Scripture:
Mark 10:17-27

He said to him, "Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth." Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, "You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.

Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!" And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, "Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God." They were greatly astounded and said to one another, "Then who can be saved?" Jesus looked at them and said, "For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible."

Let us pray: Take my lips and speak through them. Take our thoughts and think through them. Take our hearts and set them on fire with love for you. Unless you speak, nothing of significance will be spoken. Bring us your word, Lord Jesus. Amen.

I heard one of the best lines of the year, given last week by Andy Mackie as he was walking out of the 8:15 Easter service. He was talking to Mike Bouque as they shuffled past the 9:30 attenders, whose line for church extended out the porch doors. As they were joking about the line (and feeling glad that they weren't in it), Andy said, "It should be like this every Sunday." Amen to that, brother.

Why is it not?

Once there was a little boy who lived far out in the country in the 1800s. He had reached the age of 12 and had never in all his life seen a circus. You can imagine his excitement, when one day a poster went up at school announcing that on the next Saturday a traveling circus was coming to the nearby town. He ran home with the glad news and the question, "Daddy, can I go?" Although the family was poor, the father sensed how important this was to the lad. "If you do your Saturday chores ahead of time," he said, "I'll see to it that you have the money to go."

Come Saturday morning, the chores were done and the little boy stood by the breakfast table, dressed in his Sunday best. His father reached down into the pocket of his overalls and pulled out a dollar bill - the most money the little boy had possessed at one time in all his life. The father cautioned him to be careful and then sent him on his way to town.

The boy was so excited, his feet hardly seemed to touch the ground all the way. As he neared the outskirts of the village, he noticed people lining the streets, and he worked his way through the crowd until he could see what was happening. Lo and behold, it was the approaching spectacle of a circus parade!

The parade was the greatest thing this lad had ever seen. Caged animals snarled as they passed, bands beat their rhythms and sounded shining horns, midgets performed acrobatics while flags and ribbons swirled overhead. Finally, after everything had passed where he was standing, the traditional circus clown with floppy shoes, baggy pants, and a brightly painted face, brought up the rear. As the clown passed by, the little boy reached into his pocket and took out that precious dollar bill. Handing the money to the clown, the boy turned around and went home.

I don't need to tell you what happened. The boy thought he had seen the circus when he had only seen the parade!

His problem: He didn't know any better. Many of us haven't experienced all that God has for us. We as a church haven't yet experienced God to the fullest, although most of us have experienced what the world is offering us, because we can afford to. We've seen the most beautiful spots. The question in the youth group isn't, "Are you going somewhere for vacation?" it's: "Where are you going this time?" I'm proposing today that the problem is that we are only experiencing the parade, when the circus, so much bigger and better, is awaiting us, as individuals and as a church.

Bible time - listen and see for yourselves what riches God promises:

Romans 9:23 - "God has been patient with us in order to make known the riches of his glory for the objects of mercy."

Romans 11:33-36 - Paul writes: "O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor? Or who has given a gift to him, to receive a gift in return? For from and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever. Amen."

Ephesians 1:7 - "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he lavished on us."

Ephesians 1:18-19 - "So that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power."

Ephesians 3:8 mentions the "boundless riches of Christ."

Ephesians 3:16-20 describes the riches of his glory, "He may grant that you be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God."

Philippians 4:19 - "And my God will fully satisfy every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus."

Colossians 1:27 - "To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you the hope of glory."

The truth is, we could go on all morning talking about the riches of God in Christ. But the fact is, many people don't want the riches, they just want a nickel's worth of God. They want to be Christian, but not too Christian. They want nothing more than fire insurance.

It's the story of the man who wants God, but doesn't want too much of God. He goes to God and asks the Lord to be in his life. When God shares with him, he tells God: "Stop. I don't want to have to change. I only want a nickel's worth." Sometimes I fear we reduce the impact of God in our lives to just a devotional thought to make us happy for the rest of the day. Not very often do we see God in scriptures coming to someone just for conversation's sake. That's only a nickel's worth. How do we do this? We don't read our Bibles and see for ourselves. We don't give God any room in our lives to work, because we fill ourselves with everything but God. From ESPN to fashion to our jobs to our clubs, we don't allow God room to work. We don't give in any kind of meaningful way, and thus don't see everything God wants to do through us and our church. To put it another way, God is always up to something, and God is inviting us to join Him in his work. But we can't stay where we are and go with God at the same time. We must change. We must follow God, or else we'll be left holding the change.

But we don't want change. Hey, Christmas and Easter ... well - it's tradition. How about every Sunday? It makes me feel good. It's part of my routine. Just don't give me more than a nickel's worth.

We've become like the Rich Young Ruler. Influential, wealthy, and young. (Well, some are younger than others...) His eager approach, kneeling posture, and flattering address of Jesus revealed his earnest attitude and respect for Jesus. "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Listen to that again: What must I DO to inherit eternal life? He is coming at it assuming eternal life can be achieved by doing good. He also must feel insecure about his own future destiny.

Look at Jesus' response. He asks the man: "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone." Typical Jesus. Always making us think deeper. What is good? Well, when you compare it to God's perfect goodness, nothing can measure up. God alone is our source and standard of goodness. The young man needed to see himself in the context of God's perfect character. Already Jesus answers the question, "Do good people go to heaven?" No, because next to God, no one is good or good enough. We simply can't do it on our own.

Jesus goes on to answer the man's question directly, quoting the second five commandments, the ones that deal with human relationships. This rich young man was sure he had kept these perfectly. Jesus loved this man, and thus helped this man see what it was that was blocking him from eternal life. Jesus reveals two things: love of money and self-righteous achievement. This man trusted in his self-attainment and earthly securities, not in Jesus.

That's what money does for us: it gives us a false sense of security, unless we are careful. In my interaction with the World Methodist Council, I've realized the U.S. is at least as spiritually needy as the rest of the world. Materialism has pervaded our churches and our mindsets in a dangerously subtle way.

Jesus gives this young man two things to do:

1. Go and sell all you possess, and give to the poor (with the promise attached: so that you will have treasure in heaven). Basically, get rid of the things that are keeping you from experiencing God: your self-sufficient attitude and your love of stuff. A transformed life becomes a giving life.

2. Come, follow me. Follow Jesus to Jerusalem and the cross. The way to eternal life was turning from trust in the "I can do it how I want" mentality and turning to trust in Jesus.

Sad, because of Jesus' mandates, he went away. He couldn't let go.

Jesus reflected with his disciples: it is hard for the rich to enter God's kingdom, and the disciples were amazed, because in Judaism riches were a mark of God's favor and thus an advantage, not a barrier, in relation to God's kingdom. But Jesus follows up, even with a joke: the camel was the biggest animal in Palestine at that time, and the needle was the smallest opening. Basically, Jesus is saying that no one can be saved.

As soon as he said this, however, he follows up by declaring that salvation is impossible for humans, but not for God. It is not beyond God's power to bring about because everything necessary for people's salvation - rich and poor - is possible with God. What we cannot do, namely save ourselves and inherit eternal life - God can and does do by his grace.

What we cannot do, God can do.

Do you believe that? Do you believe that there are things only God can do, and that unless we attempt something that we know would fail without God's help, we will never experience God beyond our nickel's worth?

Hebrews 11:1 says: "Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." I am convinced that God is working in Birmingham, and each of our communities. I'm just afraid that unless we, as a church, step out beyond what we think we can do, we won't experience the riches of God's glory, and we will miss out. We as a church are at a crossroads: we are short two full-time staff positions. We have the opportunity to grow or plateau. Do we go, sell, and follow Jesus, or do we settle for a nickel's worth of God?

Our world is not seeing God, because we are not attempting anything that only God can do. I can't help but wonder if we took over Crowleys, and offered services and ministry and a place to be for all those loitering teenagers, many of whom are lost, and were they to die tonight, would die in their sin. I can't help but wonder what impact a Christian coffee house would have on Birmingham. I can't help but wonder what outreach we would have if we turned the youth center into a fitness center and gymnasium. I can't help but wonder if we bought one of the abandoned buildings in Detroit or Pontiac and turned it into a neighborhood center. I can't help but wonder if we began a building ministry to help transform targeted neighborhoods in the area. I can't help but wonder what riches God would open up to this community if we began a concentrated prayer ministry. I can't help but wonder what God would do through our church if we put more priority on tithing. Using scripture as our guide, God asks for a tenth. Malachi says that any less than a tenth is stealing from God. Some of the youth counselors have recently begun tithing, and the blessings that they are experiencing are inspirational. Imagine the impact we could have: not just on Birmingham, but the world! Imagine if people got serious about putting their talents and gifts to use for God's kingdom work. And I'm not just talking about public speaking or singing! (Although those are great ways to give!) What about number crunching, technical know-how, or literally any other gift that you bring to the table. Imagine if we staffed our church, in faith, for ministries that don't exist yet, but where we discern God could do a good work! What ministry around here do you see that you could help with? What need do you see that we need to address?

Do you have the faith to follow and obey God, even though you don't see how the result will happen? Have you ever dreamed that big? Have you ever had to lean on God that much? Have you ever been obedient so that you saw and experienced God in a new way? Think about it: Moses would never have gotten to know God in the ways he did, if he stayed in that valley of the burning bush. He would have missed the miracles, the supernatural occurrences, the giving of the Law, and we'd have missed a great movie that comes on every year at this time! Do you think that rich young ruler could see how God would bless him by his giving away all he owned? No. He was only looking for a nickel's worth of God. Have you ever thought about what God could do with a church that was even more sold out to him than we already are? What would we dare to do if we knew God would provide the power?

Dwight L. Moody was a poorly educated, unordained shoe salesman who felt the call of God to preach the Gospel. Early one morning, he and some friends gathered in a hay field for a season of prayer, confession, and consecration. Henry Varley said, "The world has yet to see what God can do with and for and through and in a man who is fully and wholly consecrated to Him."

Moody was moved by these words. He thought: "The world had yet to see! Through and with and for and in! Varley meant any man! Just a man! Well, by the Holy Spirit in him, he'd be one of those men. Why should we not all say to God, `Send me! Use me!'"

Dwight Moody was an ordinary man. Through this one ordinary life, God began to do the extraordinary. Moody became one of the greatest evangelists of modern times. When he preached, thousands and thousands of lives were changed as people came to Christ. He didn't settle for a nickel of God. He took the whole treasure.

You might say: "Well, I'm not a Dwight Moody." You don't have to be. God doesn't want you to be. God wants you to be you and let God do through you whatever God chooses. When you believe that nothing significant can happen through you, you have said more about your belief in God than you have said about yourself. Have you settled for a nickel's worth of God in your life?

Don't settle for that! Remember:

I. God works in and through us when we faithfully respond to Him. The rich young ruler, for all his following the Law, for all his earnest questions, still never experienced God because he couldn't faithfully respond.

A. When God is number one in our priorities, there is nothing keeping us from experiencing him!

B. When we allow things and attitudes to get in the way, we can't follow Christ.

C. Imagine what God could do with a church faithfully responding to him!

D. Think about Birmingham and what God wants to do here. Can we be the ones through whom God accomplishes his will and his work?

II. There are things only God can do. If we really are serious about our faith, we'll trust him more and more. If what we are basing our decisions on is nothing but past experiences and what we can do ourselves, we've left no room for divine resources to be brought to bear. Are you specifically and intentionally attempting anything for God in your life right now?

III. Our world is not seeing God, because we are not attempting anything that only God can do.

A. It's not deciding between good and bad, but between good and better.

B. God is interested in the world's coming to know him. The rich young ruler represents the view of religion: Humanity's quest for God. Jesus turns it around and shows us that human history is God's reaching out to know and be known by us.

C. We have a victory. Don't settle for a nickel's worth. The world needs more than that, and God has so much more that he wants to give than that.

I'll give you a nickel if you'll give me the answer to one question: What would you dare to do if you knew God would provide the power?