‘MORE THAN ENOUGH’

2 Samuel 11:1-15

Ephesians 3:14-21

John 6:1-14

            Today’s sermon theme was chosen almost four weeks ago, before the round of new battles had begun in the areas of Lebanon and Northern Israel.  This means that, in some ways, the account of David’s warring described in chapter 11 of 2 Samuel may sound somewhat simplistic compared with what we are seeing and hearing in our current news accounts.  But, sadly, the human tendencies toward dominance, self-interest and cruelty seem to remain constant in human behavior.  Remembering this may help us to hear David’s story with a deepened sense of attentiveness.  But we also realize that as we live in a world so deeply entrenched in warfare, the stories in the Bible continue to greatly impact our personal lives and our own choices.

            How, for instance, can we know when we have enough?  Or even more than enough?  Is it when our bank account gets to a certain level?  Or our closets are filled with the right quantity of clothes? Or our debts are paid, our to-do lists caught up or when our favorite pastimes occupy most of the spaces on our calendars?  When do we stop wanting more?  And how to we recognize the true generosity of God?

            Somehow, when I retired from the weekly round of parish responsibilities two years ago, I assumed that I would have more than enough time to do all the hobbies I had postponed for 25+ years.  My photo albums and scrapbooks would all be neatly and artistically assembled, our home would be redecorated in desirable ways and I would have hours of reading time each and every week.  Guess what?  None of this has happened!

            Yet I cannot, in truthfulness, say I have not had enough time given to me.  Instead, I must acknowledge that my scrapbooks are not put together primarily because of the choices I’ve made in terms of saying “yes” to various committees, boards and other volunteer tasks in the community.   Therefore, in retirement, I am still learning what it means to try and use all that God has given me wisely, whether the choices involved concern money, time, activities or relationships.

            It was in the area of relationships that we see King David making some unfortunate choices.  And we see all too clearly that the part of David’s story which we have heard today marks a major turning point in his life.  It does, in fact, leave most of us agreeing with the Old Testament scholar, Walter Brueggemann, who has said, “This narrative is more than we want to know about David.”  (Interpretation – 1^st and 2^nd Samuel, p. 272).

            We see a king who has become so enamored of his own power that he will go to any length to get what he wants.  And we see a man who already had an abundant life yet who was willing to behave in sinful ways in order to gain more.

            Please be assured…..David did not suffer from a shortage of wives when he lusted after Bathsheba.  In earlier parts of 1^st and 2^nd Samuel we read the names of seven different wives and in chapter 5 of 2^nd Samuel we are further informed that “David took more concubines and wives.” (2^nd Samuel 5:13)  My own assessment is that he had “more than enough,” although I realize that I am viewing his situation from a 21^st century woman’s view.  Yet we see clearly that this insatiable desire for “more” led David to  condone the murder of Uriah and to pursue a tragic path of abusive power  which became a path that David’s own sons followed in later years.  Who knows how different David’s life might have been had he been content with what he had previously been given?

             I know, of course, that his life was so dramatically different from our lives that we may wonder how we can identify with his story.  Yet discovering what is “enough” is something with which we all struggle.

            Not surprisingly, it is often in matters concerning money where we notice this struggle the most.  Or as one jokester said:  “Rich isn’t just a state of mind.  It’s not having to arrange your vacation so that you arrive home on pay day.”  (Illustrations Unlimited, p. 371)

            But some of us also struggle with time, which caused one man to note that “A vacation is that brief period of time between trying to get ahead so you can leave and trying to catch up when you get back.”  (Ibid., p. 495)  Yes, life can all too often seem fragmentary and compartmentalized!

            But most of us long to discover the truth about abundance that we see proclaimed in John’s Gospel, a truth that is demonstrated in all four Gospels in the story of the BIG picnic.  Some of the details about that picnic vary according to which Gospel account one is reading. And anyone looking for a totally rational explanation about how food could be multiplied to such an extent will be left without an answer.  However, certain details in the story remain constant and include the following factors:  1) a very large number of people kept following Jesus, either to hear his teaching or to witness and experience his gift of healing; 2) the people either forgot to bring their own provisions or somehow did not expect to be away from home when hunger hit (although one young boy, at least, came prepared); 3) dealing with such a large, hungry crowd was going to test the disciples’ faith to the utmost.

            In John’s account, it is Philip who is called out by name.  “How are we going to buy enough food to feed these people?” he is asked.  And his answer echoes what any of us would probably have said in the same situation, “Half a year’s wages would not be enough to feed all these people!”  And we sympathize with Philip and Andrew and all the disciples, for who of us would want to be faced with a very large crowd of hungry people whose irritability would surely grow as more time passed?

            But the fourth factor proclaimed by all the Gospel writers is that Jesus had a plan and a way to meet the needs of all who sat down together that day…..a way that demonstrated the abundance of God’s love and care.  “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish,” Andrew said.  And, as Jesus took this young boy’s provisions and gave thanks for this simple, peasant food, it proved to be enough to feed everyone.  In fact, it was more than enough for there were 12 baskets of fragments left over.

            As I have already mentioned, those looking for scientific answers about how one can multiply a small amount of food into a picnic that will feed more than 5,000 will be disappointed.  There are some questions that the miracle stories in the Bible simply do not answer.  But for those who see in this story a powerful reminder of God’s generosity, the “how did it happen” questions fall away.  And we are reminded that we are not to hoard or worry or base our lives on fear because God knows our needs and will supply not just enough but more than enough.  And, by that, I do not mean enough just for material needs but necessary resources of spiritual strength and faith and inspiration.

            It is important, too, to remember that God desires not only to bless each of us and those we love, but to also bless us as a congregation as we move out in faith and witness together.  Oh, I know that, like Philip, our first response may sometimes be one of fear because we can’t see how we can possibly do or afford or manage a task that God sets before us.  But when we take a deep breath and remember the incredible love that Jesus poured out upon that long-ago picnic crowd, as well as upon all humanity, we can let our apprehensions fall away because we know that God will provide more than enough for our needs.

            The faith by which we are called to live, both as individuals and as a congregation, is expressed very beautifully in a prayer for wisdom contained in the Letter to the Ephesians.  Therefore, I would like to close this morning’s sermon with those familiar words as an affirmation of God’s generosity:

            “For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name.  I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may 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.

            Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever.  Amen.