Gold

This is not make believe, instead it is infamous history. Think back if you can to 26 November 1983 and you may recall the Brinks Mat robbery. A notorious heist that took place at a warehouse near Heathrow Airport. The six thieves, initially expecting to find Spanish currency, instead discovered and stole gold bullion worth nearly £100 million in today’s money.

Fast forward to today, and if you enjoy a good TV drama, then Series Two of Gold can be found on iPlayer. Last weekend we watched the penultimate episode which ended with three of the characters running from the police in dramatic fashion. How will it end, a plot twist, justice served or will money win the day?

Worry not, I am not about to give away any spoilers because I heartily recommend you all watch it. Why? Yes, it is good TV, but also this week's readings warns us against relying on material wealth. Elsewhere in the Bible we hear the wisdom that love of money lies at the root of all evil. Not money itself, which is simply an inanimate object, but the love of and for it, which can arise because of it. Jesus often spoke about money, wealth and status. And if we are honest then all of us can’t help but find it attractive. Even if we are not gold thieves sitting on our millions.

The lesson to be drawn is not that money is bad in itself. Much good can come from prudent use of money. Just as we can make good choices about how to spend our time or our energy, virtuous choices over money can be life-giving. The problems start when we fall into the trap of thinking that the source of life is money. This is portrayed well in the TV series Gold as we watch the colourful lives of the characters unfold.

Jesus did not have TV or the ability to stream a programme so instead he chose to tell stories, or parables. Parables are like a good book, you can read the plot and meet the people, but they become incidental compared to the purpose of the story.

Jesus’ parable today warns us not to store possessions up for ourselves. Prudent storage is not the problem, but storing possessions so we can lean back, put our feet up, and not use them to help others in need, is. At that point we have fallen into the trap of thinking that money offers us a way of living, without the need for God in our lives.

We are encouraged to be on our guard against all kinds of greed, because life is not found in the abundance of possessions. So not just grain or money then, but other possesions too. Property, cars, clothes, technology. It is the unhealthy love of these things, the greed that acquires and holds on to them, that creates the dependency and the deep loss of true life that follows.

Access to the Kingdom of God is not via material wealth. This is good news for those whose life has not afforded them financial blessing. And bad news for those of us who place too much trust in it. It is worth asking ourselves from time to time, what are we not prepared to relinquish in life. If the answer is wealth or possessions then we are at risk of missing out on the wonderful life that God offers instead.

So what does this mean for us, today. Well on a personal level that’s for us to reflect on. What do we cling to, what are we not prepared to give? Where have we become dependent on things and not on God? We can all think on that one in our own time.

But as a church this is a conversation that we can have. In our church life, our worship, our care for the wider parish, what do we cling to? What are we not prepared to give? Where have we become dependent on things and not on God?

Over the coming 3 months I am inviting everyone to join a conversation. A conversation about how we are doing as church, where we would like to go as church, and what we are prepared to do to get there. It is a conversation that will be led at parish level by the PCCs but it is a conversation that everyone is invited in to. Not just the congregation, but all who live, work, and study in our parishes.

The goal is to have a Vision Day on Sat 18th October to which everyone is invited, when we agree on our vision for the future, and offer some ideas on how to get there.

But if this remains a conversation amongst ourselves, and with the residents of our parishes, then we are at risk of making human plans, plans that will fail. If, however, we are all having this conversation with God, asking God for what we need to be doing, and then yielding to God’s way then we can expect to see great things.

It's all about grace. Not our knowledge or our strength, our power, our status, or our bank balance. But God’s grace. It is not what we have or what we think that matters. Be prepared to be surprised by grace. So, I invite you to pray.

Lord each day you speak to us, help us to hear your voice, to know your will, and to respond in faith.

Help us to see what you have already given us, personally and as a church.

Help us please where necessary to move from being people who store, to being people who give, generously. Amen.

Photo by Jingming Pan on Unsplash