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Message from the Pastor - Ken Radant

As always, I hope your week is going well. Mine has been somewhat less eventful than last week was, which is actually quite nice. A little excitement is good sometimes, but there is something nice about a week where the ordinary routines just chug along, too.

On the subject of routines, this coming Sunday we’re into a theme in Proverbs that speaks directly to our ordinary life. This week’s topic is wisdom for our work, our money, and our possessions. Or, to use the sermon title that will be on the powerpoint: it’s about “Our Work and Our Stuff.”  It doesn’t get much more day-to-day than that!

I know that many in our church like to have a passage to read ahead of time. It’s a bit hard to choose the right passage this week. The subjects of work and finances and possessions are scattered all the way through Proverbs. Next to the basic idea of “wisdom” and the importance of the tongue, these are probably the themes that appear most often in these 31 chapters. So you could turn to almost any page in Proverbs and find a relevant reading. Our Scripture reader on Sunday will take us through a couple passages: Prov 24:30-34; 27:23-27; and 30:7-9.  Those are about as good as any if you’re wanting to look ahead in a focused way. But really, you can go just about anywhere in the book…..!

It's possible that some people who keep an eye on the church calendar are just a bit disappointed that we’re not taking a break from Proverbs to do a message that focuses on Pentecost, which is also this Sunday. It’s a fair point. Another time I might take us on a digression into Acts 2 or Ephesians 5 or 1 Corinthians 12 or Romans 8 to talk more directly about the Holy Spirit. My apologies if this feels like an oversight.

At the same time, it might be useful to remind ourselves that for the past several weeks our messages on Proverbs have actually ended back in Ephesians 5 with references to our being “filled with the Spirit.” You will recall that Ephesians tells us:

  • Not to be unwise, but wise (5:15), and not foolish but aware of God’s will for us (5:17).
  • We’re not to live in chaotic and unhealthy ways of the sort that happen when a person is drunk, but rather to be continually being-filled with the Holy Spirit … (5:18)
  • … which results in speaking with each other in ways that are godly and edifying, worshipful and thankful (5:19-20) …
  • … and also results in wise and healthy relationships in the household—between husbands and wives, children and parents, servants and masters (5:21-6:9).

In other words, when the Spirit of God (who is the Spirit of wisdom) has control of our lives, He helps us to grow in wisdom, which affects the way we speak, the way we relate to each other at home, and by implication, all the ordinary day-to-day things we do.

Put a different way, God poured out His Spirit on the church at Pentecost so that the Spirit could form Jesus in us all, and express the life and ministry of Jesus through us, in every part of our day-to-day living. And that means it’s completely appropriate to talk about ordinary things—like work, money, and possessions—on Pentecost Sunday. The Spirit desires to transform all these things.

Well, this isn’t the place to get into the sermon. It’s just an encouragement to us all to remember that as we walk through Proverbs, the things we learn about wisdom will all be consistent with the fruit of the Spirit who was given to us at Pentecost. Wisdom will help us to grow in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Gal 5:22-23).

May it be so this week, and every week! 

And on that note, have a wonderful week.