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Two years ago, my family was preparing to move from Old Lyme, CT back to Seattle. In CT, we had a large, gorgeous home on 4 acres in the country. Every waking moment that I wasn’t working, I was packing boxes…for weeks.
When we moved into that home, we were leaving a cramped house in West Seattle and couldn’t wait to have more space. In my mind, I imagined the abundance of the CT home would offer ease and freedom from stress. And to some degree, that was true. It actually had drawers, cabinets, and closets! So many closets! But it also had three bathrooms to clean, a giant yard to take care of, and lots of space for stuff.
Most of us are trying to build a life that feels full, but also controlled. What I learned from my four years of living in a larger home was this: we are very good at accumulation but much less practiced at abundance. While I had a home full of things I might need, it didn’t magically create a life that felt whole.
In today’s sermon, we’re exploring the abundant life. This is not a how-to discourse on achieving an abundant life, but more of a pondering as to what constitutes an abundant life.
One of the places in scripture that talks about the abundant life is in the book of Acts. The Acts of the Apostles describes life in the early church, during the time of Paul and the early missionaries. Those nascent Christian communities didn’t define abundance, they practiced it in the daily lives.
Let’s take the first line from today’s reading. “Those who had been baptized devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” The baptized life is in fact, the abundant life. The abundant life is about the shape and contours of our days, not the accumulation of resources, and that is available to everyone.
Every time someone is baptized, we all renew our baptismal promises. Every time someone is confirmed, we renew our baptismal promises.
Just yesterday, a group from Epiphany gathered at St. Mark’s Cathedral to support Mary Richardson as she was confirmed, along with 108 other people….and, we renewed our baptismal promises. It is so important that we do it multiple times a year.
The first promise we make is taken directly from the verse we heard today in Acts. “Will you continue in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and in the prayers?” And we say, “I will with God’s help.”
This is the life we promise to live. It isn’t optional, it’s the shape of the life we’ve already said yes to. “Devoting ourselves to the apostles’ teaching.” What does this mean? It’s about being formed by a story bigger than your own. And it’s not just information, but orientation. There are so many competing voices in this world and we have to discern who is worth listening to. Consider which voices are actually teaching you how to live. “Devoting ourselves to the apostles’ teaching” is about allowing ourselves to be transformed by our life in Christ.
The second component of this baptismal promise is fellowship, or koinonia in the Greek. The kind of fellowship is more than coffee-hour chit chat. It is a shared life rooted in Jesus. That means praying together, eating together, holding one another’s burdens, even sharing resources. This is about creating community where your life and my life are no longer separate projects.
This looks like visiting parishioners who are shut-in. It is taking each other to the doctor and delivering meals. It is communal parenting as I have heard some of our families talk about. This is more than belonging, it is participation.
Paul uses the word koinonia in a fascinating way in 1 Corinthians 10:16; “The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a sharing (koinonia) in the blood of Christ?” Here, koinonia isn’t just being part of a group, it is participating in Christ himself. This word fellowship is about deep union with Christ and active participation in the life of the community. It’s not, “I attend church.” It’s “I am caught up in the life of Christ, with others.”
Then, we have the breaking of bread and the prayers. I love this so much. The breaking of bread is the eucharist and it is ordinary meals. If there is one thing Epiphany knows how to do really well, it’s food.
Earlier this month, I was able to spend the afternoon at the Ronald McDonald House with a group of parishioners preparing 150 meals for the families who are staying there. Did you know, once a week, year-round, Epiphany’s Service & Outreach volunteers are out in the community feeding people? We are readily identifiable with our bright red Epiphany aprons!
The beauty of breaking bread together in so many ways is the way in which we share our lives. As we mashed potatoes and poured gravy, we told stories and discovered common interests. Rather than hoarding our resources, we shared them and that is what abundance looks like. Enough becomes abundance when it is shared.
It’s the same with our prayer life. We return to God day in and day out, Sunday after Sunday, because prayer is about relationship. It is letting go of control and trusting God.
These are not random practices. They come together to form a way of life. The abundant life is not something you achieve. It is something you are formed into.
Jesus says, “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly” (John 10:10) Chapter 10 of John’s gospel is a giant metaphor about Jesus the Good Shepherd and the sheep recognizing his voice. Through this story, Jesus shows us what that abundant life looks like. Jesus calls us by name. He leads us. He forms a people who recognize his voice. Acts 2 is what it looks like when we actually follow that voice.
There are many voices that shape our lives, but not all of them lead us to life. Jesus the Good Shepherd is not leading you back to safety. He’s leading you forward into life. And that life has a shape and a rhythm. It looks like study and learning, life in community, breaking bread together, and prayer.
This life is a disciplined life. It is slower, more relational, and less controllable. Have you ever heard us say, “the community is better off when you are here”? And, “when you aren’t here, the community suffers because of your absence”? I used that argument to get my 12 year-old to church just last Sunday. He stopped protesting and came because he knows it to be true. The abundant life is about showing up, being known, and sharing what you have.
It is MUCH easier to accumulate stuff than to intentionally live like this. And yet, the abundant life is not about possessions. It is about the way we practice our life.
Consider your abundant life. What are the voices you are listening to and maybe more importantly, what are the voices you are choosing not to listen to? Make time for one another. Schedule time for coffee or a walk with a church friend.
Write an old fashioned note and drop it in the mail. Share a meal with someone in a way that is intentional, not rushed. And every single day, set aside time to be in conversation with God, to pray.
Don’t think of these things as tasks, but as ways of stepping into the life you have already been given in baptism.
We are very good at accumulation. We are less practiced at abundance. The abundant life is not somewhere out there waiting to be discovered, it is already here. It is the life we are called to live together.
The question is this: Are you willing to live it?