction in you.

3)    Develop a habit of giving things away, especially to someone who needs what you have.  De-accumulate & simplify.

4)    Refuse to be propagandized by gadgetry.  Consider toys (ours & our kids’) that make superlative claims to being “the latest & greatest.”  How often do they drain energy resources?

5)    Learn to enjoy things without owning them.  How about public transportation, the library, & other lending enterprises?

6)    Develop a deeper appreciation for the creation.   Consider homemade & locally-produced goods.  Consider environmental & personal health, both creations of God, when making purchases.

7)    Look with a healthy skepticism at all “buy now, pay later” schemes, credit cards, burdensome mortgages, & usurious loans.

8)    Obey Jesus’ instructions about plain, honest speech.

9)    Reject anything that breeds the oppression of others.  Refuse goods that exploit workers & investments that are not biblically responsible.

10) Shun anything that distracts you from seeking first the kingdom of God.

 

--- from Chapter 6, “The Discipline of Simplicity,” in Richard Foster’s, The Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth, rev. ed. 1988, Intervarsity Press, pp. 90-95.

 


[1] I don’t understand persons who say God is tough, when God has such a miniscule place in their lives, compared to the other allegiances & stuff.  Those are the things that make their lives so stressful, not God.

[2] It’s like the countless nuclear, biological & chemical weapons around the world.  We have a lot of ‘em.  Do you feel safer, especially in the face of terrorism?

[3] Chapter 6, p. 80 in 1988 edition, quoting Madame Guyon in Experiencing the Depths of Jesus Christ, 1975, p. 3.

[4] Richard Foster in Celebration of Discipline, 1988 rev. ed., Intervarsity Press,  p. 80.

[5] Foster, p. 89